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Comparing Options: Seats, Radio, etc.

3266 Views 7 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  raz-0
Looking into a Limited vs Trailhawk. I locked down a budget and found 1 of each that meet my criteria (Trailhawks are still hard to find). Both are roughly same price (Limited $500 more).

Main differences that I could use some advice on:

-TH has uconnect 5.0, Limited has uconnect 6.5. Anyone have experience with both? Not having navigation doesn't bother me. More concerned of screen size and quality of 5.0 screen vs 6.5. How is back up camera on the 5.0

-TH has premium cloth seats, Limited has leather. I try to stay away from leather anything these days for humane reasons and I can get heated seats in the cloth. How is the quality of the premium cloth? Is it comfortable vs leather, do cloth seats stain easy, hard/easy to clean?

-This will be my daily driver. Is there a difference between road driving on TH vs Limited? I will be taking a few longer trips in this.

-Also, does the rear view camera have audible sensors? My current car doesn't have the camera, but has sensors which I actually prefer.

Requirements (both have all of these):
-Remote Start
-Heated Seats
-4WD
-Bluetooth Connectivity for Phone
-Dual Zone Temp Control / AC
-Back Up Camera
-Push Button Start (not required, but nice to have)

Pros of Limited I'm looking at:
-6.5/nav Radio
-Leather Seats
-Blind Spot Detection

Pros of TrailHawk I'm looking at:
-Full size spare
-9 speaker upgrade
-red/black interior
-Off Road capability
-Omaha Orange

I don't really off-road, but work at place with a lot of dirt / bumpy roads which either can handle. I do live in Southern Utah and do plan on going to places like Grand Canyon, etc so I *may* take advantage of the off-road a little. This will be my daily driver replacing my 2012 Ford Focus that has been great, but need some upgrades (4wd, heated seats, remote start, etc).

To me it's a toss up, but the Trailhawk is sexier, just have to make sure the 5.0 radio and premium cloth seats are not significant downgrades.

Thanks for any advice!
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I was having the same issue when ordering mine... but for me, I wanted leather seats and didn't care as much about the upgraded sound system and extra speakers, so I went with a TH with leather seats because I like the front profile of the car more and wanted the extra clearance (about an inch more) under the car to handle Michigan winters.

That said, the cloth seats seem fine and are probably no harder to clean than other seats and either 4x4 will most likely meet your needs. For me, leather seats outweigh nine speakers and a navigation system, but for you, it may be the other way around.
The 5.0 camera works great but does not have audible sensors. It displays in monochrome most of the time, but when you are playing from a device, it shows album art in color. I find the screen quality great, but then again my last car was a '99 and so I have low standards for technology.
That's what I wonder. I have a 2012 Ford Focus with 8" touch screen. It doesnt' have rear view camera, but I don't know if I'm taking a step back by going with the 5.0

Does the 5.0 and 6.5 have the same UConnect interface? We have a 2015 Grand Cherokee so I'm familiar with that layout, not sure if they're the sam.e

The 5.0 camera works great but does not have audible sensors. It displays in monochrome most of the time, but when you are playing from a device, it shows album art in color. I find the screen quality great, but then again my last car was a '99 and so I have low standards for technology.
I don't know if it is like the one in the Grand Cherokee, but here is video showing the Uconnect 5.0 that is in my Renegade: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BpOBrOfVnE

You can see various videos of all of the Uconnect versions in action on Youtube, I think.
I like the Trailhawk cloth seats a lot. Never cared for the feel of leather seats.

The 5.0 is a good unit. Paired with the 9-speaker system provides good sound (for a stock unit). My other car has the 8.4 unit but other than the Dodge performance pages (not available on the Jeep), there isn't anything missing really on the 5.0. The backup camera works fabulously, and just as good as it does with the 8.4. I have to assume the 6.5 doesn't provide any better backup view than the 5.0.

The 6.5 does offer some features that the 5.0 does not. But the 8.4 offers more with apps you can download, but I never use those anyway. Personally I like the look of the 5.0 better than the 6.5 in the Renegade.

I like the overall look (facias, badges, tow hooks) of the Trailhawk better than the other three trims and one of the reasons I have one. I originally wanted a Lattitude with a manual transmission.

Good luck with your decision.
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Looking into a Limited vs Trailhawk. I locked down a budget and found 1 of each that meet my criteria (Trailhawks are still hard to find). Both are roughly same price (Limited $500 more).

Main differences that I could use some advice on:

-TH has uconnect 5.0, Limited has uconnect 6.5. Anyone have experience with both? Not having navigation doesn't bother me. More concerned of screen size and quality of 5.0 screen vs 6.5. How is back up camera on the 5.0

-TH has premium cloth seats, Limited has leather. I try to stay away from leather anything these days for humane reasons and I can get heated seats in the cloth. How is the quality of the premium cloth? Is it comfortable vs leather, do cloth seats stain easy, hard/easy to clean?

-This will be my daily driver. Is there a difference between road driving on TH vs Limited? I will be taking a few longer trips in this.

-Also, does the rear view camera have audible sensors? My current car doesn't have the camera, but has sensors which I actually prefer.

Requirements (both have all of these):
-Remote Start
-Heated Seats
-4WD
-Bluetooth Connectivity for Phone
-Dual Zone Temp Control / AC
-Back Up Camera
-Push Button Start (not required, but nice to have)

Pros of Limited I'm looking at:
-6.5/nav Radio
-Leather Seats
-Blind Spot Detection

Pros of TrailHawk I'm looking at:
-Full size spare
-9 speaker upgrade
-red/black interior
-Off Road capability
-Omaha Orange

I don't really off-road, but work at place with a lot of dirt / bumpy roads which either can handle. I do live in Southern Utah and do plan on going to places like Grand Canyon, etc so I *may* take advantage of the off-road a little. This will be my daily driver replacing my 2012 Ford Focus that has been great, but need some upgrades (4wd, heated seats, remote start, etc).

To me it's a toss up, but the Trailhawk is sexier, just have to make sure the 5.0 radio and premium cloth seats are not significant downgrades.

Thanks for any advice!
I would definitely take the Trailhawk over the Limited. The 6.5" is nice, but I like to use Waze for navigation. I need a spare tire. I think the Trailhawk has a more stable ride than any of the other models on level pavement, and it just soaks up washboards. I love the seats. The 9-speaker system sounds kind of like loud computer speakers, not super but nice for a factory system without a label like Bose. I haven't tried my heated wheel and seats yet, it's just too warm outside to enjoy them. :)

The backup camera is very handy once you get used to it. It has guide lines that bend when you steer, and 3 distance zones coded red, yellow, and green. I backed up to within 5" of my garage door. The lens is very wide angle, and if you see the ground, you're not touching yet provided the center is the closest part to the other car. I can see my license plate in it. I think this will be very handy for parallel parking, and don't really want to get dependent on beeping radar alarms.
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I like cloth seats better than leather, I think the TH seats are nice, material and stitching is a bit nicer than the sport/lattitude. All of them are way better than the current ford escape IMO. (escape was the low point for upholstery feel, fit and finish of every vehicle I test drove/sat). All cloth can stain, so there's no escaping that. Most leather these days is a small patch of it under your butt and behind your back and then a bunch of synthetics. In the TH, the armrest and steering wheel are still covered in that, and it feels pretty nice.

The 5.0" screen is adequate for backing up. Between the good mirrors and the camera, with the mirrors set wide as all should be, I have zero blind spot issues and backing up is a breeze. Blind spot detection is available on the TH. It's part of the safety and security package as is cross path detection. What it doesn't have is the collision avoidance stuff which is optional on the limited.

Road driving shouldn't be dramatically different. I test drove a sport and a TH. The th feels like it has a bit more body roll, but that may just be the added height making it feel that way. The lower sidewall of the 18" wheel/tire combo on the limited will make potholes and bumps feel slightly harsher. I don't think the difference will be big enough to make a choice clear.

Base the TH has no audible indicator. No idea if safety and security changes that.
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