7:00 am, April 22, 2023
Jeep is ‘targeting a younger customer’ with its new electric Avenger, yet it is still committed to a traditional dealership model.
That’s according to Eric Laforge, head of Jeep in Europe, who told Car Dealer that the firm has already received more than 22,000 orders for its new Avenger, with the average age of customers ‘10 years lower than the rest of the range’.
‘We are Jeep – we are selling SUVs,’ he said. ‘We have to transfer our values to the customer.’
Laforge also committed to a roll-out of new branding at dealerships and re-training of dealers, stating that what Jeep will ‘work on it with the salesman’ and added that the brand had recently invited dealers from many countries – including the UK- to test out the firm’s range in Spain.
He added: ‘Many of them were not expecting to see Renegade and Compass with as much capability.’
Christian Meunier, Jeep CEO, was also attending the launch of the new Avenger in Malaga, Spain, and stated that the brand’s values ‘would continue to guide our path to the future’
‘In over 10 years, Jeep’s sales have multiplied by four,’ he said.
‘This year will see the global press introduction of two zero-emission Jeep SUVs, launching in 2024 in North America and 2025 in Europe.’
The former refers to the upcoming electric Wagoneer, while the latter is the upcoming electric Recon which will offer ‘true trail rated capability’, according to Meunier.
He added that ‘Recon will be an addition to the portfolio, but that the Jeep Wrangler will remain the undisputed king of the mountain’, quashing any thoughts that the Recon would effectively replace the firm’s long-standing off-roader.
The new Avenger arrives as Jeep’s first fully-electric vehicle and kickstarts an extensive period of electrification of the brand.
It’s underpinned by the same platform that you’ll find on existing Stellantis EVs such as the Vauxhall Mokka Electric.
It has, however, been extensively re-engineered by Jeep to make it more capable off-road.
