When Sergio Marchionne suggested that the next Jeep Wrangler would be built of aluminum, the good folks of Toledo, Ohio screamed, yowled, yelped and otherwise lamented, as retooling the town’s plant, the historic home of the CJ-cum-Wrangler, would cost more coin than FCA could justifiably spend, ultimately necessitating the relocation of the ur-ute’s assembly line.
Now the Fiat-Chrysler helmsman says that the future iteration of America’s scrappy, capable four-wheeler [], will be only partially constructed of the lightweight metal. Which means that it could be built in Toledo after all. Speaking to a group on Tuesday after receiving an SAE Foundation award, Marchionne explained, “There will be a large portion of that vehicle that will be aluminum. It will not be all aluminum.”
According to Automotive News, the aluminum bits could include the hood, tailgate, and doors. “We’ve run the numbers and we’ve simulated mileage and the impact,” said Sergio. “Because of the difference in cost—not just of the material but the actual assembly process—I think we can do almost as well without doing it all-aluminum. I think we can get very close.”
The question then, in Marchionne’s eyes, is what constitutes “very close.” Whatever FCA is thinking is probably good enough for the notoriously conservative Wrangler fan base. In fact, they’d probably prefer it.
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