The arrival of the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee is imminent. A lone sighting by spy photographers have so far been the only apperance of this reclusive model. But while the verdict of whether it will fill the shoes of its hot selling (and aging) predecessor is still up in the air. A new batch of rumors and alleged leaked documents could help shed more light on what’s in store for the upcoming GC.
Prior rumors have suggested that the new GC will axe V6 and V8 options permanently, but Allpar‘s report seems to not only smash this theory, but re-enforce the belief that V6 and V8 choices are indeed going to be retained for 2021. Its unconfirmed if course, but having bigger engine options would help boost the value quotient, and would give buyers who haul and especially tow the chance to have a beefier engine that can handle the heavy loads.
But that does not mean that Jeep engineers are discounting the four cylinder, with a 2.0 liter four cylinder engine rumored to appear several months after the 2021 Grand Cherokee enters the market. Power output (like a lot of other things surrounding the Grand Cherokee) is unknown, but looking at the 2.0 liter that sees duty in select trims of Wrangler, it would not surprise us if the engine here does not stray too far away from the 270 horsepower that’s seen in the Wrangler. It’s unknown if the four cylinder will eventually replace the V6, but Jeep could perhaps launch the Grand Cherokee with the familiar engines first, and then introduce the four cylinder later to try and see if folks will warm up to the idea of a Grand Cherokee with less than six cylinders.
Regardless of what angle one looks at, changes are indeed coming for the Grand Cherokee, though it is unknown how radical some of them might be. The current generation Grand Cherokee is an aging beast, with the model appearing all the way back in 2011. That’s ancient by automotive standards, but the sands of time have so far allowed the Jeep to be more youthful than it appears, with 242,969 units sold during the 2019 model year (an 8 percent increase over 2018.) This is very potent success, and it also puts pressure on the new model to continue this success.
We won’t have to wait long to find out, with the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee making its formal debut later this year as an early 2021 model.