Jeep Cherokee: six generations of the Jeep SUV

The Jeep Cherokee is a line of sport utility vehicles sold over six generations. It started in late 1973 as a two-door version of the Wagoneer, became one of the first compact SUVs with the unibody XJ of 1984, and in 2014 turned into a front-wheel-drive-based crossover. The name comes from the Cherokee tribe of Native Americans.

Jeep Cherokee at a glance

The CRD diesel and the Laredo trim, both former separate entries, are covered in this article.

History of the Jeep Cherokee

The SJ Cherokee of 1974

The Cherokee was revealed in late 1973 and went on sale as a 1974 model, a rebadged two-door Wagoneer with a redesigned greenhouse: the C-pillar was removed, the D-pillar widened and a single long fixed rear side window fitted, with an optional flip-out section. It replaced the Jeepster Commando, whose sales had disappointed, and was aimed at a younger buyer than the family-oriented Wagoneer. Jeep marketed it as the sporty two-door version of its station wagon, with more interior space than a CJ-5 but the same off-road ability. The 1974 Cherokee sales brochure is where the term “sport utility vehicle” first appears, which makes the Cherokee a convenient marker for the birth of the SUV.

XJ and the modern SUV

A four-door joined the range for 1977, and trim levels ran from S and Chief to Golden Eagle, Golden Hawk, Limited, Classic, Sport, Pioneer and Laredo. For 1984 the name moved to an entirely new vehicle, the XJ, which abandoned body-on-frame construction for a lightweight unibody. It became the model other makers copied, and it is often credited with replacing the family estate car in American suburbs. The XJ stayed in production until 2001, and it was so successful that its replacement was launched as a separate model, the Grand Cherokee.

Liberty, Nitro and the crossover

The third generation of 2002 was sold as the Jeep Liberty in North America and as the Cherokee elsewhere. It was the first Jeep with rack-and-pinion steering and the first to use the new PowerTech engines, a 2.4 litre four of 150 hp and a 3.7 litre V6 of 210 hp, and it was built in Toledo and in Egypt and Venezuela. The 2008 fourth generation, again a Liberty in North America, shared its platform with the Dodge Nitro; the four-cylinder was dropped and the V6 became standard, while the CRD diesel was withdrawn from the American market because it could not meet the 2007 emissions rules. The 2014 KL generation moved the Cherokee to a Fiat-developed crossover platform and to a mid-size package, with the Renegade introduced below it. Production stopped in February 2023 and restarted in August 2025.

Design and features

• Birth of a label: the 1974 brochure is the first known use of “sport utility vehicle”.
• Two-door style: the original Cherokee had no C-pillar and one long rear side window.
• Unibody XJ: the 1984 car dropped the separate frame and set the pattern for compact SUVs.
• Rack-and-pinion steering: the 2002 KJ was the first Jeep to use it.
• Diesel option: the CRD was offered in Europe but withdrawn from the United States after 2007.

Jeep Cherokee versions

• Cherokee SJ (1974–1983): two-door, later four-door, version of the Wagoneer.
• Cherokee XJ (1984–2001): the unibody compact SUV.
• Cherokee KJ (2002–2007): sold as the Liberty in North America.
• Cherokee KK (2008–2012): related to the Dodge Nitro.
• Cherokee KL (2014–2023): the crossover generation.
• Laredo and CRD: a long-running trim level and the common-rail diesel version.

The Cherokee sits below the Grand Cherokee and above the Compass; its pickup derivative is the Comanche. More models are in the Jeep collection.

Video: Jeep Cherokee 2014 Test | Fahrbericht | Video

Video by Motorvision Deutschland on YouTube.

Sources

• Jeep Cherokee, English Wikipedia: all six generations, engines, trims, production dates