Compare the2024 Volvo XC40VS 2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Volvo XC40 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Jeep Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The XC40’s 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.

Both the XC40 and Grand Cherokee have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The XC40 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Grand Cherokee’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The XC40 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The XC40 has standard Post-impact braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the XC40. But it costs extra on the Grand Cherokee.

Both the XC40 and Grand Cherokee have rear cross-traffic warning, but the XC40 has Braking Intervention (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Grand Cherokee’s Rear Cross Path Detection doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the XC40 and the Grand Cherokee have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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 and available 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 XC40 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2017, a rating granted to only 207 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Grand Cherokee has not been fully tested, yet.

The XC40 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Grand Cherokee’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The XC40’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Grand Cherokee’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the XC40 for 2 years longer than Jeep pays for maintenance for the Grand Cherokee (4 years vs. 2 years).

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 XC40’s reliability 20 points higher than the Grand Cherokee.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Volvo vehicles are more reliable than Jeep vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Volvo 1 place higher in reliability than Jeep.

On the EPA test cycle the XC40 gets better mileage than the Grand Cherokee running its gasoline engine:

Both the XC40 and the Grand Cherokee have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All XC40s have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. A disable switch for start/stop is only offered on the Grand Cherokee V6.

The XC40 has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Grand Cherokee. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

The XC40 stops much shorter than the Grand Cherokee:

The XC40’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Cherokee Laredo’s standard 70 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the XC40 has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Grand Cherokee Laredo.

The XC40 B5 Ultimate 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 XC40 B5 Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Grand Cherokee Limited 4x4 (27.4 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the XC40’s turning circle is .6 feet tighter than the Grand Cherokee’s (37.4 feet vs. 38 feet).

The Volvo XC40 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 400 to 1550 pounds less than the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

The XC40 is 1 foot, 6.7 inches shorter than the Grand Cherokee, making the XC40 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The design of the Volvo XC40 amounts to more than styling. The XC40 has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .34 Cd. That is lower than the Grand Cherokee (.357). A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the XC40 get better fuel mileage.

The front step up height for the XC40 is 2.5 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee (17.7” vs. 20.2”). The XC40’s rear step up height is 3.3 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee’s (18.2” vs. 21.5”).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the XC40 easier. The XC40’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 29.7 inches, while the Grand Cherokee’s liftover is 33 inches.

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the XC40’s optional rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The XC40’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 Grand Cherokee’s standard rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

If the windows are left open on the XC40 the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Grand Cherokee can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The XC40’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 Grand Cherokee’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

Consumer Reports rated the XC40’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Grand Cherokee’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the XC40 offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer cornering lights. The XC40 also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Volvo XC40 has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the Grand Cherokee and isn’t available on the Grand Cherokee Laredo A.