Stellantis has quietly stopped production of the Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee. Dealers of the American brand are unhappy with large inventories of cars, well above the industry average. The Wall Street Journal found that Stellantis quietly shut down the Wrangler and Grand Cherokee assembly lines at the end of August, even though the two models are among the Jeep brand's best-sellers domestically.
In the first half of 2024, Stellantis' sales fell by 21%, so the recovery of the group is a must. The pause in the assembly lines is explained by “production adjustments”. At the start of August, US dealers had four months' worth of Jeep inventory, well above the industry average of 68 days.
Analysts attribute the overavailability of Jeep, Dodge, RAM and Chrysler vehicles to high prices and a lack of promotions or special offers. The data shows that Stellantis' US market share is falling in the first half of the year, profits are shrinking and shareholders have already sued top executives for falsifying financial outlook data.
We will recall that despite its serious financial problems, the Stellantis concern decided to keep all its 14 brands, including the unprofitable ones. Risky were and continue to be Maserati, Lancia, DS and Chrysler, but in the end management decided not to remove brands from its portfolio. Chinese businessmen interested in these brands were also turned away.