NEW DELHI — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will invest $250 million to grow its presence in India with the launch of four new Jeep models over the next two years.
The investment will be made to build locally a midsize, three-row SUV, assemble the Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Cherokee vehicles in the country and launch a new version of the Jeep Compass, FCA said.
FCA currently has less than a 1 percent share of India’s car market. Adding new vehicles to its portfolio is expected to help the automaker increase local sourcing of components, achieve better economies of scale, reduce costs and boost sales.
“Our new investment of $250 million will give us a competitive edge in multiple segments,” FCA India’s boss, Partha Datta, said. The automaker is determined to increase locally made components in its vehicles, he said.
FCA will produce and assemble the new SUVs at its plant in western India, which it jointly owns with domestic automaker Tata Motors.
FCA’s three-row SUV is expected to compete with Ford’s Endeavour and Toyota’s Fortuner SUVs.
