Gone are the days of the diesel-powered big Jeep wagon.

 PURELY petrol power, ultimately with hybrid assistance – but no diesel. 

That’s the drivetrain story for the next generation of Jeep’s Grand Cherokee.

 The brand’s global boss has related this to media in Australia during a briefing in which Christian Meunier also said the new model will be in this neighbourhood around August.

 It’s initially in the seven-seat Grand Cherokee L format that the brand unveiled on January 7 but followed in time by a smaller version replicating the current five-chair formula.

The only engine that will avail for some time is the carryover 3.6-litre 'Pentastar' petrol V6, which in US-spec guise is good for 216kW of power and 350Nm of torque.

A plug-in hybrid Grand Cherokee '4xe' offering a boost of torque via electric assistance is due in 2022, although details of that driveline are yet to be confirmed by Jeep.

And rumours persist that Jeep will still format future product in V8 petrol SRT form. 

But the days of drawing from the dark side of the forecourt are over.

The current 3.0-litre diesel V6, sourced from VM Motori and making 184kW/ 570Nm, won’t continue on – a blow, undoubtedly, to NZ customers, who heavily favoured it unless they were buying into the SRT formula.

Meunier told Aussie media Jeep is hellbent on becoming a market leader in electrified SUVs – a comment that very much suggests that where Grand Cherokee is going, all other products that presently offer with diesel might also be expected to follow.

 He asserts customers will love having a Grand Cherokee without compression ignition, saying the incoming engines will continue the tradition of providing plenty of power and that the hybrid will be good at towing.

“Towing is core to Jeep, so we wouldn’t compromise on it; we’ve tested Wrangler and Grand Cherokee 4XE. Towing is at least as good as with an ICE engine,” Australian website Practical Motoring reports him as saying. 

He enforces electrification is not just about lowering emissions.  

“With electrification on products like Wrangler and Grand Cherokee, we’re able to deliver more capability off-road, more fun to drive, strong towing capacity, strong torque, and eco-friendly technology. So we believe that’s the perfect world for Jeep. 

“To also be able to drive on electric-only for commuting is hell of an experience and we strongly believe in it. So we’re very, very committed to electrification.” 

Jeep is not alone in placing hybrid, and specifically plug-in hybrid tech, to the large SUV and off-road segments. Range Rover has had a PHEV model in the market for more than a year. Also, the replacement for Toyota’s venerable Land Cruiser 200 Series is dropping V8 turbodiesel oomph for petrol V6 and petrol V6 hybrid drivetrains.  

The Jeep announcement ends a week that began with the official completion of the merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA, into a 14-brand Stellantis supergroup.

The repercussion, if any, on distributor agreements in New Zealand for the Stellantis brands that come here has not been explained.

Ateco Group - which represents Jeep, Chrysler, Fiat, Alfa Romeo and RAM – and Autodistributors NZ (which has Peugeot, DS and Citroen) – have been silent on the matter.