[CalTom]

With the slew of positive Renegade reviews this week, with many mentioning the great capabilities of the Trailhawk, I thought this was an interesting summary:

First test of new Jeep Renegade, a compact crossover that offers real off-road ability
Verdict
You can’t blame Jeep for being brave with the Renegade’s styling or cabin flourishes – it can’t afford to fade into the background against such talented competition. But there’s a pervading sense Jeep has concentrated on not riling US enthusiasts by pouring so much effort into the Renegade’s off-road ability, and has ended up with a car overly skilled in an area many European buyers simply don’t need – or care about.
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/jeep/renegade/88639/new-jeep-renegade-2014-review

So, for those of us U.S. buyers, who this is important, hurray for Jeep!

 

[Willy]

well of course he conveniently skews, TH is the off road pack, if you dont want to off road, dont get the off road pack. BE USEFUL! The experts kill me sometimes

 

[Karamich]

well of course he conveniently skews, TH is the off road pack, if you dont want to off road, dont get the off road pack. BE USEFUL! The experts kill me sometimes

Yes sometimes they test one trim and spread their generalized impression over the other trims... when it comes to cars and SUVs of other makes this might work but I agree this false generalization does not work for the Jeep "new" philosophy of designing FWD crossovers and stretching the models toward an off-road trim... reviewers need to summarize their impression in one short catchy line and with jeep this make reviewers sound uninformed...

 

[willk]

"the thick pillars mean visibility is dreadful. Add in slow steering and you’ve got a little car than manages to feel rather cumbersome and unhelpful around tight urban streets."

I hope this is not true or I will not be a Renegade owner.

 

[Karamich]

To balance my comment above, the article is one of those that I like because its picking the little flaws here and there and giving technical heads ups fairly well (visibility, vague steering etc)...

 

[raz-0]

"the thick pillars mean visibility is dreadful. Add in slow steering and you’ve got a little car than manages to feel rather cumbersome and unhelpful around tight urban streets."

I hope this is not true or I will not be a Renegade owner.

My first reaction on those issues are pretty much "what car doesn't ship with absurdly thick a-pillars these days?" and "yup, complain about electric steering, good luck finding anything not using it."

Granted, they could be truly awful on both counts, but I suspect from the overall tone, that the author takes offense at jeeps presence over there. Kind of like you can find Jermey Clarkson having a blast in a vette for the majority of a top gear episode, and then he complains about how awful it is and if only it were 10% nicer, it could be nicer than something costing 4 times as much.

The hyundai approach to the a-pillars in most of their cars kills me. Given where my head sits in their cars, and the fat sloping a-pillar, they cause wicked blind spots to cross traffic. Other people seem to cope though. So even if they were genuinely bad for the author, it doesn't mean much for people of differing dimensions.

 

[JT76]

"the thick pillars mean visibility is dreadful. Add in slow steering and you’ve got a little car than manages to feel rather cumbersome and unhelpful around tight urban streets."

I hope this is not true or I will not be a Renegade owner.

I went back and looked at one of the videos in the discussion Jeep Renegade Off Road Tests and the A pillars do look rather large....doesn't seem to be an issue in any other review that I have read

 

[raz-0]

http://youtu.be/XP8MQJ6qpBA

russian review.. nice shots of interior, but the angle on the reviewer lets you see the massive a pillars.

They are HUGE looking.

 

[CalTom]

http://youtu.be/XP8MQJ6qpBA

russian review.. nice shots of interior, but the angle on the reviewer lets you see the massive a pillars.

They are HUGE looking.

You are mistaking the pillers for one of the 70 safety features, they double as the roll cage.

 

[Greenjp]

You are mistaking the pillers for one of the 70 safety features, they double as the roll cage.

Also the wide angle camera lens they use distorts around the edges. I have seen pics of kitchens that these wide angle lens make the fridge look 6 ft wide when you know it is half that.