The electric engine market may be reaching to Jeep!
Amp Electric Vehicles, the Ohio-based company that made an initial splash with a plug-in conversion of the Chevrolet Equinox crossover in 2010, is branching out with an electric version of an upscale American S.U.V., the Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The Grand Cherokee-based E.V. will have its debut at the Detroit auto show.
The company announced on Wednesday that it would bring a converted Grand Cherokee to the Detroit auto show in January, where it expected to release final pricing and introduce its first dealer. Steve Burns, president of Amp, said in a telephone interview that the converted Jeep would be price-competitive with the Tesla Model S, an electric sedan that in base form is priced from $57,400 before a $7,500 federal tax credit. The Amp Jeep, with a 37-kilowatt-hour battery pack, will have range of approximately 100 miles, Mr. Burns said.
The Model S would seem to have little in common with an electric S.U.V., but Mr. Burns said that Amp would position its vehicle as a similarly priced alternative, with optional four-wheel drive and a high ride height that would attract fleet buyers.
Jim Taylor, chief executive of Amp, said that the Grand Cherokee would appeal to the conservative nature of those customers. “By definition, fleet buyers aren’t risk-takers, and they can have a high comfort level dealing with a known brand like Jeep,” he said in a telephone interview.
Amp stopped converting the Equinox because, according to Mr. Burns, the company failed to win the manufacturer’s support. “We got no love out of G.M.,” he said. “Chrysler answered the phone when we called for the first date.”
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