2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee: Teasers show the Prado rival that won't come to Australia
Jeep has teased a subtle facelift for its large SUV, with the refreshed model due to launch in the US later during 2025.
The teased vehicle has the same wheels as the existing top-spec Summit Reserve, but a revised front bumper. It's unclear whether Jeep will continue with different front-end styling for both the regular five-seat and the long-wheelbase seven-seat derivatives.
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The headlights remain slim, but their internals have changed with more pronounced daytime running lights. The tail-lights of the long-wheelbase Grand Cherokee shown appear unchanged.
While the overall design of the interior appears unchanged, a closer inspection reveals some notable changes to switchgear.
The climate control array has been simplified to a single row of buttons, with the heated and ventilated seat controls appearing to have moved to the side of the infotainment touchscreen.
There also appear to be some other potentially touch-capacitive buttons on either side of the screen, while the volume and tuning knobs have been moved up higher.
The teaser image appears to show a carryover 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen.
Jeep hasn't published any details on the new Grand Cherokee beyond its US launch date, however, Mopar Insiders reports this subtle design update will bring a significant change under the skin.
The 5.7-litre 'Hemi' V8 has already been phased out and the 3.6-litre 'Pentastar' V6 will reportedly follow it out the door, with a new turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine set to be introduced.
The new mill will reportedly produce 224kW of power. That's 10kW up on the current V6, with the boosted four almost certain to produce more torque than the 344Nm output of the aged Pentastar six.
It will slot in under the powertrain seen in the 4xe plug-in hybrid (PHEV), which is exclusive to the regular-wheelbase Grand Cherokee and employs a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder plug-in engine to deliver total system outputs of 280kW and 637Nm.
North American rivals like the Chevrolet Traverse and Ford Explorer already offer turbocharged four-cylinder engines, though the latter can also be had with a twin-turbo V6, while other competitors like the Toyota Highlander (Kluger) offer hybrid power and the Mazda CX-90 has a turbocharged inline six.
Jeep announced in March it was discontinuing the Grand Cherokee in Australia, despite the model having been a fixture in its showrooms for close to 30 years and was once even the best-selling large SUV Down Under.
Forcing its hand was an end to right-hand drive production of the large SUV.
'As we look to right-size the Jeep product portfolio to match local market dynamics and customer preferences, we've made the difficult decision to pause availability of the current model Jeep Grand Cherokee in Australia,' said a spokesperson for Stellantis Australia, the factory distributor for the Jeep brand.
'While the Jeep Grand Cherokee will continue to be sold in many countries around the world, this decision allows us to focus our efforts on placing the right products in the right segments that can have the greatest relevance for our customers.'
The electric Wagoneer S and Recon, due on sale here in 2026, will indirectly replace the Grand Cherokee as Jeep Australia's large SUV offerings alongside the Wrangler off-roader.
Last year, Jeep delivered just 645 Grand Cherokees, representing a slump of 48.3 per cent on the previous year. In total, Grand Cherokee sales have fallen by 96 per cent since 2014, when it narrowly beat out the Toyota Prado to the title of Australia's best-selling large SUV.
It's a different story in the US. Jeep sold 216,148 Grand Cherokees in its home market last year, and while it was down 12 per cent on the previous year it still outsold all of its rivals and was the brand's best seller.
Overall, Jeep sales were down six per cent for the year – a much rosier picture than in Australia, where sales slumped 48.7 per cent compared with 2023.
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