One Good Reason to Be Skeptical About an EcoDiesel Wrangler
I love the 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 with the 8-speed automatic transmission. So when I heard that there was a chance that the new Jeep Wrangler would have that power train setup, I got excited. But after that moment of glee, I had some time to reflect and while I hope that this particular rumor is true, I’m a bit skeptical.
When Ram introduced the 1500 with the EcoDiesel, they didn’t anticipate the 20% take rate that people are buying that truck at. They quickly ran into a limited supply of engines, creating wait times for people to buy the truck. To further compound the issue, the folks at Jeep have to share the engines with Ram for the Grand Cherokee. To my understanding, Ram is getting the majority of the engines that come out of the plant, with the remainder going to Jeep.
I’m a firm believer if there were more EcoDiesel engines readily available, Jeep would be selling more Grand Cherokees with that engine installed. FCA US is working to increase capacity, but I still can’t walk into a local dealership and drive home an EcoDiesel equipped vehicle. It’s something I have to order and wait for.
That leads us to the new Wrangler. This is going to be an important launch for the brand, and they definitely don’t want to mess it up by over-promising and under-delivering.
The model year 2018 is still along way away, but until capacity is at the point that dealerships can reasonably keep EcoDiesels in stock on their current offerings, I can’t see them wanting to add another model to take a slice of the limited-availability pie.
I hope I’m wrong. The 3.0L EcoDiesel in the Wrangler would be an amazing option, and one I’d strongly consider purchasing.
Chime in with your thoughts on the forum. >>
