Jeep Shuts Down Major Plant To Prepare For New Grand Cherokee

Mar. 22, 2022 3:07 PM ET by Michael Butler Industry News / Comments

The Grand Cherokee 4xe is finally coming.

Stellantis, along with most other major car manufacturers, finds itself in an ever-shifting automotive landscape that requires it to make fluid and rapid business decisions and execute quick changes in production at a moment's notice. The automotive giant has recently announced that it will be shutting down production at its Jefferson North plant in Detroit for eight weeks to retool the plant for production of the all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee. We got our first look at the reinvigorated Grand Cherokee back in September of 2021, and now that we know that it's coming with a fresh 4xe electrified powertrain, eight weeks doesn't sound too bad.

At present, the Jefferson North plant produces the previous-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee and the Dodge Durango. The plant currently employs 4,874 people, and a new $900 million investment promises to create a further 1,100 jobs in the city of Detroit. A significant number of these new jobs will focus on Stellantis' push in plug-in hybrid models and full-electric vehicles, including Jeep EVs. The new Jeep Grand Cherokee is already being manufactured at the Mack Assembly Plant which recently saw a $4.5 billion commitment from Stellantis. The plant is also responsible for assembling the three-row Grand Cherokee L.

The new 4xe Hybrid model makes use of a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and two electric motors with a 400-volt battery pack. This setup produces a strong 375 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque. When running on battery power only, the Grand Cherokee hybrid has a max range of 25 miles.

While the Jefferson North plant gets retooled, other Stallantis assembly plants, such as the Belvidere plant in Illinois sit idle due to the crippling global semiconductor shortage. Jeep's positive moves towards an all-electric future will kick into high gear once the Grand Cherokee 4xe starts rolling off of the production line, which forms part of Jeep's goals to achieve net carbon neutrality by 2038 and provide an electric option in each of its class offerings by 2025. Spending big on green is clearly creating jobs, and eight weeks is a small price to pay for all the good that's going to come out of the Jefferson North plant.