Stellantis bets big on hybrid SUVs with 2026 Jeep Cherokee comeback

• Jeep unveiled a redesigned 2026 Cherokee after two years of placing the model on hiatus.
• Along with a new look, the vehicle comes equipped with a hybrid powertrain.
• Jeep CEO Bob Broderdorf said he is 'thrilled' to bring the Cherokee back to Jeep's portfolio.

As Stellantis seeks to rectify past mistakes, the automaker's celebrated off-roading brand is reintroducing one of its best-selling models to the lineup.

Jeep CEO Bob Broderdorf and a team of engineers and designers showed off to media Aug. 7 a redesigned 2026 Jeep Cherokee two years after the brand stopped producing the Cherokee and pulled the vehicle out of one of the largest segments in the automotive market: midsize SUVs.

Broderdorf said the reintroduction of the Cherokee — the less-expensive counterpart to the luxurious Grand Cherokee, which remained in production — is a move to correct a past mistake.

"We've set out to right the wrongs of our past," Broderdorf said at the event.

The new Cherokee is larger, wider and taller than the previous model and comes equipped with a newly developed, turbocharged four-cylinder hybrid engine capable of more than 500 miles of range on a single tank.

Micky Bly, Stellantis' head of global propulsion systems, called the new powertrain "a major step forward in delivering both performance and efficiency for our customers,” noting that the company spent thousands of miles testing and tweaking the engine to perfect it.

The engine will be produced at Stellantis' Dundee Engine Plant in Michigan, while the rest of the vehicle will be produced in Toluca, Mexico, and therefore subject to a 25% import tariff.

'I'm thrilled to have this car back'

Tariffs or not, Broderdorf expressed great confidence in the future of the 2026 Cherokee.

"The 2026 Jeep Cherokee is an incredibly capable and competitive midsize SUV that’s ready to reclaim our territory in North America’s largest vehicle segment," Broderdorf said.

And there is quite a bit of territory to be regained.

According to an Aug. 18 report from Kelley Blue Book, the Cherokee will be competing against best-selling midsize SUVs such as Toyota's ever-popular RAV4, the Honda CR-V and Chevy's Equinox.

The Cherokee's more expensive counterpart, the Grand Cherokee, places ninth on that list, with just shy of 100,000 vehicles sold in the first half of 2025. The Jeep brand looks to take up even more space in the largest automotive segment with a cheaper, hybrid Cherokee.

"It's no secret: Our industry, our company, has been met with some choppy water," Broderdorf said at the media preview. From tariffs squeezing profits and constrained supply chains to lagging consumer demand for electric vehicles, automotive sales — especially among Stellantis brands — have sputtered.

The removal of the Cherokee was spearheaded in part by former Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, who led the company for three years before resigning at the end of 2024 after poor company performance and internal fallout. Broderdorf said not having the Cherokee in the lineup during that time hurt Jeep.

"The midsize segment is literally the focal point of your portfolio," Broderdorf said after the event, adding that entry-level vehicles like the Cherokee have the potential to bring lifelong customers into the brand. "It's a key enabler to sell the rest of the lineup."

There has been a Cherokee-sized hole in Jeep's portfolio for the last two years, he said.

"Not having (the Cherokee) in there, no question it stinks," Broderdorf said. "I'm thrilled to have this car back."

Despite the challenges, Broderdorf said the Jeep brand has a positive outlook.

"We've never been more confident in the future of this brand," Broderdorf said.

The entry-level Cherokee is priced at $36,995, and the highest-end Overland package starts at $46,995 (both prices include destination charge). Jeep officials said a trail-rated version of the Cherokee, equipped to handle rugged off-road terrain, will be released following the launch of the 2026 Cherokee.

Liam Rappleye covers Stellantis and the UAW for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him:[email protected].