Well, now I know what Chrysler had been up to. Few if any new products are on the horizon–no surprise, since the company seems very unlikely to survive in anything resembling its present form. But every Jeep model except the Wrangler did receive an upgraded interior this year. Too bad they didn’t take this step back when Jeeps were still in demand.

I haven’t had a chance to check out the improvements myself yet. Most notable: all but the base trim Grand Cherokee and Overland get leather-upholstered door panels and center armrests. The Grand Cherokee also gets a leather-upholstered instrument cluster hood. Usually “leather upholstery” means that the main seating surfaces are leather, while everything else that looks somewhat like leather is actually vinyl. So Jeep is taking a step into premium luxury car territory with the 2009s. For anyone who didn’t buy a Grand Cherokee SRT8 because they interior was just okay…

Many have argued that if an automaker puts a few hundred dollars more into a car’s interior they can charge much more for the car, because the impact on perceived quality can be substantial. Well, Jeep appears to have bumped prices only about $200 to $300 to cover the cost of these upgrades. Since sales of these models are weak, they aren’t the best test of the conventional wisdom with regard to interior quality. But they are a test.