Plenty of Cargo Room for a Compact SUV - 2014 Jeep Cherokee Limited Long-Term Road Test
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Plenty of Cargo Room for a Compact SUV - 2014 Jeep Cherokee Limited Long-Term Road Test
Carrying awkward cargo isn't a problem in most SUVs and our Cherokee is no exception. By folding the seats I was able to carry a stack of 5-foot lumber and a single 8-foot piece without a problem.
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I totally disagree that it has plenty of cargo space for a small SUV. Just compare it to other small SUVs:
Max Cargo Capacity
Ford Escape: 68.1
Honda CRV: 70.9
Chevy Equinox: 63.7
Jeep Cherokee: 54.9
Enough for runs to the grocery store? Sure, but it would be one of my last choices if I had a bunch of cargo to haul.
Nope, not getting away with it. Hauling an 8 foot splinter of wood trim is nice, but is irrelevant to the seats-up cargo volume of the Cherokee, which is still very low for the segment. I suspect any compact SUV is capable of what you are showing here, as what you've demonstrated is passenger cabin length, not cargo volume. Try packing for a road trip for a family of four in the Cherokee and then in a CR-V or RAV4 if you want to see how this Jeep really stacks up.
I'm with s197gt. I don't quibble about cargo numbers when they're within a few cubic feet of eachother. For example I won't say that the CRV is a much more useful car than a CX5 because it has slightly higher cargo numbers. When it comes down to the real world, both cars will carry similar loads. Not so for the Cherokee. It trails the rest of the class, by a lot. And it's not just the numbers. It's the width of the cargo area. It's the high floor and even higher door sill. It's also kind of narrow back there. I like the Cherokee, a lot. And I'm seeing them all over the place. But the tradeoffs to make Cherokee capable off-road are evident in a few places and this is one of them.
It's also worth noting that the CX-5 has a 40/20/40 folding rear seat. You could carry this load and still have room for 4 passengers.
Where to put the cargo cover? Ah, how about just reinstalling it, back up where it belongs? I know the flap hanging down might touch the wood, but can't imagine that's a big deal. As far as the long item, you do know that the front passenger seat folds down, right? Then again, perhaps you had two passengers along for the ride.