Jeep’s New SUV Will Be Based On Tata Motors Platform!
At its investor day presentation, Stellantis Group, the parent company of Jeep, has made an important announcement: it will launch a new SUV based on a platform supplied by Tata Motors. This move comes as part of Jeep’s FastLane 2030 turnaround plan.
The new SUV is expected to be out by 2028. There will be a strong focus on exports. The idea is clear. Stellantis wants to use India as a low-cost engineering and manufacturing hub to produce a competitive product for the global markets.
Tata Motors and Stellantis have had a long-standing relationship including engine manufacturing at the Ranjangaon facility. The upcoming SUV will be developed, manufactured, and assembled in India under the joint venture between the two companies. It will be a global model from the outset.
FastLane 2030 aims at overhauling business and unlocking growth opportunities across key markets. The Jeep SUV will one of the five vehicles that the Group is now developing in Asia using regional partnerships. Taking this route helios in reducing development costs as it leverages local expertise and supply chains.
Grégoire Olivier, Head of Asia Pacific at Stellantis said that the collaboration with Tata Motors will provide a highly competitive platform and engineering base, and will also help the company remain ‘asset-light’. This means that Jeep will not have to invest heavily in new standalone factories for the new product. It will instead rely on local partnerships and shared infrastructure.
Stellantis is also betting big on India with its electrification and smart mobility programs. It already has a smart car programme running under Citroen brand here, which focuses on developing compact, cost-effective vehicles engineered in India.
The joint venture with Tata Motors gives Stellantis access to the Indian carmaker’s strong supplier networks, engineering base and manufacturing scale. Areas like Europe and North America are currently becoming increasingly expensive for the same.
Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa said that the partnership with Tata Motors will strengthen product offerings in India while also supporting exports to regions like APAC, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. This means that the new SUV will launch here as well.
Very little is known about the new Jeep SUV now. Stellantis hasn’t officially disclosed the platform. We think it could be the ARGOS architecture. This multi-energy modular platform underpins the new Tata Sierra- both the internal combustion and upcoming EV versions. The versatile nature of this platform further backs these speculations. It is an All Wheel Drive (AWD) ready architecture and also supports electrification. Both these qualities make it ideal for future Jeep models.
Previously, it was reported that Jeep could use Tata’s new Hyperion turbo-petrol engine on the Compass and the Meridian. This engine also does duty on the Sierra. It is thus logical to expect that the upcoming Jeep SUV could also be powered by this 1.5L direct injection turbocharged petrol engine.
Jeep currently has four products on sale in India- Compass, Meridian, Wrangler and Grand Cherokee. The company has lately been struggling with volumes here, despite having a strong brand recall. A presentation at the investor day shows 2025 volumes in India to be approximately 10,000 units. This could change with the upcoming SUV’s launch, which could also spawn an EV in the future.
Since it will be developed in India, adhering to global standards and with a high degree of localisation, the company will be able to keep costs under check and price the product competitively. A Jeep with a sharp pricing will have a wider mass appeal than its current models. This will, in the larger picture, reflect in the overall volumes as well.