The Name Game: Does the new Wagoneer lineup live up to the legend?
- mattaboutcars
- May 5, 2022
- 8 min read
Updated: Oct 31, 2023
Years ago, my mother refused to buy a Volkswagen because she couldn’t get past the name “Passat” even though it was the perfect car for her in every other way. Naming is important for any brand. For Jeep, it is an identity. Owners will say “Oh I left it in the Jeep” whereas others might say “in my car” or “in my truck". There’s a sense of pride in ownership with Jeep that other brands could only dream of.
Now Part of Stellantis, Jeep has had Willys-Overland, Willys Motors, Kaiser Jeep Corporation, American Motors Corporation (AMC), AM General (for commercial, military, and postal Jeeps), Chrysler Corporation, Daimler Chrysler, and FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) as prior owners. Despite the numerous ownership transitions, the brand image has never faltered. Jeep’s influence is partly due to coincidence that it specialized in the SUVs which became the most in-demand segment.
Influence of the original Grand Wagoneer:
Jeep pioneered the modern SUV with its SJ generation of Jeep models which included the SJ Wagoneer, SJ Super Wagoneer, 2-door SJ Cherokee, SJ Jeep Gladiator/J-Series pickup, and SJ Wagoneer Limited which eventually became the SJ Grand Wagoneer. Debuting in 1963, the SJ generation had one of the longest production runs of a single body generation in automotive history – lasting 29 model years. Thus, it has essentially been gone for as long as its initial run.
Produced from 1984 to 1991, the Grand Wagoneer was the capstone and final model of this generation and is arguably the most popular and collectible nameplate of this groundbreaking lineup.
The original Grand Wagoneer became as ubiquitous in suburban-set family films and TV shows as golden retrievers. “This is Us” even dedicated an entire episode to the Pearson family’s Grand Wagoneer. Thus, Jeep isn’t simply revitalizing an old marque, they are bringing back an American icon which served not only as the brand’s flagship, but as one of the original segment flagships.
Predating the Range Rover, the Wagoneer was a trailblazer for the luxury SUV segment at a time when SUVs were mostly utilitarian. By creating the general model that SUVs of the last 60 years have followed, its influence is inescapable. For the majority of its original run, the Wagoneer had few competitors. In fact, while the Range Rover was introduced abroad in 1970, it didn’t make it to the states until 1987, and even then it had a limited dealer network with only 2,586 units sold that year. With the 1980 Toyota Land Cruiser 60 series generation, the Wagoneer had a more direct competitor in addition to the much larger Suburban.
Ending its run in 1991, the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer were sold during almost the identical period as Volvo’s 240, and both have had similarly enduring legacies maintaining a presence on American roads. Since the final Grand Wagoneer rolled off the assembly line, the market has drastically shifted with SUVs moving from being a novelty to the dominant automotive segment with the car-based Lexus RX and Toyota RAV-4 becoming mainstays.
Jeep is capitalizing on both the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer name by returning the historic nameplates to their lineup after over a 3-decade absence.
Since then, large SUVs dominated the early 2000s only for an oil crisis and recession to put them in the backseat as more modern 3-row crossovers took the reins. With the exponential rise in popularity of pickups, traditional truck-based SUVs are having a renaissance and Stellantis is eager to steal market share from its Detroit rivals with the reimagined Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer.
Styling a reimagined icon: Worthy of the name? Yes and No
The shift towards SUVs is accompanied by a number of changing consumer preferences, creating quite a challenge for Jeep to create a modern interpretation of one of the most celebrated models in American automotive history. Styling is typically the way to the heart of car buyers by bringing back memories of the original – think of the excitement around the Volkswagen New Beetle in 1998.
The Big Three have taken different paths in relaunching storied nameplates. Where the reimagined Bronco and Hummer are intentionally styled to evoke their classic predecessors, the Wagoneer has no obvious resemblance to the original. Not everyone loves retro styling, but when the original design was pretty much unchanged for 3 decades and is still celebrated today, it is a missed opportunity.
Despite creating a unique design that manages to be universally appealing along with smart packaging and a remarkable interior, Jeep missed the mark on the exterior silhouette. There’s something off about the proportions, I can’t figure out if the wheelbase is too short, the overhangs are too long, etc. However, there’s a cohesion missing that shouldn’t be for a luxury brand, especially in 2022 where new EV’s are offering performance (and styling freedom) this will never match.
It feels as if they designed the stunning interior first and then tried to mold the exterior around it. Toyota found the right balance of shape and practicality with its new Sequoia. With a continuous horizontal windowsill stretching the length of the vehicle, fender flares, and an upright though nicely styled and raked D-pillar, Toyota achieved an impressive design that gives the Sequoia more of a Land Cruiser-like profile. If Jeep had mimicked this shape, the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer would have more closely resembled the original while still retaining a capacious interior.
Labels, Labels, everywhere
Inside the Grand Wagoneer you will never forget what vehicle you are in because there are Grand Wagoneer emblems everywhere: door sills, the side bolster of the seats, top of the seatbacks, on the dash, and steering wheel. Outside, Grand Wagoneer is displayed on both doors, the tailgate, and simply “Wagoneer” across the grille. Noticeably missing is the Jeep logo – which is a smart marketing strategy similarly employed by Ford with their liberal use of the Bronco emblem. Given that Ford designed the Bronco to resemble the original, the emblems are part of a theme. Whereas with Jeep, it is almost as if they felt the need to remind people what they’re driving because otherwise they might forget.
The devil isn’t in the details
Beyond the design shortcomings at the macro level, Jeep gets the details right. My first glimpse of the Grand Wagoneer was on the road en route to the Motorbella, it certainly is an eye-catching vehicle with its liberal, yet tasteful, use of chrome. Jeep eschewed the dreaded massive grille trend making the Grand Wagoneer a classier alternative to the loud and pretentious facades of the GM SUVs. Jeep’s now trademark 7-slot vertical grille was absent from the original Grand Wagoneer but is present in the new one.
The spacious, airy interior benefits from large windows that enable a commanding view. The Grand Wagoneer’s standard third-row sunroof reminds me of the original Land Rover Discovery. Starting at over $108k, the top-of-the-line Series III is stunning and features a separate touch screen for the front-passenger along with impeccable craftsmanship. Screens galore continues with the rear passenger screens mounted behind the front-row seats along with a control screen in the rear center console. Jeep thoroughly reimagined and redefined the passenger experience.
It pains me to criticize the new Grand Wagoneer as the details Jeep got, they nailed. However, I cannot help but wonder if these details would have been less important if the original design had been executed a bit better or if there had a been a clear lineage between the original and the reimagined 2022 version. Making these massive truck-based mom cars pretty is no small feat. A sleeker minivan would more than satisfy the needs of the majority of these buyers who let ego get in the way of sensibility.
Jeeps have crept up in price for quite some time now– especially custom outfitted Wranglers. With the top Grand Wagoneer trim levels fetching a six-figure price tag, the brand is now more officially a direct competitor to Land Rover despite still producing lesser rental car grade models like the Renegade, Compass, and Cherokee. While a true modern reimagining of the Grand Wagoneer would have meant shape and proportions similar to the Range Rover, Jeep shrewdly knew that by providing the space American consumers demand, they would create value the Range Rover couldn’t. However, in doing so, Jeep created a model that is a Grand Wagoneer in name only.
The Grand Wagoneer name would have been better suited on a built from the ground up EV with retro styling resembling the original which would compete with the Rivian RS1, Hummer EV, and other upcoming luxury EV SUVs. Thus, allowing Jeep to use another name for their full-size Tahoe/Suburban fighter.
New Jeep additions
Beyond the Wagoneer line, the 3-row Grand Cherokee L has also joined the lineup. Here Jeep is initially harnessing 3 categories with 2 models. The Wagoneer is sized between the Expedition/Tahoe and longer Expedition MAX /Suburban. Meanwhile, the Grand Cherokee L is on the larger end of the 3-row crossover class, but on the smaller end of the truck-based 3-row SUV class.
The new Grand Cherokee L is the value pick that will satisfy the needs of most families. Though it is priced similarly to the Pilot, Atlas, and Highlander, it is about a half foot longer – closer to a Traverse – but without the anonymous styling. You can find a very well equipped Grand Cherokee L for much less than what a Wagoneer starts at. The pleasantly designed frontend and overall shape of the Grand Cherokee L is diminished by the rear which is less attractive than the standard-size Grand Cherokee and looks too much like the Cherokee.
Grand confusion
In the 1980s, Jeep sold the Wagoneer which was Cherokee-sized as well as the larger Grand Wagoneer. In the 1990s and again for the last 8 years, Jeep has sold the Cherokee and larger Grand Cherokee. Thus, Jeep most recently has employed “Grand” to indicate a size differential. The former Chrysler Corp’s minivans: Dodge Caravan and Grand Caravan as well as Plymouth Voyager and Plymouth Grand Voyager similarly used Grand for their larger model.
But that isn’t what Jeep is doing with the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer. Instead, the Grand Wagoneer will serve as a luxury trim level to the same-sized Wagoneer.
Having Grand still indicate a size difference with the Cherokee and Grand Cherokee but mean luxury with the Grand Wagoneer is confusing. Both the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer should have been just called “Grand Wagoneer” with the Grand Cherokee L called “Wagoneer”. Thus the lineup in ascending order of size would be: Cherokee, Grand Cherokee, Wagoneer, Grand Wagoneer.
But this might not support Jeep’s “Wagoneer” sub-brand.
Jeep’s aspirational luxury predicament
With Jeep serving as the de facto volume brand for the former Chrysler Corp., there’s a desire to be represented in as many segments as possible. By leveraging the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer platform to cover a price range that doubles, Jeep clearly believes there’s a need to split it out. Where GM has essentially 6 variations across the 2 wheelbase options of their Chevy, GMC, and Cadillac large SUVs, Jeep has just 2 as they strive to reach all the GM buyers. With the lower-end Wagoneer competing with the Ford, Toyota, Chevy, and non-Denali GMCs, there’s room for the Grand Wagoneer to face off against Mercedes, Lincoln, Land Rover, BMW, Audi, and Cadillac at the upper-end.
I can’t help but wonder if all this does is confuse people. For Jeep, perhaps it is a risk worth taking. Range Rover has successfully expanded its lineup to also include the Evoque, Velar, and Sport. Perhaps, Jeep is aspiring to create a similar sub brand with Wagoneer. In fact, on the Jeep website, they have 3 sub brands they have broken out: Jeep, Wagoneer, and 4xE (for its electrified lineup). However, I believe that having a luxury trim level across multiple models akin to GMC’s Denali line would have been more appropriate.
Furthermore, the trim levels of Series I, Series II, and Series III for the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer further complicate the naming process as “Series” is typically used to denote a generation of a model, e.g. Land Rover Discover Series III and Toyota Land Cruiser 100 series.
I may sound overly critical but naming and branding is incredibly important – especially with a company that has sold countless vehicles on name alone. Jeep is fortunate to have been an SUV-only brand when the segment took off in the 1990s. With a youthful identity, Jeep can lean on its identity in a way that others, like Buick, cannot.
With their new full-size SUVs, Jeep knocked it out of the park. The lineup has far better styling than its Ford and GM competitors. The packaging, innovation, and presence are exceptional. I simply wish Jeep had pursued an easier naming strategy and had harnessed the Grand Wagoneer nameplate for a luxury EV with styling that celebrated its past. Despite this, by doubling their lineup and dipping into highly profitable segments, the iconic American producer of off-road vehicles is on the road to success.
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