► Electric Jeeps on the horizon► Particularly suitable for seven slot grille models
► All about the traction
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares has revealed two images of the first ever electric Jeep. Shown during the Stellantis group’s Dare Forward 2030 presentation, it’s a sign of the inevitable move towards electric cars.
The two pictures also reveal Jeep won’t be making any huge changes to its design langauge; despite the new car’s powertrain. Get past the blanked-out grille, and the new electric Jeep looks similar to any other of the brand’s currnet cars.
Keep reading for more about electric Jeeps.
EV in the ether
Speaking as a guest on our sister site WhichCar’s podcast, Jeep head of design Mark Allen said designing an electric Jeep is not only something the department is considering, but that the technology is particularly suitable for seven-slot grille models.
‘It’s a hot topic and we talk about it all the time,’ he told WhichCar Weekly. ‘We have ideas and plans for the future well beyond what we have now.
‘We’ve talked recently about powertrains and electrification and really what that brings for us and I don’t see it as a compliance issue. I view it as an opportunity to make what we do even better.’
According to Allen, the possibilities that electric drivetrains enable, will boost off-road capability as well as the more frequently cited emissions and renewable energy advantages.
‘Jeep’s specialty is off-road capability. Getting power to all four wheels and having that kind of traction, I don’t care where it comes from.
‘Electrification allows … each wheel to have its own motor and thus control that vehicle even tighter than we do now, and the result will be a better Jeep, not just something that’s compliant. I really think the future is bright when you talk about electrification and Jeep.’
The design team, lead by Allen, has not yet been specifically assigned an EV to create but the designer, who has spent 26 years penning vehicles for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and its previous brands, says the job is on his “dream board”.
Allen highlighted the polar opposite approaches to designing an EV and said he hadn’t yet decided which way Jeep would go when its EV foray gets the green light, only that “it should look like a Jeep”.
‘Some wave the flag and celebrate that they’re driving an electric car or you see – Tesla’s really good at this – they just make a really nice looking vehicle that happens to be electric.
‘We’re a long way from doing that but I would ensure that it’s something recognisable from our brand’s stable’.
Keyword: This is the first electric Jeep