Jeep has made the 2012 Grand Cherokee not only stylish and durable, but highly affordable. It’s available to consumers, starting at $26,995 or for a 36-month lease at $309 per month. The manufacturer managed to retain the classic Grand Cherokee look, while adding a little beefiness and powerful looks to the equation. The rounded headlights and classic Jeep grille pay homage to Grand Cherokees of years past. Both the front and back doors have been created with wider openings, allowing for easier access into the Jeep. The wheels have been lined with felt, which makes for a much quieter ride, especially when traveling off-road. The wheel-wells rise a solid 8” above the tops of the tires. This generates more efficient off-road driving. The body is constructed of oven-hardened galvanized steel panels. This makes it incredibly difficult for this year’s Grand Cherokee to suffer the dents and dings that come along with off-road driving. Bi-xenon High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights will fully illuminate the road – or trail. These SmartBeam headlights automatically adjust the brights when oncoming traffic is coming. This makes the road safer for all. They also will automatically turn on when the sun sets and turn off when it rises. This will ensure that you never have to worry about leaving your lights on and draining your battery.

With the rear seats up the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee can accommodate up to 5 adult passengers, including the driver, and 36.3 cubic feet of cargo space. With the rear seats folded down this Jeep can only carry the driver and front passenger, but can provide a more than adequate 68.3 cubic feet of space. Inside the seats Jeep has included comfortable recycled polyurethane foam, with an available leather trim. The rear seats have ample legroom and even recline a full 12 degrees, so the backseat passengers can be just as comfortable as those in the front seat. Why should occupants in the back of cars have to suffer? They shouldn’t. There’s also lumbar support for both the passenger and driver. Both the front and rear seats are heated in ventilated. The touchscreen navigation system from Uconnect has been reported by test drivers to be incredibly hard to use and it is not all that reliable for obtaining directions or accessing stored music. The steering wheel has mounted buttons for audio, cruise control and Bluetooth, where the driver can listen to callers through the Alpine Premium Sound System, with a 506-watt amp and sub.

Three engine options are available on the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The first is a 3.6-liter Pentastar V6, with 290 horsepower and 260 lbs./ft. of torque. This engine can run on either gasoline or E85 and gets 23 MPG highway and 17 around town. This engine is available on the Grand Cherokee Laredo, Laredo X, Limited, Overland and Overland Summit. The next engine option is available on the Laredo X, Limited, Overland and Overland Summit. It consists of a 5.7-liter V8 with a best-in-class 360 ponies and 390 lbs./ft. of torque. The final engine option is only available on the Grand Cherokee SRT8. This massive beast is a 6.4-liter V8 SRT MDS engine with 470 horsepower and 465 lbs./ft. of torque. While it only gets 18 MPG cruising on the highway and an abysmal 12 MPG around town, who cares when this baby can scale a mountain?

In addition to an advanced airbag system, the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee comes with 4 anti-lock disc brakes, a Forward Collision Warning system, a Blind Spot Monitoring system, Electronic Stability Control and Traction Control. It also comes with a rear parking assist camera, where the picture of what lies behind the Jeep is displayed on the dash-mounted screen. So if you’re in the market for a serious off-road vehicle, then the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee certainly has to be at the top of your list.