A $25,000 Jeep EV is coming to the U.S. “very soon,” Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares told CNBC and other media at a Bernstein investor conference last week.
“If you ask me what is an affordable BEV, I would say 20,000 euros in Europe and $25,000 in the U.S.,” Tavares said at the conference, which was held prior to last week’s Wagoneer S debut. “So our job is to bring the safe, clean and affordable BEV to the U.S., $25,000. We’ll do it.”
Stellantis already sells the 20,000-euro Citroën e-C3 in Europe, Tavares, said, claiming the automaker is “using the same expertise” that brought that EV to market to match that pricing in a U.S.-market Jeep.
Jeep Avenger
Stellantis currently sells an all-electric version of the Jeep Avenger in Europe priced at 35,000 euros, or about $37,800, CNBC noted. Jeep has opted not to sell the Avenger, which is smaller than any of its current U.S.-market models, in this region. It’s also discussed selling more internal-combustion versions than originally planned in Europe.
Jeep has so far focused on plug-in hybrids in the U.S. The Wrangler 4xe has been the bestselling plug-in hybrid in the U.S., followed by the Grand Cherokee 4xe, Jeep CEO Antonio Filosa reiterated this week. And Jeep recently confirmed a 4xe plug-in hybrid Gladiator pickup.
The Wagoneer S EV will arrive with a base price of more than $70,000. It’s slated to be followed by the Wrangler-like Recon, which was initially announced as a pure EV but may reportedly also get a hybrid powertrain option.
2024 Jeep Wagoneer S
Tavares in late 2021 said that EVs cost the company 50% more than internal-combustion vehicles to make, calling it “beyond the limits” of what the industry can sustain because the added cost was too high to pass on to customers.
The threat of inexpensive Chinese-made EVs is becoming a reality in Europe now, and only trade policy is preventing it now in the U.S.—with the Biden administration recently raising tariffs.
