Lessons Learned in the 2016 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk



Some people find clarity through yoga. Then there are those who see things more clearly when they're out in the grandeur of nature. It was there, behind the wheel of the 2016 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk, that I had several epiphanies.

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Read the review, not a fan of the vehicle, but I realize there's a market for this mall crawler based on sales. I'll stick with my JKU for now. For those of you who like it, I wish the best and hope you enjoy it!!

 

It truly is a great all around do about anything you need small CUV.

It's awesome in the Snow, great on trails to roughly a light Blue.

The nice thing that I love, unlike the Wrangler/JK which sorry sucks as a "car", this one fits that role perfectly. I can go visit family some 8 hours away, arrive in great comfort and at a good speed, then explore 80% of forest roads or trails by them with no problem.

I hate to say it but look at the sales figures, they have surpassed Wrangler and understand why. Would I take it to the zombie apocalypse, no, but for what it is and the role it fills, it's the best out there.

Plus the panorama roof is AWESOME.

The negative is the European engine kill at lights infuriates me, as I always forget to hit the "A" button to disable. It is also way too big brother. The wayside stream of data from U-Connect is creepy

 

We have the vehicle similarly built to the OP's. Have taken the vehicle off pavement and off road, it does surprisingly well out there. Though we did have to go back to our stock JK days and watch our wheel placement and side clearance a tad more than we are used to. With less than 200 miles on the OD the trailhawk conquered rocky stream beds and climbed some gnarly hills. The descent control is a little too much for me as it is real slow but can see in areas where it would/could come in handy especially if one is not familiar with off roading or the trail. The locker does its job and even once assisted us in getting out of a slippery rock situation. Didn't push our luck to hard as we didn't have any rock rails, which will soon be rectified. We climbed this pretty nasty hill and on the other side found some rangers and other people doing some trail maintenance. One of the people goes, "you came up that hill in that? Way to go man".

The main reason we chose this vehicle was to haul around our mountain bikes and venture off pavement at will, not to mention getting a tad better gas mileage and a whole bunch more comfort than our JK. Its the perfect vehicle for those times you want to see where a dirt road goes but don't want to take out the rock crawling, gas guzzling, 37" tire BEAST. The comfort and convenience can't be beat in its class nor can its capability off pavement. Overall am very happy with the choice and purchase. Looking forward to much exploration in this vehicle, once the rock rails are installed.

Ours doesn't have the ventilated seat group as the OP's but has the tow package which gives you a higher gear ratio and less gas mileage. Out here that gear ratio assists in getting up the long steep highway grades as well as assisting with off road hill climbing.

So yes, most will look at the Cherokee as a mall crawling pavement princess but the trailhawk model is more like a tom-boy that you can dress up nice and take to the prom. Yeah, you guys know what I am talking about, best of the both worlds. LOL..

 

We looked at one and even did an overnight demo. Thought the mpg sucked, the transmission was weird, the motor was underpowered and we did not find it exceptionally comfortable.

It would be perfect with a diesel but the 3.2 is a dog.

 

Guess it depends on what you come from/have. Compared to our JK, which is even supercharged, the 3.2 is a rocket ship. Then when compared to the Ford Focus that we traded in for the TH, the TH is capable of going PLAID. Depending on the gear ratio you get with the TH the mileage isn't great. Tow package equipped TH's come with 4.08, this takes away about 6 MPG. WE've been averaging around 23, not much less than I was getting in my Focus, about 28. Those without the tow package and the 3.2 have been reporting close to 30 MPG which is what my wife's honda accord 4 cylinder got and my focus rarely saw.

This is again a matter of relevance but after dealing with the 2012 automatic issues, this transmission is a dream. Little quirky in the AM after a cold night but after about mile to warm up its a dream. Put the vehicle in sport mode and it takes on a whole new attitude.

As for the diesel, I agree. A little 4 cylinder diesel would be awesome. GOBS of torque.