• The new Jeep Cherokee provides up to 37 MPG combined
• Get 500+ miles of hybrid range
• 68.3 cubic feet of cargo space

Yes. The Cherokee Turbo Hybrid gets an estimated 37 MPG combined, and it does its best work in exactly the traffic you hate most.

Here's why that matters: the hybrid system can run on electric power alone up to 62 mph for short stretches, no plug required. So the 4:45 crawl between Fall River and the Route 140 split, the stop-and-go on Route 6 through Dartmouth, the lights on Pleasant Street: that's where a hybrid quietly wins. Jeep estimates more than 500 miles of total range on a single tank, which in practical terms means you fill up on a Sunday and don't think about it again until the following weekend.

It does, and that's the point. Every Cherokee comes with standard 4x4, up to 20 inches of water fording, and a 3,500-pound max tow rating.

Fording depth sounds like marketing until you've watched Water Street or the low spots off Route 79 fill up during a nor'easter, or hit a flooded dip on Copicut Road after three inches of rain. The trails and fire roads in Freetown-Fall River State Forest are another good test: nothing extreme, just rutted dirt that makes a front-wheel-drive crossover nervous. And 3,500 pounds covers a 17-foot skiff to the Somerset ramp or a pop-up camper out to Scusset.

Drop the second row, and you get 68.3 cubic feet, which is the most cargo space the Cherokee has ever offered.

Real-world version: a beach day at Horseneck means two coolers, four chairs, an umbrella, a wagon, and a pile of wet towels on the way home, and it all goes in. A dawn run down Route 6 to the Sagamore for a day at Cape Cod National Seashore leaves room for boards and bikes. Head the other direction for hiking in the Berkshires, and you've got space for packs, boots, and a dog crate.

The Cherokee pairs a 12.3-inch Uconnect® touchscreen with a 10.25-inch digital customizable cluster, and Jeep offers 140 standard and available safety and security features.

The ones you'll actually notice:

• Active Driving Assist (standard): Handles steering and speed assist and keeps you centered, which takes the edge off I-195 and the long haul up 24.
• Full-Speed Forward Collision Warning with Active Braking: Watches for the brake lights you didn't see coming near the Route 79 merge.
• Blind Spot Monitoring: Earns its keep merging onto the Braga Bridge, where lanes disappear fast.
• Rear Cross Path Detection: For backing out at the Dartmouth Mall or a tight downtown New Bedford lot in December.
• Digital cluster display: Real-time driving stats right behind the wheel, set up how you like it.