Stellantis owned American SUV maker Jeep India on Tuesday unveiled its upcoming three-row seven-seater SUV, the Meridian. According to the company, the pre-bookings will commence by mid-May and deliveries are expected to start by June 2022.
With an 82% localisation level, apart from the platform and the drive train, it shares the front windshield, front seat frames and a bit of the front dashboard with the Compass, Ralph Gilles, Chief Design Officer and Member of the Executive Board, Stellantis, said.
Built on the same unibody DaimlerChrysler/Mitsubishi GS architecture as the Compass, the new SUV is claimed to have used 63% hot-stamped high strength steel.
Available only with the 2.0L turbo-diesel engine mated to a six-speed manual or a nine-speed AT, the seven-seater is offered in an FWD or an AWD configuration with a power output of 168Hp and 350Nm of torque. Dr Partha Dutta, Head of Engineering and R&D, Stellantis India and the Asia Pacific, noted that the clutch in the new product has been re-tuned for better efficiency.
The company claims that the vehicle can reach 100 kmph from zero in 10.8 seconds with a power to weight ratio of 95Ps/tonne and a top speed of 198 kmph.
Additionally, on the chassis side, the SUV gets hydraulic rebound suspension along with frequency selective damping. The driver gets the option to choose between four drive modes, including Sand, Snow, Mud and Auto.
The vehicle's exterior is in line with the other Jeep models in terms of visualisation. However, Gilles said that the new product borrows its design elements from the premium offerings from the brand, the Cherokee and the Wagoneer.
Cosmetically, it comes with the signature seven slat grille at the front with similar yet distinguishable LED projector headlamps with eyebrow DRLs. On the side, the new seven-seater is differentiated by the longer length, the new 18-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels and the Meridian badging from the five-seater counterpart. The rear supports an entirely new four-element taillight design and a distinct rear bumper design.
The interior of the SUV is covered in the shade of black and emperorador brown. On the features side, it gets a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, along with a nine-speaker Alpine surround sound system.
On the safety front, the company has gone all out with more than 60 features as standard, including six airbags, ESC, EBD, ABS, Vehicle Drive Limiter, Active Yaw Control, Active rollover protection, engine drag control, among others.
Roland Bouchara, CEO and MD, Stellantis India, confirmed that the Meridian will be exported from India to the Asian markets.
He stated that the company has invested $ 250 million into the Indian market. With this, it aims to launch three new products in CY22, including Compass Trail hawk, which has been sold out for the first batch, along with the Meridian and the Grand Cherokee, which will be introduced in the second half of the calendar year.
He added that the company has seen a 130% growth in the current financial year till date on a YoY basis compared to FY21, along with achieving a 95% customer satisfaction rating.
Bouchara noted that India is a strategic market and is also becoming the exporting hub for the company. Currently, four of the products from the portfolio, including the Compass, Meridian, Wrangler and the upcoming Grand Cherokee, are being exported from India.
The company has ten manufacturing plants across the globe, including one in India, Brazil, Italy, China, Mexico and USA.