For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Jeep Grand Cherokee L are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Lincoln Aviator doesn’t offer height-adjustable middle seat belts.
The Grand Cherokee L has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Aviator doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
With its standard Full Speed Forward Collision Warning Plus, the Jeep Grand Cherokee L is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Lincoln Aviator, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:
|
Grand Cherokee L |
Aviator |
Overall Evaluation |
ACCEPTABLE |
MARGINAL |
|
Crossing Child - DAY |
|
12 MPH |
AVOIDED |
AVOIDED |
|
Crossing Adult - NIGHT |
|
12 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
AVOIDED |
12 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
-9 MPH |
25 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
-20 MPH |
25 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
-9 MPH |
|
Parallel Adult - NIGHT |
|
25 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
-18 MPH |
25 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
-4 MPH |
37 MPH Brights |
-33 MPH |
-15 MPH |
Warning Issued-Brights |
2 sec |
1.4 sec |
37 MPH Low beams |
-28 MPH |
No Slowing |
Warning Issued-Low beams |
1.6 sec |
.4 sec |
A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Grand Cherokee L 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 Aviator doesn’t offer a night vision system.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee L offers an optional 360-degree camera and it also offers an optional rear camera washer to make backing always safe, regardless of road dirt or grime, while the Lincoln Aviator doesn’t offer a camera washer, requiring manual cleaning.
Both the Grand Cherokee L and the Aviator have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee 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 L is safer than the Lincoln Aviator:
|
Grand Cherokee L |
Aviator |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
129 |
131 |
Neck Injury Risk |
21% |
29.4% |
Neck Stress |
152 lbs. |
275 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
137 |
236 |
Neck Injury Risk |
28% |
41.4% |
Neck Stress |
125 lbs. |
156 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
41 lbs. |
118 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 L is safer than the Lincoln Aviator:
|
Grand Cherokee L |
Aviator |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Chest Movement |
.8 inches |
.9 inches |
Abdominal Force |
147 lbs. |
161 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Spine Acceleration |
34 G’s |
38 G’s |
Hip Force |
375 lbs. |
604 lbs. |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Spine Acceleration |
32 G’s |
39 G’s |
Hip Force |
432 lbs. |
573 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.