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I managed 433 miles on 17.2 gallons of fuel -- averaging 25 mpg.. (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070606/OPINION03/706060324/1149/)

http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Jeep_Grand_Cherokee_Diesel.jpgScott Burgess - Detroit News - June 6, 2007

2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited Diesel - With an EPA of only 20/25, DCX has a long way to go before they finally get it? So do the reporters by all appearances :(

'Come on, be a man."

It's a phrase every human with a Y chromosome fears. When challenged, we're obligated to face it. It's hardwired in us, forcing us to make irrational decisions like shooting arrows straight up or never stopping for bathroom breaks.

We are men, hear us snore.

So when the folks at Jeep threw down the gauntlet by telling me the redesigned 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited could last 450 miles on one tank with a V-6 more powerful than a Hemi, I had to stop them.

"More powerful than a Hemi?" Pshaw!

A smaller engine with two fewer cylinders than the 5.7-liter monster wouldn't have the gumption to tug a 4,692-pound 4x4 to Traverse City, much less past that … http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070606/OPINION03/706060324/1149/

Wow. 25mpg is all it takes to impress these people? :eek:

Houston, we are in trouble.

Just guessing, but I'm not thinking that the guy was hypermiling. Are there any mainstream autoreviewers who like anything other than the "guts bucket" versions of vehicles?

I laughed to see him use one of CleanMPG's abbreviations too, though I do not think it means what he thinks it does!

Does it have a built-in fuel consumption gauge?

i can't wait to see if anyone posts any comments.

this must be their rebuttal to the recent hypermiler articles......gag me.

:thumbs_down:

Agian.. to our hypermiling SUV drivers... stick around :flag:

There is SOME market for people with horse trailers and such. 25 mpg is a d4mn fine feet with towing power. I'd like a world where families would put thier car seats in a Prius (got 2 in mine ;) ) and the FEW needing towing power would move in this direction.

Guess I'm just feeling contrary today.. :D

11011011

(a $3,700 option on the Limited or Overland models),

Sooo... How long does it take to break even on that diesel investment then?

The computer kept recalculating my speed with the amount of fuel remaining in the 21-gallon tank, rewarding me bonus miles for competent cruise control use -- 450 was still within reach.

:eek: I get 500 on 13 Gallons easy...

Once I-275 turned into I-96 and I passed Wixom, I got a good sense on how well the engine can perform. It hardly stressed when it needed some additional umphto merge with speeding traffic or to quickly pass annoying slow drivers.

Sorry for going so slow. :p ;) I know this area pretty well, since I use it when I visit my grandparents, and frankly going slow is a lot better than going fast in that area, since I also used to do it when I was a speed demon Explorer owner as well.

With a fuel efficient vehicle, you don't need to stop, leading to DWB -- driving while bored. At one point, I managed to keep the cruise control on for more than an hour, never touching the brake,

Heh, it is a bit true though. Plus the bugs really pile up on your windshield when you go 1000 miles and stop twice or so.

Its ride was smooth and quiet, the rack-and-pinion steering felt precise

I wonder if he actually knows what that means, or if he's just quoting from the packet?

Despite the thousands of dead bugs now along for the ride, the Grand Cherokee is a sharp looking vehicle.

Oh, like I mentioned...

I don't know how much farther I could have gone, but I managed 433 miles on 17.2 gallons of fuel -- averaging 25 mpg. It seems the Jeep chickened out before me, telling me I was on fumes when there was still a few gallons left in the tank. Nonetheless, I averaged one mile per gallon better than the EPA highway estimate of 24 mpg.

:Banane39: (ROFLOL)

Oookay.

As for everyone else keeping their diesel engines out of their SUVs and cars, fearing tighter emissions and consumers shunning them, I only want to say one thing: "Come on, be a man."

Hmm... Perhaps that's the way to sell more hybrids. Come on, be a man!

Might be great for a vehicle that can tow, I really don't know. If you're not towing though, then what the hell is the point. 25 MPG highway is definitely nothing impressive. Now if you got that while towing...... but I doubt it.

I think they'd have done a lot better by comparing 2 vehicles while towing something. Like compare the gas version of the Jeep to it while they are both towing a boat or something. That would have made a lot more sense than them talking about his 450 miles trip while towing nothing but air. Hell, if you're gonna compare a truck that can tow without towing anything you might as well compare it to the Prius then. I can haul myself just as well in it than in that Jeep. Though I wouldn't be able to tow a boat.

I say that while it may be a good leap that the article and comparison in general was poorly done. They needed to test it while towing and that's that.

After topping off my $45,550 test vehicle...

You could buy two Prii for that amount. And get twice the fuel economy...

Harry

... or would that be Four times the fuel economy? ;)

Be a Man

For more detail check out the interview by Clotaire Rapaille (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/persuaders/interviews/rapaille.html) - who was consulted for vehicles such as the Jeep. He affirms what many of us suspected - a lot of drivers are treating what they drive way too much as an extension of themselves. Heck, it's just a tool - not a reflection on one's power or success.

I don't discuss it as it is a very long and negative story, but in a previous job, I worked for a very narcassistic and status-oriented boss. Often instead of getting the job done, I'd be on missions to make him look good. Ultimately, he got a demotion and then early retirement. The waste of energy in that situation reminds me a lot of people with a similar mind-set on the road.

"Manly men drive gas hogs."

That notion has got to change. If it takes a new law, so be it.

Harry