What's Jeep Up to In 2025? Keeping Busy With a Busy Launch Schedule

The Jeep Wagoneer S, a premium midsize electric SUV, is making its way to dealers in the U.S. as the first all-electric product for the brand here. But it is just the start of what is shaping up to be a busy year for Jeep, which has new leadership and a long to-do list.

Bob Broderdorf, a Stellantis veteran who had overseen every brand over the course of his career with the exception of Jeep, completed his Bingo card when he became head of the Jeep brand for North America in September. In his short tenure he has seen Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares resign and he reports to the new North American chief operating officer Antonio Filosa who is also the global CEO of the Jeep brand.

What has not changed are Broderdorf’s product plans for Jeep.

Production of the Wagoneer S got underway in November in Toluca, Mexico, and Broderdorf wanted to see some SUVs make their way to dealers before 2024 ended, which is still behind the original schedule of a fall launch. The biggest challenge was getting all the software right. It is Jeep’s first battery electric vehicle for North America—other parts of the world have the subcompact Jeep Avenger—and it is important that the quality and integrity be there, especially with 45 inches of screen in the interior. Mechanically the 600-hp car is excellent, Broderdoft said in November, and he was pleased with the software patches the SUV was receiving.

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Good Enough to Ship

Talking to MotorTrend again in January, Broderdorf said the SUVs are good enough to ship and are trickling out, but not as many or as fast as he had hoped. The early models are tracking in the right direction on software and quality, he says.

The marketing campaign for the Wagoneer S has begun. The first television commercial for the “Beautiful things can still get dirty” campaign aired on the first National Football League game on Netflix at Christmas. The idea is to show a fun, Jeepy way to do electrification with a sophisticated product that can still get dirty in the mud and do what Jeep is supposed to do, the brand chief says.

The Wagoneer name should help with awareness and Broderdorf says advertising will also play on the S name which was first used on the 1974 Cherokee. Wagoneer S was supposed to be a placeholder name and Jeep had a contest to come up with a new moniker for the new nameplate. In the end, the winner: keep the Wagoneer S.

Broderdorf thinks they can play with the letter "S," which denotes speed, sporty, sexy, and sophisticated, all good advertising fodder. On the showroom floor, Jeep will be able to offer a number of Wagoneers, with two- and three-row seating, different powertrains and pricepoints.

Jeep Cherokee Replacement

We will get more information midyear about the new midsize SUV that will replace the Jeep Cherokee, which was discontinued in February 2023, leaving a glaring gap in the lineup that's hurt overall Jeep sales. We are also waiting to hear whether the company keeps the Cherokee name. Broderdorf knows what he wants but he is not talking yet. Cherokee is a powerful name with a lot of history, but the company is also culturally aware of the drawbacks of keeping the name. If the decision is to keep Cherokee, pains will be taken to market it in the context of the history of the car and its name.

The Cherokee replacement will launch this year. It will be available as a hybrid, but Jeep has not confirmed what other powertrains will be offered. That is in part because they are waiting to hear more details about future emissions regulations under the Trump Administration. The compact SUV will use the STLA Large platform which can accommodate internal combustion engines, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and pure EVs.

Electric Jeep Recon Still To Come

Last major vehicle to launch in 2025 is the Jeep Recon, a fully electric off-road-oriented vehicle that is one step below a Wrangler in capability, riding on STLA Large as opposed to STLA Frame for the eventual electric Wrangler. We await further details about the Recon which is a Broderdorf favorite and he thinks people will love it.

The Jeep chief says he probably won’t get to plans for extended-range versions of the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer three-row SUVs until late in the year and hasn’t had a chance to see how it will be executed and the timelime.  

Meanwhile, Broderdorf says the new leadership team with Filosa as well as Stellantis Chairman John Elkann filling in as interim CEO, is the real deal. “They have come in with a level of passion and trust and opportunity to do what is right for our brands and customers. It is an inspirational leadership story.”

Under new management, Broderdorf has not deviated from what he set out to do, he feels the brand will get back on track, he is confident he can stay aggressive. ”I’m picking the heart of every segment and putting a Jeep there. But we will be disciplined in how we go. The crazy will calm down. It already has.”