How did a Jeep win 2014 Off Road 4x4 of the Year?

[Paul (SA)]

Must have been a misunderstanding about the term 'off road'?

[grafy82]

Yes, you are correct, their meaning of the term was most time spent 'off (the) road', usually in the dealership, waiting for parts. They were clear winners 

[scarpsD40]

Lol...... It's a Jeep thing, you wouldn't understand.

Haven't missed or regretted one day since I sold mine.

[tracker]

Lost a lot of money on mine.....but it was worth the riddance !!!!!

[Homer_Jay]

4wd of the year is usually the one that is the 'nicest' and with the most bells and whistles, and some new innovation.
If it is 4wd or 'truck like' it will never win.

Oh, and there is usually some magazine advertising deal in the mix as well 

[speewa158]

Homer ...Jay   Are you trying to tell me somebody has done a deal to possibly    ,     allagedgely   ,    lead the cashed up to the poor house in a Jeep  . l will look into to as soon as the parts arrive   .   

[phrothy]

Lol...... It's a Jeep thing, you wouldn't understand.

Haven't missed or regretted one day since I sold mine.

x2

[time]

http://youtu.be/yVM3QX2GPjQ
	Small | Large

[Diesel Power]

Obviously Jeep have plenty of cash to bribe the magazine companys so they win 4wd of the year.

[monbeg]

Any idea which magazine we need to avoid ?

[DannyG]

http://youtu.be/yVM3QX2GPjQ

Wow, I haven't seen that before, what a waste. Im surprised it didn't end up on eBay as a repairable write off..................

[Pipeliner]

It's interesting to see all the people who didn't buy Jeeps (OK, not you Scarps) making statements about how (not) good they are.  I've owned Jeeps since 2003 and sure I've had a few problems but nothing that I wouldn't consider typical of any vehicle - I had worse problems with my Ford Falcon.

I have a Grand Cherokee Limited ($63,000) and my friend has a Range Rover which costs about twice as much, and I find it difficult to see that much extra value in the Rangie.  A 200 series LC may arguably be a slightly better off-road performer, but is that worth another $25,000?

No bribes necessary - Jeep wins on value for money.

Starting under $50,000 for 4x4 versions, the Jeep Grand Cherokee continues to raise the bar in the off-road category in regards to affordability, luxury appointments and family-friendly appeal.
 
The latest update takes the large five-seat wagon further upmarket while not compromising any of its legendary off-road ability. Available with a proper four-wheel drive system, adjustable air suspension, eight-speed automatic transmission and powerful but efficient turbo-diesel engine (and good old fashioned petrol V8s), the Grand Cherokee is equally at home in town and bush.
 
Ride comfort, refinement, technology and safety levels are now comparable with significantly more expensive European SUVs, while the big Jeep also delivers in the cost of ownership and retained value stakes.

Rod Chapman – Editor Trucks & Industry

[WilSurf]

A mate had a Dmax and sold it for a Jeep Grand Cherokee.
He is regretting what he did.
After 30 kms on the road, the car was in limb mode and needed to be towed back to the dealer.

[Pipeliner]

Drive.com.au placed the Grand as 4wd of the year in  2011, 2012 and 2013

[DannyG]

It's interesting to see all the people who didn't buy Jeeps (OK, not you Scarps) making statements about how (not) good they are.  I've owned Jeeps since 2003 and sure I've had a few problems but nothing that I wouldn't consider typical of any vehicle - I had worse problems with my Ford Falcon.

 

All manufacturers cop it mate, don't take it personally. When an owner of one brand see's another brand have an issue they tend to jump on it. Its human nature in most cases to 'justify' a purchase no matter how bad it turns out to be. I mean, I know people who own Toyotas.......

[JCOJ]

The magazine probably only had it two days so it maybe lasted just that long.

Pipeliner - you must be one of the lucky ones.

Me personally - I have had two Jeeps and been a member of a Jeep Club for 10 years now.  Never in a million years would I ever buy one again, and most of our members are the same.  It is not only the lack of reliability, but also the very poor service from the dealerships, the total lack of spare parts and the time it takes to get them in (8 weeks or more!!), and the fact that the Jeep mechanics have no idea of what a problem is unless their little plug in machine can tell them.

When a vehicle spends 16 weeks at the dealer on the one warranty item, it becomes a bit beyond a joke.  When they tell you to collect the car after a warranty repair and you get no more than 100m out the driveway and the problem re-occurs (and this happened to me 4 times!!!), you start to lose faith very quickly.  When you leave for your Easter trip on Easter Thursday and you limp into the nearest town only half way to your desination and the Jeep ends up on the back of a flatbed with no assistance of a hire car from Jeep Assist, you start to get very angry.  When you get in the car and drive down your street at the start of your holiday and you wonder if you will actually make it, it is time to give up!!

[MDS69]

It's interesting to see all the people who didn't buy Jeeps (OK, not you Scarps) making statements about how (not) good they are.  I've owned Jeeps since 2003 and sure I've had a few problems but nothing that I wouldn't consider typical of any vehicle - I had worse problems with my Ford Falcon.

I have a Grand Cherokee Limited ($63,000) and my friend has a Range Rover which costs about twice as much, and I find it difficult to see that much extra value in the Rangie.  A 200 series LC may arguably be a slightly better off-road performer, but is that worth another $25,000?

No bribes necessary - Jeep wins on value for money.

Starting under $50,000 for 4x4 versions, the Jeep Grand Cherokee continues to raise the bar in the off-road category in regards to affordability, luxury appointments and family-friendly appeal.
 
The latest update takes the large five-seat wagon further upmarket while not compromising any of its legendary off-road ability. Available with a proper four-wheel drive system, adjustable air suspension, eight-speed automatic transmission and powerful but efficient turbo-diesel engine (and good old fashioned petrol V8s), the Grand Cherokee is equally at home in town and bush.
 
Ride comfort, refinement, technology and safety levels are now comparable with significantly more expensive European SUVs, while the big Jeep also delivers in the cost of ownership and retained value stakes.

Rod Chapman – Editor Trucks & Industry

No where in that little blurb from Rod Chapman can I see the word reliable.

[neowatcher]

When toying around which 4x4 to buy if you want to take it out of the suburbs, I reckon it comes to only a few crucial questions you need to consider:

• Reliability
• Support network (certainly in remote areas)

Of course, reliability can differ per car, some may never have a problem and for others the list can be endless. Cars just break down once in a while, you just have to accept that. But you generally get a gist of a car's reliability by looking at forums. If many Jeep drivers vow to never buy one again - that's an indication to reconsider that option.

When I was looking for a car (considered Toyota, Nissan, Jeep, VW, BMZ, Land Rover, Mercedes, etc), the definitive conclusion I made and chose for a Toyota Prado were the reliability and the support network nation wide. I may have been biased as that was my fourth Toyota, but I always found them good and the service network is just there and everywhere.

There is a reason why you see so many Landcruisers, Pajeros and the like, still driving in the outback and used by locals ... !

[paull]

I always think the sh1t people dump on Jeeps is funny.
Yes I'm a Jeep owner but I'm hardly a Jeep fanatic. If it was sh1t then I'd say so.   
I've owned my JK from new for 5 years, done over 100,000km, and it has been trouble free.
My only basis for comparison is the Nissan X-Trail I had prior to this (also a new car). That had more issues in 18 months than I've had with the JK in 5 years and the Nissan service department were way worse than Jeep's are (delays in getting parts, repeatedly ordering the wrong parts, unable to diagnose issues,.......).

I won't deny that Jeep dealers are largely useless, uneducated in what they sell, and damned expensive.
Nor will I deny that OE replacement parts for the Jeep can be difficult to get here (very long waiting times) and are seriously over priced.
That just means I source parts from elsewhere like the US or UK (far quicker and for far less than Jeep Australian can manage) and get it serviced by Jeep specialist garages.

My JK has been an absolute pleasure to own and wouldn't hesitate to get another one.
Do I think I've probably been lucky? Yes.
I think buying any new car is a lottery these days, especially if you intend to take it off the beaten track.
Look at any marque and tell me of a model that hasn't had some very well publicised issues. It's just that in some cases the sh1t sticks and they're labelled unreliable and in other cases is laughed off as minor blip on an otherwise unblemished record (in other words people are basing judgements of current reliability on how reliable things were 20 years ago). 
In this day and age I don't care how many service centres car companies claim to have. The reality is if you're more than 10 minutes from a major city then they're going to be very limited in what they can diagnose and fix with any speed. Regardless of the badge you're going to be paying for tow home or waiting ion the outback for weeks to get parts.

Just my 10c worth.

[pattyann]

Good one paull - we couldn't be happier with our Jeep and there are more like us - Toyota owners need to get over themselves and move on

[monbeg]

I always think the sh1t people dump on Jeeps is funny.
Yes I'm a Jeep owner but I'm hardly a Jeep fanatic. If it was sh1t then I'd say so.   
I've owned my JK from new for 5 years, done over 100,000km, and it has been trouble free.
My only basis for comparison is the Nissan X-Trail I had prior to this (also a new car). That had more issues in 18 months than I've had with the JK in 5 years and the Nissan service department were way worse than Jeep's are (delays in getting parts, repeatedly ordering the wrong parts, unable to diagnose issues,.......).

I won't deny that Jeep dealers are largely useless, uneducated in what they sell, and damned expensive.
Nor will I deny that OE replacement parts for the Jeep can be difficult to get here (very long waiting times) and are seriously over priced.
That just means I source parts from elsewhere like the US or UK (far quicker and for far less than Jeep Australian can manage) and get it serviced by Jeep specialist garages.

My JK has been an absolute pleasure to own and wouldn't hesitate to get another one.
Do I think I've probably been lucky? Yes.
I think buying any new car is a lottery these days, especially if you intend to take it off the beaten track.
Look at any marque and tell me of a model that hasn't had some very well publicised issues. It's just that in some cases the sh1t sticks and they're labelled unreliable and in other cases is laughed off as minor blip on an otherwise unblemished record (in other words people are basing judgements of current reliability on how reliable things were 20 years ago). 
In this day and age I don't care how many service centres car companies claim to have. The reality is if you're more than 10 minutes from a major city then they're going to be very limited in what they can diagnose and fix with any speed. Regardless of the badge you're going to be paying for tow home or waiting ion the outback for weeks to get parts.

Just my 10c worth.

paull - I doubt if anyone will argue with your experience with a Jeep but to state that they are the 2014 OFF ROAD 4x4 of the year is somewhat amusing to say the least.

[WilSurf]

Toyota owners need to get over themselves and move on

That's why I have a Lexus. 

[Homer_Jay]

Obviously Jeep have plenty of cash to bribe the magazine companies so they win 4wd of the year.

Geez...... at least I was trying to be subtle about it 

There is a commercial reality to ALL media (I don't want to alarm anyone, but they are all in it to make money!).

Doesnt matter if it is 4WDOTY, CarOTY, BoatOTY or PAt Callinan's 'quietest Yamaha generator' on the market, or Roothy's you beaut, best there is cheap chinese snatch strap......... There is probably money passing hands at some level.
Any magazine who was remotely honest in reviews has gone broke a long, long time ago.

And I would still say the same thing if they gave the award to a Toyota! 

[dazzler]

Good one paull - we couldn't be happier with our Jeep and there are more like us - Toyota owners need to get over themselves and move on

Why Toyota drivers?

Seems like a good mix of brand ownership having a little fun in the thread.

BTW, I work alongside the people in Fair Trading who conciliate complaints from the public.  Hate to burst your bubble but I have asked them (after the wreck my jeep beatup) and Jeep are overly represented in the complaint area, particularly when you compare volumes sold.

Interestingly though some of the Jeep dealerships have been very customer focused even simply refunding the complainants money.  They are not built as well as the Jap brigade simply because they are built in the USA who are still behind their Asian brothers.

Enjoy your Jeep.  I would love one but don't suit my usage.

[paull]

paull - I doubt if anyone will argue with your experience with a Jeep but to state that they are the 2014 OFF ROAD 4x4 of the year is somewhat amusing to say the least.

Let's face it, it's not like they gave the award to a Suzuki Jimny (which I also own) and it makes a change from a D4 or LC200. Surely the Grand Cherokee can't be any less deserving that an FJ Cruiser (don't remember which mag had that as #1 a few years ago but one of them did).

In reality most of these are good cars. They all have their strengths and weaknesses and which one is best for any one particular person is going to be a decision based on a their own criteria. LC200 & D4 together have won more awards than I can count but neither of them fit my criteria.

I think all of the magazine articles need to be taken with a pinch of salt. The product comparisons are always won by major sponsors. The 4WD OTY articles are likely similarly decided. At best they are skewed by which specific models are made available by the car manufacturers for the test and at worst the testing criteria can be massaged to suit different vehicles. Read them for entertainment and information but then make your own mind up as to which is best.

In relation to the Grand Cherokee, is it right for everyone? Nope. Has it had it's fair shared of issues? Yep. Does it have 4WD, a class leading (or matching) tow rating and a whole swag of goodies to play with? Yep. Horses for courses........there's plenty of happy Grand owners out there, many of them towing bloody great big caravans around Aus for the best part of the year. Caravan parks are full of them. They can't be all that bad.