When the 2022 Jeep Cherokee eliminated the 2.4 liter four-cylinder, the writing on the wall became easier to read. The old “Tigershark” version of DaimlerChrysler’s World Gasoline Engine was now only used in the Jeep Compass and Ram ProMaster City.
When we first wrote about this, weeks ago, we believed the 2.4 had around one or two years left; the Jeep Compass would likely move to the 1.3 turbo engine (177 hp, 210 lb-ft) or, and we hoped this was the reality, the 1.5 liter engine, tuned for regular gasoline, with and without the kind of hybrid setup featured on the Alfa Romeo Tonale and Dodge Hornet. The 1.3 turbo is apparently no quicker than the 2.4 (based on “pre” and “post” Renegades), and any fuel economy gain is, for customers, wiped out by the need for premium fuel. The 2.0 turbo engine could stand as a high-performance option.
We did not really have an answer for the ProMaster City, given how hard fleet use is on turbocharged engines and the greater fuel price sensitivity. Heat is harder on a vehicle that spends a great deal of time stationary with the engine idling. A hybrid setup would be ideal for the commercial van. Sales of the ProMaster City remain stubbornly low, suggesting that whatever the solution is, it should be relatively inexpensive to do the engineering.
While the 2.4 liter “World Gas Engine” is sturdy enough, and the TigerShark version is reasonably efficient, the original version was noisy and short of low-end torque; the TigerShark upgrades and sound insulation helped with those issues, but it was never really a standout. Some people had issues with excessive oil use, which has been fixed through firmware.
The new 1.6 liter engine announcement brought the news that Dundee will be building out the 2.4 liter engines in 2023. That settles the question of when the 2.4 is leaving—the question now is “what will replace it?” Perhaps the Compass will be sold with the 1.3 liter GSE engine, with and without a hybrid setup. The hybrid would both boost gas mileage and help with the 1.3’s acceleration, making the Compass better suited to go head-to-head with the RAV4. Having a standard hybrid, perhaps with two different sized motors (a low and high power version), might make it possible to use a less optimized engine, too—one which takes regular fuel.
The timing and jump in power makes it seem as though the 1.6 is not a direct replacement for the 2.4, but Dundee could build a huge store of 2.4 engines to make up the gap between production ending (2023) and new engines starting up (2025); and a jump in power would not be the worst thing to happen to the Jeep Compass.
It is unlikely that the 1.5T GSE from Tonale and Hornet will be used, since this will be replaced by a new version of the Peugeot EP6 (1.6T). There’s an off-chance they will use the 2.0T GME in a lower-output format, now that production has ramped up; or the aforementioned Peugeot 1.6 liter engine, which can likely supply 200-300 hp.
The ProMaster City is likely to use whatever solution the Compass does—and if it’s the Peugeot engine, it could do so with or without the hybrid, too.
For the ProMaster City there is one other option, scrap the thing and replace it by the PSA version (Peugeot Partner/Citroen Berlingo) wich is more modern, they already did it with the Fiat Doblo in Europe!
There’s only one issue, the EMP2 platform on wich the Partner is built aparently doesn’t match the US regulation (bad result on the small overlap crash test?), but who knows if they can modify it, they did it with the Fiat vans so why not?
I suspect that is their long term solution. It’s not like the City sells well in the US. I doubt it’s a priority. I suspect they will keep it going until an STLA Medium version of the Partner is out. I think the main differences between e-VMP and STLA Medium are the provisions for regulatory conformity and AWD.
It does make me wonder about the Compass. A 2-liter turbo would work just fine in there; it could use the power boost. If I had to guess, I’d say they may do that when the current Cherokee goes into the scrapyard next year.