Jeep is a division of FCA US LLC, a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Fiat S.P.A purchased the Chrysler
Group in 2014 for $3.65 billion. It was then renamed FCA US LLC, to reflect the
Fiat-Chrysler merger. Jeep has been a part of Chrysler since 1987 when Chrysler
acquired the Jeep brand from American Motors Corporation (AMC).
Jeep's current product range consists
of luxury and premium sport utility vehicles and off-road vehicles. Earlier, it
also had pickup trucks in its portfolio. Some of Jeep's vehicles - such as the
Grand Cherokee - reach into the luxury SUV segment. This market segment is said
to have been created by the Wagoneer model.
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.