The new Jeep Renegade has one strong marketplace advantage: It doesn’t have to be off the charts special to be the best vehicle in its small SUV class. The other manufacturers left the door wide open for Jeep by forgetting that a fully functional SUV – even a small one — needs to be off-road capable.
Starting out a very manageable $18,00o to $23,000 (depending on trim level), the new urban SUV is essentially a Jeep-lite or a mini-Jeep. Even with four doors and a hatchback, it’s small and limits overall cargo capacity. But, it’s big enough for city or suburban hauls of groceries, sports equipment or kids.
Inbound to dealerships later this year, the Renegade will offer only a four cylinder engine, and the best power plant option is the 2.4 liter unit with 184 horsepower. Jeep thankfully offers a proper manual transmission as that engine’s mate. There’s a dual clutch automatic option, but proper Jeeps need that manual shifter if they’re going to do proper Jeep-ish business. You can go off-roading with a manual transmission, but why would you want to tap out to such a lame driving experience?
The exterior is redesigned for 2016, smoothing out some of the rough edges while keeping that signature Jeep grill that make the car immediately identifiable — even with the SUV losing some of that boxy Jeep toughness.
Related: 2016 Acura RDX Luxury SUV
Journalists gathered in downtown San Jose, Calif. to run the latest Renegade up the nearby Northern California mountains. Midway through the route, Jeep reserved a dedicated off-road course to test the new Renegade and its rivals on rougher ground.
On the highway and along the quiet mountain roads, the Renegade made its way smoothly enough. But, it did feel slightly underpowered on inclines. The build quality was basic and acceptable, but not outstanding. There’s a lot of ambient road noise and a bit of rattle at speed. In fairness, we tested pre-sale versions, so build quality and final finish will be upgraded on the dealership floor.
While feeling generally average on the road, the Renegade comes into its own fully off-road. For a smaller SUV with such a modest engine, the vehicle makes its way across the rockiest and wettest of grounds with slow, determined confidence. If you know how to drive off-road with some measure of intelligence and experience, the Renegade will answer the helm and get you over hill and stream. It’s the rugged, four wheel independent suspension that creates that confident off-road feel.
Note that I tested the four wheel capable version, but there is a front wheel edition that is not recommended for rugged duty.
All of that off-road capability is what elevates the Renegade to the top of the small, affordable SUV class. Its rivals (like the Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, Chevy Equinox, etc.) simply are not made for or not seemingly adept at driving away from urban environments. They’re going to break down. They’re going to have suspension damage. They’re going to slip and leave you stranded. They just don’t feel tough enough to end for the high country.
Only Subaru builds a small SUV to rival the work Jeep is doing, and that Japanese import will cost you a bit more.
The Renegade does, and being able to choose that road less traveled makes all the difference.
