The first battery-electric vehicle from Jeep has been shown for the first-time during Stellantis’ press conference outlining its Dare Forward 2030 plan. This crossover is due out in early 2023, one year before Dodge’s first electric muscle car and the Ram 1500 BEV. This vehicle follows Jeep’s two plug-in hybrids, the Wrangler 4xe and Grand Cherokee 4xe. Unfortunately, Stellantis didn’t reveal the crossover’s name so we’ll have to wait closer to its release date to know that.
Stellantis released a single photo of Jeep’s first BEV on Twitter and from what we can tell, it’s more of a mainstream vehicle than a hard core off-road SUV. It sports a yellow exterior color with a black contrasting roof, a black trim piece on the hood, and black side mirror covers. You still get Jeep’s signature seven-slot grille but it’s enclosed to maximize aerodynamics and has a small letter “e” embedded in it. The headlights appear to be a tiered setup but Jeep somehow managed to make its first BEV look like a mini Grand Cherokee. In the back, the crossover gets squared taillights and a nearly upright hatch. The handles on the rear doors are
This appears to be an on-road-focused model. You can easily distinguish off-road-oriented Jeep models with their large red or blue tow hooks in the lower front and rear fascia. The tires also appear to be street-oriented ones since their sidewalls aren’t as meaty. In terms of size, this crossover seems to be pretty small, more along the lines of the Renegade and Compass. That could also mean it’s on either the STLA Small or STLA Medium platforms, both of which are good for up to 440 miles per charge.
Alongside the first photo of Jeep’s first battery-electric crossover, Stellantis dropped another teaser for the Ram 1500 BEV. This time we get to see more of the front end including the illuminated Ram logo and the LED daytime running lights instead of the full-width setup from the first teaser shown last year. The sketch also hints that the truck is a crew cab, which may only be the only configuration offered when it goes on sale in 2024. Expect the Ram 1500 BEV to utilize the STLA Frame platform developed specifically for trucks and large body-on-frame SUVs.
Jeep and Ram are the first to transition toward electrification as both brands are getting their first BEVs in 2023. They’re also the most profitable of the seven Stellantis marques doing business in the U.S. since their focus is on trucks, SUVs, and commercial vehicles. Of the 14 brands under the Stellantis umbrella, Jeep may be the one that uses every version of the STLA platform thanks to its expansive lineup of vehicles. Ram, on the other hand, will likely use only the STLA Frame architecture since it’s focused on trucks and commercial vehicles.
The first battery-electric Jeep appears to be a subcompact, meaning it won’t have a direct competitor for some time. Vehicles like the Volkswagen ID.4 and Ford Mustang Mach-E will be larger. Its closest competitor will be two upcoming Kia models, the second-generation Niro EV and the upcoming EV4. However, the former is FWD only, and will likely not compete with the Jeep directly since it won’t have the same off-road capability.
