Jeep Avenger long-term test: report 4

The car Jeep Avenger Summit Run by Mark Pearson, used cars editor

Why it’s here To see if the trendy Avenger can successfully forge new ground for Jeep and to see how it stacks up against its many polished electric SUV competitors

Needs to dispatch commuting, work and family life without any range anxiety issues and cope with a wide variety of everyday duties 

Miles covered 3450 Price £39,600 Target price £39,017 Price as tested £42,125 Official range 244 miles Test range 183 miles 

9 March – Smiling on the inside 

You know a car’s got it sussed when its interior is almost as glam as its exterior. My Jeep Avenger’s eye-catching yellow dashboard is a real mood-enhancer and the steering wheel’s handsome and good to hold too, with large, chunky buttons for the audio volume and the like making it easy to operate. 

It also has plenty of storage space and cubby holes up front, including a terrific full-length shelf that runs beneath the dash, ideal for keys and phones and footwear and food. There’s a removable and cleanable mat on that shelf too, should your bag of dates burst. 

It’s so glam that you can easily overlook the fact that the interior is in reality a little plasticky. In some ways, though, this utilitarian approach suits its rugged Jeep credentials – if you were a serious mud-plugger or bicyclist it’d certainly be easier to clean down the interior.   

However, there are annoyances. The Avenger is one of those cars that has a stop/start button which is slightly awkwardly placed behind the steering wheel. On top of that, you have to hold it down for what is just a fraction too long for my admittedly limited patience before it decides to do anything. 

I’m not sure if I like the buttons for changing gear being so low down on the centre console, either. It’s quite a stretch and there are times when you are going between drive and reverse when you want to keep your eyes on the road rather than have to look down to prod the right button. 

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