Stretched 2023 Jeep Wagoneer L Models Benefit Rear Riders and Cargo

• Jeep created the L versions of the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer for 2023 by adding 12 inches in length and seven inches in wheelbase. The gain mostly benefits rear-seat passengers and cargo space.

• A new 420-hp, 3.0-liter direct-injection straight-six Hurricane engine powers the Wagoneer L, while the Grand Wagoneer L gets a 510-hp version of it. An eight-speed Torqueflite automatic is mated to both.

• Stickers start at $64,495 for the rear-drive Wagoneer L go up from there, with the Grand Wagoneer L starting at $93,495.

Rear legroom has steadily been disappearing since the glory days of the 1940s and 1950s, when the likes of Wilt Chamberlain could sit happily in the back of a Buick Roadmaster. Many of today’s coupes sacrifice passenger comfort on the altar of a sexy roofline. Indeed, some cars—the Jaguar E-Type 2+2 comes to mind—do look much worse in their stretched versions.

Now Jeep has stretched the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer for 2023 L Versions that gain 12 inches in length and seven inches in wheelbase (which now totals 130). The gain is almost entirely in the rear seating and load space, enabling the kids and adults to pack more gear and sit in the second and third row comfortably. Jeep brought journalists to Bozeman, Montana, to exercise the cars on ranch roads and on the 18,000 acres of Crazy Mountain Ranch—where an authentic Old West town, Deadrock, has been assembled.

In the marketplace, the Wagoneer L is up against the Chevy Suburban and Ford Expedition, and the Grand Wagoneer L the Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator. All of them are going all-in on luxurious interiors, big engines, and lots of load space.

Jim Morrison, senior vice president and head of the Jeep brand in North America, said that sales overall are up 45 percent since the beginning of the year. The Wrangler 4xe is now the best-selling plug-in hybrid (PHEV), and for the first half of 2022, Jeep is number two (after General Motors) in the Total Large Utility Vehicle segment, chasing the Tahoe and Yukon.

At the Detroit Auto Show, Jeep unveiled a 30th anniversary edition of the Grand Cherokee 4xe (as a $4700 package) and a Willys version of the Wrangler 4xe, further expanding the PHEV offerings. The company will have four all-electric models by 2025.

“These new L Wagoneers will have more space for people and their stuff,” Morrison said, “as well as improved efficiency and extra range. When the turbos kick in, it just makes you smile.” There is now 44.2 cubic feet behind the third row, 88.8 behind the second row, and 130.9 behind the first row, enabling the movement of a four-foot-by-eight-foot sheet of plywood.