The Jeep faithful and the dealers that serve them have had a rough few years. The company has been in the news regularly because it canceled many affordable models and moved upscale, asking as much as six figures for some Wranglers and killing off the long-running Cherokee (though not the better-selling Grand Cherokee).
Related: Jeep Cherokee Production Over After Nearly 50 Years
It was enough to make CNN write, just yesterday, “Jeep overall has become a shell of its former self, with sales down 36% from before the pandemic.”
The company has a plan to come back. It will include a replacement for the canceled Cherokee.
Speaking at the Los Angeles Auto Show, Jeep CEO Antonio Filosa didn’t say the new vehicle would be called Cherokee. Industry publication Automotive News reports, “The company has called the upcoming utility vehicle a Cherokee replacement.” It will reportedly be a hybrid, not an electric vehicle (EV), “although platform versatility would allow for an electric version if market conditions suggest the brand should go in that direction later.”
He has started by lowering prices on the models on Jeep lots today. The Grand Cherokee will see a price drop for 2025. So will the full-size Wagoneer and stretched Grand Wagoneer, the priciest vehicles Jeep has ever built.
A vehicle that slots under all of them in size and price is a welcome sign.
