After a series of delays, the iconic Jeep brand will finally see an official launch on Augost 30, 2016. The FCA owned off-road brand will initially sell two models, the Jeep Wrangler and the Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV.
The retro-styled Wrangler will be sold in India only in the long wheelbase ‘Unlimited’ trim. It will come powered by a 2.8-litre diesel engine good for 197hp. The shorter, standard wheelbase Wrangler will not make it to our shores for now.
The second model from Jeep, the Grand Cherokee will for now be the mainstay for the Jeep brand in India. The manufacturer revealed details of the vehicle a few days ago on its Indian website. As per the update, the Grand Cherokee will go on sale in three trims – Limited, Summit and the high-powered Grand Cherokee SRT, which will also mark the debut of Jeep's ‘SRT’ performance brand in India.
The Limited and Summit variants draw power from a 240hp, 3.0-litre V6 diesel motor paired to an eight-speed automatic gearbox. Instead of the diesel unit, the high-performance SRT gets a 475hp, 6.4-litre Hemi V8 petrol motor which also comes paired to an eight-speed automatic gearbox. All three variants come with a four-wheel-drive system, with the SRT additionally getting high-performance Brembo brakes and active damping suspension.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee's price in India is likely to start from around Rs 85-lakh mark while the full-blown Grand Cherokee SRT will be priced upward of Rs 1 crore (ex-showroom).
While the Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee will mark Jeep's entry in India next month and will be sold as completely built units, Jeep will locallymanufacture a third model which is due next year. This new SUV, currently known as the Jeep C-SUV will likely get the "Jeep Compass" moniker.
The C-SUV is expected to be priced between Rs 13-20 lakh. Power is expected to be between 107hp and 122hp from a 1.5-litre Fiat Multijet diesel engine (a downsized version the international 1.6-litre block) for the 2WD model. An all-wheel-drive version, powered by a larger 2.0-litre Multijet engine making 170hp, will also be offered.
Jeep will begin its India operations with around five-to-six dealerships all over India initially and the manufacturer is in the process of adding more dealerships in the near future.
Rivan RS 
Viraaj Bhatnagar
Uday Singh
Suraj Viswanathan
