Fiat Chrysler To Produce Jeep Plug-in Hybrid 

At the beginning of October Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced that it has launched plans to produce a plug-in hybrid version of its popular Jeep Renegade model.

For those who may be unfamiliar, FCA is the company behind the Jeep brand.

The nascent Jeep Renegade Plug-in Hybrid is anticipated to hit the market early on in 2020.

In fact, the automaker has stated that it will be investing 9 billion euros (or $10.3 billion) on electric and hybrid vehicles over the course of the next five years. (In a further bid for a better environment, Fiat Chrysler has also made a pledge to phase out diesel engines in European passenger cars by 2021).

For those who may be unfamiliar, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) is one that uses both battery-powered electricity and gasoline as its power source(s).

Benefits of Driving a Hybrid Vehicle

Some of the benefits, for both drivers and the environment, associated with these types of vehicles include:

• More immediate acceleration
• Lower amounts of smog and greenhouse gas emissions (when the vehicle is being driven on electricity) being put into the environment
• Smoother riding
• Not having to worry about running out of gas; that’s because even if you do, you’ll have the option of driving on your electrical power.

Why Hybrid Technology?

Investment in hybrid technology (and the concurrent rollout of these types of vehicles) has gained in momentum in recent years, due to factors like CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards. CAFE standards are regulated by the Department of Transportation and consist of the minimum average fuel economy levels that car manufacturers must abide by.

Of course, the spirit of the Go Green movement has also served as a catalyst in the production of cleaner, more environmentally-responsible vehicles.

Fiat Chrysler’s (Green) Path Forward

One thing is for certain: Fiat Chrysler is taking hybrid technology seriously. Very seriously in fact.

To prove it, they’re spending more than 200 million euros on the new Jeep Renegade plug-in hybrid engine. What’s more, they’re retraining workers and modernizing their production plant.

The automaker has laid out plans to offer a total of 12 electric propulsion systems by 2022. These include battery electric vehicles (BEV), plug-in hybrids (PHEV) and full hybrids. In total thirty different models in the automaker’s arsenal will come equipped with one or more of these systems.

So get ready to hybrid.