Jeep Grand Cherokee vs Mitsi Outlander

jordge, Mar 9, 7:57pm
Hubby is a tradesman, who will also be looking after our kids after school while I'm at work. He wants to replace his van with something else that we can also use for the family & is nice for me to drive when I pop downtown for whatever I want (I refuse to drive his van cause it's dirty & smelly).
2 of the replacement vehicles we're looking at are the Jeep Grand Cherokee & Mitsi Outlander. The mechanic thinks the Jeep is cheap & easy to fix, while car salesmen have told us it's expensive to fix. Obv don't trust the latter, while we mostly trust the former. Mechanic has recommended NZ New & getting anything that is newer model vs less kms.
It seems like such a huge decision as it's a lot of money for us.

intrade, Mar 9, 8:11pm
well is he going to use that for business?
because if his van is dirty and smelly how long do you think thill the ute is dirty and smelly.
Also its not nz new what is the problem its neglect of servicing.
the newer it is the more electronic crap is required to meet the low emission class they are having to comply to , and not servicing that is going to cost a fortune , especially if a mechanic is a swaptron who thinks by looking under the bonnet he can guess what needs fixing
that worked on 1950s car with 3 fuses in the fuesbox , but not on a car that goes in to limp home mode when you dont tighten your petrol cap correctly that is just one extreem example like volvo shut down real fast and usa fords keep on going till everything is destroyed befor the engine stops by the way they are programmed
jeep usually run some mercedes engines
a client had one and said he could not put up with the boat like suspension and got a sedan mercedes now You should be well uysed to boat like driving of japanese vans , or um is that why you dont like to drive the van or just the smell?

edangus, Mar 9, 8:14pm
New or Used?
Older V6 Outlander is a great vehicle. So is the Latest and older V6 Petrol Cherokee.
Both have cheap and costly parts.
Could not comment on the latest Outlander. Sadly, I believe your Car Salesperson on this one. (Although I would have New Cherokee over the New Outlander - its way to ugly)

jordge, Mar 9, 8:22pm
I think the thing with NZ New was that those that bought these tend to service them more regularly than those that bought imports.
We will be looking at something around 2005ish as that is in our price range.

intrade, Mar 9, 8:32pm
find out exactly why your mechanic thinks its easy to fix?, If he tells you he can plug in his scantool and read out what to replace, then find a new machanic quick smart.
If he tells you because he direct imports parts from usa or has good source and has extensive diagnostic knowhow with oscilloscope and voltage drop testing then you can trust your mechanic knows what he talks about

next-to-normal, Mar 9, 10:10pm
if you dont mind paying around $500 for replacing the spark plugs in an Outlander,for the manifolds need to come off

lazzo, Mar 9, 10:21pm
Buy the previous model Outlander, lots of great buys out there, excellent value for money and 100% reliable in all models and engine variants.

The Jeep Cherokee. Yeah Nah.

edangus, Mar 9, 11:04pm
$0.005 per km at 100,000km, not too shabby I reckon. Even if you do at every 60,000km its only $0.0083 per km.

rctr, Mar 9, 11:41pm
Only on v6 model. The best outlander value for money wise would be the 12my runout xls if you can stretch for one. As for reliability I can only recall 2 faults on 2 separate vehicles 1 being a dirty connector on Trans other being a jammed egr valve. When new they were very popular with private and lease companies. Cannot comment on jeep

tamarillo, Mar 10, 3:06am
Hi op, do you need to tow a lot, or heavy weight? Reason I ask is outlander has a CVT box which isn't known for reliability under towing, and the jeep is available as a diesel which will be better economy and pulling power.

buyit59, Mar 10, 4:23am
I find this funny. "The mechanic thinks the Jeep is cheap & easy to fix, while car salesmen have told us it's expensive to fix. Obv don't trust the latter, while we mostly trust the former." . Why bother talking to car salesmen if you don't trust them !. Reckon there are more financial advisors or lawyers in jail than car salespeople but they are still regarded as 'ok'. Over twenty years of dealing with both private owners and dealers has resulted in private owners telling me more lies than dealers.

jordge, Mar 10, 4:30am
thanks Tamarillo, the towing is a big factor as we will be doing lots of that. Not that we don't trust car sales people, we just don't know which one to listen to. Car sales don't fix and mechanics don't sell. And when they are saying complete opposite things, who do you listen too. Surely the one that sees them every 6 mths or so to service and repair them?

bwg11, Mar 10, 4:40am
If you are doing lots of towing forget the Outlander. You are comparing a 2.4 litre 4 with a 4.7 V8. No contest, and the Jeep is a much nicer drive as well. It might burn a couple of litres more per 100 kms but how many dollars is that at the end of the year? I like the CVT transmission in my wife's Swift but would not recommend any serious towing with one.

lazzo, Mar 10, 4:48am
The CVT Outlander is more than capable of towing. Just not a huge boat or horse float, common sense would tell anyone that.

Plus, not all Outlanders are CVT, the V6 Outlander has a regular staged transmission.

jordge, Mar 10, 5:00am
Comparing the 2.4 to the 2.7 diesel not the 4ltr or the v8. Looking also at the cvt 2.4 outlander. Will be towing a std trailer with stuff weighting maybe 500kg 30% of the time.

marmar1, Mar 10, 6:55am
If it's for your husband buy the jeep if it's for you buy the outlander.

jordge, Mar 10, 7:01am
It's like you're looking in the window, hearing our "discussions" hahaha.

tamarillo, Mar 10, 10:05am
I've no personal experience of this but have heard it said by folk who do know well, that the cvt is not a good box for towing. Unless you can find some reason why the mitsi one is better in this regard than usual that would steer me away. Of course it will tow, but is it rugged and built to do it a lot? 30% is way above usual towing amount!
Out of interest have you decided against the territory? More gas of course but arguably tough, simple, and easy to fix being ford falcon based.

And of course trust your mechanic, but temper it with their personal likes and dislikes. I took an old Fairmont into audi dr and he really didn't want a bar of it. Show an audi to many an old fashioned workshop and they'll not want a bar of it!

lazzo, Mar 10, 3:06pm
I would be buying a car that suited me best for the 70% of the time I wasn't towing rather than buy a car that suited for the 30% I was! and given the Outlander in either 2.4 CVT or 3.0 V6 will tow a 500kg trailer all day and night for donkeys years to come its a no brainer really.

tamarillo, Mar 10, 6:44pm
Ah, the 'it's a no brainer' argument. Cherished by those of high intellect the case for the defendant is won.

lazzo, May 6, 5:04pm
Mitsubishi sold those Outlanders hand over fist in the local market, they're popular for a reason. can't say the same for the Jeep.