Thinking about a i-4 trail hawk. Using it to commute during the week and truck trail ride 5 or 6 weekends per summer. Lots of posts stating the I-4 is so underpowered it will get worse hwy mpg than a v-6 (I usually drive 60 miles per day, 70-75 mph). What are your thoughts. NOTE: I won't be doing any towing.
Hello from British Columbia - Owner / Dealer
Hi all. It's a pleasure to be part of the group!
I work for a Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram dealer here in Kamloops, British Columbia.
After participating in Cherokee training in Vancouver, I knew I had to have one. Just took ownership of my new Trailhawk last week, and love it!
I am a previous owner of a 2012 Jeep Wrangler, but found it to be less than ideal due to highway travel being our primary activity, above the odd offroad adventure.
My trailhawk is in Brilliant Black, leather interior group, trailer tow, comfort and convenience package, and cold weather package.
My future plans include headlight replacements, LED exterior lighting, and some Orange pinstripes / hood stripes. (My wrangler was orange, so would like the color to carry on)
Additionally, if anyone would like some dealer info regarding the Cherokee, I welcome any and all questions, as I have access to nearly all trim levels and options packages at any given moment
-Darryn @ Rivershore
I work for a Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram dealer here in Kamloops, British Columbia.
After participating in Cherokee training in Vancouver, I knew I had to have one. Just took ownership of my new Trailhawk last week, and love it!
I am a previous owner of a 2012 Jeep Wrangler, but found it to be less than ideal due to highway travel being our primary activity, above the odd offroad adventure.
My trailhawk is in Brilliant Black, leather interior group, trailer tow, comfort and convenience package, and cold weather package.
My future plans include headlight replacements, LED exterior lighting, and some Orange pinstripes / hood stripes. (My wrangler was orange, so would like the color to carry on)
Additionally, if anyone would like some dealer info regarding the Cherokee, I welcome any and all questions, as I have access to nearly all trim levels and options packages at any given moment
-Darryn @ Rivershore
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When people mention under-powered, I would like to know to what to compare it to.Thinking about a i-4 trail hawk. Using it to commute during the week and truck trail ride 5 or 6 weekends per summer. Lots of posts stating the I-4 is so underpowered it will get worse hwy mpg than a v-6 (I usually drive 60 miles per day, 70-75 mph). What are your thoughts. NOTE: I won't be doing any towing.
I owned a Honda CRV 2008 which is supposedly under-powered, and for me,,, it does the job event when pulling my snowmobile during winter. Not a fast road-runner, but it does the job well for what I need it for.
For gas mileage, I have seen MPG on this forum for both, and some were better with the I4, some are getting pretty bad MPG with the V6 and some better...
I live in a cold place during winter, and I need good MPG, and we all know than even if a v6 and I4 are similar during summer, during winter, the difference can increase significantly.
For me, when I try it, if it is similar to my current CRV, I will probably go with the I4... even if a lot believes it is under-powered... as long it is OK for my needs....
Congrats on your purchase & welcome aboard. Look forward to hearing some of your inside info/input.
Hey!
Wlecome to the forums, and congrats on your new ride!!!
Looking forward to getting some 'inside" info about the new cherokee!
Cheers
Wlecome to the forums, and congrats on your new ride!!!
Looking forward to getting some 'inside" info about the new cherokee!
Cheers
Insider info is always helpful.
Definitely a good list of changes that need to be done that we know of, and then things we haven't already thought of that they have set to come out.
Definitely a good list of changes that need to be done that we know of, and then things we haven't already thought of that they have set to come out.
@Chief Cherokee:
Honestly, I had a difficult time telling them apart during our training session, mind you our course was fairly small, so not a lot of room to wind them up much lol. Given the cost differences, our primary stock is all 3.2s, and so far no one has shown much interest in the 2.4L.
I would urge you to consider the 3.2L, if your budget allows. This way, you wont ever get in to a situation where you 'wish' you had taken the larger engine, and kick yourself for it later.
For what it's worth though, I didn't find the 2.4L underpowered in the slightest.
Honestly, I had a difficult time telling them apart during our training session, mind you our course was fairly small, so not a lot of room to wind them up much lol. Given the cost differences, our primary stock is all 3.2s, and so far no one has shown much interest in the 2.4L.
I would urge you to consider the 3.2L, if your budget allows. This way, you wont ever get in to a situation where you 'wish' you had taken the larger engine, and kick yourself for it later.
For what it's worth though, I didn't find the 2.4L underpowered in the slightest.
I'm no expert, but I drove both the I4 and the V6 on my test drives. I found the I4 to be as good as any other small SUV with a 4 cyl (Honda CR-V, Mazda CX-5, Subaru), but I found the V6 to be downright zippy.
Add to that the very minimal mpg hit you take when you buy the 6 cyl, and I was convinced I wanted a V6. During my test drives on the highway (@ about 70 mph), I found the I4 versions had an affinity for 7th as their top gear, and on the same stretch of road, at the same speed on the same day, the V6 model found 8th as a cruising gear. That meant lower RPM for the V6 at highway cruise which means less engine wear, less noise, and better mpg. I reset each avg mpg meter when I left for my test drives (4 and 6 cyl) and checked the avg when I returned. The V6 actually got better mpg over my 20 min test loop city/hwy than the 4 cyl did. I'm sure there are cases where the 4 cyl will get better mpg, but in the real world (short) test I did, the 6 got better mpg.
That was actually the only "question" I had to answer on my test drives - V6 or I4 - so I paid particular attention to that. I had already decided on model, options, etc.
If you don't mind paying a little more up front, I really feel the V6 is the way to go.
Add to that the very minimal mpg hit you take when you buy the 6 cyl, and I was convinced I wanted a V6. During my test drives on the highway (@ about 70 mph), I found the I4 versions had an affinity for 7th as their top gear, and on the same stretch of road, at the same speed on the same day, the V6 model found 8th as a cruising gear. That meant lower RPM for the V6 at highway cruise which means less engine wear, less noise, and better mpg. I reset each avg mpg meter when I left for my test drives (4 and 6 cyl) and checked the avg when I returned. The V6 actually got better mpg over my 20 min test loop city/hwy than the 4 cyl did. I'm sure there are cases where the 4 cyl will get better mpg, but in the real world (short) test I did, the 6 got better mpg.
That was actually the only "question" I had to answer on my test drives - V6 or I4 - so I paid particular attention to that. I had already decided on model, options, etc.
If you don't mind paying a little more up front, I really feel the V6 is the way to go.
From what I heard, at least the 4 cylinder model feels like a V6, Jeep had no choice but to do this anyways, otherwise it would feel very sluggish
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