Jeep® has launched a new commercial version of its Cherokee in the UK. The Jeep Cherokee Pioneer boasts more than 1954 litres of load space and a payload of 359 kg.

The Pioneer, based on the 2.5CRD Sport model, is available from just £17,503*. Multi-stage front airbags, headlamp levelling, air conditioning, ABS, electric front windows and a single CD player all come as standard.

The completely flat cargo area in the commercial version is created by replacing the rear seats with a full length galvanised metal floor that is finished with a hard wearing minimum slip carpet for load security. The rear quarter glass and rear door glass have also been removed and replaced with body colour aluminium panels.

For added safety and convenience, a removable floor to ceiling metal and mesh bulkhead is a £200 optional extra, and for easy access to the cargo area, the rear doors can still be opened.
Simon Elliott, Managing Director of Chrysler Group in the UK, said "The new Cherokee Pioneer is aimed at people who need a car with great off-road capability and the ability to carry a large load, whether in the cargo area or on a trailer. "The Pioneer maintains a smart and professional image, while the sophisticated four-wheel ABS disc system featured on the Cherokee means it has great stopping power, and this in turn means it can safely tow a braked trailer weight of up to 2688 kg."

For VAT registered customers, who can claim back the tax, Commercial Vehicle On the Road Price for the Pioneer is just £17,503. On the Road Price of £20,328.
Jeep Cherokee Pioneer is available in white or black, with metallic silver optional (£210).
Optional removable metal bulkhead costs £200. Optional alloy wheels cost £320.
The Cherokee Pioneer is powered by a 2.5 CRD engine with a five speed manual gearbox. It reaches 62 mph in 13.5 seconds and achieves a top speed of 101 mph, with 31.4 mpg (combined cycle). The 141 bhp engine produces 251 lb ft of torque at 2000–2400 rpm.
The cargo area is 1.2 m long, 1.2 m wide and 1 m tall.

DEARBORN, Mich., March 11, 2004 – The 2004 Ford F-150 Regular Cab, SuperCab and SuperCrew have each earned the top safety score in the federal government’s frontal impact crash test – five stars for the driver and five stars for the front-seat passenger. The Ford F-150 is the only 2004 pickup to earn the government’s top safety rating of five stars for both the driver and right front passenger in the frontal impact mode.

In the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) test, officially known as the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), vehicles are rated on the protection provided to properly seat belt restrained occupants in a frontal collision. Five stars indicate the best crash protection. More occupant fatalities and injuries occur in frontal crashes than any other type of crash.

"The five-star ratings confirm our own analysis of the safety performance of this excellent vehicle," said Jim Vondale, director, Automotive Safety Office. "The F-150 has a strong record for real-world safety."

The new F-150 also recently received the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest ranking of "Best Pick" in frontal crash performance. The F-150 was the first, and only, pickup truck to receive a "Best Pick" in the high-speed frontal offset crash category.

2004 F-150

The new F-150 has been designed, engineered and manufactured to be a breakthrough product that resets the competitive benchmark within the full-size pickup truck segment. Key to this effort is safety performance. The 2004 F-150 has been developed with a dedicated focus on safety, making it the safest F-150 ever, as is evidenced from the enhancements below:

Crash-optimized structure:
If a collision is unavoidable, the new F-150 helps to protect its occupants with a structure designed to help absorb and dissipate crash energy and maintain occupant compartment integrity.

Restraint systems:
Advanced restraints provide additional occupant protection, which now includes passenger occupant classification as part of more than a dozen elements that make up the Personal Safety SystemÔ – a suite of restraint technologies designed to tailor their response to the severity of the crash and other factors.

Beltminder: A vehicle occupant's best line of defense in crashes remains the safety belt. Ford Motor Company's industry-leading technology reminds the driver and front-seat passenger to buckle up by sounding a gentle tone and displaying an icon on the instrument panel.

Child passenger safety: All new F-150 trucks have three sets of LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) fixtures and top tether anchors across the rear seat of SuperCab and SuperCrew models, and a top tether anchor on the front passenger seat. Regular Cab models have both LATCH lower anchors and a top tether anchor on the front passenger seat.

In addition to its emphasis on safety, the new 2004 F-150 extends its segment leadership through major improvements in several key areas, including:

Capability – The 2004 F-150 over delivers on the tough truck capability buyers have come to expect by achieving best-in-class trailer towing, best-in-class payload, best-in-class cargo box volume, best-in-class frame strength and class-leading low-end torque.

Driving Dynamics – The new F-150 does not compromise in providing outstanding ride and handling not typically expected in a pickup truck through advancements such as a twice-as-strong frame, a front suspension featuring class-exclusive cast aluminum lower control arms, the addition of rack-and-pinion steering, larger brakes, and rear shock absorbers mounted outside the frame rails.

Interior Design – With six inches added to Regular Cab and SuperCab for best-in-class interior volume within these configurations, greater access through a class-exclusive all four-door lineup, and an exclusive overhead rail storage system, the 2004 F-150 – the quietest pickup in the segment - raises the bar on interior design and craftsmanship to lofty heights.

Customer Choice – With three cab styles, three box lengths, two box styles and five distinct series (XL, STX, XLT, FX4 and Lariat), the F-150 offers the industry’s widest variety of configurations and provides at-a-glance exterior and interior differentiation not seen previously in a pickup truck.

Ford designs all of its vehicles with the objective of reducing the risk and severity of injury in an accident. Ford safety engineers and experts use the most advanced computer technology in the industry to ensure its vehicles meet or exceed stringent crashworthiness standards. Only vehicle designs that effectively absorb impact energy and help provide occupant safety during computer simulation are chosen for further testing and development.

Ford incorporates an array of other very stringent safety testing in the development of its vehicles, including frontal offset, side impact and rear impact.

After Vauxhall canned their Frontera range earlier this year, they have announced that they will be launching two new 4x4s in 2006.

After the death of the Frontera, Vauxhall have announced that there will be two new 4x4s from their stables in 2006. The Frontera only sold around 5,000 units in 2003, and this was the final nail in its coffin.

The smaller SUV from Vauxhall will be based on the American Saturn Vue/Chevrolet Equinox. The other will be based on the Chevrolet Trailblazer and marketed at the Toyota Landcruiser class of 4x4.

The smaller 4x4 will have unique Vauxhall styling and expect it to look like a chunky Chevrolet Equinox. It is expected to one of the biggest entrants in a class that includes the Land Rover Freelander, Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V and Nissan X-Trail.

Power units are rumoured to include the 184bhp 3.0-litre and 188bhp 3.4 V6, and 146bhp 2.2 four-cylinder Ecotec engines. A diesel will be essential for Europe; the Fiat 2.4-litre JTD may be employed. As for a standard LPG conversion by Vauxhall, this is not known at this time.

The Vue and Equinox are biased towards on-road performance and the Vauxhall would be similar, its suspension consisting of MacPherson struts up front and a four-link independent system at the rear.

The full-size off-roader from Vauxhall will use the GMT360 platform, which will yield a new Trailblazer next year as well as the 9-7X SUV from the SAAB stables. It could mean that Vauxhall sells three US-based models – if the VX Lightning sports car gets approval.

IRVINE, March 4, 2004 - After driving mostly south for 104 days, the Drive Around the World LONGITUDE Expedition team is on their way back from the end of the world, "el fin del mundo."

From their launch at the Parkinson's Institute in Sunnyvale, Calif., to their latest landmark, the world's southernmost city of Ushuaia, Argentina, the team has covered 13,500 miles in their four 2003 Certified Pre-Owned Land Rover Discovery vehicles - completing more than one-third the distance of their planned drive-a-thon around the globe intended to raise awareness and funding for Parkinson's research.

The vehicles, named D1 through D4, have been identically equipped by Rover Accessories with heavy-duty ARB front winch bumpers; bright Hella rally lights; Hannibal roof racks and rooftop tents; and bigger, wider BFGoodrich mud terrains. The vehicle personalities, however, are as different as the characters driving them.

Vehicle D1
Drive Around the World founder and LONGITUDE Expedition leader, Nick Baggarly, and his wife, Chanda, in Vehicle D1, are fondly regarded by the team as the "geeks" of the Expedition. Loaded with Iridium and Inmarsat satellite phones and wireless communications gadgets that connect all four vehicles in a moving, high-speed, local-area data network, D1 has become the mobile-office geek-mobile of the convoy.

This unique IT system was custom developed by Drive Around the World for remote web publishing. As web developer for the Expedition, Chanda Baggarly spends most of the long road hours typing away on her laptop in an effort to improve and update the Expedition's homepage
www.drivearoundtheworld.com
Vehicle D2
The documentary team, Adam Burgess, Neil Dana and Colin McAuliffe, are manning Vehicle D2, which reflects the laid-back attitude of a stereotypical "motley" film crew. With Burgess' and Dana's surfboards atop and a guitar in the back seat, D2 provides the 'good vibes' to the convoy.

The crew has enjoyed the Discovery's solid, smooth and comfortable ride on and off road; its comfortable and fully adjustable seats; and the spacious and well-lit rear cargo area for carrying Pelican cases full of film equipment and for taping interviews from inside of the vehicle.

Vehicle D3
Piloted by Nancy Olson, an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, and Todd Borgie, a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer, Vehicle D3 is deemed the split personality vehicle. Loaded with toys (A Santa Cruz mountain bike and Shimano fishing equipment, to name a few), tools, an electronic encyclopedia, books, and camping equipment, D3 is both a thrill-seeking adventurer and a quiet philosopher.

"I haven't had to work on the vehicles much at all," said team mechanic and educational coordinator, Borgie. "When we have had to change a tire or tighten an exhaust stud, I've found the little 'attentions to detail' that make the Discovery maintenance-friendly."

Vehicle D4
Rolf Potts and Justin Mounts, published travel author and navigator/medic/communications manager, respectively, are the keepers of D4. With maps, logistical plans, travel guides, and a ship-shape appearance, D4, most often driving point, lead by soldierly example.

"I never have to think about the Land Rover CPO Discovery when I drive. It runs great, and I get to concentrate on the pleasures of driving across the Americas!" said Potts.

The "no-brainer" aspect of driving the Land Rover CPO Discovery is what the team most often cites as their favorite feature.

For Drive Around the World, part of the experience is the interaction with the local populace. When the four-vehicle convoy pulls into cities and towns throughout Central and South America, heads turn, fingers point, and smiles appear. But, turning heads is more than an ego affirmation for the nine explorers - it is a fundraising strategy.

"The success of our program relies upon generating attention and redirecting it toward our drive for a cure," said Baggarly. "The initial interest sparked because of the vehicles creates opportunities for us to tell people about our mission, and that is how we help Parkinson's disease."

While they may have come to the end of the world, it is not the end of the road for the team. After a short few days in Ushuaia, the team drove north to Buenos Aires, where they put all four vehicles on a Wallenius Wilhelmsen ocean liner for a six-week sail to Australia. From Australia, the team will head up through Indonesia and 12 countries in Asia, ending their northbound journey on Siberia's Kamchatka Peninsula before heading home through Alaska and Canada.

The network launch has been staggered, beginning with a US specific technical database available to their Independent Motor Traders (IMTs) and the general public through the Internet. A service tailored to the equivalent users in the UK was available several months later. Land Rover employees and European IMTs gained access in September, while the worldwide dealer network can use the GTR site through an extranet from this month.
The GTR site offers users improved availability and access to all technical materials, from maintenance check sheets and body repair manuals, to vehicle inspection advice and service bulletins. This allows dealers and IMTs to respond quickly to service actions and new part updates, causing minimal inconvenience to the customer in the event of a repair. Previously such information was uploaded onto a CD and sent to users via post.

US and European legislation dictated the need to supply all emissions related technical information to the IMT and general public, but the GTR site has grown into a Land Rover solution for providing a wider resource of technical materials.

GTR is a subscription based system, providing information over a sliding cost scale depending on the period of subscription and the range of information selected. All charges made to the public and Independent Motor Traders are aligned with those made to Land Rover's own Authorised Repairers.

You can find the Global Technical Reference (GTR) website by using the following link:
www.landrovertechinfo.com