Jeep Cars in India

Before 1940, the term ‘Jeep’ had been used as a US Army slang, for new recruits or vehicles. During World War II, when new vehicles were produced in 1941, the ‘Jeep’ moniker was associated with them. These military 4x4 vehicles were arguably the oldest four-wheel drive mass-production vehicles. The Jeep became the primary vehicle of the United States Army and the Allies during World War II. In lowercase, however, the term ‘Jeep’ continues to be used as a generic term for vehicles made for rough terrain.

Jeep has been headquartered in Ohio since 1945 when Willys-Overland started production of the initial Civilian Jeep models. In India, the Jeep brand was revealed by FCAIPL at the 2016 Auto Expo in New Delhi. It was launched, in the country, in the second half with the release of the Wrangler Unlimited and the Grand Cherokee. The Grand Cherokee SRT was also launched at the same time. All models were brought in via the CBU route.

In June 2017, Jeep rolled out its first 'Made in India' model, the Compass, from Fiat’s Ranjangaon plant in Maharashtra. This facility will be the mother plant for all right-hand-drive versions of the Compass SUV to be sold in India. It shall also produce for many international markets like Japan and the UK, to name a few.