Is there a way of improving the fuel economy of our Jeep Grand Cherokee?

My wife has just sold her much-loved 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee and bought a newer one, a 2000 Grand Cherokee 4-litre petrol which has only 38,000 miles. It’s been a Chelsea tractor and well looked after. We realize it’s a gas-guzzler but we go ballooning and sometimes have to tow, and also we use it locally in Brighton when there is snow to deliver Meals on Wheels. The comfort is great and at £2600 it compensates the running costs, we hope. The question is, can we help improve on the fuel economy? The old Jeep had four 225/70 R16 Pirelli Scorpions. The new Jeep has 245/70 R16 Continental Cross Contacts on the front and Goodyear Wranglers on the back, all in new condition. Can this engine be remapped for fuel economy?

Asked on 17 August 2013 by GC, via email

Answered by Honest John

On a Jeep you don't want any difference in tyres at all front to back because this will cause wear to the Quadra trac system that thinks a difference in rotation front to back is slip, and engages 4WD. I don't think you'll better Pirelli Scorpion STRs for mainly road use. Some people do LPG conversions to Jeeps. They seem to work quite well with the old 4.0 litre straight-six OHV engine, but the world price of LPG is going up: www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/lpg-and-cng/

Tags: fuel economy wheels and tyres mpg 4wd

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