Here’s a pretty terrifying fact if you’re a marketer for Jeep: out of the top 33 car brands selling cars in the United States, Jeep’s sales growth is at the absolute bottom, meaning that there are 32 brands ahead of them (can you even name 32 car brands?). In a market where almost every brand is growing, Jeep has lost 12% of sales compared to 2022, which itself was a dismal year. This comes after four consecutive years of sales declines for Jeep. What can be done?
Nostalgia! I don’t usually talk about marketing here, though it does fascinate me. Jeep is, potentially, a super strong brand, but it hasn’t been lately. The approach Stellantis is taking to fix it is an interesting one and I want to talk about it first. There’s also some news out of Mercedes in the form of a “Baby g” as well as updates on Toyota’s fuel cell projects and a look at the overall chip supply.
Check Out The ‘Dents’ On This Jeep
I’ve discussed, at length, the challenges Jeep is currently facing. On the one hand, the PHEV 4XE vehicles have been a surprising sales success. On the other hand, the overall product mix for Jeep doesn’t seem to be resonating with the larger market. Plus, competition from Ford and its Bronco line of vehicles is giving the Wrangler its first real test in decades.
Jeep, ultimately, has a product problem. Perhaps the new 2024 Jeep Wrangler is good (we haven’t reviewed it yet). Still, a mildly refreshed 2024 Wrangler is not going to suddenly turn the brand’s fortunes around.
Just look at this sales report from FCA:
There’s the Jeep brand through the first half of 2023. It ain’t pretty. YTD the best performing vehicle is the Compass, which appears to be heavily incentivized (the brand is currently offering 15% off MSRP). Literally every other vehicle is declining year-over-year.
In my humble opinion, the Wagoneer/Grand Wagoneer has not broken into the big SUV space to truly challenge Ford and GM. The Renegade is old and hard to swallow at almost any price. If you want a Jeep Wrangler there’s no better Jeep Wrangler than a Jeep Wrangler, but depending upon the price, you might be better off buying a Bronco Sport than just about any of their small crossover/SUVs (or a Chevy Trax or Kia Seltos, if you don’t need/want the off-road chops).
The Grand Cherokee is good and, if you work for Jeep, the rebound in Q2 is hopeful.
Product problems are hard to fix and it takes years, not days, to fix them. You know what you can fix in days? Marketing. Marketing will always exist to fix product problems.
A story in Automotive News caught my eye this morning, because the reporter there spoke with Stellantis marketing head Olivier Francois to find out exactly what the brand is trying to accomplish. The campaign is called “Dents” and it’s dripping with nostalgia. Just look at the video at the top of this section. Look at all the memories created by one Jeep! Look at the family! Listen to the smarmy, Mumford & Sons-y song!
From the article:
Olivier Francois, marketing chief for Jeep parent Stellantis, said the ad’s focus is building loyalty rather than conquesting buyers.
Francois said the time was right for a Grand Cherokee campaign as dealership inventory grows. He said the nameplate has logged millions of sales since 1992 and has a place in the hearts of many.
“This is an extended approach to loyalty,” Francois told reporters last week. “Literally a new generation, cross-generational loyalty to the vehicle, and this will allow us to add an emotional and nostalgic level of connection with the customer.”
As Peter pointed out in Slack, this is basically the same ad Subaru ran, with essentially the same song, back in 2017:
I mean, I work with a crazy person who is spending a lot of time and money putting together the ultimate Jeep Grand Cherokee so maybe this is going to work on Jeep people.
They Call Me ‘Baby g’
Speaking of beloved off-road brands… for years, Mercedes has apparently considered making a smaller G-Class. Instead, Mercedes built the more family-friendly GLB, which is a completely fine and forgettable crossover thing.
It sounds like we’re finally going to get the baby-G.
“Tonight, we are announcing for all the G-Fans out there, there will be a little g,” Mercedes CEO Källenius told Bloomberg at the Munich car show, adding “So a son or daughter of the iconic G.”
This makes a lot of sense to me. A smaller, cheaper, boxy Gelandewagen can trade on the brand’s iconic shape. While there’s no timing that’s been announced, it’s clear from Mercedes that this new itty-bitty-g will be all-electric.
Microchip Shortage Update: North America FTW!
The ongoing microchip shortage has had an outsized impact on the car market in the United States, but our fortunes are improving. According to Automotive News/Auto Forecast Solutions, the number of vehicles that had to be delayed due to chips shortages in North America fell to only around 4,700 last week.
That’s not zero, but it’s a big improvement from August of last year, when around 22,300 vehicles were cut in a week according to the same data set. Things are still rough in Asia, where non-Chinese plants lost 43,157 vehicles and Chinese plants lost an additional 19,669 production slots.
Toyota’s Long Beach Port Operations Now Powered By Hydrogen
If you go to the Port of Long Beach complex and find Toyota’s section you’ll see something quite interesting. Rising out of a massive concrete field is a strange collection of metal tubes, machinery, and tanks that at once looks familiar and somehow new.
This is a hydrogen “Tri-Gen” powerplant, built by the company FuelCell Energy, and it now powers Toyota’s port operations. Using renewable biogas (i.e., natural gas created by decomposing biomatter), the facility produces electricity, hydrogen, and usable water.
The energy will help power Toyota’s equipment, the hydrogen will be used for Toyota hydrogen vehicles, and the water will be used in the company’s car wash operations. The water part is quite interesting and should, according to Toyota, reduce water supplies by about half a million gallons per year.
While I’m still not convinced that we’ll all be driving hydrogen cars in a few years, these kinds of industrial projects make a lot of sense to me. Obviously, there are limits on how much biogas can be produced, but taking methane released from landfills and preventing it from becoming a greenhouse gas is a powerful idea.
The Big Question
It’s Thursday. It’s been a long week. Here’s an easy one for you: How would you save Jeep?
Photos: Toyota, Jeep
Make “CJ” a model below the Wrangler.
I feel like All NA Stellantis brands rely on one model to keep them alive, while all other models are like “meh”. Fix that or embrace it.
Make a reliable 4-6 cyl pickup. Maybe don’t call it the Comanche. Do make it small to mid sized, fairly basic with a double DIN hole, A/C, heater and that’s about it. Keep the costs low and pass along as much of those savings as possible while still making some profit.
As an MJ owner, I agree. I personally want a pickup that is a two door truck with A 6ft bed based on the 4 door Wrangler chassis.
“Obviously, there are limits on how much biogas can be produced, but taking methane released from landfills and preventing it from becoming a greenhouse gas is a powerful idea.”
The CO2 left over has to go somewhere. Unless that CO2 is being permanently sequestered (without sapping too much energy to do so) converting methane to hydrogen may be no better than just burning the methane in efficient ICE engines or in fuel cells to power electric machinery.
Wow! Just read all of the impassioned comments to this post and there’s just one appropriate response: Jeepers!
I would save Jeep by matching Toyota’s reputation for quality and durability. I like Jeeps (ok, mainly just the Wrangler and to some extent the Renegade) but I’m 100% going to pick a Toyota for the reliability even if a Jeep could be a better off roader.
Reliability aside, some back to the basics SUVs. And I mean SUV, not some car-like thing where I’d be better off buying a van because I own a Jeep that can’t handle more than a gravel road. I get the need for a halo offering, but offer something that’s simple, durable, and without every bell and whistle you can think of that the average American can actually afford.
Nostalgia ain’t gonna pad my checkbook to help me afford a new Jeep. Over the last five or six years I have been priced out of the market. In 2015 I bought a three-year-old CPO Wrangler Sport 2-Door 6-speed with 40K miles on it (with power locks and windows the only option) for $17K. This year at 130K miles I finally had the dreaded rocker repair pending on my Pentastar so I started looking at a similar vehicle. That $17K vehicle is now $32K. When a new Compass costs as much as my Grand Cherokee from a few years ago, it’s a clear indication Stellantis has gone profit-crazy. Sorry, Jeep… You’re just not worth it. Maybe when the Magneto comes out I’ll revisit, but until then, I’m going to keep fixing my 2012.
Imagine if every Jeep wasn’t an unmitigated shitbox…did anyone mention shitbox yet? Shitbox?
I would make David Tracy CEO.
Make Jeep great again.
I’m sure my reply will get lost in the maelstrom (we’re at 158 comments and counting!) but what the hell, anyway. In the spirit of brevity, I’ll try to break this into bite-sized pieces:
1.) Jeep has more to lose than gain by ditching SFA on the Wrangler and Gladiator. There are more purists than weekend warriors and brand-curious folks who’d buy a Jeep because they went to IFS. Francois himself said they’re working on building and maintaining brand loyalty, not conquest. So I don’t see this happening, nor should it.
2.) I think a lot of the sales numbers looking bad is primarily due to Jeep reeling from the hangover that was COVID and finding their new pricing floor. Even the Jeep diehards only have so much money to buy their high-priced models. People who may otherwise have the money might end up test-driving one and discovering the driving dynamics don’t appeal to them. This also explains the number of low-mileage BOF/SFA Jeeps that are traded in and up for sale.
3.) I can by no means speak for everyone, but in my own experience, my Jeeps have had no more and no less prevalence of quirks/idiosyncrasies than any other brand. Some of them are annoying, but not catastrophic. In terms of reliability, I have had no real issues with my higher mileage JKU. Although I’ve done a lot of prophylactic maintenance and addressing of common issues, I’d do that for any vehicle I buy, so that’s not germane to the conversation.
3a.)Yes, the JLUs and JTs had some early teething issues, but so have virtually all Ford products as of late. For some reason, people like to crap on Jeep’s reliability, but I don’t find it much more different than any other brand’s, and hardly egregious. Again, YMMV, and I can only speak for myself. I just think for some reason it’s in vogue for Jeep to be a perennial whipping boy for reliability. A bigger problem than the vehicle quality is the quality of the dealer service and warranty experience, which may be the biggest problem of all. That’s an accusation that can be hurled at nearly any branded dealership.
So much for brevity, I suppose.
OMG that ad is so bad! I wanted to poke my eyes out watching it lol
Save Jeep?
Introducing the Bare Bones Line !
We have ditched any attempt to keep current, have turned our back on anything OTA or Tablet y, and have spent R&D on what matters. A hydro-formed fully boxed never rust aluminium alloy frame. This industry Superior frame underpins all of the BB line, and any aluminium body can be easily attached. We’ve dusted off the best of the 60s and 70s body panel tooling to reproduce our greatest hits, but also will sell the chassis direct to the consumer under the kit car loop hole as the BBBB.
> never rust aluminium alloy
They may as well abandon the Jeep name then
Are you saying that poor build quality and high prices are not driving growth? I, for one am SHOCKED. I am a Jeep fanboy who currently owns 2 jeeps and have had another 6 or so over the years.
The GC and Wagoneer are both overpriced for what they are and the Wrangler is now common enough to be at the saturation point. It was never more than a niche vehicle until the 4 door JK came out.
I still have the 1987 YJ my dad bought new when I was in high school, along with a 2012 Wrangler. I learned to drive on a ’76 CJ-5. They finally have priced me out of the market. It’s absolutely ridiculous and I, for one, am glad Stellantis is having a hard time selling them. Serves them right. They abandoned us for a dream of going upmarket. We tolerated their quality issues for years and STILL were loyal, and this is the thanks we get. I know it’s not personal, but it feels personal.
Their profit is way up year over year, so things can’t be too bad for them, even though sales are down.
I’ve had a couple of CJ5’s. Fantastic vehicles if you have tiny legs and don’t like safety.
I was the only one in high school who hadn’t flipped his CJ – and everyone else had CJ-7’s!
Jeep the only maker that turns more profit per vehicle than Tesla how is that working out for them. Ohh now we see how, poor poor Jeep who decided to chase money that way rather than the other way. Wait all brands are doing this, Jeep is just being the leader it is.
Jeep decided probably a decade ago that they were going to start playing in the luxury space and priced their products accordingly. The problem is they aren’t really competitive with true luxury manufacturers and now they’ve priced out all of their less-affluent fans. AIUI the only affordable-ish thing they make anymore is the Renegade, which is so small it’s not viable for a lot of people.
Heck, I have personal experience with this. My parents looked at a Renegade to replace their last Jeep but decided it was too small for their purposes. They ended up in a stripper F-150 because it was cheaper than the next larger Jeep at the time. Mind you, my Dad to this day says his first Jeep was his favorite vehicle ever, but even so he wasn’t willing to pay what Jeep is asking to stay in the family. That’s a huge problem if you ask me.
If I had to replace my 2012, I’d have to look outside the Jeep family. I’m 54 and Jeeps have been in the family since 1976. I came to the same conclusion as you did – the Renegade is really all I could afford at this point, and it just wouldn’t be smart money to throw even that amount of cash at a model that has not proven to be the most reliable in the Jeep lineup, and that’s saying something.
The Wrangler is cool, but as alluded by others, it’s an evolutionary product without a lot of obvious change year over year, not a lot of reason to upgrade. In some ways, it is a bit of a catch 22- Obvious changes can also ruin what makes it desirable. I still feel like I see a ton of JKs and JLs on the road, but maybe it’s just because they’re more visible than most vehicles.
The Wagoneer experiment seems poorly timed in retrospect, with the middle class no longer riding high on cheap debt. Regardless of how nice it is, there is no way the dealer experience competes with the true luxury brands favoured by the ‘recession proof’. You can’t just invent luxury brands out of nowhere. It also looks like an ugly whale.
The Compass and Renegade are sad at this point, and only serve to devalue any luxury cache of the above.
I think Jeep needs to drop the Cherokee name plate. I understand the history, but it’s kinda cringe to keep using it after the Cherokee asked them to stop. Sure, Jeep uses it to ‘pay respect’ to a great nation, but who wants to be the namesake of a shitty SUV?
I’m sure there are a thousand examples of more egregious cultural appropriation, but for people who empathize with indigenous issues, it’s still a turn off.
They could keep using it if it was an actually good car, like the original XJ, but agreed, it’s disrespectful to put somebody else’s name on shit.
Yeah but like… if I find some Cherokee nation people who like it, then what? I’m sure there’s a mix. Maybe I’m wrong but I was told racism was “one race being inferior or superior to another”. Doesn’t really seem hateful.
‘The’ Cherokee nation and their representatives have publicly denounced it and asked Jeep to stop. Not really sure what else there is to say. I’m sure you’ll find a range of opinions among all groups of people, including the Cherokee.
Cultural appropriation is not always about being overtly superior, hateful or racist. It’s just inauthentic and cringe, especially when your namesake goes out of their way to call you out on it. It’s like an unreciprocated hi five, or another snub- Sours the vibe.
It doesn’t really matter if you agree, I simply find it embarrassing enough that I wouldn’t consider the vehicle. I’m sure most people don’t care, but some do. Doesn’t help that the SUV is completely unremarkable… Nobody loses except Jeep, they’re the ones struggling apparently.
Say I make one of the shittiest cars ever made, call it the Stellantis ADDvanced, claim it’s a sign of respect. How would you feel?
Then say you ask them to use a different name and they say lolno. Now you see your family name on shit cars everywhere you go.
Well if it’s JUST me, then I think I’d get to decide. I guess my point is that every group is a mix of individuals with different opinions, and idk if asking the leaders for permission is the best way to make decisions.
Example: USA decides to go to war. Bunch of people don’t want them too. Our entire world is run by out of touch boomers, maybe some genx/millenials/geny cherokees would be all “hell yeah call it Cherokee and we get discounts because we’re cherokee” or % of purchase price goes towards tribal stuff, idk. Just spitballing. Boomers with high positions do not speak for me, was more of the point.
That’s the thing, they (Jeep) didn’t ask. They just took the name. Then the Cherokee nation representatives (who represent the whole tribe, even those who disagree) went “hey jeep could you please not?” And jeep said “lolno.”
The Wrangler has one current, major, specific problem (in addition to those mentioned by others): manual transmission versions have been essentially unavailable for over a year. A *lot* of Wrangler buyers are only interested in the manual transmission. There has been no new manual transmission inventory for the end of the 2023 model year, and now so far for the 2024 model year. There are literally NO MANUAL TRANSMISSION WRANGLERS AVAILABLE NEW right now. That’s going to impact the Wrangler numbers quite a bit.
Agree. My wife’s 2018 Grand Cherokee was totaled this spring. She wanted bumpers and a manual transmission. So we decided on a Gladiator. Can’t buy one since March. There’s one in my exact spec parked at a dealer since March. Finally, I decided to give up and go automatic. Well, the dealers are acting like Gladiators are hot tickets. “Yeah, we’ll give you 2k off a 50k truck that’s been on our lot 200 days.” No thanks.
Maybe if Jeep wanted loyalty, they should focus on quality. My wife had a Grand Cherokee, we nicknamed it the Heep. Because it fell apart like a chinese bicycle at under 80K miles. The frickin’ J fell off the hood. Local dealer also horrific. Marketing doesn’t fix that.
We recently traded in my wife’s 2013 Grand Cherokee. I was happy to see it go since it cost me an average of $1k in parts every year. Although one year that $1k was voluntary to add Android Auto / Apple Car Play.
Since the Toyota we want is so hard to find, I’ve been pitching other options to my wife. For the GC, she said she didn’t want to get stranded somewhere.
So there you go Stellantis/Jeep. A potential GC(L) Overland buyer who thinks your vehicle is a POS and won’t even consider it. Guess we’ll continue waiting for some Toyota or Lexus inventory to arrive.
I will never forget reading a review of the Compass (I think), where the journalist had gotten one brand new and the gas cap strap broke. The writer noted that “after all this time, Jeep has still not mastered gas cap tether to body technology.” While my JK has been pretty reliable, our Grand Cherokee was bought back by Chrysler because it wouldn’t stop turning off while we were driving it. The local dealer’s service department put more miles on it than we did.
At least the Subaru family is sending their kid off in something that makes for a good first car. Nothing like giving a kid a 5.7 liter Jeep and having to cover that gas/insurance bill along with the dubious maintenance issues. I want to like the newer Jeeps, they have some impressive interiors and features, but years of subpar reliability and dealer support have done nothing in the way of giving me confidence in any of their products.
It always amazes me how people drive Subarus, seeing as how they must be blind to purchase something so ungodly ugly. It’s ironic the safety system is called eyesight, which is what plagues anyone within visible distance of their car.
Cogent comment. Glad you’re here to help.
Our Forester is ugly, but in 72K miles, we have put no money in it except maintenance, and I do most of that myself. I am a Jeep guy, but I expect my 16 year old to get many trouble-free miles out of it when we’re done with it, just as my 33-year-old did from our 2003 Forester when we gave it to him out of college.
Good point!
That’s why an old Subaru is the “State Car of Colorado” and not an old Jeep. They are ubiquitous.
I alluded to this problem in the Jeep Van article and got shot down. Jeep is two things: people who think that get want a Wrangler and various versions of America’s Land Rover. Only a fraction of Jeep buyers are actual enthusiasts.
Jeep has spent decades carefully cultivating an image as an automaker with poor reliability, quality, and value. If they ever want to be more than Wrangler dreamers and a patriotic two row wannabe-fancy runabout, they have significant work to do. I personally think that they can’t do it, and I think Ford effectively killed the brand by releasing the Bronco and showing the country that you can indeed have a Wrangler from another company
Exactly!
And for the enthusiasts, what can a new Wrangler offer that a 5 year old Wrangler cannot do. A used one (albeit expensive too) is just as capable of accessorizing and maybe less concerning if gets scraped on trails.
My point is WHY buy new?
Jeep needs to modernize, plain and simple. Especially the Wrangler. The solid axle and recirculating ball steering need to go. Sure, the solid axle is great for off-roading, but that’s the ONLY thing it’s good for. It’s too much of a compromise for daily livability. Ford already showed that you can have a great off-roader with independent front suspension. The Jeep purists are going to cry, just like the Corvette purists did when the C8 went mid-engined, but making the car appeal to as many people as possible is how you maximize sales. Maybe if it was more practical, more people would be willing to shell out $32k+ for a basic Wrangler. From a tech perspective, Uconnect is already better than Ford Sync IMO, so they’re already winning from that front.
I have always thought Jeep needed a “Wrangler” and “Wrangler Classic.” The Wrangler would still look the same with the convertible top and aggressive, industrial design, but the undercarriage would be unibody with fully independent suspension and it would only be as off-road capable as the Grand Cherokee or Compass. I think it would open the vehicle up to a whole new class of buyer who tried one but quickly turned it over or never got another solely due to the ride.
Also, fully agree with Uconnect. It’s excellent. My favorite infotainment system of any vehicle I’ve been in.
I don’t think it would even need to go as far as a unibody. Just an independent front axle with good suspension and up-to-date steering. Maybe throw in some more insulation, because the wind/road noise in Wranglers is ATROCIOUS at highway speeds, and the AC can’t keep up in extreme heat, at least for the soft top
As many have already alluded to: Has Jeep finally just passed “Peak Jeep” as a trend.
Meaning the brand doesn’t really change dramatically year after year, like their Dents ad. And just like a Dodge Challenger.
Think about this, is a new Wrangler much different for image or driving than a 3, 5, 15 year old Wrangler for whatever your purpose such as off-roading or Mall-roading? Same for Grand Cherokee or other Jeep. They look the SAME.
If price is the BIG consideration for getting ANY Jeep, then buy a USED one or a get a cheap Compass.
If someone wants a basic SUV or basic car to get around in, then lots of other options.
I don’t think we are beyond Peak Jeep, I just think Jeep’s offerings aren’t very strong. They let the Grand Cherokee grow long-in-tooth and the update just wasn’t enough for what they are charging. The (Grand) Wagoneer doesn’t have a great reputation for reliability and just doesn’t appear to have any clear reason to get over any of the competition. The Wrangler has been narrowly bested by the Bronco to everyone other than Wrangler fans. The Gladiator was a success for the first 8 months and then everyone who wanted one got one and the sales have been disappointing ever since. The Cherokee is old and not very good. The Renegade and Compass both suck ass.
Stellantis profitability is still solid though. They could afford to cut prices if they really wanted to. I guess I’m one of the few who still loved the last model Grand Cherokee’s design. Not a fan at all of the new styling. The Compass is fine, but was way too close to the Cherokee, and buyers weren’t fooled – they went for the cheaper option… Until Jeep just raised prices on the Compass. I don’t know in what world anyone thought a $60K ATP Wrangler would be a good idea.
I loved the last generation GC’s design. I think it will age well for decades to come. But that doesn’t refute that it was an aging platform, couldn’t feasible be retrofitted to be more electric compatible, and needed safety (crash) improvements. While the new one addresses some of those concerns, it also upped the price considerably and doesn’t seem worth it. That’s the full explanation of my GC complaint.
Jeeps are just too damn expensive for what you get.
It’s mind boggling that Jeep is doing so poorly right now, especially as off-road/rugged SUV/crossovers are whats the hot thing right now
How to save Jeep:
Affordability. All the Wranglers you see online are stupid expensive. People buying Jeeps aren’t looking to spend $100K. When you look at how you can get a Lexus or Porsche or BMW for that money….well, where would you out your cash? A base Wrangler is almost $46K CAD. That is too much: a kid who would put up with a bunch of crap to have their first car be a new Jeep has no hope of swinging that. And a lot of people are aware that they are paying big money for a Chrysler when they look at a Jeep.
Then there’s the nostalgia factor of people remembering how much they paid to weld in new floors, torque boxes and frame parts on their TJ because it rotted out like a 1972 Honda Civic that was winter-driven.
I know most auto makers are completely out of the game of providing niche models/products but if ever there was a car that fits that description it seems like Wrangler does.
So bring back all the niche Wranglers that used to be popular;
2 door Wrangler, Sahara Desert (?) package etc. all the special editions.
Keep building the Grand Cherokee with more trim packages to appeal to more people, especially a lower trim at the $35-40k price point.
Get rid of the Wagoneer or make it smaller and have more utility and be less big and opulent. In other words, more Jeep-like.
Cancel everything else.
How do you save Jeep? First, they need modern powertrains. Add hybrids. Not necessarily plug-in hybrids, just hybrids. Have selectable drive modes that make a real difference. Rock crawling? The engine runs all the time, and the electric motor provides endless torque. Mall crawling? The engine runs as little as possible and the hybrid system helps you burn less gas.
Secondly, split the product line. They kind of already did this, but badly. The Wrangler is its own product family at this point, and all their other SUV’s are road-going cars. Accept this. Market this. Let the world know there’s an entire array of “adventure-focused” Wrangler models. Strip down the base model further to get it under $30k. Then make the road-going SUV’s comfortable, practical, and badged as something else. I don’t care if it’s Chrysler, Plymouth, Ram, or what, but the Renegade/Compass/etc really need to be sold as “slightly interesting crossover/SUV thing” under a different brand from Jeep.
Third, focus on quality for awhile and actively advertise it. Many many people are hesitant to buy a Jeep because they rightly assume it will have significant problems once it hits 100k miles. If you have to pull a GM and buy “Initial Quality” awards from JD Power, fine, do that. But also maybe improve the actual product quality.
Wow! That Subaru ad really hit me! The Jeep ad? Not so much.
In an era where manual transmissions are being eliminated “due to fuel inefficiency”, I don’t see how Jeep can survive as nothing more than a hobby or an image. For a daily driver, they don’t make sense. (And I’ll pit a good mid or full-size sedan with snow tires against them in the winter, so don’t give me that excuse.)
*inhales deeply*
Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, Ford, Lincoln, Dodge, RAM, Alfa-Romeo, Mazda, Toyota, Lexus, Honda, Acura, Nissan, Infiniti, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Jaguar, Mini, Tesla, Ferrari, Fiat, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Mitsubishi, Volvo, and Subaru.
*phew*
Yes, I can. I can’t believe it took me so long to think of Mitsubishi. I also had to remind myself Mercury went defunct over a decade ago.
GMC & Chrysler?
Otherwise, good job!
I can believe I didn’t name Chrysler, but somehow forgetting GMC when “professional grade” is always on any commercial break was an oversight. I just stopped when I got to 32.
The complete list of every car brand with sales directly in the US has to be closer to 50.. I think the “list” of 33 doesn’t include Ferrari, Lambo, etc. VW, Maserati, Smart, Polestar, Rivian, Suzuki (They 100% out of US?), Lucid, Bentley, Rolls, Land Rover, Lotus, ….
VW is also one that escaped me. I went to the German manufacturers and as soon as I typed BMW, remembered they owned Mini, so I finished up the luxury brands, then moved on. But you’re definitely right, that list likely can’t include small niche brands.
I questioned them because they were from the first two companies you listed. It’s still pretty impressive you got 32 nonetheless!