One of the recurrent themes of the company in the UK has been the US-centric attitude. Originally Chrysler Jeep was handled by TKM in Dover, who did a masterful job of promoting US cars to Brits. However, once the factory took over, it was a rapid fall. Examples of cultural crassness abounded: at the launch of the Chrysler Delta (a rebadged Lancia as everyone knows), the company set teeth on edge by claiming it was more spacious than the class norm “because that is a core Chrysler value” – as if Chrysler supplied anything more than the badge. The company went on to claim that pricing a Chrysler/Lancia above an equivalent Ford Focus was entirely justifiable. It was an instant death sentence for the Delta – as everyone in the room not employed by Chrysler immediately recognised.
While it is hard to see how Chrysler could become relevant again in the UK (after all, its small and medium cars will use Fiat/Alfa platforms and Fiat has enough trouble selling them in Britain), Jeep ought to have a future.
The UK is a fantastic market for off-roaders, yet Jeep can barely sell a car at present. It will depend on a realistic, UK-led assessment of the correct price/value relationship. Jeep did well when it had decent cars being sold for worthwhile savings over Land Rovers. Jeep may well bang on about its peerless heritage, but an attitude of “We are the original off-roader, so you have to buy our products” cuts no ice in the home of Land Rover. Certainly, the price gap to Land Rover needs to be bigger than it was in the 1990s – Land Rover’s image has soared, and Jeep’s has collapsed.
The crucial new model will be the 2014 Cherokee. Amazingly, the last Cherokee ended production in August 2012, but the replacement is only now going into production. There have been problems with the new nine-speed automatic transmission, leaving the company “completely naked” in the words of Fiat Group boss, Sergio Marchionne. It is the best-styled Cherokee since the 1990s original, so one has to hope it will also be the best to drive.
It is sad that this next Cherokee has exactly the same job to do as the 1993 model – launch Jeep in the UK. What a waste of the past 10 years.
Author:
Tom Seymour
Freelance writer
Freelance writer for AM, Tom Seymour has been a specialist B2B journalist covering the automotive sector for over 14 years. He started his freelance career in 2015 and currently writes for a variety of automotive, business and technology publications.
Steve Brighton - 17/12/2013 11:07
Do you think Chrysler Jeep will follow Chevrolet out of Europe as well? Neither brand can be financially viable in such a tough German-centric European market.