Diesel Grand Cherokee in 2007

The Detroit Free Press reports this morning that DaimlerChrysler will be offering a diesel powered version of the Jeep Grand Cherokee in 2007. The 2007 Grand Cherokee will be powered by a 3.0-liter common rail turbo diesel engine built at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Berlin . Not everyone in the should go running towards their Jeep dealerships though, since they won't be able to sell the diesel-powered Grand Cherokee in five states because of emission laws. The projected improvement in mpg will be modest though, 19 mpg in the city and 23 mpg on the highway. The 2006 Grand Cherokee Limited with a V8 engines gets 17 mpg in the city and 20 mpg on the highway. I wonder if the engine option will be targeted more towards people that are looking for excellent towing capacity, which I am sure the diesel option will provide.

[Source: The Detroit Free Press]