2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee vs 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee, despite being over a decade old, maintained a timeless and appealing design. It combined rugged utility with upscale sophistication, featuring big wheels, flared fenders, and a balanced aesthetic that defined what an SUV should look like. The Grand Cherokee's design contributed significantly to its continued success, offering a blend of mainstream, luxury, and performance SUV characteristics. The lineup ranged from the affordable Laredo and Limited trims to the upscale Overland and Summit, with performance models like the SRT and Trackhawk, and the off-road-ready Trailhawk. For 2021, minor updates were made to the Laredo and Limited trims, and new versions like the Laredo X and 80th Anniversary Edition were introduced. Pricing spanned from about $35,000 to nearly $90,000.

The test vehicle, a Summit trim, came equipped with a 5.7-liter V8 engine, 4WD, extra-cost paint, the Platinum Series Group, and the Signature Leather-Wrapped Interior Package, totaling $68,185. The Platinum Series Group enhanced the Summit's appearance with body-color mirror caps, door handles, side sills, and lower bumpers, giving it a more premium look. Inside, the Summit featured premium leather, genuine wood, real aluminum, and simulated suede, with a striking Indigo and Ski Gray color scheme. However, the interior showed signs of aging, with outdated switchgear and non-flush panel fits indicating a need for a redesign.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport, launched in 2005 and in its second generation since 2014, received an interior and exterior refresh in 2018, which carried over into 2021. This refresh introduced the dual-screen center console, a defining feature of recent Land Rover interiors. The 2020 model year saw the addition of a plug-in hybrid variant and the availability of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Range Rover Sport offered trims like SE, HSE Silver, HST, HSE Dynamic, Autobiography, SVR, and SVR Carbon Edition. The base SE trim included leather upholstery, dual-zone climate control, an eight-speaker Meridian sound system, a WiFi hotspot, and the dual-screen infotainment system.

The HSE Silver added quad-zone climate control, a panoramic sunroof, heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, and a 19-speaker Meridian sound system, with a refrigerated center console. The HST trim featured a similar set of features but upgraded the powertrain and swapped quad-zone climate control for tri-zone. The HSE Dynamic included a supercharged V8 engine, a limited-slip differential, and a two-speed transfer case. The Autobiography trim offered high-end luxury with 22-way power-adjustable front seats and power soft-close doors. The SVR performance model featured a more powerful V8 engine, sport seats, and a stiffer suspension, with the SVR Carbon Edition adding carbon fiber accents and 22-inch alloy wheels.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee came standard with a 3.6-liter V6 engine, producing 295 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. It could tow up to 6,200 pounds and offered rear or all-wheel drive. For those seeking more power, an optional 5.7-liter Hemi V8 was available, delivering 360 hp and 390 lb-ft of torque, with a best-in-class towing capacity of 7,200 pounds. The V8 also featured cylinder deactivation technology for improved fuel efficiency, though it achieved only 17 mpg in combined driving. The Grand Cherokee Summit included a Quadra-Trac II 4WD system, hill-descent control, and Selec-Terrain traction management, along with a Quadra-Lift air suspension for variable ground clearance.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport offered multiple powertrain options. The base P360 mild-hybrid powertrain combined a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six with a 48-volt electrical system, producing 355 hp and 365 lb-ft of torque. The HST model featured a more potent P400 version, rated at 395 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque. The HSE Silver Edition offered plug-in hybrid and diesel powertrains, with the P400e plug-in hybrid delivering 398 hp and 472 lb-ft of torque, and the 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 producing 254 hp and 443 lb-ft. The HSE Dynamic and Autobiography trims featured a supercharged 5.0-liter V8 with 518 hp and 461 lb-ft of torque, while the SVR and SVR Carbon Edition had a more powerful version of this engine, making 575 hp and 516 lb-ft.

All Range Rover Sport models came with an eight-speed automatic transmission and full-time 4WD. The Range Rover Sport also featured height-adjustable air suspension and a Terrain Response system with multiple modes for various terrains. It was capable off-road and offered impressive cornering abilities on paved surfaces. Most variants could tow up to 7,716 pounds, except for the SVR, which could tow 6,613 pounds.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit featured a luxurious interior with flat, firm, and supportive seats, a heated steering wheel, and quilted and perforated leather upholstery. Both front seats offered eight-way power adjustment, heating, and ventilation, though the controls were embedded in the Uconnect infotainment system, causing some distraction. The rear seat was comfortable but had somewhat snug legroom for taller adults. The optional rear-seat entertainment system added to a sense of claustrophobia, but large side windows, a panoramic sunroof, and light gray leather upholstery helped alleviate this. Interior storage was adequate, though the rear-seat entertainment system's DVD/Blu-Ray player took up much of the center console bin space.

The Grand Cherokee provided 36.3 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat, with a recessed bin for carrying items and storage bins around the spare tire. Folding the second-row seats was easy, and maximum cargo space measured 68.3 cubic feet, which was relatively small for a midsize SUV.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport offered a maximum of 63.7 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats folded and 31.7 cubic feet with the second row in use. An optional third row increased seating capacity to seven but provided only 10.8 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats. Both the first and second rows offered ample headroom and legroom, with lavish appointments, while the third row was tight and best suited for children.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee featured the Uconnect 4C with Nav infotainment system, which offered a nearly flawless user experience, fast response to inputs, and pleasing touchscreen graphics. It included navigation, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, a 4G LTE WiFi hotspot, and a Jeep Skill for Amazon Alexa. SiriusXM provided satellite radio, Traffic Plus, and Travel Link services, along with SiriusXM Guardian for remote access and emergency services. The infotainment system's voice recognition technology worked well, and the Summit trim included a 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport's interior was dominated by a dual-screen center console, with the lower screen controlling climate and vehicle settings, and the upper screen handling infotainment. The system was not always intuitive and had some bugs in earlier models. The lower screen featured dials for multiple functions, while the upper screen had simplified icons for menu navigation and switching between the native system and Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. The system had a learning curve, but it included a real volume button and offered a decent user experience overall.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee had mixed safety ratings. It received a five-star overall rating from the NHTSA for 4WD models, but only four stars for 2WD models due to a three-star rollover resistance rating. The IIHS gave it a "Marginal" rating for small-overlap frontal-impact collisions for the driver and a "Poor" rating for the front passenger. The Grand Cherokee's headlights also rated "Poor" unless upgraded. The Summit trim included numerous safety features, such as adaptive cruise control, forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assistance, and automatic high-beam headlights. It also had a backup camera, parking sensors, and ParkSense parking assistance.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport came with standard driver assistance features like forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, and front-and-rear parking sensors. Adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert were available as options. Other available features included a surround-view parking camera, traffic sign recognition, driver drowsiness monitoring, and parallel and perpendicular park assist. A head-up display was also available.