Jeep raised the bar with their legendary mid size SUV currently on show at the New York auto show. The 2014 Jeep Cherokee now features world class on road dynamics, improved fuel economy as well as best-in-class capability.

2014 Jeep Cherokee ushers in new look and feel

Engine Capability

The 2014 Jeep Cherokee will be available in two engine variations; a 2.4 litre and 3.2 litre. The 2.4-litre Tigershark petrol engine delivers 137 kW of power and 232 Nm of torque at 4800 rpm. The 3.2-litre Pentastar petrol engine produces 199 kW and a torque figure of 316 Nm.

The new Cherokee will be available in three four wheel drive systems including: Active Drive I, Active drive II and Active Drive Lock.

Exterior Styling Features

The exterior of the 2014 Jeep Cherokee is built with 65% high strength steel to construct a strong, lightweight and solid vehicle architecture. The new front suspension features McPherson struts and a new rear independent multi-link suspension.

Other exterior design features include sleek lines across the upper body, a waterfall hood with iconic peaked seven-slotted grille in the front. It includes a crisp horizontal snap, advanced LED technology with daytime running lamps in the front end and full LED tail lamps, which are an integral part of the rear backlight graphic.

Additionally the 2014 Jeep Cherokee offers customers two industry exclusive open-air options such as the new Command-View panoramic sunroof or the Sky Slider full-length open canvas roof.

Interior Styling Features

Interior features include a range of sophisticated and comfortable hand crafted equipment and design structures including 70 safety and security features. These include 10 airbags for the driver and passengers, premium materials around the door uppers and armrests and on the upper instrument panel. The seats are trimmed with Nappa leather and are available as power adjustable, heated/ventilated seats with memory. The 60/40 split second-row seats adjust fore and aft for increased passenger comfort and cargo flexibility.

State-of-the art technology in the Cherokee comprises of a TFT LED 3.5-inch greyscale or 7-inch full-colour reconfigurable instrument cluster which allows the driver to select from a range of information that can be displayed in the centre of the gauge cluster. Including turn-by-turn navigation, speed, real-time fuel economy, safety warnings, available Adaptive Cruise Control-Plus, audio information and Jeep-specific features including Selec-Terrain.

The 2014 Jeep Cherokee will also be equipped with a 8.4-inch colour touch screen with Uconnect Access which includes Bluetooth connectivity, SiriusXM Radio, navigation, voice-to-text messaging and streaming audio capability.

Safety Features

Safety features will include ParkSense Parallel/Perpendicular Park Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control-Plus, Forward Collision Warning-Plus, and Lane Departure Warning-Plus. Additional features include 9-1-1 assist call; ESC; Electronic Roll Mitigation; Blind-spot Monitoring; Rear Cross Path detection; ParkView rear backup camera with dynamic grid lines and 10 standard air bags.

The new 2014 Jeep Cherokee can be expected in SA in the first quarter of 2014.