In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Grand Cherokee are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Q5 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Q5 doesn’t offer knee airbags.
With its standard Full Speed Forward Collision Warning Plus, the Jeep Grand Cherokee is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Audi Q5, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:
|
Grand Cherokee |
Q5 |
Overall Evaluation |
ACCEPTABLE |
MARGINAL |
|
Crossing Child - DAY |
|
12 MPH |
AVOIDED |
AVOIDED |
|
Crossing Adult - NIGHT |
|
12 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
-8 MPH |
12 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
-1 MPH |
25 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
-13 MPH |
25 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
-2 MPH |
|
Parallel Adult - NIGHT |
|
25 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
-2 MPH |
25 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
No Slowing |
37 MPH Brights |
-33 MPH |
No Slowing |
Warning Issued-Brights |
2 sec |
No Warning |
37 MPH Low beams |
-28 MPH |
No Slowing |
Warning Issued-Low beams |
1.6 sec |
No Warning |
A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Grand Cherokee Overland/Summit helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The Q5 doesn’t offer a night vision system.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee (except Laredo)’s optional360-degree camera can be optionally equipped with washers for its front and rear cameras, ensuring crystal-clear visibility in any weather condition. Conversely, the Audi Q5 only offers a rear camera washer, which may not provide the same level of all-weather performance.
Both the Grand Cherokee and the Q5 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Jeep Grand Cherokee is safer than the Audi Q5:
|
Grand Cherokee |
Q5 |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
129 |
284 |
Neck Injury Risk |
21% |
22% |
Neck Stress |
152 lbs. |
215 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
137 |
187 |
Chest Compression |
.6 inches |
.7 inches |
Neck Injury Risk |
28% |
34% |
Neck Stress |
125 lbs. |
134 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Jeep Grand Cherokee is safer than the Audi Q5:
|
Grand Cherokee |
Q5 |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Hip Force |
235 lbs. |
279 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
164 |
185 |
Spine Acceleration |
39 G’s |
53 G’s |
Hip Force |
527 lbs. |
817 lbs. |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
14 inches |
15 inches |
Hip Force |
528 lbs. |
600 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Jeep Grand Cherokee is safer than the Q5:
|
Grand Cherokee |
Q5 |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Structure |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Neck Compression |
45 lbs. |
89 lbs. |
Pelvis |
ACCEPTABLE |
ACCEPTABLE |
Pelvis Force |
1004 lbs. |
1116 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
185 |
346 |
Neck Tension |
45 lbs. |
223 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Shoulder Deflection |
1.34 in |
1.73 in |
Shoulder Force |
379 lbs. |
402 lbs. |
Torso Deflection Rate |
8 MPH |
11 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Pelvis Force |
803 lbs. |
1249 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |