► Electric Jeeps on the horizon
► Particularly suitable for seven slot grille models
► All about the traction
Jeep today showcases three electric SUVs at the core of its ‘profound transformation’ to become 100 per cent electric in Europe by 2030. Even more ballsy is its pledge for half of Jeep sales in North America – 60 per cent of its 1.3m annual volume – to be zero emission at the end of this decade too.
The three electric SUVs showcase the breadth of Jeep’s portfolio ambitions. First up is Avenger – on sale by spring 2023 – a baby, urban Jeep positioned beneath the Renegade and aimed squarely at Europe.
At the other end of the size spectrum is the rugged Recon, which takes the brand’s romantic vision – detaching the doors, opening the roof and clambering across the Sierra Nevada mountains – and slams it into the electric age.
The third 4×4 is the Wagoneer S, a fast, sleek, premium five-door, intent on stealing sales from Range Rover Sport and the German SUVs.
The vision: four EVs by 2025
Jeep has little to lose by surfing Europe’s rising electric tide: it only accounted for 1 per cent of the EU/UK market in 2021 (circa 129,000 vehicles).
The Renegade and Compass 4xe (pronounced four-by-e) plug-in hybrids arrived in 2020 to kick off the electric transformation and now account for half of sales. That will rise sharply now the brand has stopped orders for their strictly combustion equivalents outside of Italy (a case of four-cylinder-byeee).
Stateside the Wrangler PHEV is the best-selling retail plug-in hybrid. But the next step is full electric, with four EVs on sale in both the North American and European markets by 2025.
‘We are sharing with you the next generation of zero emission vehicles,’ says Jeep brand CEO Christian Meunier. ‘Our goal is very clear: to become the global leader in SUV electrification. And the vehicles [presented today] showcase that electrification is the way forward for Jeep.’
Jeep Avenger
The Avenger is coming very soon: all the details will be revealed at the Paris Motor Show in mid-October, before sales begin in spring 2023.
It’s a small SUV positioned beneath the 4.2m-long Renegade, though electric warrants a more expensive price topping £30,000. The Avenger is spun off Stellantis’ eCMP platform, which underpins a host of small EVs from the Peugeot e208 and e2008 to the electric Vauxhall Corsa and Mokka.Typically eCMP has a 50kWh battery pack: Jeep projects the Avenger’s range at 249 miles.
Although it’s an urban-SUV, Jeep claims the ground clearance, approach and departure angles match the Renegade’s, and all versions will get Selec-Terrain drive modes and Hill Descent Control. So the SUV – aimed at young females compared with the more family-oriented Renegade –will happily take on the muddy stuff, in all types of weather.
‘The brief was knowing that these cars live in the cities but climb over sidewalks, and they go off road in the countryside. That is all about body armour, and we cleaved the corners for easy manoeuvrability in the city,’ says design chief Ralph Gilles.
He adds that the design language is true to the Wrangler’s, with the seven-slot grille, strong stance featuring flared wheelarches and tail-lamps reminiscent of Renegade’s.
The Avenger was designed in Europe for Europe, and will be assembled in the Tychy, Poland plant which builds the Fiat 500.
Jeep Wagoneer S
The big Wagoneer SUVs have returned to Jeep’s US portfolio, and while those Chevy Tahoe/Ford Expedition rivals are more suited to American roads, this zero-emissions spin-off will come to Europe in 2025.
It’s a sleek crossover rather than a boxy SUV, with a sloping roofline that floats above a shining accent line and modern, clean bodysides. The nose features a downlit reinterpretation of Jeep’s seven-slot grille between sleek LED lamps. Expect few changes for production: the design is at least 95 per cent the finished article, says design chief Ralph Gilles.
And his favourite detail? ‘The roof as it plunges beneath the gorgeous wing supported by two soaring bars.’ With a strong focus on such aerodynamic features, the Wagoneer S should extract at least 400 miles of range from a battery topping 100kWh of capacity.
With Wagoneer S spun off the Stellantis group’s STLA Large electric architecture, the engineers can deploy electric motors packing up to 330kW (442bhp) on the front or rear axles. Jeep says the crossover will pack around 600 horsepower, split across both axles. That’ll be good for a 0-62mph sprint in 3.5secs.
The production name is yet to be confirmed: S is a codename drawing attention to its speed and sleekness.
Jeep Recon
Jeep’s heritage of course dates back to World War II; the Recon is a vision of the post-Wrangler world 100 years later. The DNA is all present and correct: the graphic of the seven-slot grille, pronounced tow hooks front and back, trapezoidal wheelarches with big articulation for the all-terrain tyres and outer-hinged, removable doors.
Off-roading kit includes Jeep’s Selec-Terrain traction management system, electronically locking diffs and pronounced underbody protection. The 4×4 is spun off the STLA Large platform, but optimised for off-road use.
So the overhangs are pared back to boost the approach and departure angles over obstacles, and the electric drive motors are repositioned to boost suspension height. And Jeep boss Christian Meunier is confident electric motors’ highly controllable and instant power delivery will enhance Jeep’s off-roading capabilities – all in near-silence compared with the chatter of combustion.
The Recon is a statement that the zero emissions age won’t restrict Jeep’s go-anywhere capability (and the lashing points will ensure a V8-powered truck can pull you out of any gone-too-far trouble). And it’s also bound for Europe.