The 2022 Grand Wagoneer from Jeep leads its class as a mean, lean, trailer-towing machine. But how does this SUV stack up against its cousin: the Ram 1500 pickup truck? The Fast Lane (TFL) truck pitted the Grand Wagoneer luxury SUV against the Ram in a towing duel.

	Ram 1500 (5.7-liter eTorque V8)	Jeep Grand Wagoneer (6.4-liter V8)
Rear suspension	Solid axle	Independent
Tow rating	11,000+ pounds	9,850 pounds
0-60 mph	7.63 seconds	6.46 seconds
0-60 with trailer	16.29 seconds	13.68 seconds
Fuel use while empty	20.4 mpg	24.9 mpg
Fuel use while towing	9.7 mpg	9.8 mpg

The Grand Wagoneer Jeep SUV’s max tow rating is 9,850 pounds

The tow rating of the base-trim Jeep Wagoneer maxes out at 8,790 pounds. If you upgrade to the Grand Wagoneer you get a max tow rating of 9,850 pounds. That puts the new SUV at the top of its class: the 2022 Cadillac Escalade can only tow 7,700 pounds and the Lincoln Navigator maxes out at 8,300 pounds.

Some (V6) Rams can only tow 6,000 pounds. But other Ram trucks are some of the most powerful tow vehicles around. You can option the solid rear axle Ram 1500 to tow a lot more than a Grand Wagoneer. The 2022 Ram 1500 with the 5.7-liter HEMI V8 has a max tow rating of 12,750 pounds.

Obviously, upgrading to a 3/4-ton Ram 2500 or even full-ton 3500 increases the vehicle’s tow rating. In addition, you can option your Ram truck with the 6.4-liter HEMI or even the legendary Cummins diesel. TFL tested a Ram 1500 Longhorn with the 5.7-liter HEMI V8. According to TFL, its tow rating is “upwards of 11,000 pounds.”

But TFL had an interesting question: if you are just towing 8-9,000 pounds, is the Ram 1500 or its Grand Wagoneer cousin the better tow vehicle? What the reviewers found may surprise you.

The Grand Wagoneer shares a drivetrain with the Ram 1500

Though Jeep and Ram trucks have both belonged to the Chrysler corporation since 1987. Yet we have seen relatively few Jeeps sharing the truck chassis–until now. The 2022 Grand Wagoneer is a full-frame SUV riding on a Ram truck chassis. This means that underneath its body it looks a lot like a pickup truck: its drivetrain is attached to a fully-boxed ladder frame.

Full-frame SUVs are heavier than their unibody counterparts. For example, a fully-loaded Grand Wagoneer weighs in at 6,420 pounds. But most full-frame SUVs are also stronger than unibody SUVs (often called crossovers). This is one reason the Grand Wagoneer can tow nearly 10,000 pounds.

Jeep upgraded the Grand Wagoneer with independent rear suspension and full time 4WD

Though the 2022 Jeep Grand Wagoneer and the Ram truck share a frame, they do not share a price bracket. The Grand Wagoneer starts at $87,845. At this price, Grand Wagoneer buyers expect premium technology, and Jeep delivers.

The Grand Wagoneer is not available with the Ram’s base engine, the Pentastar V6. It is not even available with the 5.7-liter V8. Jeep equips every Grand Wagoneer with the 6.4-liter HEMI engine and eTorque mild-hybrid system. The resulting SUV makes 471 horsepower.

In addition, the Grand Wagoneer does not share the Ram truck’s solid rear axle. Instead, the Grand Wagoneer rides on independent rear suspension. The upgrade improves its handling and acceleration.

Finally, Jeep opted for full time 4WD instead of the base Ram’s part time 4WD. The top-trim Ram 1500 TRX shares this off-road-ready technology.

The Grand Wagoneer handles its weight well: MotorTrend found the SUV’s best 0-60 time was 5.7 seconds, its 1/4-mile time 14.1 seconds at 99 mph. What TFL truck found was that the Grand Wagoneer handles a heavy trailer just as well. It proved very nimble with a trailer and matches the Ram’s fuel efficiency with a trailer.