My mostly unbiased comparison - Expy vs. a week in a Grand Wagoneer

[techdude99]

Great observations! I agree with most of them.

I drove a my '19 Expedition Platinum Max to a test drive of a '23 Series II Grand Wagoneer and then drove a '23 Escalade Sport the same day. The Escalade was the smoothest over uneven pavement, but the Grand Wagoneer had an impressive interior. I wanted to compare the Navigator but I couldn't get one in the configuration I wanted.

All great vehicles.

 

[dlcorbett]

Build and price for base grand wagonner, shows the ho as standard.

If the jeep looked more Like the grand cherokee L instead of an uglier ram with a half hearted box on the bed, if have one myself.

The escalade is mostly a Smooth rider, much better than the denali , but I can't stand the braking and handling. It's too wallowing feeling, and the brake calibration is way off. I do like that the escalade has a more user friendly interior than the other gm fs suvs, I hate their layouts, especially all the controls on the left of the steering wheel.

I can't wait to see the new armada. I actually loved the armada we owned. The new infiniti looks to show they fixed the only issue I had with it, the third row room.

 

[2020-MAX-Limited]

Maybe I missed it, but what year/model/mileage on both cars? Yes, the Grand Wagoneer is more like the Navigator than the Expy, except maybe in Platinum Trim.

I too followed the Wagoneer when it came out and was intrigued, but at launch there were so many hiccups, technical and production issues that I quit following it. I stopped paying attention before the Hurricane V6 was introduced. Initially, the Grand had the gas-guzzling Hemi V8 and I was more interested in the mild-hybrid V8 in the "base" Wagoneer at the time.

Great review. Maybe it deserves another look, but I'm more than happy with our 2020 Limited MAX Expy, and expect many more years of great service from it.

 

[lobsenza]

Yeah, I think adding a electric motor to assist takeoff would be huge! But then it may suffer from the Sequoia issues and have tons of interior space taken up by the powerbank.

The Sequoia really screwed that up. Made it so anyone that was a roomy 3rd row or space with the seats folded cannot consider a Sequoia. I had a 2008 Sequoia and really liked it. I will not go near the current one.

 

[5280tunage]

Maybe I missed it, but what year/model/mileage on both cars? Yes, the Grand Wagoneer is more like the Navigator than the Expy, except maybe in Platinum Trim.

I too followed the Wagoneer when it came out and was intrigued, but at launch there were so many hiccups, technical and production issues that I quit following it. I stopped paying attention before the Hurricane V6 was introduced. Initially, the Grand had the gas-guzzling Hemi V8 and I was more interested in the mild-hybrid V8 in the "base" Wagoneer at the time.

Great review. Maybe it deserves another look, but I'm more than happy with our 2020 Limited MAX Expy, and expect many more years of great service from it.

The Grand Wagoneer I drove was s 2023 with 18k miles, which is old for a rental realistically. Other than exterior damage from idiots and even some carvings they did on the inside, it was in pretty decent shape. It did have at least one warped front rotor, which I told them about but you know how a lot of folks drive rentals, so 18k in that could be like 40k on mine.

my platinum is at around 46K miles. But I've done a lot to try and improve my ride, and this thing was still way better. the suspension and chassis just felt far more rigid.

A couple things I realized I failed to mention:
Steering. I did mention the great turning radius, but the adaptive steering was great. Super responsive and almost zero reaction from road issues. highway lane changes required maybe 5-10 degrees of rotation.
I didn't like that even this crazy expensive thing doesn't have paddle shifters. It allows you to select maximum gears and manually shift but it's a terrible implementation. I absolutely loved the gear lever on my WK2 that let me tap left or right to shift up and down, was so responsive and felt like you were more part of the vehicle.

 

[Calidad]

Ha ha literally was gassing up next to a neighbor somewhere close by see his Grand wagon doing the same kid shlepping I do. He said 16 in town I run the same circles he does I get solid 18. He was like what the. He asked about San Diego typical 750 mile trip for our area. 23 is pretty much every trip average. He said 20-21. He’s on stock highway rubber, I’m on bfg trail Terrains full heavy tow 9200 - the Jeep definitely needs 10spd.

 

[Mr Big]

my platinum is at around 46K miles. But I've done a lot to try and improve my ride, and this thing was still way better. the suspension and chassis just felt far more rigid.

When you put your Platinum in Sport mode, it will equal the ride feeling of the Grand Wagoneer. My wife complains about the floating feel of my Platinum, so now I just put it in sport mode and it has tighter suspension, steering is more sporty, tons more power, which I could care less about and no sway. But I will say I drove a new Grand Wagoneer at a car show recently and was really impressed overall. That was the fastest SUV I ever drove. But then the price tag of $110,00. brought me back to not liking it so much.

 

[techdude99]

Build and price for base grand wagonner, shows the ho as standard.

If the jeep looked more Like the grand cherokee L instead of an uglier ram with a half hearted box on the bed, if have one myself.

The escalade is mostly a Smooth rider, much better than the denali , but I can't stand the braking and handling. It's too wallowing feeling, and the brake calibration is way off. I do like that the escalade has a more user friendly interior than the other gm fs suvs, I hate their layouts, especially all the controls on the left of the steering wheel.

I can't wait to see the new armada. I actually loved the armada we owned. The new infiniti looks to show they fixed the only issue I had with it, the third row room.

After trying all the drive modes with the Jeep, Ford, and Cadillac the one that felt most 'car like' was the the Escalade in Sport Mode. The shifts were crisp, handling was taught, very little dive/squat braking, and the transmission didn't hold revs during normal driving.

I need to test drive the new Grand Highlander and Armada in the Fall. I'm looking forward to driving the refreshed Navigator as well.

 

[jjscsix]

Maybe I missed it, but what year/model/mileage on both cars? Yes, the Grand Wagoneer is more like the Navigator than the Expy, except maybe in Platinum Trim.

I too followed the Wagoneer when it came out and was intrigued, but at launch there were so many hiccups, technical and production issues that I quit following it. I stopped paying attention before the Hurricane V6 was introduced. Initially, the Grand had the gas-guzzling Hemi V8 and I was more interested in the mild-hybrid V8 in the "base" Wagoneer at the time.

Great review. Maybe it deserves another look, but I'm more than happy with our 2020 Limited MAX Expy, and expect many more years of great service from it.

Just as an FYI, it is a straight six, not a V. Having owned a BMW with a straight six I know why it matters. I had previously owned a twin turbo V8 BMW and the six made me a believer that a six can make you forget about not getting a V8.

As to the comparison, the only other vehicle I seriously considered was a Wagoneer. It had every option I would have liked that the Expedition does not offer such as air suspension and HUD. I did not have time to order a vehicle and could not find a Wagoneer equipped the way I wanted.

Im happy with the Expedition except that Im pissed that i still have not gotten the Synch 4 update which is a significant issue to me.

 

[Deadman]

I friend just had their Wagoneer bought back after maybe 6 months of ownership. I didn't ask what was all wrong but he just said it was a nightmare. I'm guessing it was electronic crap.