Jeep Recon is the name chosen for Jeep’s new off-roader, which is getting closer and closer to its debut. The new model will arrive on the market in a fully electric version, but there is a good chance that it will also be offered in a hybrid version. The demand for electric cars is not growing as expected and the American car manufacturer of Stellantis is thinking of slowing down on this front by allowing its customers to also choose a version with an internal combustion engine.
Will Jeep Recon also be a hybrid?
The Jeep Recon will make its US debut by the end of 2024, with a European debut following next year. The Recon will be styled similarly to the Jeep Wrangler but will be more compact. It will also feature a unibody construction and a 600-horsepower electric motor.
The Recon will debut shortly after the Jeep Wagoneer S, a luxury flagship with a more on-road focus. Both vehicles were previewed as electric concepts based on Stellantis’ STLA Large platform. Confirming that the future off-roader could also be a hybrid is Antonio Filosa, CEO of the brand.
Filosa has said that it is unlikely that the Jeep Recon will be offered with a pure gasoline engine, suggesting that any model equipped with an ICE engine would likely be a hybrid. He added: “We are only studying the development of Recon and analyzing if there are options for the future, but for now it is all about BEV.”
In Filosa‘s latest statements, there had also been talking of the possibility that the Wagoneer S could also come to market in a hybrid version, but this hypothesis was later ruled out: “We are very versatile in our platforms and, while many of our competitors are strong only in one continent, we are strong in the rest of the world,” he said, underlining that Brazil, which is focusing on ethanol, is Jeep’s second largest market after the United States.
“To maintain our strengths in those regions, we need to invest in other possibilities besides electric, and since we have these investments in progress, we can adopt them immediately for other regions. But our strategy is to become 100% electric in Europe. If European political leaders decide differently, then we will have to adapt, and we will do so very quickly,” Filosa concluded.