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Jeep’s former global CEO had to be convinced there was a market in Australia for the brand’s smallest model ever, which is part of the reason 2025 Jeep Avenger it took almost two years to get here.
The Avenger was unveiled in September 2022, with European deliveries starting in early 2023.
It was confirmed for Australia in August 2023. and finally went on sale this month, becoming Jeep’s first electric vehicle (EV) and the smallest model since the original Willys military truck.
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It’s also the first light electric SUV to go on sale in Australia given the electric Minnie Eisman is officially classified as a passenger car (not an SUV) and first customer deliveries have been delayed until early next year, but will be quickly followed by the new Hyundai Inster in early 2025
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The Jeep Avenger is just 4084mm long and is priced at $49,990 plus on-road costswhile the Aceman is slightly shorter at 4076mm but more expensive (from $55,990) and the four-seat Inster is even shorter at 3825mm but will be priced under $40,000.
Speaking at the Avenger’s local launch last week, Jeep Australia product manager Bridget Thomson said Christian Meunier, who was replaced by Antonio Filosa as Jeep’s global CEO in November 2023, had taken some time to sign off the small electric SUV business case for this market.
“So it took a while to do our unique process of developing regulations in Australia,” she said. “We also did a lot of work to convince the then CEO of Jeep that this car was made for Australia too.
“It’s a bit smaller than other cars in our market, so it took a little while to convince us that even though it’s smaller, it’s definitely still worth it in Australia.
“We had to do a little ‘we definitely want it.'”
Asked if Jeep Australia was still confident of the Avenger’s success amid slowing EV sales, Ms Thomson said the company’s new entry-level model would be popular for its design and driving experience, not because it was an EV.
“I don’t think there is a problem. I think in [EV] in the market, we’re moving from early adopters to early mass, so that’s going to take time,” she said.
“The fantastic thing about this car and what dealers are saying is that it looks and feels like an internal combustion car.
“So I think a lot of people will be more willing to make that electrified switch because it’s not like, ‘oh my God, it’s an electric car, everything’s new, it’s one-pedal driving, there’s not a lot of buttons.’
“There is none of that. It still looks and feels like an internal combustion car, so we’re not worried about the weather at all.”
While the recent shift MG ZS EV currently the cheapest electric SUV in Australia at $39,990, the Avenger’s starting price of around $50,000 is also undercut by other larger battery-powered SUVs including Chery Omoda E5 ($42,990 before on-roads).
It is also trimmed from the larger still Leapmotor C10 (from $45,888 before on-roads) which is already on sale here through the Stellantis dealer network in a joint distribution deal with the Chinese automaker.
But Jeep Australia believes the Avenger will stand out from the crowd because of its unique flavor.
“It’s a very interesting time in the market and we always pay attention to these things,” she said.
“We’re not closed to the fact that there are all these competitors, but we’re confident in the fact that it’s very different from the rest of the market.
“Because we’re steeped in that story — it’s very much a Jeep, we have this ability that I don’t think a lot of these competitors can actually do realistically — I think we have a very unique selling point that not a lot of people actually have at all.” can be reproduced.
Ms Thomson did not disclose sales figures for the Avenger or name direct competitors, but said Jeep’s off-road heritage would uniquely position it in an increasingly crowded domestic EV market.
“I think we stuck to our plan for launching the car and how we positioned it,” she said.
“So I don’t think what’s happening in the market has affected us. We have to focus on what we’re doing and we’re going to lean into that as much as we can instead of dealing with all the noise in the background.
“We did some local marketing content. It’s a very unique car with a very unique selling point, so we rely on that as much as we can to differentiate ourselves from others in the market.
“We are the smallest electric SUV on the market right now.”
MORE: Everything Jeep Avenger
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