2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L vs. Land Rover Discovery: 3-row battle for dominance
Folks who have been wanting a larger Grand Cherokee have finally gotten their wish with the recent debut of the 2021 Grand Cherokee L, a three row unibody crossover made for off roading as much as it's made for grocery getting and what better to challenge it then the Land Rover Discovery soon to be available with a solid refresh for 2021.
So let's get into the nitty gritty of sizing cargo.
Engine options, towing and the all important opera geometry.
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Now first off, I'm using the specs for the European disco as the US specs haven't been released yet.
However, I don't expect anything to change for the North American market.
Size wise yeah this grand cherokee L is a big boy.
The wheelbase here is 121.7 inches while the discovery is just 115 inches and with an overall length of 204.9 inches.
The Grand Cherokee L makes the 195 inch discovery looked downright diminutive.
Both are closer in width though with the Jeep coming in at 77.9 inches without mirrors, the Land Rover just about an inch wider at 78.7 inches.
But look, it's the third row you're interested in right with all that extra math The Grand Cherokee l must have more room for those rear most passengers.
survey says Nope.
The Grand Cherokee Ella has 37.3 inches of headroom in the third row.
The discovery a little bit more at 37.9 inches.
As for leg room, the Grand Cherokee leaves 30.3 inches of space for passengers comfort.
The discovery however, goes much bigger at 33.4 inches.
I know I was surprised too.
But it looks like Grand Cherokee is spending all that space on cargo.
behind the rear seats.
It has 17.2 cubic feet of space compared to the paltry 9.1 cubes behind the third row in the discovery.
For those seats down in the Grand Cherokee L and you'll net 46.9 cubes, but only 40.1 in the discovery.
Overall the Jeep can manage at 4.6 cubic feet of space with the second and third rows folded The discovery catches up here at 84.4 cubic feet.
Now when it comes to size, I'm going to give it to the discovery.
I mean from the numbers the Land Rover has managed to package more room for people into a smaller footprint.
Sure, it suffers with cargo space behind the third row.
But if you're getting the disco with the third row, you're obviously prioritizing people over things.
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These two crossovers couldn't have more dissimilar power trains if they tried.
The base engine option for the Grand Cherokee L is the stalwart 3.6 liter V six good for 290 horsepower and 257 pound feet of torque Meanwhile, the 2 liter turbocharged inline four cylinder in a disco pushes out a comparable 296 horses and 295 pound feet of torque.
But while Jeep decided to rely on a 5.7 liter V8 for more power with 357 horses and 390 pound feet of twist The discovery goes for a three liter inline six cylinder mild hybrid to reach its numbers of 355 horsepower and 369 pound feet of torque.
So with more available torque and a longer wheelbase, you'd expect the Grand Cherokee l to be able to tell more and it's not bad the 5.7 liter can drag 7200 pounds behind it, but The mile hybrid discovery bested by 1000 pounds.
Look, the Jeep engine options aren't bad.
It's just that they aren't very modern.
Well, not yet.
Anyway, Jeep has said that a four by E version is coming but Land Rover is already on the electrification bandwagon with that mild hybrid option.
So point here to the disk Go.
Both Jeep and Land Rover are known for their off pavement prowess.
Ensure neither the Grand Cherokee l nor the discovery are the top model for dirt driving, but they certainly are not new to the game either.
Both come with optional air suspension, so the numbers I'm going to use here are assuming the tallest ride height available.
The Grand Cherokee starts with the normal ride height of 8.3 inches But it can be raised up to 10.9 inches.
The discovery has a base ride height of 8.1 inches but fill up those airbags and you're looking at 11.1 inches of ground clearance.
The Grand Cherokee l has an approach angle of 30.1 degrees.
The discovery writing better at 34 degrees.
The departure angle of the Jeep is 23.6 degrees, the Land Rover again besting it at 30 degrees.
And with that long wheelbase the Grand Cherokee suffers with a 22.6 degree breakover angle, the disco faring much better at 27.5 degrees.
Plus there is a huge difference in waterboarding here just 24 inches for the Grand Cherokee.
A whopping 35.4 inches for the discovery Both vehicles are full time four wheel drive with an available two speed transfer case.
But only the discovery has an optional rear differential locker.
I mean the numbers don't lie all the discovery is kind of taken the offered cake here.
Now, maybe if the Grand Cherokee l were offered in the Trailhawk trim, I'd be singing another tune, but it's not available on the new three row.
However, there is that small little bugaboo of price.
Jeep has not announced pricing for the Grand Cherokee l at the moment but the latest discovery will start at $55,250.
I expect the Grand Cherokee to start a bit lower but I can't give any props until Jeep drops those numbers on it.
This.
Now as always, there's more to a vehicle than just numbers.
styling is subjective, of course, but I like the presence of the Grand Cherokee l more than the discovery.
I also like jeeps Uconnect infotainment system better than anything Land Rover has on offer.
However, when you look at the specs when the discovery just runs away with it here.
Packs more room for third row passengers into a smaller overall package, while still offering up mostly the same amount of overall cargo space.
It's available with an electrified power train, which is something we have to wait for with the Grand Cherokee L and it's got better approach departure and breakover angles, as well as more ground clearance and waterboarding capabilities.
Of course, both companies have been plagued with reliability issues, but if I had to pick one, I'd go dancing at Studio 54 with the disco baby.
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