By 2006, the WK Grand Cherokee was poised to enter its sophomore 12 months. Though sales figures from the year prior proved promising, critics had been largely blended of their early critiques of the third-generation Grand Cherokee. While many had praised the WK’s revised styling, others had been much more vital of the newly revised Jeep Grand Cherokee as an entire.
Nonetheless, the WK’s manufacturing run continued. However, on the similar time, the Grand Cherokee’s position inside Jeep’s product lineup was starting to evolve. Following the Jeep Commander’s 2006 launch, the Grand Cherokee now not served because the model’s solely full-size SUV. As a outcome, the Grand Cherokee started taking over a considerably extra sporty persona.
A Change Of Course
Those at Chrysler initially envisioned the Grand Cherokee as their luxurious wagon of alternative, supposed to compete throughout the new, but quickly rising home SUV market. The earliest of Grand Cherokees served as direct competitors to the Ford Explorer, which historically reigned supreme on this market area.
By 2006, the Grand Cherokee had transitioned right into a sportier, considerably extra performance-oriented wagon. The WK was extra agile than the ZJ or WJ earlier than it, because of using a revised suspension, but greater than highly effective sufficient to sort out something that the street, or path, threw its means. Jeep then additional constructed upon this progress by providing numerous specialty packages, aimed toward enhancing the Grand Cherokee’s efficiency attributes.
Multi-faceted Appeal
The 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee was provided with a complete of 4 accessible engines. The first, and most modest of which, was the three.7-liter V6, which had changed the long-standing 4.0-liter inline-six earlier than it. Jeep’s new V6 churned out 215 horsepower, and 235 lb-ft of torque.
Also accessible have been two elective V8 powerplants. The mid-range 4.7-liter V8 produced a complete of 230 horsepower, together with 295 lb-ft of torque. Meanwhile, the top-tier 5.7-liter Hemi dished out 325 horsepower, in addition to 369 lb-ft of torque, making it fairly in style with performance-minded shoppers.
As if the 5.7-liter Hemi’s output was not spectacular sufficient, these at DaimlerChrysler had somewhat one thing particular up their sleeve for the 2006 mannequin 12 months. When buying the Grand Cherokee, shoppers might go for the SRT8 bundle ($39,700), which included a fire-breathing 6.1-liter Hemi V8. This powerplant was able to conjuring up 420 horsepower, with 420 lb-ft of torque, offering an exciting expertise for all.
Additional high-points of the 2006 Grand Cherokee included Jeep’s use of a brand new impartial entrance suspension, the supply of three particular person 4WD techniques (Quadra-Trac I, Quadra-Trac II, and Quadra-Drive II), and the implementation of rack and pinion-based steering.
Several specialty packages have been additionally accessible for the 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee. In addition to a brand new 6.1-liter Hemi, the SRT8-optioned Grand Cherokee additionally got here outfitted with track-ready suspension, everlasting AWD, and high-performance Brembo brakes. Also accessible was a specialty Overland bundle, full with platinum trim, wooden/leather-based inside, and built-in navigation.
Poised For Success
The 2006 manufacturing 12 months proved to be an attention-grabbing time in Jeep Grand Cherokee improvement. It appeared as if DaimlerChrysler had lastly stumbled upon a recipe for interesting to just about each client underneath the solar.
The newly provided SRT8 bundle catered to these seeking balanced efficiency with a sporty edge, whereas the Overland Grand Cherokee took luxurious to the following excessive. All gaps in between have been stuffed by Jeep’s base Limited and Laredo trims. Nonetheless, solely 139,148 Grand Cherokees have been offered throughout the 2006 mannequin 12 months, roughly 70,000 lower than that of only a 12 months prior.
2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee Specifications
| Engine | 3.7L V6
4.7L V8 5.7L V8 6.1L V8 |
| Horsepower | 210/230/325/420 horsepower |
| Torque | 235/295/369/420 lb-ft torque |
| 0-60 MPH | 4.6 sec SRT8 |
| Quarter Mile Time | 13.2 sec SRT8 |
| Weight | 4,421-4,788 Lbs |
| Price | $27,415/$29,385 Laredo/4WD
$33,615/$36,205 Limited/4WD $39,440/$42,680 Overland/4WD $39,700 SRT-8 4WD
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| Production Numbers | 139,148 |
Available Exterior Colors
The 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee was accessible in Light Graystone Pearl, Inferno Red Crystal, Black, Red Rock Crystal, Dark Khaki, Jeep Green Metallic, Deep Beryl Green, Light Khaki, Midnight Blue Pearl, Jasper Blue, Stone White, and Bright Silver.
Available Interior Colors
The 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee inside was accessible in Quartz, Khaki, and Gray.
2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee Video
We discovered an excellent video in regards to the 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee.