This is a Jeep Commander, seen in the east of the Chinese capital Beijing in 2016. The big Jeep looked great with a shipload of dust on it. Every Jeep should be covered with mud and dust and dirt. What, otherwise, is a Jeep for? The Commander was in a fine shape, painted in an army-style dark green with a shiny grille, simple five-spoke wheels, and a roof rack.
The Jeep Commander (XK) was manufactured from 2005 until 2010. It was a sizable vehicle with a length of 4.7 meters. Jeep sold 5- and 7-seat versions of the Commander. The Commander name was brilliant, and it was strange that Jeep didn’t use the name anymore after 2010.
That changed in 2018, when the local GAC-FCA joint venture started producing the Grand Commander, more on that car in a later post. The Commander was not locally produced in China, but it was officially sold by Jeep and an import-model from 2005 until 2008.
Like every Jeep, the Commander had rough looks for a rough image. Inside, everything was square-shaped and straight-lined. No fuzzy design surprises here. The interior of the car that I met looked pretty good for its years. The leather wasn’t very worm and the wood was good. The seats are as wide as they can be. The center stack is loaded to the max with buttons, switches, and a basic infotainment system.
The rear compartment with loads of space for legs and heads. The windows are large. I liked that a lot about Jeeps of that time, and earlier ones. The big windows made for excellent visibility and a light interior. Try to find that today. A window these days is more like a letterbox. My Jeep Cherokee XJ had big windows too.
The Jeep Commander was available with various engines. But in China, Jeep buyers could only get the big one: the 5.7 liter Hemi V8. That, or so it seems to me, is the perfect engine for a car like the Commander.
Output was 330 hp and 500 Nm. The motor was mated to a five-speed automatic gearbox, sending horses to all four wheels. The top speed was 208 kilometers per hour and 0-100 took 8.3 sons. Fuel consumption was a steep 15.6 liters per 100 kilometers.
Limited is the second-cheapest trim level. This particular example is fitted with a tow hook, which is rare in China.
The Jeep Commander is a rare sight on Chinese roads. It was imported and thus expensive. Price in 2008 was 649.900 yuan. Sadly, new emissions regulations have further diminished the number of Commanders in Beijing. Many have been scrapped and some have been sold on to other provinces where the rules aren’t so strict yet.
The license plate is as old as the car, with a double M and a double 9. Great car, and I hope the owner won’t wash it ever again.