2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee

No brand is more deeply rooted in off-road adventure than Jeep. The new 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee stands at the top of the lineup with not only a much more luxurious and roomy interior but also more power and, yes, enhanced on- and off-road chops. The new 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 churns out 290 hp and 260 lb ft of torque, delivers 16 mpg city and 23 mpg highway and will tow 5000 pounds. But we’d choose the 360-hp V8 for its muscle-car hustle—and take the modest fuel-economy hit. For the first time, the unibody Jeep uses a four-wheel independent suspension for enhanced steering and suspension precision.

Opt for the Quadra-Lift air suspension, and the Jeep will provide five distinct suspension-height levels, with up to an impressive 10.7 inches of ground clearance. During a snow-covered sortie in Moab, Utah, the Jeep rocked and rolled its way over the worst obstacles, taking the most challenging lines without so much as a whimper. Best of all, the Grand Cherokee can lower itself back down and provide a pillow-soft luxury-car ride on the way home from the trailhead.

Standard safety features include Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Electronic Roll Mitigation (ERM), four-wheel Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) with rough-road detection, and the four-wheel Brake Traction Control System (BTCS). Other safety features include full-length side-curtain air bags which extend protection to front and rear outboard passengers, seat-mounted side thorax air bags that enhance protection for the driver and front passenger and active head restraints which deploy in the event of a rear collision.

The all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee also features SIRIUS Travel Link, offering up-to-the minute information about gas prices, weather conditions, sports scores and movie listings. In addition, Grand Cherokee features SIRIUS Traffic, which monitors traffic in 78 markets across the U.S.