2022 Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Chevrolet Suburban big SUV sales are sinking. It is especially of concern for Jeep as the Grand Wagoneer is an entirely new model meant to compete against the Suburban. Did Jeep misjudge the SUV market? Let’s take a look.

What are the Grand Wagoneer and Suburban numbers?

First, the numbers. Except for the crazy year of 2020, in the last five years, the Suburban sold from 50,000 to 60,000 each year. Last year, those numbers climbed to 85,159. So things were very much looking up for the Chevy Suburban coming into 2022.

The Jeep Grand Wagoneer, barely sold any in 2021 as it was introduced late in the year as a 2022 model. In all, it found 2,500 buyers. So 2022 tells a better story.

For the first three quarters of 2022, the Grand Wagoneer sold 9,453. That is averaging a bit over 3,000 per quarter. As you can see that is way down from Suburban sales. And while the Chevy SUV has recognition as it has been in production for decades, the Grand Wagoneer has the Jeep brand to help bolster its sales. 

Why are the Suburban and Grand Wagoneer losing sales?

So what does this mean? First, it looks like gas prices combined with general inflation may be cooling off the big SUV segment. Unfortunately for Jeep, this hit at the wrong time. This isn’t the first time Detroit has been caught off guard. Google “1970s gas crunch.”

But this also highlights how well the midsize three-row SUVs have done to maximize both passenger and cargo space. Honestly, there’s nothing especially convenient about driving a full-size SUV, especially these two beasts.

Have you ever watched one of these getting into or out of a parking space? It can sometimes take a lot of back and forth to make it happen. And there is always pain at the pump, even when prices are more reasonable. 

Are the differences that big?

While both of these SUVs are long, the Grand Wagoneer has packed in more for less. The overall length is 214.7 inches. Not a shorty by any measure. But the Suburban is almost a foot longer at 225.7 inches. 

But at least Chevrolet has done a better effort in the fuel economy department. The Suburban gets 21 mpg for City, and 27 mpg for Highway. As for the Grand Wagoneer, it has much lower numbers with 14 mpg and 20 mpg City/Highway. So anybody doing comparisons can’t help but be swayed based on these numbers. 

So it will be interesting to see how these big beasts fare over the course of the next few years. Did Jeep’s big bet backfire? You can never tell when it comes to the car industry and economy.