What a difference a letter makes. We’re on an entire site devoted to the JK, the current Jeep Wrangler. There are hundreds of threads about how to install mods on it, JK-related news, and cool pics of it.
There are two threads about the XK, the Jeep Commander. Literally. Two.
It’s not a surprise given that this is JK-Forum and that there hasn’t been a successor to the Commander since it was discontinued after the 2010 model year. That doesn’t change the fact that the Commander existed and that it was a Jeep, though.
MotorWeek drove it when it first came out. It found the not-so-full-size full-size SUV based on the midsize Grand Cherokee to be comfortable inside and capable outside. The 5.7-liter-Hemi-powered Limited model the show tested came with the Quadra-Drive II four-wheel drive system, 8.6 inches of ground clearance, plenty of suspension travel, and Electronic Limited Slip Differentials. That hardware made it capable in the rough, although the stock all-season tires weren’t aggressive enough to handle mud well. The rear overhang got caught on things in the woods, but the skid plates kept the vital parts above them intact and leak-free.
The Commander seems forgotten these days (on here, at least), but I’m sure we’ll all remember when its successor of sorts, the next-generation Grand Wagoneer, comes out.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
