Better late than never, Jeep is finally ready to bring to market a pickup truck. This is part of the program to widen the Jeep product portfolio. As Jeep makes moves to continue its global expansion and achieve much needed sales records in the coming years, the introduction of a compact SUV this year (2016) and a long-awaited pickup likely in 2017 will be just some of the new exciting products to hit their showrooms. For The Malaysia market a pickup truck and small SUV will definitely boost the Jeep presence especially if local jeep franchisee, DRB-Hicom decides on a local assembly for local and ASEAN market.
Jeep’s global chief, Mike Manley, said this Monday the brand expects to set a global sales record with its fifth consecutive this year, as it continues to expand production of Jeeps in key international markets.
Helping bolster the brand’s momentum will be the introduction of an all-new compact SUV at the New York International Auto Show in March this year. The new compact SUV will replace both the current Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot models. Manley said the new vehicle will use one of the names of the outgoing models.
Manley said outside the United States, Compass has better name recognition, while Patriot is better known in North America. He also confirmed that Jeep will produce a pickup based off the next-generation Wrangler. The SUV is expected late 2017. Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed Monday that the pickup will be produced in Toledo, alongside the next-generation Wrangler.
In recent years, Jeep has played with the idea of a pickup through concept models. The most well-known are the Jeep J-12 produced for the annual Moab Easter Jeep Safari off-roading event in 2012, and the Jeep Gladiator based on the Jeep Wrangler platform that debuted at the 2005 Detroit auto show. Additional details of the pickup and a restructured Fiat Chrysler five-year plan through 2018 are expected to be outlined later this month, during its 2016 earnings report.
