Renegades Rock! The Cheapest Jeep You Can Buy Might Be My Favorite
As an auto reviewer, I tend to get a large pile of machines that have options sheets as long as War and Peace. Instead of getting to test a normal Chevy truck, they bring me the 4×4 Z71 Off-Road High Country Special Ultra Classy and Chrome Edition. So you can see why I was surprised when I was handed the keys to a base Jeep Renegade Sport with nothing more than power windows, cruise control and A/C on the options list. With a window-sticker of just over $21,000 after all fees and destination, it’s about the cheapest machine with a Jeep badge you can buy that doesn’t also say “Power Wheels” across the back.
It’s front-wheel drive, has cloth seats, a manual transmission, and an engine borrowed from a car that’s smaller than a Mini Cooper. By all accounts, it should have been awful, but I can’t stop loving on this tiny machine. I can hear the internet screaming already, “It’s just a Fiat!”, “Go buy a real Jeep!”, and, “It’s just a plastic slab of garbage!”
But here’s the thing about the Renegade. Yes, it shares pieces with a couple of Fiats, and in this trim level it won’t be climbing any mountains, but this thing is more Jeep than any of you are giving it credit. I’d even argue this base Renegade Sport is more “Jeep” than any modern Grand Cherokee or Trailhawk edition you can point at.
You see, the Renegade doesn’t have electronic transfer cases, torque vectoring all-wheel drive, Terrain Control systems or anything else. It has four wheels, a manual transmission and a small motor. It is simplicity and practicality distilled. If the Jeep legacy is built on the bones of the military tool that pulled us through WWII, then what better exemplifies that? The Renegade Sport is a no-frills tool designed to move people and things efficiently and affordably. The interior of the Renegade feels durable and practically designed, the fuel economy is a respectable 30 mpg, and the rear of the thing can swallow a love seat with ease.
It won’t help you overthrow the Axis Powers, but it will help you conquer the urban jungle without a pile of electronic nannies and stupid pointless features. What more could you want from a cheap Jeep?
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