As we all know, the seven seats version of the Jeep Grand Cherokee is being built by Dodge as the Durango. However, this will be discontinued starting at the end of this year which means that the FCA group will remain without a seven seats crossover. Luckily though, the successor is closer than we first thought. The upcoming 2018 Jeep Grand Wagoneer has been rumored for a really long time and it was only recently confirmed by Jeep. There is still very little information about it, but rumors say that it and the successor of the Grand Cherokee are still going to share a platform. Instead of being an aging Mercedes platform though, this time around the two are going to be based on an entirely new chassis.
This new chassis has been first rumored about two years ago and since then we found out that it might also be the basis of an upcoming Alfa Romeo crossover. Unlike many of their future models, the Grand Wagoneer and Cherokee are both going to remain rear wheel drive at their core. This also means that the two might handle quite a bit better than expected. The rear wheel drive chassis will also be a rather big improvement over the current generation. It will use more high end materials such as aluminum and high strength steel and it should make for a much lighter car in general. There is still no word from Jeep about the pricing of the car but from the looks of it, the upcoming 2018 Jeep Grand Wagoneer might cost around $30,000 for a base version.
2018 Jeep Grand Wagoneer Design
The price would be in line with that of the Durango, however unlike the Durango, the Wagoneer is expected to be larger, inside and out. Its design is still well under wraps but let’s just say that the vehicle won’t be borrowing just its name. We expect the new seven seats Jeep to be mostly based on the design of the original model which would make for another retro-modern car in their lineup. The 2018 Jeep Grand Wagoneer is expected to be wider, longer and possibly taller than its close sibling. On top of that it will benefit from more off-road features and it should be quite a bit more capable than its predecessor.
Unlike the Wrangler, which is quite a basic car inside the cabin, the Grand Wagoneer should offer all the usual commodities of a true crossover. The materials should be better and if the rumors are correct, it will benefit from a lot of high end features in its top end trim levels.
Engine Rumors, Performance
Like with most other cars out there, the engines on the upcoming 2018 Jeep Grand Wagoneer are likely going to be downsized over the Durango. We expect the base model of the vehicle to receive a 2.0L turbocharged inline-4 petrol engine. This should be enough for 270 horsepower and close to 280 lb-ft of torque, more than enough for most. Further up the range we might see a brand new engine for Jeep, a 3.0L twin-turbocharged V6. There is still no word on the output of this powertrain but it should be capable to offer between 300 and 400 horsepower with ease. A high performance version is likely going to be offered at a later date powered by a V8 but at this point this is just a rumor. We are pretty sure though that the car will be offered with an 8 speed automatic as standard. On top of that, a 3.0L twin-turbocharged V6 diesel with as much as 300 horsepower might be offered. This would be the first time Jeep would offer a diesel on the US market.
