This might sound shallow, but many of the new cars I get to drive are subjected to the Girlfriend Test. This involves nothing more than a cursory glance from her and an assessment so broad that it is easily summarised in a three-word scale: 'lame' (the Bentley Arnage, for reasons unknown), 'okay' (Kia Rio) and 'cool'.

According to her, it's this highly-desirable category that the Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited slots into.

Though amateur, her opinion counts because applying it allows me to take her to dinner and then write the bill off as a business expense, but also because her barometer of cool is more finely-calibrated with the rest of the world's than this car geek's ever will be. "I like the idea that we could go anywhere in this," she says. Actually, so do I.

The idea of the Cherokee being able to make it up Everest and back is down to the fact that Jeep is one of two car companies in the world that makes nothing but Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs), the other being Land Rover.

It's a genuine, mud-loving SUV with all the proper elements in place for cross-jungle travel: plenty of ground clearance, low-range gears for powering up steep slopes and then crawling back down them, seriously knobbly off-roading tyres, and a new-for-2006 'Quadra-Drive II' 4x4 system.

That last feature, along with a revised interior, coincides with the introduction of the Limited model, which replaces the Grand Cherokee Overland. CarBuyer didn't do any real mud-plugging in it but we did spend a weekend in one on Singapore roads.

DRIVING IT

If you have a phobia of paying taxes, you might want to look away. The Jeep has a mammoth 4.7-litre V8 under the bonnet, which means forking out over $17 a day for a roadtax disc.

You might just find the expenditure well-made, though. The Jeep's engine has a low rumble like a volley of cannonfire, and sounds just like a V8 should: grunty, throaty and as authoritative as a drill sergeant. It launches the Cherokee forward with real urgency, too, and even if 234bhp from 4.7-litres is nothing to get excited about, the 393Nm of peak torque it musters ensures that strong acceleration is always underfoot. The brakes do require a manly shove when serious retardation is required, however.

Contrary to expectation, the steering isn't slack and the handling isn't too sloppy. While you'll never be encouraged to hustle the Jeep down your favourite road, it's good to drive in the city thanks to the powerful acceleration and terrific all-round visibility.

If you do leave the concrete behind, you'll find the Cherokee does what it says on the Jeep tin. The 4x4 system has automatically locking differentials - these allow the wheels to spin at different speeds on the road to improve cornering, but lock up to prevent loss of traction off-road - so it powers along even if rough terrain leaves one or more wheels up in the air. The ground clearance is adequate to see it through most situations, and there's very little that 4.7-litres of muscle won't get you through. I'm not sure a banana tree would stop this thing.

The beefy springs do give a firm ride back on tarmac, however, and the mud-plugging tyres emit a drone at certain speeds, so all that off-roading prowess doesn't entirely come without a price.

INSIDE IT

While undeniably butch, the Grand Cherokee isn't actually all that huge. It's similar in size to, say, a Lexus RX300, so offers decent space for five, and a fairly generous boot which is extendable by folding the rear seats.

Where it falls down badly is in the area of tactile quality. The plastics would look cheap in a car half the price, let alone one on the wrong side of two hundred grand, and there are clear examples of penny-pinching everywhere: the handbrake lever is pretty flimsy, the rear cupholder tray feels as if a child could break it, the finishing for the wipers' rain sensor is sloppy... you get the picture. If Jeep intended the Grand Cherokee to be a luxury SUV, it doesn't really show.

DOLLARS AND SENSE

On the plus side, the equipment list is generous. Our test car came with a trip computer, automatic wipers, power-adjustable front seats, stereo controls on the steering wheel, cruise control, and parking sensors with both visual and audio indicators.

As for what else is available on the market, the Grand Cherokee seriously undercuts the Land Rover Discovery, which might otherwise be considered its most direct competitor. That car has seven seats and feels far more upmarket, however, justifying its heftier price tag to a large degree.

Perhaps cars like the Volkswagen Touareg or the Volvo XC90 are more up the Jeep's alley? Not quite. While more refined than the Grand Cherokee, neither of those rivals comes with off-roading credentials as well-established. Neither has the exhilarating performance or cultured growl of a V8, so in some ways the Jeep is a bit of a loner in the market.

VERDICT

What to do if you're looking for a serious full-size off-roader around the $200k mark? With nothing on offer from Land Rover between the $114,888 Freelander and $275,888 Discovery, the $208,888 Grand Cherokee Limited is the obvious answer.

The big question is whether or not there are enough people around who covet the sort of off-roading pedigree offered by the Jeep. Our guess is that such buyers are relatively scarce, so the Cherokee is likely to sell in limited numbers.

Even if you're not the sort of go jungle bashing, however, the Jeep is excellent at making a lifestyle statement. Drive one, and you receive a boost to your perceived macho-ness. You eat your meat raw, it says, and would probably strut around with a gun strapped to your hips if they let you.

Few cars convey the same effect on their drivers. If nothing else, in other words, the Grand Cherokee Limited is just cool.

Model: Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited
Engine type: 4,701cc 16-valve V8
Max Power: 234bhp at 4,700rpm
Max Torque: 393Nm at 3,700rpm
Gearbox: Five-speed auto
Top speed: 200km/h
0-100km/h: 9.0 seconds
Price: $208,888 with COE
Warranty: 3 years / 100,000km
Contact: Chrysler Jeep Automotive of Singapore, 6479 3333

SIMILAR CARS WE HAVE DRIVEN

Land Rover Discovery 3 $275,888 with COE
The other brand that makes only SUVs offers the Discovery, which has a 4.4-litre V8 and cuts a mammoth presence on the road. It seats seven, has tricky features like adjustable-height air-suspension and feels far plusher inside than the Jeep, but costs a whole chunk of cash more.

Volkswagen Touareg $198,700 with COE
A clone of the Porsche Cayenne, VW's first try at a big SUV scores highly on build quality, space and on-road handling, probably thanks to Porsche's involvement in its development. It comes with low-range gears for traipsing through forestry, as well. The 3.2-litre engine has to work hard to propel it, though, and has a huge thirst as a result. Huge, we say.