For comparison, the Hyundai Palisade starts at $33,710 with front-wheel drive and $35,410 with all-wheel drive. Both prices include shipping
John Grant, co-owner of the Jeep Only dealership in Las Vegas, believes consumers are getting a lot for the money. He was expecting a larger upcharge from the two-row Grand Cherokee, which starts at $35,890 for the 2021 model.
He has 13 customers on a waiting list to order the Grand Cherokee L at Jeep Only and eight more at another location in the city.
“This is like a spaceship,” Grant told Automotive News. “I’ve been inside the [company’s] design dome, so maybe I have a little bit of an advantage. I’ve seen and touched it.”
David Kelleher, chairman of the Stellantis National Dealer Council, thinks the pricing is rational for what the Grand Cherokee L brings to the table. Kelleher, who owns David Dodge-Chrysler-Jeep-Ram in Glen Mills, Pa., said he operates in a premium market and is expecting to sell plenty of the upper-trim variants. He already sells some pickups for $100,000.
Kelleher says the Grand Cherokee L has what it takes to pull attention from BMW and Lexus. Kelleher marvels at the breadth of Jeep, which plays in the entry-level space with the Renegade and this year will have a six-figure technological showcase in the Grand Wagoneer.
“They kept the heritage in the car, but it’s definitively different,” Kelleher said of the Grand Cherokee L. That difference “makes the current owner happy and brings in the new owner as well.”
Tyson Jominy, vice president of data and analytics at J.D. Power, said Jeep will have to spread the word that the Grand Cherokee offers a third row after so many years without.
Jominy sees the Land Rover Discovery as a possible competitor upstream. Among the mainstream options, Jominy said the Palisade will be the vehicle to beat.
The Jeep name “carries quite a bit of weight,” Jominy said. “So it probably is going to straddle that line between your common, domestic mainstream brands and then, of course, your luxury, off-road-focused brands and nameplates.”
