http://www.allpar.com/news/index.php/20 ... -join-jeep
I cant decide if i like it or want to throw up in my mouth....
From Allpar link above:
(Update: it now seems highly unlikely that the Massif will be sold as a Jeep. Possibilities that seem more credible are that Jeep will adapt some design features to a Wrangler-based SUV; that Chrysler people may be involved in working on an update to the vehicle, on a contract basis; or that the Massif itself was considered as a source of a possible future vehicle, but that the idea was eventually rejected.)
The Iveco Massif, a rugged off-road vehicle designed mainly for commercial use, has been rumored to be destined for the United States now that its Spanish builder, Santana, has shut down operations. The vehicle, based on the Iveco Daily van (not the Land Rover Defender, as some have claimed) shares key components with the Daily 4?4, including its frame; it is available in body styles including a pickup and seven-passenger wagon.
While the Massif is powered by a 3-liter diesel which is not compatible with American emissions standards, rumor has it that suppliers are working on federalizing the engine.
Iveco and Fiat?s civilian automotive brands are no longer in the same company, but that would not prevent a mutually beneficial partnership.
In favor of selling the Massif as a Jeep in the United States would be the potential for increasing sales past break-even, shared components with the Daily and possibly other Fiat and Iveco vehicles, and the market opening left by the departure of Hummer.
Bringing over the Massif, even in re-engineered form, would address discussion of the Grand Wagoneer (which otherwise would seem to duplicate the Grand Cherokee and Durango), Mike Manley?s lines about a pickup, and even Ram?s alleged grumblings over Jeep getting a pickup, and Sergio Marchionne?s answer that it wasn?t to be called a pickup, as such. It would also help Fiat to make Jeep the pinnacle offroad brand, trumping Land Rover and Toyota, which dominate Africa and other remote locations. At least one exec has said Jeep would be competent at least, preferably best, in all classes.
The Massif would be built either at Miafiori ? which is set up for smaller runs of numerous vehicles, and is to be refurbished in any case ? or possibly at a plant in the U.S. Warren currently runs both Rams and Dakotas, while Toledo could switch from Liberty and Nitro to Grand Wagoneer and Scrambler (Gladiator?) pickups, albeit after heavy investment for the larger, body-on-frame vehicles (Liberty, like Cherokee before it, is unit-body with subframes).
This would also explain why Miafiori is said to be building future Jeeps for export to the United States; while future Toledo announcements have not been official; and why diesel engineers are being sought.
[This article was based on discussions with Dan Minick of globalauto.org.]
? EcoVoyager, Torqueflite, Scamp coming back?Chrysler celebrates launch of Fiat 500 ?
