Orlando Sentinel's view

In the world of sport-utility vehicles, Ford’s Explorer is the undisputed king of the hill in sales. But Chrysler’s Jeep Grand Cherokee is climbing fast.

Last year, more than 306,000 Explorers were sold, a record for any sport-utility vehicle, according to Automotive News, a trade publication.

Of course, the bad thing about being on top is there’s no place to go but down. And that may be where the Explorer is headed. According to sales statistics compiled by Automotive News, about 7,000 fewer Explorers were sold in the first part of this year than in the first quarter of 1992.

After little more than a year on the market, Chrysler’s all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee has climbed to second place in sales, and it is gaining on the Explorer.

Some auto analysts think the Explorer, introduced in 1990 as a 1991 model, may have peaked in popularity and that the Grand Cherokee is now the hot and trendy sport-utility vehicle. More than 130,000 Grand Cherokees – all that Chrysler could produce – have been sold in the last 13 months.

But Ford’s lone Explorer factory also is building the vehicles at capacity, and it is having trouble supplying dealers with a large selection of the best-selling models. And in the first quarter of 1993, the Explorer still outsold the Grand Cherokee by 25,000 units, Automotive News reported.

Chevrolet’s dated S-10 Blazer – due for an overhaul next year – is a distant third in popularity. But no other sport- utility vehicle, foreign or domestic, can come close in sales to the Cherokee and Explorer.

Because the Jeep and the Ford have such a commanding lead over the competition, we decided to compare the top model from each manufacturer.

From Ford comes a new model, the just-introduced 1994 Explorer Limited. This is a classy, leather-clad luxury machine, which sells for about $29,500, blazes new pricing territory for Ford’s sport-utility vehicle. That’s about $4,000 more than the Explorer Eddie Bauer edition.

Chrysler is represented by the Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, a nifty-looking vehicle that sells for about $29,000. It comes with a faux wood interior, leather seats and Jeep’s reputation for ruggedness and excellent off-road handling.

The Grand Cherokee also offers two things you can’t buy in any other midsize sport-utility vehicle: a standard driver’s side air bag and an optional, 220-horsepower V-8 engine.

”Grand” and ”limited” are definitely the operative words here. If you can’t afford about $30,000, you’ll be limited to one of the also-ran sport-utility vehicles or a lesser-equipped two-wheel-drive versions of the Explorer or Grand Cherokee, which are mechanically identical to the test vehicles.

Since equipment and price are close to equal, the only real differences between the Explorer and the Jeep are the performance, styling, quality and the layout of the dash and rear cargo area. Here’s how they compare:

PERFORMANCE

The Explorer Limited and the Grand Cherokee Limited each come standard with high-torque, fuel-injected, 4.0-liter six-cylinder engines, but performance was not equal.

Jeep’s in-line, or straight-six, engine pumps out a robust 190 horsepower. The Explorer’s V-6 comes up a bit short with just 160 horsepower.

You can easily feel the difference. The Grand Cherokee is more responsive than the Explorer, especially when pulling away from a stoplight and during low-speed, off-road driving.

But the Grand Cherokee’s engine tends to be somewhat noisy when you make it work hard. You’ll hear the engine breathing deeply when you accelerate into busy traffic or muscle your way up a sandy hill in four-wheel drive.

But both vehicles deliver all-round street performance that is comparable to a six-cylinder midsize sedan, cruising quietly at 65 mph.

Surveys have shown that few sport-utility owners actually use their vehicles for trailblazing. Most are used for commuting or campin g or for pulling boats or trailers. Both test vehicles were equipped with computer-controlled, four-speed automatic transmissions and four-wheel-drive systems.

In combined city/highway driving, the Grand Cherokee averaged about 19 mpg. The Explorer turned in about 17mpg. I’d give the highest marks to the Grand Cherokee in off-road and in all-round performance – but only because it has more muscle than the Explorer. Also, I wonder how tough is the Grand Cherokee?

The vehicle I tested had a disheartening looseness to it. I heard clunking sounds coming from the drivetrain, possibly from a bad universal joint. Also, the engine did not always start instantly.

As a short footnote, I should mention that neither vehicle I drove was new. The Jeep had about 8,000 miles on the odometer and had been tested by several off-road publications. Undoubtedly they were 8,000 very hard miles, but that might be a clue as to how much abuse a Grand Cherokee can take.

The Explorer was smooth, quiet and well-behaved at all times. The Explorer’s odometer showed 2,200miles and, for all practical purposes, the vehicle drove as good as new.

In performance, chalk up a win for the Grand Cherokee. It’ll leave the Explorer in the dust. But for quality and refinement, the Ford Explorer is the better vehicle. Its drivetrain conveys quality, durability and more importantly, a greater sense of trust.

HANDLING

This is where I thought I’d have the toughest time finding the better vehicle.

It didn’t turn out that way.

After driving both vehicles on and off-road, I knew in an instant that Ford’s engineers will have a lot of work to do to equal or surpass the superb – make that best-in-class – ride and handling qualities of the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

And the next generation of the Explorer is not due out for another two years.

The Explorer rides like an old pickup truck compared with the Grand Cherokee. Hit several undulating dips in a row and the Explorer will bounce like a hyperactive kid on a trampoline. Over the same road, the Cherokee’s firmer suspension prevented such bouncing.

Smaller bumps are simply aren’t felt in the Grand Cherokee. But in the Explorer they are telegraphed straight through to the steering wheel.

Both vehicles offer power-assisted, disc/drum anti-lock brakes and power-assisted, recirculating ball steering systems. In the Explorer, the steering felt lifeless and vague. But its brakes felt more powerful than those of the Grand Cherokee.

Agile is the best way to describe the Grand Cherokee’s road manners. You can fling it around corners almost like a BMW sports sedan. The body doesn’t lean much in tight, fast cornering, and the steering is crisp and wonderfully responsive.

In comparison, the Explorer feels more like a cumbersome pickup truck. The rear wheels don’t have a lot of traction. Many times, I inadvertently squealed the tires when accelerating around a c urve from a stop.

For off-road driving, I’ll take the Jeep. I found a steep and sandy hill in Lake Mary that looked like it was used frequently by off-road enthusiasts. The sand was as thick, dry and loose as you would find on a beach.

This is where the Grand Cherokee is in its element. Shift the four-wheel -drive system in to low and the Grand Cherokee feels unstoppable. It has awesome low-speed power.

The Explorer doesn’t feel as if it has the same brute strength as the Jeep, and I didn’t feel as if I could trust it to climb the same hill. Getting stuck would mean a miles-long hike to the nearest pay phone as well some serious logistical problems related to extricating the Explorer. I didn’t want to take the chance.

If you prefer a sport-utility vehicle that rides like a car on the road and can handle some pretty bad off-road terrain, the Grand Cherokee is the clear winner. It is far better balanced and much easier to drive than the Explorer.

FIT ANDF INISH

If either manufacturer has anything to prove here, it’s Chrysler.

When it comes to trucks and sport-utility vehicles, Ford and Chevrolet are in a league not even the Japanese can play in. But in recent years, Chrysler’s quality has improved exponentially.

Still, I feel the Explorer is the better built vehicle.

Explorer felt tighter in almost every way – from the movement of the brake pedal to the folding down of the rear seats.

Over rough terrain, the Grand Cherokee provided a virtual symphony of rattles. The steering column and the dash were the worst offenders.

Over even the worst bumps the Explorer was as tight as a Lexus.

The high point of the Explorer Limited is its upholstery. Ford must have gone to Great Britain and spirited someone away from Rolls-Royce to design the Explorer Limited’s interior.

The seats in the Explorer are the nicest looking and most comfortable of any Ford truck or sport utility I have tested.

The soft gray leather seats came with a classy piping that was the same color as the paint job. I’ve only seen this treatment in Jaguar, Rolls-Royce and Sterling luxury cars. It works well in the Explorer, giving the interior a warm and cozy ambiance.

The Grand Cherokee’s leather seats also are comfortable. The perforated upholstery looks nice, but not as classy as the Explorer’s.

Adult rear-seat passengers in both vehicles are apt to find the going adequate at best. There’s a fair amount of room, and the seats are firm.

One big difference between the two vehicles is the placement of the shifter. If you prefer the shifter on the floor, then you’ll like the Jeep. In the Explorer, you can’t get the shifter on the floor unless you buy it with a manual transmission. Instead, it comes with an old-fashioned, column-mounted shifter.

Two buttons on the Explorer’s dash let you shift into four-wheel drive mode.

On the other hand, the Jeep is designed more like a $50,000 Range Rover. It features a comfortable T-handle shifter that is placed in a stylish console between the buckets seats. A second shift lever for the transfer case is located on the floor to the right of the console.

Ford has some work to do on the design and placement of some of the switches. Like the Grand Cherokee, the Explorer Limited comes with an automatic lighting system that turns on the headlights at dusk. But the control for this is on the rearview mirror.

One rotary-style knob on the Grand Cherokee controls the automatic headlights as well as the fog lights. On the Explorer the fog light switch is buried low on the left side of the dash.

The Grand Cherokee’s air conditioner controls are also easier to use. The Explorer still uses the old switch and lever routine from the 1960s.

The Grand Cherokee has three knobs. One allows the driver to fine tune the temperature to the exact degree; the other two control the fan speed and the defroster. The air condit ioner in the test Explorer needed work. It took a long time for it to blow cool, and it couldn’t cool the vehicle when the temperature hit 90 degrees.

The Jeep’s air conditioner was terrific. It could have been taken from a meatlocker.

In appearance and placement of the switches, the Jeep’s dash, center console and door panels eclipse those of the Explorer by a country mile.

In fact, on the inside, the Jeep only has three major shortcomings.

First, the spare tire is mounted in the cargo area. It is unsightly and it steals storage room. The Explorer’s storage area is flat and cavernous, like a station wagon’s.

Second, folding down the Grand Cherokee’s rear split seats is nothing short of a frustrating hassle. In the Explorer, the seats fold just like they do in a small hatchback. All you do is move a lever and fold the seats forward. In the Grand Cherokee you have to fiddle with the bottom cushions to get the rear seats to fold flat.

Third, for a bit of added utility, the Explorer allows you to open the rear-door glass. You can’t do that with the Grand Cherokee.

Here’s the tough the part: choosing between the Explorer and the Grand Cherokee.

Even though I feel the Explorer is the better built vehicle, I’d go for the Grand Cherokee. I like the design of the dash, the way it performs and especially the carlike way it drives and handles. When you take a Jeep off-road, you feel brave and invincible.

I would hope a new Grand Cherokee would not have the rattles and clunks as the test vehicle.

Specifications:

1994 Ford Explorer Limited Engine: 4.0-liter, 160-horsepower, fuel-injected V-6. Transmission: Electronically controlled four-speed automatic. Wheelbase: 111.9 inches. Suspension: Front, twin I-Beam with coil springs and gas-pressurized shocks; rear, two-stage, variable-rate leaf springs with gas-pressurized shocks. Brakes: Power-assisted front disc/rear drum. Steering: Power-assisted recirculating ball. Turning radius: 38.5 feet. Towing capacity: 5,200pounds. Seating capacity: Five. Cargo room: 81.6 cubic feet with rear seats folded. Head room: Front, 39.9 inches; rear, 39.1 inches. Leg room: Front, 42.4 inches; rear 37.7 inches. Safety features: Four-wheel anti-lock brakes. Fuel tank capacity: 19.3 gallons.