Next Small Jeeps Will Use Fiat Architecture, Be '100 Percent Jeep' Says CEO
As part of the Fiat/Chrysler alliance, one significant strategy moving forward is that smaller vehicles will be Fiat based while, larger offerings will use Chrysler’s own architecture.
Now we’re starting to see the first results of this. Jeep brand CEO Mike Manley, recently announced that the next generation Jeep Compass and Patriot, scheduled to be launched some 18 months from now, will adopt one of Fiat’s front-drive platforms, though in terms of actual engineering, he said both trucklets will “remain 100 percent Jeep.”
Manley also says that both the Compass and Patriot replacements will also be ‘Trail Rated’ (the current Compass, when originally launched in 2007, was the only Jeep vehicle not designed for off-road use, however, a 2011 facelift has finally seen it adopt the trail rated designation, thanks to a higher ground clearance on Freedom Drive II equipped trucks).
The new platform will also spawn a range of Chrysler and Dodge small cars, likely the replacement for the current Caliber in North America.
[Source: CNET]
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As long as Fiat leaves the Wrangler alone I can live with that. The Compass and Patriot have never been real Jeeps anyway. Larry http://www.4-the-love-of-jeeps.com/
Define 'Real Jeep' . Maybe something that runs hard and noisy? Grand Cherokee isn't a Jeep either then.