Now if you’re anything like me, you probably grew up dreaming of big rigs. Jeeps with their tyres outside the guards, massive American trucks and the occasional rock-crawling Landcruiser. But could it be that after nearly 50 years in Australia, the glory-days of Jeep are numbered? Let’s chat about it.
In a world where bigger isn’t always better, and the constant fuel-price pressures are rattling car owners, is the American based Jeep fraternity coming to an end for us Aussies? There’s no denying, Jeeps have always been a staple in the off-road 4×4 scene. With Wranglers and Cherokees being some extremely popular options for those who love tough wheeling.
The numbers don’t lie however, and we have our concerns for the future of the brand here on home-soil. It’s always been a little bit of a volatile time for Jeep Australia. Established in the late 70’s, Jeep imports were suspended in 1984 due to the dropping exchange rate of the Australian dollar. Therefore making them too expensive to bring in. They’ve had their fair share of struggles over the years. With the current declining sales figures, could this spell the end?
Numbers are down
Jeep throughout 2022 have been on record saying they’re committed to the Australian market despite dwindling sales figures. The annual target of 50,000 vehicles sold is, at this stage, simply unreachable. In the 2014/15 period, Jeep sold over 30,000 vehicles which, for the record, is still a long way from their goal. In 2022, they managed to sell a measly 8,000 vehicles, over 40,000 off their goal. Plus, year on year, sales numbers are down over 8%, which for a Jeep owner or salesman, is a worrying statistic.
Is Jeep just being ignored?
The other troubling fact to remember is while Jeep sales continue to decrease, the market-share of SUVs and 4×4’s is constantly increasing, which means the customers are there, but the Jeep option just isn’t hitting the mark. Now, whilst all is looking grim and hopeless, there is still a little chance for resurrection, even though Australia might not be the driving force.
Jeep to pursue other markets
CEO of Jeep, Christian Meunier, has come forward stating “the future models for the vast majority of our product (petrol or electric) are going to be right-hand drive as well. We want to grow our business in India and the Asia-Pacific. The region has a lot of ambitions.” Which to us 4×4 enthusiasts is great news. While the Australian market might be hanging in the balance, Jeep will continue to pursue the right-hand drive market in other regions, meaning they’ll more than likely continue to fight for the Aussie market.
It’s all up in the air
I guess the answer to our question isn’t quite clear yet. The next decade will tell us a lot about Jeep in Australia. If the progress continues to be in the wrong direction, then the lifespan of the iconic brand might be short-lived. But who knows what the post-Covid market will bring! It’s hard to picture a 4×4 trail without a Jeep on it, so we’re hopeful and keeping our fingers crossed!
Although I have never been a Jeep owner, their reputation for poor reliability makes me feel that I never will own one.
The other thing that has soiled my feelings for Jeep is that they seem to be driven by very aggressive drivers on the road.
Tailgating even when they are towing large trailers and at the speed limit, they always seem to want to push the vehicle ahead of them.
They are the BMW drivers of the 4X4 world.
What a strange article…. you are using partial sales data this year (when they have had problems with supply and the end of the WK2 model), to say they have falling sales, but really the end result of 6658 is about average. You also use a spike in sales as the starting point to show a fall in sales, that spike was due to very good exchange rate and far less competition from vehicles like the everest and other ute based wagons.
As you can see before the big spike, Jeep sold around the 5000-6000 numbers.
2009 4193
2010 5975
2011 8648
The other reason Jeep is likely to stick around is that Stellantis Australia import a lot of different brands now, if you add them all together they are doing pretty well.
If you want to be worried about a brand, look at land rover.