Posted on 09/04/2020 7:15:14 AM PDT by Red Badger
Key Points:
Fiat Chrysler’s long-awaited Jeep Grand Wagoneer SUV will top $100,000 when it arrives in showrooms next year.
The only other Jeep to top six figures is the brand’s current Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, a high-performance version of the SUV with Fiat Chrysler’s Hellcat V8 engine.
The company debuted a concept version of the Grand Wagoneer as a preview of the upcoming luxury SUV on Thursday.
=========================================================================
DETROIT – Fiat Chrysler’s long-awaited Jeep Grand Wagoneer SUV will top $100,000 – likely making it the brand’s highest priced vehicle as it attempts to compete against the Cadillac Escalade, Land Rover Range Rover and others.
The new large SUV will be the stablemate of another model called the Wagoneer, which will start at about $60,000 when the vehicles go on sale next year, according to Christian Meunier, global president of Jeep. The six-figure price tag for the Grand Wagoneer will be for a fully loaded model, he said.
“It’s clearly the return of a premium American icon,” Meunier said during a media event ahead of Thursday’s unveiling of a concept version of the resurrected SUVs. “Wagoneer will expand to become a portfolio of vehicles that will redefine American premium while delivering a unique customer experience.”
The Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer names were previously used by Jeep for large SUVs from 1963 until 1991. The company had promised to resurrect the Wagoneer name for nearly a decade as a way to better compete in the highly profitable large SUV segment.
The SUVs will be offered in two lengths and compete in the mainstream and luxury SUV segments, Meunier said. It’s a similar strategy to how General Motors, the industry leader in large SUVs, sells its vehicles across the Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac brands.
The only other Jeep to top $100,000 is the current Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, a low volume, high-performance version of the SUV with Fiat Chrysler’s Hellcat V8 engine.
It’s unclear whether the Grand Wagoneer will be a separate model or a high-end version of the Wagoneer, which was discontinued in 1983. The company declined to provide additional details about how the vehicles will be positioned. It’s possible the Grand Wagoneer will be a premium version of the Wagoneer, as GM’s Denali trim is for its GMC brand.
“We see significant opportunity for Wagoneer as a premium extension of the Jeep brand,” said Trevor Dorchies, a Fiat Chrysler spokesman. “Jeep is unquestionably the foundation of Wagoneer, but Wagoneer will go beyond that into more premium segments.”
The Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer will be produced at the automaker’s Warren Truck plant in suburban Detroit. Grand Wagoneer concept
The Grand Wagoneer concept represents the future design and technology of the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer SUVs. Concept vehicles often also set a new design direction for the brand overall.
Meunier said “a lot of things” on the concept will make it into the production versions of the vehicles next year. The three-row concept pays tribute to its heritage while featuring modern designs as well as new technologies and displays on the vehicle’s interior.
“We strived for a level of premium executive that we’ve never done as a company,” said Ralph Gilles, head of design for Fiat Chrysler.
On the exterior, the SUV has large windows that form a greenhouse around the vehicle, which was a distinguishable feature of the original Grand Wagoneer. It also includes classic Jeep design elements with modern twists, including the brand’s traditional seven-slotted grille with lights in between the slots as well as a headlight-to-headlight light bar above them.
The seven-passenger concept vehicle is powered by a plug-in hybrid electric system, a nod to the brand’s plans to electrify every Jeep nameplate by 2022. Meunier declined to comment if such a powertrain would be available on the vehicles next year. Tech-savvy, teak wood interior
Unlike the original Grand Wagoneer, wood paneling – a well-known characteristic of the former SUV – is not featured on the sides of the concept. However, Fiat Chrysler designers did include teak wood in the vehicle’s headlights, roof tie downs and interior, which resembles a digital cockpit more than a traditional Jeep.
On the inside of the vehicle, wood is included on the doors, dash and center control panel. The front interior of the vehicle includes four screens, including a first-ever 10.25-inch passenger screen in an SUV, according to Fiat Chrysler.
The passenger screen features privacy film as to not distract the driver, officials said.
As a nod to its manufacturing home and the brand’s headquarters, the Grand Wagoneer concept’s full-pane glass roof features a map of Detroit and the surrounding area.
For audio, the Grand Wagoneer concept’s McIntosh audio system features 23 custom-designed speakers connected to a 24-channel amplifier.
Wrangler 4xe
Jeep also unveiled a new plug-in hybrid electric version Thursday of its flagship Wrangler SUV.
The hybrid still has an electric powertrain in addition to a traditional internal combustion engine. It is the first of its kind for Jeep in the U.S. The vehicle will feature a “4xe” badge, a play on Jeep’s reputation as a 4x4 off-road brand.
The 2021 Wrangler 4xe is capable of nearly 400 miles on a single charge and tank, including up to 25 miles of pure-electric driving, according to officials. When not in electric mode, the vehicle is powered by 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine.
It is expected to begin production at a plant in Toledo, Ohio, in December, followed by availability in U.S. showrooms shortly after that as well as Europe and China by early 2021.
I owned an X1/9 in the 80’s.
Spent more time UNDER IT THAN IN IT!...............
Yes, no matter how hard Fiat tries, they’ll never catch Range Rover for lack of quality.
A relative owned one. Great fun to drive.
When it ran.
I would think that now that Tata Motors owns them quality would get better.................
Those are crap. Tried to buy one, just couldn’t. The rear end was clunky and the overall performance was poor; braking, engine, suspension, and interior.
We now own a BMW Z4.
I could swear it was built by FIAT..................
There’s an auto blogger named Doug DeMuro. He writes for Auto Trader. Once upon a time he bought a used Land Rover. Big mistake. Except he bought it at Carmax. And he paid big big bucks for an extended warranty.
But he knew what he was doing. He blogged about every break down that land rover had. And it broke down often. But Carmax honored there warranty. And every time it broke down he had it fixed at the dealer. As soon as the warranty was up he sold it. But in the meantime Carmax paid out thousands and thousands of dollars over the cost of their warranty.
It was a real nice series of blogs. About how undependable a range rover is. And about how Carmax actually stood up and honored their warranties.
I remember the 128 from the same era.
Pure junk.
Pretty tho...
Italians are great at designing beautiful cars.
They just can’t make them run for very long.
The electrical systems especially!...............
Magneti-Mareli trumps Joe Lucas.
Not much else...
My BMW Z4 electrical system isn’t much better.............
Stupid money.
“Available with 485hp 6.4L SRT-8 / 707hp 6.2L Supercharged Hellcat HEMI”
That’s not a Jeep...that’s a Leep!
Wealthy people who want to show off their stuff will buy it...........
A fool and his money are soon parted.
Looks like a Lincoln Navigator from the rear.
Had a 2000 jeep with 270K miles. Went anyehere and towed 6500 lbs. Still running although rusty in spots says the guy I sold it to.
Have a 2015 SRT and everything works fine. Goes like hell. Scares Prius owners too. Gas mileage not so good. Have other cars for that.
G wagons look like boxes. Door hinges on the outside in 2020?
When I think of all the things $100,000 can do for a person and/or their own family, and their future...yeesh.
I’ve got an ‘89 Grand Wagoneer I would sacrifice for $25,000.00.
LOL!................A rare antique!...............
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.