Jeep confirms facelifted Compass, a Vitara Brezza-rival & a 7-seater SUV for India

Jeep entered the Indian market with the CBU vehicles like Wrangler, Cherokee and the Grand Cherokee in India. Soon after, the launch of the all-new Compass mid-size SUV changed the fortunes of the brand as the car became quite popular in the market and attracted a lot of customers. Currently, the Compass is the only made-in-India vehicle in the manufacturer’s line-up in the Indian market but that will change in the coming times.

In an interview to ACI, Jeep India’s president and managing director, Partha Datta revealed that they are looking at an expansive product line-up for the Indian market in the future. Jeep is planning to launch an updated version of the Compass in the market, which will be a facelifted model and well be launched in the market soon. Apart from that, Jeep is also exploring the possibility to launch an all-new seven-seater SUV, which will be positioned above the Compass in the Indian market. Another interesting SUV that the American brand may launch in India is a sub-4m compact SUV to take on the likes of Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza and Hyundai Venue among others.

The Jeep Compass facelift will be launched in the coming months. After that, Jeep will launch the all-new three-row, seven-seater SUV that will utilise the platform of the Compass. Just like the Compass, the new SUV will also get a monocoque construction and will be a capable off-roader like the Compass. It will be launched in 2021 and it will take on the likes of Toyota Fortuner, Ford Endeavour and similar cars. The car will get powered by the same 2.0-litre diesel engine that powers the Jeep Compass but it will get a more powerful engine tuning.

The sub-4m compact SUV is expected to be launched in 2022. It will be an all-new car and is likely to be developed with the requirement of the developing markets like India in mind. The all-new sub-4m vehicle will be based on a new platform and will also offer 4WD system. It should be noted that no vehicle in the segment currently offers a 4WD system. The all-new sub-4m SUV will play an important role in Jeep’s Indian strategy. The sub-4m segment recently saw the launch of two new players in India. Last year, Hyundai launched the all-new Venue while Mahindra launched the XUV300. Later this year, Nissan will launch the all-new Magnite while Kia will enter the segment with the all-new Sonet. However, it is likely that Jeep will be the only manufacturer to offer the 4WD system in the segment, which will give it an edge over the others.