Renegade to take Jeep to another level

Naming a vehicle is an intriguing business, an inexact science.  What goes through marketeers’ minds when chucking around titles for their new arrivals? Take ‘Renegade’, the latest SUV from US brand Jeep. By definition, Renegade is a deserter, a betrayer of an organisation, country or set of principles. Which, as a moniker, couldn’t be more at odds with Jeep’s aspirations for Renegade in the UK. This is to be Jeep’s saviour, not its Judas. To put some numbers to the firm’s plans, Jeep is targeting an annual 10,000 sales for all its vehicle models in the UK in 2015, and of those 10,000 it reckons the Italian-built Renegade will contribute around 6,500-7,000. That’s quite a responsibility when you consider that just two years ago Jeep was struggling to shift 3,000 UK units, in total.  So, why the optimism for a line that only went on sale last month? Well, for starters Renegade is part of a rapidly growing small sports utility vehicle sector in the UK, and, within that category, industry bodies are also already predicting Renegade residual values second only to the hugely popular and widely lauded Skoda Yeti. This places the little Jeep above the likes of Mini’s Countryman and is a mightily impressive achievement for a brand that, in recent times, would have ranked among the industry’s heavier depreciators. Aesthetically, the Renegade is perhaps best described as quirky, and, as such, won’t be to all tastes, particularly the more conservative ones. At the front end Jeep enthusiasts will be relieved to see the seven-bar grille is retained, although working from there back it’s all rather different and concludes with distinctive yet distracting X-shaped indicator lights within the main rear cluster. Yup, quirky. But then again it’s an American, bred and built in Italy. So, ultimately, Renegade was always going to be thus. The cockpit is a pleasant place to be — firm seats, decent head- and leg room, tidily arranged controls — and rear passengers aren’t short-changed on space, either. The boot area is on the small side at 351 litres yet is still practical courtesy of the vehicle’s boxy shape; fold the rear seats flat, and volume rises to a useful 1,297 litres. Spec is generous for a £20-25k car, meaning that even the entry-level Sport (£16,995 petrol, £18,695 diesel) benefits from air-con, DAB radio (with Bluetooth) and 16in aluminium wheels. From the Sport, you move up through Longitude, Limited, Opening Edition (this is only available at launch) and Trailhawk, with the list of goodies lengthening progressively along the way. And there’s a whole raft of standard safety features, too. Mechanically, the Renegade has much to commend it. Engine choice extends to a 1.4-litre MultiAir II petrol (140hp man, 170hp auto), 1.6-litre MultiJet II diesel (120hp man) and 2.0-litre MultiJet II diesel (140hp man/auto or 170hp auto), gearboxes to a six-speed manual or nine-speed auto. And the buyer must also select between 2WD and 4WD variants. We drove the two diesel 4WDs with manual boxes and reckoned that, while offering little to excite, they were both peppy enough. Max towing capacity, however, is a disappointing 1.0t. Four-wheel drive tech brings further choices. ‘Active Drive’ is a fully auto system that alters the amount of torque heading out to front and rear wheels according to driving conditions, while ‘Active Drive Low’ adds a low ratio to the auto transmission. Both systems have Jeep’s Selec-Terrain package with its four settings of ‘Auto’, ‘Snow’, ‘Sand’ and ‘Mud’, and importantly there’s also Hill Descent Control. When pricing up your Renegade, bear in mind that the Trailhawk flagship is the only model to get the combination of 170hp diesel, nine-speed auto, ‘Active Drive Low’, a 30cm higher ride height and extra underbody protection; the downside is that this hikes the list to around £28k.  So, where does Renegade fit in farming? Tricky one. With Land Rover’s Freelander now gone and the new Discovery Sport starting north of £30k, there would appear to be an opportunity for a five-seater 4×4 with a roughty toughty image and a price tag that, with the exception of Trailhawk, can be kept the right side of £25k. If you can live with its alternative looks and lack of towing capacity, the Renegade might well merit more than a cursory glance — and especially if those healthy, early residual value predictors are to be believed. Watch out for a future drive in profi.