Rare Rides Icons: The Jeep Wagoneer, The First Luxury SUV Ever (Part XIV)

Jeep introduced its new midsize Grand Cherokee in 1993 to great fanfare. The family SUV segment was about to explode, and Chrysler’s offering was right on time. Suburban families eagerly snapped up the Grand Cherokee, but there was an additional and exclusive version on offer as well, and it wore a storied nameplate. The Grand Wagoneer returned!

As mentioned previously, the Grand Wagoneer was positioned above the standard Grand Cherokee and marketed as its own model. It was Jeep’s attempt to swing for the fences with its new ZJ platform and recapture the customer it lost when the SJ Grand Wagoneer exited production in 1991. That particular well-heeled four-door SUV customer would’ve been forced to buy a Suburban instead, or perhaps a Range Rover.

The 1993 Grand Wagoneer was based upon the most expensive Grand Cherokee trim, the Limited. Jeep then added many standard features, wood paneling, and an exclusive interior to turn it into the Grand Wagoneer. Headlining the list of standard features was the V8 engine.

Optional in all other trims, the 5.2 Magnum V8 was standard in the Grand Wagoneer and offered 220 horsepower and 285 lb-ft of torque. That power was put to all four wheels by Jeep’s most advanced electronically controlled four-wheel drive system, Quadra-Trac. The Quadra-Trac name was used on the old Wagoneer through 1982, at which point its name was changed to Selec-Trac.

For Grand Cherokee usage Jeep reintroduced Quadra-Trac, paired to an upgraded NP249 transfer case. The permanent four-whee-drive system had settings for All-Time, Neutral, and 4WD Low. This particular Quadra-Trac setup was used only from 1993 to 1995 in the ZJ Grand Cherokee and Grand Wagoneer.

The new Grand Wagoneer featured standard wood paneling on its exterior, just like the old SJ wore. It was smoothed for '90s usage and looked a bit less canoe-like than the wood on the old SJ. It was akin to the wood paneling you’d see on your home VHS storage drawer.

There was no thick trim to separate the wood into panels, it was a continuous perimeter feature that excluded only the hood. Grand Wagoneer badges were presented in silver on the front fenders. At the prow, every Grand Wagoneer used a full chrome grille, different to the Cherokee Limited where it was body colored. Also standard on Grand Wagoneer were bumper-mounted fog lamps.

The Grand Wagoneer used the lace alloy wheels from the Grand Cherokee Limited, but for Wagoneer usage they were always a polished alloy color. Limited Cherokees wore gold tone wheels. Near those wheels was a simpler body side presentation: The ribbed cladding of the Grand Cherokee was removed below the door trim strip.

Inside, the Grand Wagoneer wore a very special interior. Deeply segmented and ruched leather seats were offered in an oatmeal beige color. Jeep called the seating surfaces “biscuit-style,” for better or worse. Seats were finished in a softer leather than on Grand Cherokee models. Unfortunately, it was the only interior color on offer for Grand Wagoneer.

Though sources commonly cite the Grand Wagoneer as having additional wood in its cabin, in reality it was simply a different wood style than on Cherokee Limited. Finer grained in nature, it was browner in color. The wood in Limiteds of 1993 leaned red, with larger grain. 

The rest of the interior used a no-holds-barred approach to features, where everything from the Limited was standard plus a lot more. Notably there was a standard driver’s airbag, and standard climate control. One of the few standalone options on the Grand Wagoneer was an in-dash CD player, a rarity in SUVs of the time.

Given all the equipment, the special interior, faux wood, and the legendary name, Jeep charged a pretty penny for the new Grand Wagoneer. In 1993, it asked $29,966 ($69,980 adj.), a far cry from the $18,990 ($44,348 adj.) starting price of a Grand Cherokee. It was also notably more than the Limited which asked $28,670 ($66,954 adj.) that year. The most comparable domestic model in 1993 was the Explorer, which in four-door guise asked $24,200 ($56,515 adj.) as an Eddie Bauer, and $25,672 ($59,952 adj.) as the rare Limited, handily undercutting the Grand Wagoneer.

As it turned out, the Grand Wagoneer name was not as appealing when slapped on a ZJ Grand Cherokee as a basis. Buyers moved on to other options and did not return to Jeep showrooms to seek a wood-clad SUV. Though the Grand Cherokee was hugely successful in 1993 and sold 190,935 examples, Grand Wagoneer sold just 6,378 units.

A swing and a miss for Jeep, and the Grand Wagoneer vanished as quickly as it arrived. It became a single-year model, and left Jeep with the Limited Grand Cherokee as its most expensive SUV. A couple years later Jeep upped the ante with the Orvis Edition, which was perhaps the ZJ’s closest return to the spirit of the Grand Wagoneer.

After 1993, the Wagoneer name entered a slumber at Jeep. Projects came and went but never moved past the idea stage. It seemed the Wagoneer would not return, particularly after the 2008 financial crisis put a permanent dent in the market’s enthusiasm for enormous and thirsty SUVs. 

In the meantime, Chrysler and Jeep fell into the hands of a new owner. Fiat picked up Chrysler’s assets after they were mismanaged by Daimler and then gutted by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. After Chrysler’s bankruptcy, Chrysler and Fiat worked together and eventually merged into Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2011. And that company’s chairman had some new ideas for the Wagoneer. We’ll pick up there next time.

[Images: seller, Chrysler]

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