Napoleon

For those who know/remember me, I've been on this board for about 2 years, both reading and posting. This board was amazing for information and the RDX had been on my list of vehicles to purchase.... what started with 12 vehicles was rounded down to 3, of which the RDX made the final cut. I've had an Acura RSX for 9 years so Acura quality made me want to stay in the Acura family.

That being said, I sat down and got prices and made final test drives. The Acura RDX with AWD and Tech package was pretty much dollar for dollar what Jeep offered me on a Jeep Grand Cherokee 4x4 Limited with Luxury II package and Navigation (they were very willing to negotiate while Acura wasn't). So I had to make the tough choice and I went with Jeep. For the same price I felt like I got the better 4x4 system and I felt like the jeep was built a bit more solid.

I'm not sure if anyone cares, but figured I'd update since some of the members here had requested I update when I made my purchase. I'm still going to hang around the board though because as a car enthusiast, I enjoy hearing what everyone is experiencing

BLEXV6

As a long time Honda/Acura owner, and I am very impressed with the Jeep Grand Cherokee as they are much better than they used to be, hoever there is no chance I would ever own a Chrysler product. You are on the wrong forum to look for approval. That said, I think Chrysler has come a long way and I am sure you will enjoy it.

Joe Las Vegas

Did you get it with the pentastar V6 and 8 speed trans? I thought of a GC too. At least you got a real 4x4.

ceb

The GC still has QC and reliability issues but while it may lack the reliability of Acura, it is a nice car - although the GC is more in size comparable to the MDX.

Enjoy your new car.

Comfy

Congratulations on your new car purchase.
We had considered Jeep Cherokee (not GC) for our purchase but felt that RDX was better built and overall was a better vehicle than Cherokee for the money. (Even though Cherokee had more tech features). Now I'm assuming that Grand Cherokee in your trim should be costing much more. Am I correct or you got a killer deal (beating RDX)?
Anyway I feel that Jeep Grand Cherokee is in a different class than RDX (with regards to size and 4x4 capabilities).
Enjoy your new car.. It's a nice car.

YeuEmMaiMai

having driven both, this is my impression

Jeep interior is very slick nicely laid out and feels good to the touch better than the RDX imho

the AWD system is superior in every way

Acura will

SMOKE it in the acceleration department. It's not even close the Jeep has to lug around an extra 1 to 1.2Klbs more and sorry to say but a 3.6LV6 is NOT up to the task. you will need the 5.7 or 6.4L V8 to outgun the RDX.

get noticeably better fuel economy 17/25 hwy vs. 19/27

Viveno

I agree Jeep improved a lot. However its going to be difficult for me to a purchase a vehicle under the Chrysler Umbrella

ARascal

Please check back with us in 6 months. You butt will get to know the seats in the service department intimately. Buy the extended warranty. Don't ask now I know. I'm sure that in your travels on the many forms that you researched. You have read about Chrysler and particularly Jeep reliability? We tried to warn you.


I sincerely hope that you are the exception....... God bless and Good luck.

KeithL

Chrysler products are styles very nicely, but their reliability is almost always far below the average. My buddy works for a company that used fleet Explorers and never had issues. They switched to Jeep a few years back and every one on his team has had numerous issues with them, he misses his Explorers.

Napoleon

Well it is a lease, so if there are any issues, I can get rid of it in the end. Going with a Chrysler product was a struggle in my mind, trust me. Having had an Acura for 9 years, I was spoiled. But it was time to give it a try. Especially since my job requires me to go onto construction sites quite often, driving over LOOSE pack gravel where normal AWD systems tend to get stuck (I've seen several CRVs get stuck comically).

As for reliability, I've been on forums galore the past 2 years (Acura, Jeep, BMW, Volvo, Audi being the most visited). BMW definitely had the most complaining. Volvo actually had very very happy owners with hardly any complaints, but the V60's price point was higher than I feel it deserved. The grand cherokee had issues upon first release, but from talking to owners on the JeepForum and JeepGarage sites, it seems that whatever issues they had at first have been all worked out; in general everyone seems to be pretty happy now that the kinks are worked out. Those who own the 2011's are still having problems, but the 2014s with build dates after Feb 2014 have not had any issues. Honestly, I seemed to see more complaining in this RDX forum than I did in the Jeep forum (particularly with the 'clunking' noise)... The brand new Cherokee with the 9 speed, on the other hand, has issues galore and I wouldn't touch that if my life depended on it.

I ended up getting a GC Limited with all the bells and whistles (LED/HID headlights, pano sunroof, heated front and rear seats, ventilated front seats, heated wheel, rain sensing wipers, 8.4 screen w/Nav, etc) for $40,300, pretty much in the range of the RDX AWD w/Tech.

Don't get me wrong, I love Acura products, but I felt like the RDX needed to step up the game slightly for the price point. They claim to be luxury, but the Grand Cherokee Limited seemed directly on par with the RDX. Yes the RDX is faster off the line, but if you want speed like that, why are you getting a SUV? Get a sports sedan for speed. SUV is for utility. I have trust in Acura though and I'm sure by the time my GC lease ends in 3 years, the RDX will have its shortcomings improved (add real luxury like rear vents, ventilated front seats, put the SHAWD back in as an option, get those jewel headlights in, etc).

I wasn't posting this to look for approval. As members like Weather can attest, I've been around here for quite some time and people like he and HotRod had requested I update when I finally make my purchase. If Acura was willing to negotiate a lower price, then I would have gone with the RDX, but the salespeople were not budging too much.

HotRodW

Congratulations Napoleon! Having seriously considered the GC myself, albeit the diesel, I can totally understand and respect your decision. Getting a vehicle that can run with the likes of the X5, ML and Touareg for the price of an RDX is pretty sweet. And while the GC may not be for everybody, it is obviously the right decision for you. In the end that's all that matters. Sure, you could potentially see your dealer an extra time or two over the period of a three year lease, but it seems a small price to pay to drive the vehicle you want. I wish you the best of luck.

johnrh

I like the GC also ... it is a very nice vehicle. Congrats on your purchase, and enjoy!!

Greg2012

Please keep us posted about what your feelings are on it a few months from now. I'm looking to replace a 2003 Crv with a GC but am concerned about reliability/and reputation of Chryler. Willing to give it a chance since I love the way the new GCs look and the features seems great on paper.

wildeklave

Not that it matters but Chrysler is owned by Fiat now. Reliability and quality should be improved from the past.

If you are worried because of recalls, I am not. In the past the manufacturers erred away from recalls because it cost them money. Now because they want to show reliability they are doing more recalls to show issues are being fixed.

What Honda has done in the past is warranty certain parts for the life of the vehicle instead of a recall. My parents had this with their seatbelts where the sensor / computer was not working properly. Hyundai had similar issues but told people that if the warranty expired they were sol. Honda decided it was a safety thing and good PR to just eat the cost and fix it. This could have been a recall but they decided to just fix the broken vehicles and not every vehicle.

With many of the GM recalls it is half about PR and showing they will fix issues. That being said, I am not buying a GM vehicle for a couple of years at least until they prove themselves.

Greg2012

Specially my main concern about buying a Chrysler is reliability, not their willingness to fix the vehicle. I would hate to have to go to the dealer/repair center every few months to get something fixed even if free. Had the CRV for over 12 yrs and the only thing I had to fix was wear an tear stuff.
Sure there were like 5 or 6 recalls, but they all got fixed during an oil change etc, nothing was pressing or annoying.

Napoleon

I think the Chrysler issues have been fixed recently. Having spoke to many many owners of the new Grand Cherokee (WK2), there have been very few issues at all. The only problems that have come up were from the very early build models that were software related. Seems like the problems have all been fixed.

I do hope Acura makes the RDX a bit more appealing in the MMC. It is a vehicle with so much potential and value, but feel like its missing a few things to make it "THE" SUV in its price range. I know some people hated the redesign, but I think it was a big step in the right directions (I was never a fan of the old RDX turbo). If Acura makes the auto rear hatch and HID lights (or jewel) standard and throw in some rear vents, I think the RDX will be tough to compete with. By the time my 3 year lease ends on the Grand Cherokee, I think the RDX will have those things taken care of and I'll be reconsidering returning to the Acura family.

hand-filer

Good luck with the Jeep. I hope it proves the naysayers wrong and gives you good service.

Napoleon

I hope so too! Moving away from Japanese was a BIG jump for me. My entire family is Japanese car owners (Acura, Honda, Toyota, Infiniti). Back in the 80s and 90s we all had American Cars, but got BURNED bad with our piece of crap Buicks and Oldsmobiles. Looking forward to giving Jeep/Chrysler another shot at the American car maker. Worse comes to worse, I'll come back to the Acura/Honda family in 3 years :-P

ARascal

Your now in what Catholics call...... Purgatory.

YeuEmMaiMai

it isn't about the speed per sae, it's about if you get into a situation where you need the power available to get out, the RDX will do it easily. Around here we got a lot of short entrance ramps and using my 2 cars as an example

the CL-S will easily get up to speed, you have to punch it, it will haul ass..

the legacy on the other land being down about 125hp vs the acura (I got mods on the acura) cannot get out of it's way if needed.

Old HP numbers
CLS 290HP
Legacy 165

If I get a RDX, having an SUV that can give me the same confidence as my coupe is a plus...

Comfy

You already bought it, now don't think too much about it. You got the best, rugged and comfortable car with great features for your particular situation which demands good AWD. And $40,000 is a great price for an Grand Cherokee. Congrats again.

dawudih

@Napoleon,
I know this is old, but I actually went to BUY the Jeep & was truley disapointed with it. I reluctantly test drove the RDX & could not say anything bad about it. Just my experience. Hope you enjoy the Jeep, they're the best looking suv out right now.