Upcoming Jeep Luxury SUVs Looking for a Home: Report
Jeep’s upcoming Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer SUVs promise to make the high-flying brand plenty of moolah, but where exactly the top-shelf models will be built remains hazy.
Automotive News reports that Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne might backtrack on a tentative plan to build the models at the Warren Truck plant — a move that could impact the production of other models.
FCA has already spent significant cash shuffling U.S. Jeep and Ram production in a bid to maximize output and sales of its most popular models. The Depression-era Warren plant would need significant upgrades to prepare it for production of a unibody model.
The automaker recently offered up $1.5 billion to move Ram production from Warren to nearby Sterling Heights.
According to the report, Marchionne told workers at Sterling Heights that he hopes to “continue to utilize Warren in a significant way,” but added that the facility is “a very old plant … that needs significant investment.”
Reportedly, Marchionne recently paid a visit to the Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit. That facility has built the Jeep Grand Cherokee since its birth. With the Grand Cherokee’s platform underpinning the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer, it seems like a likely candidate, though moving the models there could displace the Dodge Durango if capacity becomes an issue.
If FCA punts Durango production in favor of more lucrative offerings, the SUV needs a new home. Unless, of course, Marchionne is willing to shrink the Dodge brand by another model or expand Jefferson North.
The luxury Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer are expected to appear as 2019 models.
More by Steph Willems
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Jeep with a luxury product? I don't think Jeep would be perceived in Australia as a luxury product, especially when all of FCA products here take on the Koreans in pricing and Jeep is a long way off with quality. Jeep is a "cheap" entry vehicle here, even the Grand Cherokee is one of the or the cheapest 4x4 SUV. Hyundai will make a better perceived luxury product than Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, etc.
@Big Al from Oz Agree this will only sell in NA where over 80% of Jeeps are sold. Elsewhere luxury SUV's by other manufacturers will be the benchmark. Jeep has an appalling reputation for reliability
Here in the states the grand Cherokee is a sleeper lux suv. I recently got an GC Srt and it's about as nice as what I cross shopped it with. I was considering an x5 q7 or fpace. The jeep got me more "luxury" features for the same money and 475hp. I would have had to have vinyl seats and a twin turbo 6 in the x5 and Audi wasn't discounting the q7 even a penny. I like that I fly under the radar with my GC with all but a select group of car nerds
The thing is..the Warren plant is OLD. But I live in Warren, not that far from the plant. There are an awful lot of people around here dependent on that plant. Hell, my neighbor works there. Losing that plant would be a massive hurt on the local economy.