Baby Jeep Set For Stardom

A Jeep built in Italy, but designed in Michigan and configured for one of the fastest-growing car segments in the world — the small SUV market.

That’s the new Renegade, launched just outside Milan last week, and it’s going to be a hit for Jeep, this being the first vehicle to be produced for the brand under fully fledged Fiat ownership. It’s cute, it has an impressively solid build quality, excellent perceived quality of materials in the interior and plenty of space for five adults. However, luggage space at 3511 may be just a wee bit on the small side. But it will be equipped with an impressive range of Fiat Multi-Air turbo petrol engines, as well as an economical 1.6-litre diesel when it is launched in SA next year.

At the Balocco Proving Ground (think of a Gerotek-like facility, but bigger) near Milan, where the international roll-out took place, Jeep executives announced a plan to peak production at 170 000 units annually at their Fiat-configured plant in Melfi, Italy. The life-cycle production target for this ground-breaking new Jeep — it is the first Jeep to be designed in the US but built in Italy — is an impressive one million units.

While the new model will share its platform with the soon-to-to-be-announced Fiat 500X (at the Paris Show, which opens in the first week of October), Jeep are taking full ownership of the Renegade as a “pure” Jeep. At the launch, they stressed the definition of the generic term for Jeep, which is: “A powerful vehicle with four-wheel-drive which can be driven over rough ground.”

Indeed, at least in the 2.4-litre Trailhawk 4x4 version that we tested at Balocco, this is pretty much the case. South Africans will get this 4x4 version, but will have to wait until next year for the Trailhawk, which also features increased ground-clearance and the potent new 136kW 2.4-litre turbo-petrol engine known as the Tigershark.  For the initial South African Renegade launch in April, Jeep will be gearing up for a 1.4-litre 103kW Multi-Air turbo petrol version and a 1.6-litre Multi-Jet II diesel developing 88kW. Next September, the top-end 4x4 Trailhawk will be launched alongside two additional models, featuring the more powerful 125kW version of the 1.4-litre Multi- Air, and a base petrol version, a 1.6-litre entry model developing 81kW.

This line-up looks like a sensible model choice for South Africans, with our local Jeep division keeping a beady eye on landed costs. What is certain is that this tiny Jeep is going to cut a distinctive swathe in the high- style areas of our country — think Camps Bay Drive, Musgrave Road in Durban and Fourth Avenue in Parkhurst, Joburg, where being seen to be cool is one of the prime reasons for owning a set of wheels.

The Renegade looks ultra-cool, with an essence of Jeepness that has been carried into the design with great care, while still using a body shape that is appealing to the most sophisticated tastes of European culture. Crucial to the Jeepness thing was to incorporate key design points such as the seven slat grille, and accompany that with round headlights, rather than anything remotely resembling a slant-eyed or reptilian look. The face is what you see first, and this one says Jeep.

So, too, do the squared-off wheel arches, which give the little SUV a tough, don’t-mess-with-me look when viewed square-on. Those trapezoid-shaped arches have been an intrinsic piece of Jeep DNA since, well since the first Jeeps, even though they only had that look on the front-wheel “eyebrows” back in 1945, with round rear arches. But being intended for a world market and to make strong inroads into Europe, those trapezoid arches couldn’t look tacked-on, and they don’t. There is an impressive integration to the shape, as well as the styling details such as the use of black colours on the arch extensions and the bumpers, and using polished metal for the grille surround. Wheel designs, too are generally chunky, some more than others, and there are seven options to choose from.

The interior features high-end soft-touch coverings, not a hint of the brittle plastics used in Jeeps (and indeed some Fiats) of yore, and continues the chunky theme on the dash with the so-called “ET” shape to the vents on the dashboards epitomising the youthful age of the designers on the Renegade team in Michigan. A big plus is the use of a large touch screen for vital functions like navigation, while big chunky knobs take care of frequently changed settings like climate control — cool! It’s always a good idea to go for a base model to kick off your new model launch drive, and this was done with the 103 kW Multi-Air engine version in front wheel drive form. This was fitted with the six-speed manual transmission and a slick-shifting device as it proved to be on the launch route, which took in a section of autostrada.

We had the 103kW version of the superb Multi-Air motor in the first Renegade we tested and the mix of smoothness, a super- wide torque spread and silken ability to rev up to 6000 rpm brought home to us once again how much this engine design deserved the various awards it won when launched a few years ago (we first sampled it in more powerful form in the Alfa Giulietta, and it remains our engine of choice in that body- shell).

In its Renegade installation, the engine provides what could well prove to be the perfect mix of power delivery, fuel economy and bang for the buck. The route swung off the autostrada into some interesting back roads winding through villages with that peculiar worn but cared-for charm that characterises much of that part of the world. Getting a feel for the chassis, we never experienced tar roads as rough as those common in Gauteng, but the rigidity of the chassis shone through, as well as an excellent ride quality. We tested the Trailhawk later, with its nine-speed automatic transmission, which uses the lowest ratio as a “crawl” gear, once you select the off-road (rock) setting on the console.

It provides good control in challenging conditions, not quite in the league that a full transfer-case low ratio installation would, but more than adequate for the kind of “junior-league” off-roading the Renegade is likely to be subject to. And the stiffer springs and increased ride height showed up well on the mild gravel trail we sampled. So, a launch in April and at prices which, by prevailing exchange rates, are estimated to start in the R340 000 region, from what we could gather. Its luggage space measures 3511 with the seat backs all upright, but there are plenty of stash places to add to this, and our models will more than likely have a “proper” spare wheel. My feeling is this is going to be a big hit for Jeep, in Europe, in other emerging markets and in South Africa.

-Stuart Johnston