Grand Cherokee L on its way, NZ arrival confirmed for later this year

Jeep New Zealand will welcome a new addition to their domestic line-up soon, with the Grand Cherokee L hitting our shores in the coming months.

A Jeep spokesperson confirmed the news to NZ Autocar, and when asked about arrival dates, we were told the L would arrive “in the middle of 2022.”

The L is Jeep’s three-row Cherokee. It’s marketed towards people who need or use a standard Cherokee and want to carry more passengers without upgrading to a full-sized Wagoneer.

That, and Jeep’s current-spec Wagoneer doesn’t come in right-hand-drive, leaving the Cherokee L as the most affordable option.

Jeep New Zealand didn’t mention what specific models will be heading away. Still, our friends across the Tasman have confirmed they are getting three trim levels of the L. They are the Night Eagle, the Limited, and the Summit Reserve. 

Jeep New Zealand also mentioned “like Australia” to us, suggesting we are in line to receive at least one of the three trim levels heading down under.

Either way, all three come with one powertrain option – a naturally-aspirated 3.6-litre petrol V6, which churns out 281 horsepower and 344Nm of torque.

A plug-in hybrid variant is available overseas. With New Zealand tightening its laws around emissions and petrol cars, we expect this model to eventually make its way here.

Power is sent to all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission. The top of the range Summit Reserve comes with a more sophisticated four-wheel-drive system.

The only distinctive differences between all three trims concern technical bits and bobs. Basically, you can nail it down to the higher and pricier the model, the larger the touchscreen. 

Local pricing will be confirmed closer to arrival, but Australia has the cheapest Night Eagle trim going for roughly NZ$88,000. So, we anticipate a price tag similar to that.