Automotive conglomerate Stellantis hit pause on production of Jeep Grand Cherokee and Wrangler models in the US amid struggles to shift current stock.
Production of both nameplates at factories in Toledo, Ohio and Detroit, Michigan was halted early last week, before resuming on Thursday.
There’s been no official word on exactly how long production was paused for.
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Stellantis described the move to temporarily halt US manufacturing as “production adjustments”.
“Stellantis continues to take the necessary actions to improve operations in the U.S. market,” a company spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal.
“The company will continue to monitor the situation to assess whether further action is required.”
The move comes amid a US sales slump of 21 per cent for Stellantis across the first half of 2024.
Falling demand has been compounded by excess supply in showrooms – Jeep reportedly has enough stock to last four months in the US, compared to the industry average of 68 days.
It’s not any rosier in Australia for the Jeep brand.
Sales in Australia were down 52 per cent in the first half of 2024 compared with the same period in 2023, totalling 1282 vehicles.
Jeep has slashed prices across multiple models over the last several months. Reductions of between $11,000 and $28,000 were applied to the Grand Cherokee range, while new nationwide drive-away pricing for its slow-selling Gladiator ute cut up to $25,000 off the asking price.
While Jeep says these reduced prices apply only to model year 2023 (MY23) vehicles, pricing has yet to be announced for MY24 vehicles.
Aside from 2021, local sales have declined every year since 2014 when more than 30,000 Jeeps were sold.
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