Jeep Cherokee 140 Multijet review

The Jeep Cherokee 140 Multijet is comfortable, efficient and good value for money in this spec, but it’s not the best option for on-road dynamics or quality. If you’re not buying a Cherokee for its fantastic off-road ability, there are better choices out there – such as the premium Q3 or the well rounded Qashqai. It’s by no means a bad choice; it’s just not the one we’d go for.

We've already sampled the 168bhp four-wheel-drive Jeep Cherokee with a nine-speed auto, but the big seller is set to be this 138bhp front-wheel-drive Jeep Cherokee 2.0 Multijet 140.

It uses essentially the same 2.0-litre diesel as the more powerful Cherokee, yet where that car comes as standard with the nine-speed auto, this one has a six-speed manual. Still, it feels punchy enough, doing 0-62mph in 10.9 seconds.

Avoid four-wheel drive with this engine, though, because it’ll slow the figure to 12 seconds. Sticking with front drive benefits efficiency, with 139g/km of CO2 emissions and 53.3mpg. A similar Audi Q3 will get 54.0mpg and 137g/km.

Clearly, going without the auto and with less power, this engine feels like it needs to be worked harder than the 168bhp car. It seems a little harsher and the overall package a little less premium. No doubt adding the nine-speeder would improve matters, but at least the manual is light and accurate. The suspension still feels geared more towards comfort than handling, which means you glide over cracked roads without much fuss but lean into corners a bit too much.

This basic model, in Longitude trim, starts at £25,495 – only £100 less than a near-identical Audi Q3. Thankfully the interior’s nearly up to those premium quality levels, despite some scratchy plastics and a few cheap-looking details.

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Bluetooth, rear parking sensors and dual-zone climate control are included, but paying an extra £2,200 for Longitude+ ups the premium feel even further with an 8.4-inch touchscreen sat-nav. Our top-spec Limited car is £31,195.

Boot capacity is 412 litres with seats up and slid right back. Move bench forwards, and it’s 500 litres. Engineers have set up suspension more for comfort than fun, so the ride impresses on uneven surfaces, but the body rolls a little bit too much through corners.

The Cherokee’s main issue, though, is that buyers of this kind of car will be looking to stay on the road – and we’d pick an Audi Q3 or Nissan Qashqai ahead of it for that. Granted, the off-road prowess of 4WD models is a stand-out attribute, but this front-wheel-drive Jeep fades into the crowd in a very competitive class.