Exploring Italy with the 2019 Jeep Lineup

We traveled to Desenzano del Garda, Italy to drive the 2019 Jeep Compass, Cherokee, Grand Cherokee, and Wrangler. In addition, we got to know a bit more about Jeep’s plans for the Middle East.

We landed in Milan where these vehicles awaited us for a drive on the road for more than 2 hours until we reached our desired destination. I was lucky enough to drive the 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT. This was the cherry on top of an already exciting journey—two hours behind the steering wheel of this 6.4-liter V8 with 465 HP under the hood. While the Italian highways are capped at 130 km/h, I did manage to push it a bit. If you fall under the segment I define as the "best, coolest, and most adventurous dad from the block," this is the car everyone expects you to be driving.

Click to watch our Insta Stories from the event!

We arrived at the Desenzano del Garda hotel, where the 2019 Jeep range, including the Renegade, Wrangler, Compass, Cherokee, and Grand Cherokee, awaited us. We did not have much time to spend with those cars since we had to hit the road again to attend the press conference. At the conference, we learned more about FCA’s plans for the region, including their hybrid and electric vehicles, and gained insight into the spirit of Jeep customers and their sales performance.

For instance, Jeep sales grew by 56% compared to 2018. The all-new Wrangler (Test Drive here) saw more than 100% growth in sales. Clearly, their strategy of expanding their user base is working exceptionally well. As of Q1 this year, things also look promising, showing an 11.4% growth. This is worth mentioning since things have been quite slow lately. More people buying Jeeps means more Jeeps on the road, increasing consumer trust and encouraging others to join the community.

Excitingly, they introduced the new Renegade 4X4e, arriving in the Middle East by Q1 2020. This vehicle marks Jeep's first step towards electrification, being a fully capable plug-in hybrid off-roader that offers 50 kilometers of range without using a single drop of petrol. Fully electric models, however, may require a bit more patience, as they announced plans for their introduction in Q3 and Q4 of the same year.

The second day was where things got spicier. We started early in the morning and drove uphill to a beautiful camp next to a marble mine. There, we had the same range of Wrangler, Compass, Cherokee, and Grand Cherokee to test drive, but with a twist—taking them where they belong: off-road!

Each of these vehicles had a dedicated and complex off-road track to drive them. My focus was on the 2019 Jeep Compass and 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Below you can find the links to the reviews.

Click here to read what it felt like driving the Jeep Compass off-road!

Click here to read all about driving the Jeep Grand Cherokee off-road!