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Due to a wreck in the last ice storm, we were in need to get a new car quickly to get back to two cars. I had just wrecked a 2004 Saturn Vue AWD and only a 4WD/AWD SUV would replace it. I will also say that I had an '96 Jeep XJ that I drove until it had 225k miles on it and I have been looking to get back to Jeep since I got ride of it. Without a true XJ replacement, we decided we would upgrade to a Grand Cherokee. After TONS of research and reading every page of the ordering & pricing thread and the features thread, I knew we wanted a 2014 instead of 2013. I debated on ordering and was about to pull the trigger when someone on one of the other boards noticed dealers were getting deliveries and I found an Overland in transit to a dealer an hour away from me. I contacted the dealer on Monday, put down a deposit on Wednesday and then the vehicle was delivered on the next Monday. It was the longest week at work, but we picked the car up last Saturday! Here are my thoughts so far:
Buying process: The dealer has the upper hand when the car is on the lot. I could easily get a few dealers down to 2-4% below invoice (6% with all credit going to SnoFire) when I was talking about ordering, but the couple dealers I talked to that had WK2s being delivered, they would not budge below invoice. I joined Tread Lightly and the dealer and I settled on 2% below invoice OTD price.
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Exterior: When I see the front, I still smile 3 days later. I like the new front with the lights and with the Overland, the black and chrome make a good contrast. The only thing I don't like is the plastic filler piece in the lights, but I don't have to look at it often... The brilliant black paint looks great in the sun due to the flakes in it. The puddle lights are a nice touch as well as the folding mirrors (we have a narrow garage).
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Interior: Anything would have been an upgrade on the Vue. The seats of the WK2 are comfortable and with the vast settings of the seat and steering wheel position, anyone could get comfortable. My wife was playing with the seat height and she had the seat up so high that she bumped her head on the ceiling. The black interior is very nice and I have always liked darker vehicles. The center console does have a gold/copper hue to it when there is not much natural light, but you don't really notice after too long. The steering wheel is large and comfortable. The CD player is very awkwardly in the center console and we store a lot of stuff in the console, so that is a little disappointing. The 8.4 is very smooth and the speakers sound good. I am used to having two 12" subwoofers so while the bass is good, I prefer just a little harder hit. However, the bass is clear. Navigation has been good for the little we used it and I'd rather have the heated seats control on the dash, but that is probably just because I am used to them there.
Engine/Transmission: The V6 is not as peppy as I would like and even more noticeable in ECO mode. Our VUE could literal spin out even with AWD and get up to speed quickly. The shifting of the 8-speed is very smooth in ECO and sport mode. The only quirk I have noticed is that in ECO mode while going downhill and slowing down, the transmission will downshift and you will feel it jerk as if in a manual and downshifting too early. Driving back from the dealer, I was averaging 21.4 MPG on country roads at about 50-55 mph, but after a few trips to downtown Louisville and playing in sports mode with the paddle shifters, I'm down to 18.2 MPG.
I want to thank everyone on the boards for all the information. I knew more about the new WK2 than the dealers trying to sell them. In return, here is a review with some pictures. I will try to take pictures of anything someone wants to see or answer questions. This is a very nice truck!
Buying process: The dealer has the upper hand when the car is on the lot. I could easily get a few dealers down to 2-4% below invoice (6% with all credit going to SnoFire) when I was talking about ordering, but the couple dealers I talked to that had WK2s being delivered, they would not budge below invoice. I joined Tread Lightly and the dealer and I settled on 2% below invoice OTD price.
Exterior: When I see the front, I still smile 3 days later. I like the new front with the lights and with the Overland, the black and chrome make a good contrast. The only thing I don't like is the plastic filler piece in the lights, but I don't have to look at it often... The brilliant black paint looks great in the sun due to the flakes in it. The puddle lights are a nice touch as well as the folding mirrors (we have a narrow garage).
Interior: Anything would have been an upgrade on the Vue. The seats of the WK2 are comfortable and with the vast settings of the seat and steering wheel position, anyone could get comfortable. My wife was playing with the seat height and she had the seat up so high that she bumped her head on the ceiling. The black interior is very nice and I have always liked darker vehicles. The center console does have a gold/copper hue to it when there is not much natural light, but you don't really notice after too long. The steering wheel is large and comfortable. The CD player is very awkwardly in the center console and we store a lot of stuff in the console, so that is a little disappointing. The 8.4 is very smooth and the speakers sound good. I am used to having two 12" subwoofers so while the bass is good, I prefer just a little harder hit. However, the bass is clear. Navigation has been good for the little we used it and I'd rather have the heated seats control on the dash, but that is probably just because I am used to them there.
Engine/Transmission: The V6 is not as peppy as I would like and even more noticeable in ECO mode. Our VUE could literal spin out even with AWD and get up to speed quickly. The shifting of the 8-speed is very smooth in ECO and sport mode. The only quirk I have noticed is that in ECO mode while going downhill and slowing down, the transmission will downshift and you will feel it jerk as if in a manual and downshifting too early. Driving back from the dealer, I was averaging 21.4 MPG on country roads at about 50-55 mph, but after a few trips to downtown Louisville and playing in sports mode with the paddle shifters, I'm down to 18.2 MPG.
I want to thank everyone on the boards for all the information. I knew more about the new WK2 than the dealers trying to sell them. In return, here is a review with some pictures. I will try to take pictures of anything someone wants to see or answer questions. This is a very nice truck!
