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Jeep is fast becoming Fiat-Chrysler Automobile's (FCA) global cash cow. It has expanded three-fold in sales terms since 2009, from just over 300,000 globally then to just over a million sales in 2014. In 2015, it surpassed that million sales figure worldwide to set itself a new sales record. New, more affordable models such as the Cherokee and especially the compact Renegade have been the primary drivers of this success, and it's not stopping there. Jeep and FCA top-brass want to bump that up to two million sales globally by 2018 and are planning on some key new and renewed models to do so.
However, in the European region, Jeep remains weak, albeit growing fast. Of that million, only 71,300 cars were sold in the European, Middle Eastern and African region, with the Middle East taking about a third of that number. So, in Western Europe, Jeep managed to sell a mere 50,000 cars.
In Ireland, the situation is even more sparse. While the Renegade was launched to some success, at least in critical terms, sales have been very, very slow. Just 93 Jeeps were sold in Ireland last year, and 56 of those were Renegades. The big Grand Cherokee saw a significant jump in sales to 33 units, thanks primarily to its tax-efficient part-commercial 'Business' version, but the mid-size Cherokee found just four Irish takers in 2015.
Part of Jeep's problems, in fact possibly the biggest part, is a lack of national dealers, but it is a situation that's recoverable, according to Jeep's top man for the EMEA region, Steve Zanlunghi. "What we're doing right now is looking for the right partners to expand with Alfa Romeo and Jeep together. We're looking to recruit between three and five dealers, and we obviously want to be represented in the major urban centres and cities."
Interestingly, Zanlunghi told us that the recruitment would not, necessarily, draw on the pool of existing and former Fiat, Chrysler and Alfa Romeo dealerships. "We're not discriminating on that score. It's about who is the best operator and their location. The operator is the crucial point because they're the contact with the customers."
There is also a candid admission that Jeep, along with Fiat and Alfa Romeo, really needs to work hard on its customer satisfaction, something oft-quoted by owners and observers as a bugbear down through the years. "In aftersales you can always be better" says Zanlunghi. "The hard truth is that we've probably been chasing some customers away on that basis. The new dealer setup, where Jeep and Alfa Romeo showrooms will be combined, will need some serious work to bring staff up to speed. "Clearly there are two different buyer profiles there" admits Zanlunghi, 'but they are both authentic and passionate. With the network expansion we're going to be putting an intensive training programme in place and there will be strict processes in place so that dealer staff will be able to bring people into the brands."
Zanlunghi says that, so far, dealers have been signing up for the new programmes faster than had been expected, although he did not expand on whether that meant Ireland as well as in the UK and Europe. Those dealers will have quite a lot of new product to sell though. The current Jeep range includes the Renegade, Cherokee and Grand Cherokee and the iconic, old-school Wrangler, which now has the serious off-road market to itself with the end of Land Rover Defender production.
This year, at the Geneva Motor Show, Jeep will introduce its new C-segment SUV, which will fit between the Renegade and Cherokee in the range, and allow the next-generation Cherokee to grow a bit in size and price. Zanlunghi refused to confirm nor deny that this car, a competitor for the likes of the Nissan Qashqai and Toyota RAV4, will have an entirely new chassis and platform, but it seems likely. The long-lived Wrangler is also up for replacement and will definitely get a new platform and engines, but, says Zanlunghi, "it will stay true to its roots. There would be a big backlash from the fans if we got that one wrong."
At the top of the range, there will be a new luxury SUV, based on the Grand Cherokee, but larger, more opulent and with seven seats on offer. As to how the brand will be sold to Irish buyers who are highly resistant to new brands, especially at the pricier end of the market, Zanlunghi says "we have roughly 93 per cent conquest sales on the Renegade and in Germany, we've been getting a lot of Audi and Volkswagen customers trading in for our products. Traditionally we've been very much a private and retail sales brand, but now, with the new powertrains, we're able to break more into the fleet market and we'll continue to pursue that. Beyond that, we're one of only two true off-road brands operating in the SUV sector, and the only in the B-segment with the Renegade so that gives us an authenticity that others can't match."
Jeep needs to succeed, and succeed big, if Fiat-Chrysler is going to prosper, and it won't be easy, in spite of that recent roll of success. The new C-SUV needs to be extremely good if it's to crack the crowded Qashqai market, while new lower-CO2 drivetrains, including plugin hybrids, will have to be rushed forward soon. And beyond that, there is the indifference that Irish buyers have shown towards Jeep. Turning that perception around will not be the work of a moment.