Compare the2023 Jeep Grand CherokeeVS 2024 Ford Edge

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 Edge doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

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

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Grand Cherokee Overland 4WD/Summit 4WD’s standard Hill-descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Edge doesn’t offer Hill-descent Control.

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 Edge doesn’t offer a night vision system.

The Grand Cherokee (except Laredo) offers an optional 360-degree camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Edge only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the Grand Cherokee and the Edge 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 driver alert monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Grand Cherokee its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 36 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Edge last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2019.

Jeep pays for scheduled maintenance on the Grand Cherokee for 3 years and unlimited miles. Jeep will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance (up to 3 visits). Ford doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Edge.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Grand Cherokee has a standard 850-amp battery. The Edge only offers a 760-amp battery.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Jeep vehicles are better in initial quality than Ford vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Jeep above average in initial quality. With 10 more problems per 100 vehicles, Ford is rated below average.

The Grand Cherokee has more powerful engines than the Edge:

As tested in Motor Trend the Jeep Grand Cherokee V6 is faster than the Ford Edge turbo 4 cyl.:

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

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

The Grand Cherokee 4xe can travel with zero emissions for 26 miles. The Edge can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

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

Regenerative brakes improve the Grand Cherokee 4xe’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Edge doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Grand Cherokee’s standard fuel tank has 4.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Edge (23 vs. 18.5 gallons).

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

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 standard on the Edge AWD are solid, not vented.

For better traction, the Grand Cherokee Summit’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Edge (275/45R21 vs. 265/40R21).

The Grand Cherokee has a standard 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 Edge doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Grand Cherokee offers an optional full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Edge; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

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 Edge doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The Grand Cherokee offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Edge’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

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 Edge doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Grand Cherokee’s wheelbase is 4.5 inches longer than on the Edge (116.7 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

The Grand Cherokee’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (52% to 48%) than the Edge’s (57.8% to 42.2%). This gives the Grand Cherokee more stable handling and braking.

The Grand Cherokee 4x4 handles at .79 G’s, while the Edge Titanium pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Grand Cherokee Overland 4x4 executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Edge Titanium (27.7 seconds @ .6 average G’s vs. 28.2 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Grand Cherokee’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the Edge’s (38 feet vs. 39.3 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Grand Cherokee has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Edge (8.4 vs. 8 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 2.7 inches higher than on the Edge ST (10.9 vs. 8.2 inches).

The Grand Cherokee’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Edge’s (3500 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Ford Edge is only 3500 pounds. The Grand Cherokee 4x4 offers up to a 7200 lbs. towing capacity.

Trailer Sway Control is standard on the Grand Cherokee, using the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. A trailer sway program costs extra on the Edge and isn’t available on the Edge SE.

The engine in the Grand Cherokee is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Edge. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the Edge Titanium/ST, the Grand Cherokee 4xe/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’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Edge does not have an oil pressure gauge.

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 Edge doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Grand Cherokee Overland/Summit’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Edge’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

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 Grand Cherokee’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Edge’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Poor.”

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

The Grand Cherokee’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Ford only offers heated mirrors on the Edge SEL/ST-Line/ST/Titanium.

When the Grand Cherokee with available tilt-down mirrors is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Edge’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

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 Edge doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

The Grand Cherokee Overland Lux Tech/Summit has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Edge.

The Grand Cherokee is available in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Edge doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee outsold the Ford Edge by almost three to one during 2022.