Compare the2025 Jeep Grand CherokeeVS 2024 BMW X3

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

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Jeep Grand Cherokee are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW X3 doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Grand Cherokee are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The X3 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Grand Cherokee Overland/Summit helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The X3 doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the Grand Cherokee and the X3 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Jeep Grand Cherokee is safer than the BMW X3:

	Grand Cherokee	X3
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	21%	21%
Neck Stress	152 lbs.	202 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	137	176
Chest Compression	.6 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	28%	38%
Neck Stress	125 lbs.	139 lbs.
Neck Compression	41 lbs.	72 lbs.

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

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 Jeep Grand Cherokee is safer than the BMW X3:

	Grand Cherokee	X3
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	235 lbs.	275 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	39 G’s	45 G’s
Hip Force	527 lbs.	794 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	41 G’s	43 G’s
Hip Force	528 lbs.	624 lbs.

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

Warranty

Jeep’s powertrain warranty covers the Grand Cherokee 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than BMW covers the X3. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the X3 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 7 times as many Jeep dealers as there are BMW dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Grand Cherokee’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Jeep vehicles are better in initial quality than BMW vehicles. With 6 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Jeep higher than BMW.

Engine

The Grand Cherokee’s standard 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 45 more horsepower (293 vs. 248) and 2 lbs.-ft. more torque (260 vs. 258) than the X3 s/xDrive30i’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Grand Cherokee 4xe’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 101 lbs.-ft. more torque (470 vs. 369) than the X3 M40i’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the Grand Cherokee 4xe 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid is faster than the X3 s/xDrive30i 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder:

	Grand Cherokee	X3
Zero to 60 MPH	6.5 sec	6.7 sec
Quarter Mile	15 sec	15.1 sec

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Grand Cherokee running on electricity gets better mileage than the X3:

			MPGe
Grand Cherokee
	AWD	4xe Electric Motor	57 city/56 hwy
X3
			MPG
	RWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/29 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/28 hwy
		3.0 turbo 6-cyl. Hybrid	21 city/26 hwy

The Grand Cherokee 4xe can travel with zero emissions for 26 miles. The X3 can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Jeep Grand Cherokee uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended on Grand Cherokee 4xe for maximum performance). The X3 requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Grand Cherokee 4xe’s standard fuel tank has 1.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the X3 (19 vs. 17.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Grand Cherokee’s standard fuel tank has 5.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the X3 (23 vs. 17.2 gallons).

The Grand Cherokee has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The X3 doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Grand Cherokee’s brake rotors are larger than those on the X3:

	Grand Cherokee	X3	X3 M40i
Front Rotors	13.9 inches	13 inches	13.7 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	13 inches	13.5 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the X3 (275/45R21 vs. 245/45R20).

The Grand Cherokee has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The X3 doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Grand Cherokee offers an optional full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the X3; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare or run-flat tires, either of which has mileage and speed limitations.

Suspension and Handling

The Grand Cherokee Trailhawk has active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The X3 doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The Grand Cherokee offers an optional automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Grand Cherokee’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The X3 doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Grand Cherokee’s wheelbase is 3.9 inches longer than on the X3 (116.7 inches vs. 112.8 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Grand Cherokee is 1.9 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the X3.

For better maneuverability, the Grand Cherokee’s turning circle is 1.4 feet tighter than the X3’s (38 feet vs. 39.4 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Grand Cherokee has a greater minimum ground clearance than the X3 (8.4 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Grand Cherokee to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Grand Cherokee Trailhawk Air Suspension’s minimum ground clearance is 2.9 inches higher than on the X3 (10.9 vs. 8 inches).

Chassis

The Grand Cherokee offers available computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The X3 doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Grand Cherokee has 5.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the X3 (107 vs. 101.4).

The Grand Cherokee has 1 inch more front legroom, 1.6 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 1.8 inches more rear legroom and 2 inches more rear shoulder room than the X3.

Cargo Capacity

The Grand Cherokee has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the X3 with its rear seat up (37.7 vs. 28.7 cubic feet). The Grand Cherokee has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the X3 with its rear seat folded (70.8 vs. 62.7 cubic feet).

The Grand Cherokee’s cargo area is larger than the X3’s in almost every dimension:

	Grand Cherokee	X3
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	41”/73.8”	36.5”/69”
Max Width	55”	47”
Min Width	43”	43.3”
Height	32”	30.1”

Payload and Towing

Maximum trailer towing in the BMW X3 is limited to 4400 pounds. The Grand Cherokee offers up to a 6200 lbs. towing capacity.

The Grand Cherokee 4WD with optional equipment can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Grand Cherokee can be unhitched and driven around locally. The X3 can’t be towed flat on the ground.

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Grand Cherokee uses the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The X3 doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Grand Cherokee has a much higher standard payload capacity than the X3 (1240 vs. 902 lbs.).

The Grand Cherokee has a much higher maximum payload capacity than the X3 (1280 vs. 941 lbs.).

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the X3, the Grand Cherokee Overland Luxury Tech/Summit has a passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position (with optional power wheel adjuster), outside mirror angle and radio stations and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Grand Cherokee 4xe/Limited/Overland/Summit’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The X3 doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Grand Cherokee’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The X3 does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The Grand Cherokee’s standard Keyless Enter-N-Go allow you to unlock the doors from either front door handle, unlock the cargo door, and start the vehicle, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Comfort Go standard on the X3 only offers hands-free access for the ignition, none to unlock the vehicle.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Grand Cherokee has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the X3 only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

Consumer Reports rated the Grand Cherokee’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the X3’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

Optional air conditioned front and rear seats keep the Grand Cherokee’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The X3 doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

The Grand Cherokee Overland Luxury Tech/Summit has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the X3.

The Grand Cherokee (except Laredo A) offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The X3 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Recommendations

The Jeep Grand Cherokee outsold the BMW X3 by over three to one during 2024.

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