[Wrangler JL News]

Well we know a Jeep pickup is coming, but now there seems to be some doubt over which form it will take exactly.

Jeep's chief of Design, Mark Allen, recently spoke with Australian publication Motoring about the Jeep pickup, what he had to say was surprising to say the least.

He said one of the main obstacles before green lighting production is determining if the Jeep pickup will be offered as a dervative of the Wrangler or as a stand alone model. "That's some of the homework we're doing right now. How much desire is there, is it a pick-up truck or a Wrangler variant? That's the line,"

A Wrangler based pickup would offer Jeep a cheap and ready made solution, but a dedicated, stand-alone model could offer Jeep greater global appeal then tacking a bed onto the JL. The thinking is that although a stand-alone model would face larger start-up costs but in the long term there is potential to develop the dedicated global appeal that Toyota trucks enjoy outside of the USA.

We'll see just how this plays out over the coming months, which way do you think Jeep should go?

 

[gladiator]

too bad it won't be a wrangler because i was looking forward to that and it would have been a platform of truck from jeep which resonates with a lot of the current truck audience.

 

[jeepers]

But I don't really think that it matters if it is based on the Wrangler or not. As long as its a Jeep pickup, it will be well received.

 

[HighRider]

As long as it's under the Jeep marque it'll still be popular.

 

[Sic]

I don't think anyoneis doubting the popularity of a Jeep truck, but what's being argued is that if its not based on wrangler its going to be a larger 1/2 ton-esque truck, while if based ont he wrangler it would be a colorado/canyon rival...

 

[gladiator]

As long as it's under the Jeep marque it'll still be popular.

Exactly, branding is very important and plays a key roll in them launching this product, plus what better than mixing together what you typically expect out of Jeep with a truck.

 

[Sic]

Of course, in order to keep production costs down, the pick-up will probably share its underpinnings with the Wrangler, even though it may or may not have a different style and philosophy. Anyway, it’s clear that Jeep will eventually spawn the long-awaited model, but its fans would have to wait a little longer than previously anticipated

Jeep Pick-Up Truck May Not Be A Wrangler Variant

The question is which angle gives them larger global appeal?

 

[jeepers]

It seems to me that a smaller truck would be a better move since that wouldn't compete with the current crop of Ram trucks. Are there no other platforms that could be used to make a smaller truck with what FCA has at its disposal.

 

[Sic]

It seems to me that a smaller truck would be a better move since that wouldn't compete with the current crop of Ram trucks. Are there no other platforms that could be used to make a smaller truck with what FCA has at its disposal.

but they only sell RAM 1500s in the US...seems short sighted no, to create a product protecting a US interest when the aim of the project is to boost global appeal...

 

[Gina]

FCA probably didn't see a market for large trucks like the Ram 1500 elsewhere so that may be why they're looking to Jeep for a truck with global appeal.

 

[gladiator]

Plus they already have Ram to take care of that but who knows, depending on how well the Jeep truck we will make it to market does... we might see them add something more to their truck lineup

 

[jeepers]

But truck sales are so US centric. It may be one market, but it is the biggest market by far.

 

[HighRider]

Could not for the life of me find any recent statistics on pickup trucks sold in Europe. Just wanted to see if the Jeep would be popular there but if the lack of information is any indication then trucks will be best received in america or Canada.

 

[gladiator]

NA might be best for them to start off and eventually they could make the case for something europe-specific... but these days with more world vehicles becoming available, they could be getting the same thing as us, just configured slightly different to better reflect what their market calls for.