Jeep to expand its India model line-up with Meridian and Cherokee

India to be the first market outside the US to have four nameplates in Jeep's portfolio with Meridian and Cherokee lined-up later this year.

Plotting a comeback trail in one of the fastest-growing sport utility vehicle (SUV) markets of the world, Jeep - dubbed America's 'most patriotic brand' - will be expanding its model line-up in India with the launch of the Meridian and the Grand Cherokee later this year. In the first 10 months of 2021-22, SUVs accounted for 42 per cent of sales in India's  passenger vehicle market.

The Meridian, the company’s three-row SUV that made a global debut as the Commander last year, is likely to go on sale in summer this year. The high-volume model will be crucial for Jeep’s comeback in India, Christian Meunier, global chief executive officer, Jeep, said on Tuesday, addressing Indian media from Detroit.

“I am not happy with the volumes in India. That’s why I want Brazil to be the benchmark. In Brazil, we sell 15,000 units a month with three models. In India, we were doing 4,000 units with two models (the Compass and the Wrangler). We need to grow in this market and push the limits,” said Meunier. India will be the only market outside the US to have four nameplates from Jeep.

The Meridian gives an opportunity for greater volumes and will help the US automobile marque expand its manufacturing footprint in India, said Meunier. Strategically, India will be an export hub for the right-hand drive models.

A derivative of the Compass, the seven-seater model will be launched with more than 80 per cent of the parts locally procured. It is expected to be priced between ~25 lakh and ~30 lakh and will be pitted against the Mahindra XUV700, the Innova Crysta, and the Kia Carnival, among others.

The Meridian will be available in three powertrains; two trims will be offered only in the diesel variant.

The-fifth generation Cherokee will follow the Meridian. By the end of 2022, Jeep will have a portfolio of four nameplates – either locally assembled or produced in India.

“Jeep has consciously taken a branding strategy which appeals to the emotion. This has helped it justify the premium pricing,” says Ravi Bhatia, president and director at JATO Dynamics, an automotive business intelligence firm. The other side of the premium position is that the field of play is naturally small.

The very fact that most SUVs are actually soft roaders and modified hatches, and the market for 'true-blue SUVs' is quite minuscule, may well work in Jeep’s favour. “Given the strategy choice, the new product direction makes sense,” says Bhatia.  

The 80-year-old all-American classic SUV brand indelibly linked to freedom is looking to capitalise on the premiumisation trend in a market that it entered in 2017 with the high-end Wrangler Unlimited and the Grand Cherokee, followed by the made-in-India Compass. However, it all soon fizzled out. Sales of the Compass averaged 1,000 units a month. A delay in bringing refreshes and new models pushed it to the fringes in a market where competition was growing by leaps and bounds.

Clawing back its lost glory could be an uphill ride, says Puneet Gupta, director, I.H.S Automotive, a sales forecast and market research firm. “Owing to the delay in launching products for the Indian market, Jeep lost the momentum it had built with the Compass. Given the competitive intensity in the SUV market, it may not be an easy ride for the brand to make deep inroads,” he adds.

Commenting on whether a small compact SUV is under consideration, Meunier said, “We would love to have a sub-four metre model in India. We are studying it. But we need to do it the right way. We don’t want to take a hatchback and make it look like a Jeep.”  

The maker of Jeep and Dodge brands Stellantis, formed last year through the merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA, is committed to make the India operations financially viable, said Roland Bouchara, CEO and managing director, Stellantis India. “We are on track to make the business viable in India and localisation will play a very important role in that,” he says.