Compare the2023 GMC Acadia VS 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee

The Acadia Denali’s optional pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front shoulder belts of the GMC Acadia are height-adjustable, and the middle seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Jeep Grand Cherokee has only front height-adjustable seat belts.

The Acadia has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Both the Acadia and the Grand Cherokee have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

For its top level performance in all IIHS frontal, side, rear impact and roof-crush tests, and its standard front crash prevention system, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Acadia the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2017, a rating granted to only 233 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Grand Cherokee has not been tested, yet.

The Acadia’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Grand Cherokee’s (6 vs. 5 years).

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the engines in the Acadia have an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the 5.7 V8 in the Grand Cherokee.

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Acadia has a standard 220-amp alternator. The Grand Cherokee’s standard 160-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Acadia’s reliability 17 points higher than the Grand Cherokee.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Acadia third among upper midsize suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Grand Cherokee isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that GMC vehicles are better in initial quality than Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks GMC above average in initial quality. With 37 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that GMC vehicles are more reliable than Jeep With 9 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks GMC higher than Jeep.

On the EPA test cycle the Acadia gets better mileage than the Grand Cherokee running its gasoline engine:

			MPG
Acadia
	FWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/27 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/27 hwy
Grand Cherokee
	RWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	23 city/24 hwy
		3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
		5.7 OHV V8	14 city/22 hwy

Regardless of its engine, the Acadia’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. Jeep only offers an automatic engine start/stop system on the Grand Cherokee V6/4xe.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the GMC Acadia higher (6 to 7 out of 10) than the Jeep Grand Cherokee (5 to 7). This means the Acadia produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Grand Cherokee every 15,000 miles.

The EPA certifies the GMC Acadia as an “Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (ULEV). The Jeep Grand Cherokee is only certified to “Low Emissions Vehicle” (LEV) standards.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the GMC Acadia, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Grand Cherokee.

The Acadia stops much shorter than the Grand Cherokee:

	Acadia	Grand Cherokee
70 to 0 MPH	173 feet	189 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	126 feet	142 feet	Motor Trend

The Acadia SLE/SLT’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 65 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Cherokee Laredo’s standard 70 series tires.

The GMC Acadia’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Jeep Grand Cherokee only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Acadia Denali AWD handles at .85 G’s, while the Grand Cherokee 4x4 pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Acadia SLT AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.2 seconds quicker than the Grand Cherokee Limited 4x4 (26.9 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

The Acadia offers optional seating for 7 passengers; the Grand Cherokee can only carry 5.

The Acadia has 36.8 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Grand Cherokee (143.8 vs. 107).

The Acadia has .1 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more front shoulder room, .2 inches more rear headroom, 1.5 inches more rear legroom and .7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Grand Cherokee.

The front step up height for the Acadia is 2.2 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee (18” vs. 20.2”). The Acadia’s rear step up height is 2.5 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee’s (19” vs. 21.5”).

The Acadia’s cargo area provides more volume than the Grand Cherokee.

	Acadia	Grand Cherokee
Third Seat Folded	41.7 cubic feet	n/a
Third Seat Removed	n/a	37.7 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	79 cubic feet	70.8 cubic feet

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

	Acadia	Grand Cherokee
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	18.5”/48”/83”	n.a./41”/73.8”
Max Width	50”	55”
Min Width	42.5”	43”
Height	33”	32”

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the Acadia’s second row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Acadia’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its extra cost Uconnect Access can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

Consumer Reports® recommends the GMC Acadia, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Jeep Grand Cherokee isn't recommended.