Stellantis enters the affordable electric car market with a new electric Jeep at only $25,000. This new model is a direct challenge to Chinese giants such as BYD and Nio, which dominate the low-priced EV sector. The goal of Stellantis is ambitious: to make electric vehicles accessible to a wider audience, breaking down economic barriers and accelerating the adoption of sustainable mobility in the United States.
Stellantis: affordable electric with a $25,000 Jeep
Stellantis is at it again with a new ace up its sleeve as far as the U.S. market is concerned. It is an electric Jeep that will be made available to the public at a very competitive price within the reach of more users: we are talking about $25,000. The goal looks quite ambitious, as trying to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in the United States is not an easy issue. In fact, sustainable mobility is struggling to get off to a strong start despite the presence of giants like Tesla in the automotive market.
Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis Group, announced this new initiative during a conference with Bernstein investors. During the event he emphasized the major commitment to wanting to make electric vehicles accessible to everyone, or at least, to a large part of the public. The new Jeep takes its cue from the success of the Citroen e-C3, an electric SUV that is already available in Europe and starts at a price of 23,300 euros.
Tavares said that just as the goal of bringing the Citroen e-C3 to 20,000 euros has been achieved, there will soon be a Jeep available at 25,000 as well. The experience that the Stellantis group possesses globally will definitely be crucial to the development of this new Jeep. In fact, the manufacturer will provide proven platforms and components so that production can take place in a linear fashion. At present, Jeep has made the electric version of the Avenger SUV available in Europe, with a price tag of about 35,000 euros. However, this model is not available in the United States, where the brand has focused more on plug-in hybrid vehicles.
As we well know Stellantis is always looking to the future and now wants to conquer the affordable EV market with a model at around $25,000. This is a pretty tough fight to win, challenging Chinese giants like BYD and Nio, which have already largely established themselves in the low-priced EV sector. Carlos Tavares has been particularly adamant that the clear goal is to bring a safe, clean and affordable BEV to the United States at a cost of $25,000. This is because an inexpensive battery electric car currently sells for about $20,000, and in the United States for $25,000.
At the moment, the first step in this direction seems to be the launch of the Jeep Wagoneer S SUV. This would be Jeep’s first all-electric vehicle made available to the U.S. market, scheduled for the end of 2024. This first release will be followed up with an off-road model inspired by the Wrangler, renamed Recon.
Stellantis CEO is acutely aware of the challenges the manufacturer is facing these days. Indeed, the automotive market is characterized by fierce competition from Chinese giants and the shift to electric. Nonetheless, he believes that barriers such as tariffs imposed by the United States on Chinese electric vehicle trade are not a suitable solution for the current situation.
Tavares believes that using protective strategies does not make a manufacturer more competitive. On the contrary, he thinks this kind of strategy only serves to buy time, which would only go to the detriment of the future. Stellantis’ commitment to a $25,000 electric car comes across as an important step in the race for electrification and a strong signal of challenge issued to the Chinese giants in the industry. The game is still open and the future of electric mobility will be decided in the coming years.