2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee or 2021 Defender - Which Is the Better Snowmobile?

We may not know if you have blue or brown eyes, take your coffee with sugar or cream, or occasionally like to dress like the opposite sex, but there's one thing we can say for certain: you don't live too close to the equator. Granted, that probably narrows the search down from seven-point-nine billion people to just about six billion, but at least it's been done without any subterfuge.

Why would you care about how two SUVs perform in the snow if the only chance you have to come across the white stuff is during a nuclear winter - at which point you have much bigger problems than finding traction? Well, considering how SUV ownership goes, the assumption we made might not hold that much water. People tend to favor the more off-road-worthy vehicle even if they never plan to leave the asphalt in theirs.

The reason is pretty simple: manufacturers put a heavy emphasis on rough-terrain capabilities when marketing their SUVs, and so if you want to have the best one, it needs to be able to handle itself off-road. And you want to have the best one. Otherwise, there's no chance to win the bragging competition at the next family dinner with that pesky in-law who's so full of it.

Other than that, there's always an off-chance you might be forced to take your SUV off-road in an extreme situation that could make the difference between life and death for your family (what? I watch movies too), so it might pay off to have a vehicle that's ready to handle it. You think it doesn't make sense? People have been saying the same thing about the success of SUVs for ages, and they're still going strong.

Two of the brands that make the biggest deal of their off-roading prowess are Land Rover and Jeep, and that's despite the fact both have strayed a long way off their initial recipe and started making vehicles more inclined toward comfort and even luxury than ruggedness and simplicity.

With that in mind, it makes perfect sense to compare two of their products (the 2021 Grand Cherokee and the 2021 Defender) and see which will perform better in a fresh layer of snow that, if we're being honest, can't be much deeper than four or five inches. Not the greatest challenge, we agree, but then again, it's not so much the thickness of the snow that poses a challenge - the two vehicles have adjustable air suspensions with more than decent ground clearances - as its slippery nature.

That means this might be as much a test of the tires the two models come equipped with (Pirelli all-seasons for the Jeep and either Goodyear Wrangler DuraTracs or Wrangler All-Terrain Adventures for the Defender - in this case, it's the latter) as of their traction control systems. With neither sporting dedicated winter tires, we might call it a draw and ignore any possible differences the rubber might make.

People have been banging on about the quality of Land Rover's Terrain Response system, so it should come as little surprise that the British vehicle performs slightly better in the quick snow test than its American counterpart. However, the difference is nowhere near great enough to put the Land Rover in a clear favorite position, so when everything else is considered, the reviewer actually gives the win to the Grand Cherokee.

Value-wise, the Jeep offers more for less money, so if it's smart-buying you're after and not just listening to your heart, your best bet would be to go for the Grand Cherokee. However, that's only true for those two models, as tested. Given free reign over the entire Defender and Grand Cherokee lineups, the reviewer would choose a base Land Rover, putting its purchase price largely in the same brackets as the Jeep and making the vehicle considerably more off-road-worthy in the process.