2028 Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator to be electric-only

The next-generation Jeep Wrangler will apparently be offered exclusively with electric-drive powertrains – specifically a battery-electric set-up and a range-extender hybrid – when it enters production in 2028.

Jeep is yet to announce any of these details officially, but the news was leaked by the United Auto Workers (UAW) in its Stellantis Nov 2023 Hourly Agreement, which revealed the current JL-generation Wrangler and the related JT Jeep Gladiator dual-cab pick-up would continue into 2028.

According to the union document, both models will continue to be produced at the Toledo Assembly Complex and both will undergo a “PHEV upgrade” in 2025.

Finer details of what this upgrade will entail are thin on the ground for now, but logic would suggest the existing Wrangler 4xe’s powertrain will be overhauled for the 2026 model year and transplanted across to the Gladiator, given this is the first we’ve heard of an electrified Jeep pick-up.

Chances are the four-cylinder turbo-petrol PHEV system will receive a bunch of efficiency-minded upgrades both to the internal combustion engine as well as the motors and/or battery pack.

Details are even fewer when it comes to the composition or configuration of the next-generation (J70) Wrangler’s eventual battery-electric drivetrain, however, some indications can be drawn from the Wrangler Magneto series of concept vehicles, the most recent of which sported an axial flux electric motor good for 485kW/1220Nm.

The unusual set-up drew power from a 70kWh battery though a cruising range of any description was never offered, with executives claiming the concept to be all about performance and capability rather than maximising miles.

No doubt those priorities will be balanced out a bit by the time the production Wrangler EV hits North American showrooms – some three years later than intended, seeing as the Magneto 3.0 was expected to yield a production model in 2025, of which there’s no mention in the UAW document.

What is mentioned though is a Wrangler ‘REPB’ – Range Electric Paradigm Breaker – which will borrow tech from fellow Stellantis member RAM Trucks as a way around or to at least mitigate range anxiety.

It shouldn’t be too long before details of the system are released given it will feature in the updated RAM 1500 next year as well as the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer the year after.

Similar to Mazda’s R-EV and Nissan’s e-POWER systems, the set-up will see a compact internal combustion engine used solely as a generator for a modest-sized traction battery, which in turn will power up to three electric motors depending on the model and variant.

Also outlined in the document was the production run of the current Jeep Grand Cherokee, including a 2024 mid-life update for both the five- and seven-seat versions, before their respective ends in 2027 and 2028.

The next-generation large SUV will apparently launch with both internal combustion and battery-electric options, but at this stage there won’t be a 4xe plug-in hybrid or even a REPB version.