Avenger is not available in the US.
stellantis
- The Jeep Avenger was named European Car of the Year in 2023, but it’s not on sale in the US.
- It’s Jeep’s first all-electric vehicle, and it’s surprisingly small for an SUV at just 13.4 feet.
- Jeep CEO Christian Meunier thinks it’s too compact for the North American market.
Jeep’s all-electric Avenger was named 2023 European Car of the Year at the Brussels Motor Show on Friday.
The compact SUV is Jeep’s first battery-electric vehicle. According to Top Gear magazine, the award was voted on by a panel of automotive journalists from about two dozen countries.
One of them, Paul Horrell of Top Gear, commented: “This car fascinates me. I thought I wouldn’t like it, but experience has proven the opposite. It’s very small, but it drives like a car It’s like a nice big car.”
It scored 328 points and came first out of 21 jurors, ahead of Volkswagen’s electric revival of the Kombi, called the ID. Buzz and family electric crossover Nissan Ariya, according to The Daily Telegraph.
According to the paper, the Avenger has an “attractive exterior design reminiscent of boxy American Seventies Jeeps as well as the iconic seven-slot grille that first appeared on the original World War II-era Willys Jeep.” “In this class of nearly identical jack-up superminis, it feels comfortable and a little special.”
The Jeep Avenger was named European Car of the Year at the Brussels Motor Show on Friday.
Sjoerd van der Wal/Getty Images)
The Avenger is part of Jeep’s push to become the leader in electric SUVs. According to Tech Crunch, the manufacturer wants EVs to account for all sales in Europe by 2030, with North America accounting for at least half as well.
But according to Auto Express, the Avenger will only be available in some countries in Europe and North Africa.
Jeep CEO Christian Meunier told Tech Crunch last year that an SUV as small as the Avenger “has no real market potential in North America.”
Unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October, the Avenger is just 13.4 feet long. According to a press release from Jeep parent company Stellantis, designers sought to embody “brand DNA” in a “compact size.”
Still, Jeep says the Avenger offers “uncompromising” off-road capability despite its size and a range of nearly 250 miles.
The Jeep Recon and Wagoneer S will be the first all-electric Jeep SUVs available to U.S. buyers, but they’re not scheduled to enter production until 2024.
Many European countries offer government subsidies to help drivers buy electric vehicles, which Jeep hopes will boost sales. In France, for example, buyers of electric cars priced under 47,000 euros ($50,964) can get up to 7,000 euros ($7,590).