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Jeep Grand Cherokee L Vs Land Rover Defender Thorough Comparison Cuts Deep

Jeep chose to introduce the all-new Grand Cherokee by releasing the longer L version first. It gets three rows of seats - a premiere for the model - but that's not even half the story of why the new Jeep will be such an important vehicle for the brand.
Jeep Grand Cherokee L Vs Land Rover Defender comparison 11 photos
Photo: TFLoffroad / YouTube thumbnail
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The Grand Cherokee L points toward a more upmarket positioning for the legendary nameplate, a move that, together with the bigger size and increased number of seats, places it directly in the path of a host of models from the competition. One of those is the also recently revamped Land Rover Defender.

If you think the Grand Cherokee suffered a spectacular transformation, wait until you hear about the Defender. The Land Rover SUV went from a bare-bones SUV to a premium off-roading machine in one swift move, one that also seems to have boosted its price tag significantly as well. Go wild on the new Defender ant it'll orbit dangerously close to the $100,000 mark, maybe even go past it. Stick to its roots the best you can, and you'll be able to get the 110 for slightly more than $40,000. That's a huge price range, but one that provides plenty of overlap with the Jeep Grand Cherokee L.

There is just $5,000 between the two tested vehicles (far from us to suggest that $5,000 is nothing more than change, but at this price level, it's a deal-breaker either), but while the Cherokee sits close to the top of its pricing brackets, there is still plenty of room above for the Defender. However, what matters is how these two compare against each other, so let's delve into it.

Engine-wise, it's all a matter of preference. The Defender is more powerful and slightly more refined, but its 3.0-liter turbocharged straight-six mild-hybrid setup is also incomprehensively more intricate than the Jeep's straightforward 5.7-liter V8 Hemi. The power gap isn't that significant either, so it's hard to call a winner.

Both vehicles were equipped with the factory-spec optional off-road tires, and they're both Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain Adventures. However, the P400 Defender notoriously comes with 20" wheels (smaller ones can't be fitted due to the size of the brake discs), whereas the Grand Cherokee L Overland gets 18" ones. This should be an advantage for the Jeep as it allows taller sidewalls, but you can write that down as a missed opportunity for the American carmaker as the overall size of its wheels is still smaller than the Defender's.

Jeep Grand Cherokee L Vs Land Rover Defender comparison
Photo: TFLoffroad / YouTube thumbnail
The Land Rover wins in the ground clearance head-to-head too - in fact, let's just cut the whole story short and say the Defender's off-roading numbers altogether are clearly superior to the Jeep's. Ground clearance, approach, departure, and break-over angle, wading depth - the British SUV beats its American counterpart on each and every one of them.

With Jeep bragging about the speed with which its air suspension lifts the vehicle, TFL's Tommy and Andre set up a vertical drag race, if you will, between the two vehicles. The Defender takes another win, proving all those years of practice (Land Rover has been offering air suspensions on LR3s - Discovery 3s - ages ago) mean it still holds an advantage. In its highest setting, though, both feel a little too firm for comfort.

So far, the Defender is winning by a landslide. However, as you move toward the two vehicle's cabins, that's where the Jeep begins to shine. It offers more space in almost every conceivable way (the trunk is not as tall), it's more luxurious (at least by classic standards, because Land Rover opted for a rugged-premium approach for the Defender), and it has more technology, all for a smaller price.

The all-important third row is also a lot more usable in the Grand Cherokee L, though this particular car came with the six-seat configuration (2-2-2). The Defender can be had with just as many places to sit without even having a third row by using a front middle jump seat. However, with both in a seven-seat configuration, the Jeep is by far the most usable.

After taking the two up and down one of their favorite off-road courses, the two presenters can't pick a winner, and that's because even though there is obviously price overlapping, the two are essentially very different from one another. One is a better day-to-day family car, the other is a better off roader, but they can both do what the other one excels at pretty decently. It comes down to personal preference and, of course, budget.

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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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