Autoblog UK

At the New York Auto Show, the ailing US car giant Chrysler showed there's life in the old dog yet with the debut of the new Jeep Grand Cherokee. As before, this large SUV is based on the same platform as the Mercedes M-Class, but the looks have been considerably pepped up. The biggest external changes compared with the current model are to be found in the now more angular front as well as in the side profile of the five-seater. The overall length of the Grand Cherokee has been increased by five centimetres and the wheelbase has extended by 13cm to 2.92 metres. This means that passengers on the back seat can stretch out their legs a bit more. In choosing an engine for the European market, they are likely to stick with the six-cylinder diesel built in cooperation with Daimler and familiar to us from the previous model. The new Jeep offers three different four-wheel drive systems. This SUV won't be appearing on the American market until the end of 2010. No announcement has been made about any launch date for Europe.

A reworked interior with more rounded lines can be seen in the 2009 model of the Jeep "Patriot". The compact SUV was given a slight facelift to the interior, the central console and the door linings. Instead of leather you now get plastic, but despite that, the reworked version looks better rather than cheaper. Take a look at interior and exterior shots of the Jeep Patriot in the gallery.