It will be made in Italy by the American Panda.
We heard earlier this year about Jeep’s plans to add a new model to their European lineup. It will be located below the current Renegade. Although no official confirmation has been made, the manufacturer is said “very closely” to the new model. According to the rumors, the vehicle will be built in Italy and be based on either the Fiat Panda (or 500).
It is Italy that our exclusive rendering of the rumored model came from. It was created by OmniAuto. This preview shows what could be a very attractive offering in the subcompact crossover segment. It shares design elements with the Renegade larger model and has the Jeep seven-slot radiator grille.
preliminary states that the baby Jeep will replace the Panda at FCA’s Pomigliano, Italy factory. The Italian city car will then be moved to Poland, where Abarth models are assembled in Tychy.
The new crossover, if it is approved, will likely look very different from the Panda. Jeep wants to keep its go-anywhere DNA. It will likely get a rugged version in the same vein of the Renegade’s Trailhawk variant.
While we don’t have much information at this time, we can speculate that the new Jeep small will be equipped with Fiat engines. These include the TwinAir Turbo with 105 horsepower (74kilowatts), and the MultiJet diesel with 75 HP (55kW) and 140 pound feet (190 Newton-meters). FWD should be standard. The Panda Cross 4×4’s torque-on-demand drive system with two differentials, and an electronically controlled coupling, could be optional.
Although everything sounds fantastic, Jeep doesn’t plan to sell the baby Jeep here in the USA, since it is too small for local crossover/SUV standards.