Compare the2022 Jeep Grand CherokeeVS 2021 Lexus NX Series

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Payload and Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Grand Cherokee are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The NX Series doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Grand Cherokee Trailhawk/Overland/Summit helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The NX Series doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Compared to metal, the Grand Cherokee’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Lexus NX Series has a metal gas tank.

Both the Grand Cherokee and the NX Series have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.

Warranty

Jeep pays for scheduled maintenance (up to 3 oil changes) on the Grand Cherokee for 2 years and -10,000 miles longer than Lexus pays for maintenance for the NX Series (3/unlimited vs. 1/10,000).

There are almost 10 times as many Jeep dealers as there are Lexus dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Grand Cherokee’s warranty.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Grand Cherokee has a standard 850-amp battery (900 Trailhawk/Overland/Summit and 700 V8). The NX Series’ 580-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

Engine

The Grand Cherokee has more powerful engines than the NX Series:

	Horsepower	Torque
Grand Cherokee 3.6 DOHC V6	293 HP	260 lbs.-ft.
Grand Cherokee 5.7 V8	357 HP	390 lbs.-ft.
Grand Cherokee 4Xe 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid	375 HP	470 lbs.-ft.
NX 300h 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid	194 HP	199 lbs.-ft.
NX 300 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder	235 HP	258 lbs.-ft.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Grand Cherokee running on electricity gets better mileage than the NX Series:

			MPGe
Grand Cherokee
	AWD	4Xe Electric Motor	57 city/56 hwy
NX Series
			MPG
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/28 hwy
	AWD	2.5 4-cyl. Hybrid	33 city/30 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/28 hwy
		F Sport 2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/27 hwy

The Grand Cherokee 4Xe’s maximum driving range in pure electric mode is 26 miles, over 16 times as far as the NX 300h’s 1.6-mile range.

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Grand Cherokee V8’s fuel efficiency. The NX Series doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Jeep Grand Cherokee uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended on Grand Cherokee 4Xe for maximum performance). The NX 300 requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Grand Cherokee 4xe’s standard fuel tank has 4.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the NX Series Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (19 vs. 14.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Grand Cherokee’s standard fuel tank has 7.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the NX Series’ standard fuel tank (23 vs. 15.9 gallons).

The Grand Cherokee has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The NX Series doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Jeep Grand Cherokee higher (5 to 7 out of 10) than the Lexus NX Series (3 to 7). This means the Grand Cherokee produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the NX Series every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the Jeep Grand Cherokee, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a six-speed automatic is available for the NX Series.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Grand Cherokee’s brake rotors are larger than those on the NX Series:

	Grand Cherokee	NX Series
Front Rotors	13.9 inches	12.9 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	11.1 inches

The Grand Cherokee’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the NX Series are solid, not vented.

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Grand Cherokee has larger standard tires than the NX Series (245/70R17 vs. 225/65R17). The Grand Cherokee Summit’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the NX Series (275/45R21 vs. 235/55R18).

The Grand Cherokee Summit’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the NX Series F Sport’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Grand Cherokee Summit offers optional 21-inch wheels. The NX Series’ largest wheels are only 18-inches.

The Grand Cherokee offers an optional easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The NX Series doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The Grand Cherokee Trailhawk has active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The NX Series doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The Grand Cherokee offers an optional automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Grand Cherokee’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The NX Series doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Grand Cherokee’s wheelbase is 12 inches longer than on the NX Series (116.7 inches vs. 104.7 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Grand Cherokee is 3.4 inches wider in the front and 3.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the NX Series.

For greater off-road capability the Grand Cherokee has a 1.7 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the NX 300h (8.4 vs. 6.7 inches), allowing the Grand Cherokee to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Grand Cherokee Trailhawk Air Suspension’s minimum ground clearance is 4.4 inches higher than on the NX 300 (11.3 vs. 6.9 inches).

Chassis

The front grille of the Grand Cherokee uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The NX Series doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Grand Cherokee offers available computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The NX Series doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Grand Cherokee has 35.4 cubic feet more passenger volume than the NX Series (107 vs. 71.6).

The Grand Cherokee has 1.7 inches more front headroom, 2.3 inches more front hip room, 1.9 inches more front shoulder room, 1.3 inches more rear headroom, 2.1 inches more rear legroom, 2.4 inches more rear hip room and 2.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the NX Series.

Cargo Capacity

The Grand Cherokee has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the NX Series with its rear seat up (37.7 vs. 17.7 cubic feet). The Grand Cherokee has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the NX Series with its rear seat folded (70.8 vs. 54.6 cubic feet).

The Grand Cherokee’s cargo area is larger than the NX Series’ in almost every dimension:

	Grand Cherokee	NX Series
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	41”/73.8”	36”/71.5”
Max Width	55”	53”
Min Width	43”	44.3”
Height	32”	27”

Payload and Towing

The Grand Cherokee’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the NX Series’ (6200 vs. 0 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Lexus NX 300h AWD is only 2000 pounds. The Grand Cherokee 4x4 offers up to a 7200 lbs. towing capacity.

The Grand Cherokee 4WD with optional equipment can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Grand Cherokee can be unhitched and driven around locally. The NX Series can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The Grand Cherokee has a much higher standard payload capacity than the NX Series (1243 vs. 895 lbs.).

The Grand Cherokee has a much higher maximum payload capacity than the NX Series (1283 vs. 895 lbs.).

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Grand Cherokee is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the NX Series. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system optional at extra cost in the NX Series, the Grand Cherokee Limited/Trailhawk/Overland/Summit offers an optional passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position (with optional power wheel adjuster), outside mirror angle and radio stations and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Grand Cherokee Overland/Summit offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, certain gauge and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The NX Series doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Grand Cherokee’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The NX Series’ power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

The Grand Cherokee’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The NX Series’ standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Grand Cherokee to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The NX Series doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Both the Grand Cherokee and the NX Series offer optional heated front seats. The Grand Cherokee Limited/Trailhawk/Overland/Summit also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the NX Series.

Optional air conditioned front and rear seats keep the Grand Cherokee’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The NX Series doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

The Grand Cherokee (except Laredo/Limited/Trailhawk) offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the NX Series.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Jeep Grand Cherokee offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The NX Series doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Grand Cherokee offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The NX Series doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Grand Cherokee Summit’s Parallel and Perpendicular Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The NX Series doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Recommendations

The Jeep Grand Cherokee outsold the Lexus NX Series by almost four to one during the 2021 model year.

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