Compare the2023 Jeep CherokeeVS 2023 GMC Terrain

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Jeep Cherokee are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The GMC Terrain doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

The Jeep Cherokee has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Terrain doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Cherokee has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Terrain doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Cherokee has standard Parksense with Rear Stop that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Terrain doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Cherokee. But it costs extra on the Terrain.

The Cherokee has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Terrain’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Cherokee has standard Rear Cross-Path Detection, helping the driver avoid collisions. GMC charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Terrain.

Both the Cherokee and the Terrain have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Jeep Cherokee is safer than the GMC Terrain:

	Cherokee	Terrain
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	166	376
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.6 inches
Neck Compression	26 lbs.	51 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	241/259 lbs.	264/236 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Jeep Cherokee is safer than the GMC Terrain:

	Cherokee	Terrain
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	64	109
Chest Movement	.7 inches	1.1 inches
Abdominal Force	133 lbs.	195 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	264	288
Spine Acceleration	53 G’s	55 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	203	377
Hip Force	490 lbs.	730 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, rear impact and roof-crush tests, with its optional front crash prevention system, its “Good” rating in the new passenger-side small overlap crash test, and its available headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Cherokee the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2019, a rating granted to only 195 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Terrain was last qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.

Warranty

The Cherokee’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Terrain’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

Jeep pays for scheduled maintenance on the Cherokee for 3 years and unlimited miles. Jeep will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance (up to 3 oil changes). GMC only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Terrain.

There are over 43 percent more Jeep dealers than there are GMC dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Cherokee’s warranty.

Engine

The Cherokee’s standard 2.4 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 5 more horsepower (180 vs. 175) than the Terrain’s 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder. The Cherokee Trailhawk’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 95 more horsepower (270 vs. 175) and 92 lbs.-ft. more torque (295 vs. 203) than the Terrain’s 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

The Cherokee has almost a gallon more fuel capacity than the Terrain FWD’s standard fuel tank (15.8 vs. 14.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Cherokee’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Terrain:

	Cherokee	Terrain
Front Rotors	13 inches	11.8 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Cherokee Trailhawk 4x4’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Terrain (245/65R17 vs. 235/50R19).

The Cherokee Trailhawk has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Terrain; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

Suspension and Handling

The Cherokee has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Cherokee flat and controlled during cornering. The Terrain’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Cherokee’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Terrain doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The Cherokee Altitude LUX handles at .80 G’s, while the Terrain Denali AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Cherokee Altitude LUX executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Terrain Denali AWD (27.1 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 27.5 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Cherokee has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Terrain SLE (7.9 vs. 6.9 inches), allowing the Cherokee to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Cherokee Trailhawk’s minimum ground clearance is .8 inch higher than on the Terrain SLT/AT4/Denali (8.7 vs. 7.9 inches).

Passenger Space

The Cherokee has .2 inches more front legroom, .4 inches more front shoulder room and .6 inches more rear legroom than the Terrain.

Cargo Capacity

A standard locking glovebox keeps your small valuables safer in the Cherokee. The Terrain doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Towing

The Cherokee’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Terrain’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the GMC Terrain is only 1500 pounds. The Cherokee offers up to a 4000 lbs. towing capacity.

The Cherokee 4x4 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 Cherokee can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Terrain can’t be towed flat on the ground.

Servicing Ease

The Cherokee uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Terrain uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Cherokee’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Terrain’s passenger windows don’t close automatically.

The Cherokee’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Terrain’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Cherokee’s available headlights were rated “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Terrain’s headlights are rated “Poor.”

The Cherokee has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the Terrain SLT/AT4/Denali.

The Cherokee has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning costs extra on the Terrain.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Cherokee is less expensive to operate than the Terrain because it costs $855 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Cherokee than the Terrain, including $52 less for a water pump, $130 less for a muffler, $94 less for front brake pads, $286 less for fuel injection, $65 less for a fuel pump and $387 less for a power steering pump.