Ten Renegade Selling Points from Jeep’s Head of Design
Given the huge success of the new Jeep Cherokee, there’s now a lot of expectation for the 2015 Jeep Renegade, which goes on sale later this year. The compact SUV is not only being touted as an important part of Jeep’s plans for the U.S., but also a pivotal part of the brand’s global strategy.
During a recent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles event, I candidly approached Mark Allen, head of Jeep design, and asked him if he could run down ten things that make the Renegade unique. Thinking I might have caught him off guard, he surprisingly jumped at the opportunity, providing insight on the SUV that could indicate it might be more successful than people think.
After all, despite some of the criticism the Renegade has gotten from enthusiasts, this Jeep is targeted at an entirely different market than the traditional Wrangler buyers, which Allen is quick to point out in the ten takeaways I got from the interview.
1. “It’s a Jeep in not only what it looks like, but what it can do. It’s got real off-road creds, the right amount for a vehicle in that segment. In that segment of a vehicle there won’t be anything that can touch it off-road.”
2. “The way the four-wheel-drive system works. It’s the right height, approach and departure angle. It’s got two real hooks that are really mounted to something. ”
3. “It’s got the powertrain, it’s got the geometry, it’s got the appearance of a Jeep, but it’s its own Jeep.”
4. “The roof panels come off because it’s very important that every Jeep has this inside-outside thing. That’s key.”
5. “Of course, there’s the seven-slot grille and the trapezoidal wheel. These are things that are constant in Jeep, and really no one else has done that.”
6. “The attitude of the vehicle. It has its own personality – its own character.
7. Wrangler forever and always will be the core of our brand. It’s where the brand started. Every (Jeep) has a piece of Wrangler on it, be it the Grand Cherokee or the Renegade. It’s very important to have something like that: the cornerstone of the brand that you can always come back to.”
8. “In a big city, a Wrangler would be cool to have, but there are some real penalties with parking something like that. This vehicle has tons of Jeep character pumped into it, but it’s a much more livable package … in the city.”
9. “The interior is premium leather with soft surfaces and is very well-equipped with what we call a ‘youthful design’.”
10. “This car will actually be sold in over 100 different countries around the world. To go into a new market, the first thing you have to do is establish a name. That’s really difficult to do. The key with Jeep is that worldwide everybody knows Jeep whether they sell a car there or not. Like Levis or Coke, we’re taking advantage of that by going worldwide.”