Compare the2026 Volkswagen Atlas Cross SportVS 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics

Safety

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The Atlas Cross Sport has a standard Automatic Post-Collision Braking System, which automatically applies 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.

Both the Atlas Cross Sport and Grand Cherokee have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Atlas Cross Sport has Rear Traffic Alert (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 Atlas Cross Sport and the Grand Cherokee have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact 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.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH moderate front offset crash tests on new cars. In this updated test, results indicate that the Atlas Cross Sport is much safer than the Grand Cherokee:

	Atlas Cross Sport	Grand Cherokee
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	POOR
Structure	GOOD	GOOD
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Chest Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Thigh/hip Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Thigh Forces L/R	45/45 pounds	180/360 pounds
Leg/foot Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Thigh Forces L/R	45/45 pounds	180/360 pounds
Leg Forces L/R	270/382 pounds	495/607 pounds
Restraints	GOOD	GOOD
	Rear Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck Rating	GOOD	POOR
Chest Rating	GOOD	POOR
Thigh Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Restraints	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE

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 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport is safer than the Jeep Grand Cherokee:

	Atlas Cross Sport	Grand Cherokee
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	48	87
Chest Movement	.5 inches	.8 inches
Abdominal Force	64 lbs.	192 lbs.
Hip Force	215 lbs.	235 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	35 G’s	39 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	14 inches
HIC	309	458
Spine Acceleration	41 G’s	41 G’s

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

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Atlas Cross Sport is 1% to 4% less likely to roll over than the Grand Cherokee.

The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2025 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and an “Acceptable” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Grand Cherokee is not even a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2025.

Warranty

The Atlas Cross Sport comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck. The Grand Cherokee’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The Atlas Cross Sport’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Grand Cherokee’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Volkswagen pays for scheduled maintenance on the Atlas Cross Sport for 2 years and 20,000 miles. Volkswagen will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Jeep doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Grand Cherokee.

Reliability

The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the Grand Cherokee’s engines use an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Volkswagen vehicles are more reliable than Jeep vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Volkswagen 1 place higher in reliability than Jeep.

Fuel Economy and Range

Both the Atlas Cross Sport 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 Atlas Cross Sports 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.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Grand Cherokee 4xe requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Atlas Cross Sport 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.

Brakes and Stopping

The Atlas Cross Sport stops much shorter than the Grand Cherokee:

	Atlas Cross Sport	Grand Cherokee
60 to 0 MPH	121 feet	142 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	134 feet	145 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Atlas Cross Sport SE’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Cherokee Laredo Altitude’s standard 70 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Atlas Cross Sport SE has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Grand Cherokee Laredo Altitude.

Suspension and Handling

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Atlas Cross Sport is 1.6 inches wider in the front and 2.2 inches wider in the rear than on the Grand Cherokee.

The Atlas Cross Sport SEL 4Motion handles at .81 G’s, while the Grand Cherokee 4x4 pulls only .60 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Atlas Cross Sport SEL 4Motion executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Grand Cherokee Limited 4x4 (27.4 seconds @ .61 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

Chassis

The design of the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport amounts to more than styling. The Atlas Cross Sport 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 Atlas Cross Sport get better fuel mileage.

Passenger Space

The Atlas Cross Sport has 4.9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Grand Cherokee (111.9 vs. 107).

The Atlas Cross Sport has .4 inches more front legroom, 1 inch more front hip room, 2.3 inches more front shoulder room, 2.2 inches more rear legroom, 2.4 inches more rear hip room and 2.4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Grand Cherokee.

Cargo Capacity

The Atlas Cross Sport has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Grand Cherokee with its rear seat up (40.3 vs. 37.7 cubic feet). The Atlas Cross Sport has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Grand Cherokee with its rear seat folded (77.6 vs. 70.8 cubic feet).

Towing

The Atlas Cross Sport’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Grand Cherokee’s (5000 vs. 3500 pounds).

Ergonomics

The Atlas Cross Sport’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 Atlas Cross Sport the driver can close all of them at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Grand Cherokee can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Atlas Cross Sport’s standard KESSY Keyless Access allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, unlock the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Keyless Enter-N-Go standard on the Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

The Atlas Cross Sport’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.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the Atlas Cross Sport SEL to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

The Grand Cherokee Summit’s cornering lamps activate a lamp on the front corner when the turn signal is activated. The Atlas Cross Sport’s standard adaptive cornering lights turn the actual headlight unit up to several degrees, depending on steering wheel angle and vehicle speed. This lights a significant distance into corners at any speed.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the Grand Cherokee.

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