Monday, May 25, 2015

Next-Gen Jeep Wrangler Won’t Go All Aluminum

BOLD RIDE

 
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Remaking an automotive icon is no easy task, just ask Jeep. The off-road brand will redesign its storied Wrangler SUV for 2017, and according to a new report from Automotive News, that refresh won’t include an all-aluminum body composition. 
 
The word comes from the mouth of Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, who told the publication that the decision to retain a steel body is a case of costs saved rather than perceived benefits in performance and fuel economy.

“We’ve run the numbers and we’ve simulated mileage and the impact,” said Marchionne. “Because of the difference in cost not just of the material but the actual assembly process, I think we can do almost as well without doing it all aluminum.”

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Instead of utilizing an all-aluminum body like the new Ford F-150, Jeep will spur its weight-saving by ‘hanging’ lightweight aluminum panels on the Wrangler’s steel body, such as aluminum doors and fenders – keeping overall steel usage to a bare minimum.

In a way, the less-radical the new Wrangler… the better. The Wrangler sold to the tune of 175,328 units last year, a year over year jump of 13 percent, and sales continue to grow month by month through April of this year.

 A departure from the tried and true Wrangler norms could upset Jeep’s faithful, something Jeep boss Mike Manley has no intention of doing. In a previous report he rather humorously noted, “If we styled a Wrangler that didn’t look like a Wrangler, I would have to have eight security guards.”


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One thing that will change in Jeep’s lineup however is the addition of an upcoming full-size SUV, expectedly monikered ‘Grand Wagoneer’. The three-row, unibody SUV is expected to arrive in 2018, and according to Marchionne, it will share a platform with the smaller Grand Cherokee.

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