Glance over the U.S. lineup of the Jeep brand. A seven-seat crossover nestled between the Cherokee and Grand Cherokee would be duly welcomed by SUV-crazy peeps, but as it’s often the case with Stellantis, the 2022 Commander won’t be sold in the United States of America.
Revealed for Brazil and other Latin American countries, the Commander is produced at the Goiana Pernambuco assembly plant. This facility, which is fully owned by the automaker under the FCA Fiat Chrysler Automóveis do Brasil Ltda. legal entity, is also responsible for the Fiat Toro unibody pickup truck, the Jeep Compass compact crossover, and the subcompact Renegade.
Loosely inspired by the facelifted Compass and the Commander/Grand Commander for the Chinese market, the Commander for Latin America features the iconic seven-slot grille, LED headlights, and LED taillights to boot. The nameplate on the liftgate is finished in a copper-like hue, which is pretty similar to the Grand Wagoneer that Jeep sells in the United States.
Scheduled to launch in Brazil on August 26th, the Commander features a few interesting details that pay tribute to the Willys MB/Ford GPW military utility vehicles. Those fellows entered service in 1941, hence the “Since 1941” motif on the leather-wrapped center console. Stylish in every respect, the cabin is dressed up in plenty of soft-touch materials on the dashboard and interior door cards. Pictured with a digital instrument cluster, Uconnect 5 touchscreen infotainment, and push-button start, the D-segment crossover further shows “TD 4x4” badging on the left-hand side of the square liftgate.
TD stands for turbo diesel, namely the TD350 engine option that produces 170 PS (168 horsepower) and 350 Nm (258 pound-feet) of torque from 1,750 revs in the Compass. A T270-branded turbo gasoline mill is on the menu as well with 185 PS (182 horsepower) and 270 Nm (200 pound-feet).
The biggest rival of the Commander in Brazil is the Volkswagen Tiguan, which comes exclusively in the long-wheelbase Allspace specification in this part of the world. Only available in R-Line 350 TSI attire, the seven-seat German competitor is 236,090 reais or $44,620 at current exchange rates.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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