We are driving presently the Jeep Renegade with its brand new state of the art 1,3 litre 150 HP “Firefly” engine, and we can tell you it is very impressive indeed.

This leads us to bring you the news that the Jeep Renegade PHEV can be previewed at the MotorVillage Champs-Elysées until the 25th of September.

Following its world premiere at the Geneva motor show last March and its international on-road debut at Turin’s Parco del Valentino motor show in June, the new Jeep® Renegade Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV) has arrived in the heart of Paris to be showcased at the exclusive Jeep showroom on the Champs-Elysées.

The PHEV Renegade will take centre stage in the Playground expo, which is dedicated to Jeep’s affinity with sports and includes partnerships with WSL (World Surf League), LNB (Ligue Nationale de Basket) and JeepELITE.

New hybrid technology…with plenty of punch  

Displayed in Trailhawk specification, the Renegade PHEV has a pure electric range of approximately 50 kilometres and of course no CO2 emissions in full-electric mode. In order to deliver these figures, the Renegade combines a 1.3-liter GSE turbo gasoline engine with an electric motor located between the rear wheels, powered by a set of batteries that can be recharged while driving or by using an external power outlet: at home with the domestic plug, using the efficient Wallbox, or with a public charge point. Recharging times can vary from an hour and a half to three hours depending on the type of outlet.

The combination of both internal combustion engine and the electric motor delivers outstanding performance and driving pleasure: 0-100 km/h is reached in approximately seven seconds, CO2 emissions are lower than 50g/km (NEDC2) and the full electric top speed is 130 km/h. The combined power output sits in the 190 and the 240 horsepower range, depending on the trim level.

Most of all, thanks to the new hybrid technology, the Jeep Renegade further improves its legendary off-road capability courtesy of the greater torque offered by the combination between the two power sources. Thanks to the new electric all-wheel-drive technology (eAWD), traction to the rear axle is not provided by a prop shaft but through the dedicated electric motor. This allows the two axles to be separated and control the torque independently in a more effective way than a mechanical system.

The Jeep Renegade PHEV features a unique interior and dashboard, plus an 8.4″ HD Uconnect system with specific pages to allow for the driver to control its day-to-day hybrid driving operation. The Selec-Terrain maintains its location in front of the gear shift lever, while the Hybrid selector appears right next to it allowing the driver to select between the following driving modes: (see photo below)

Hybrid: the mode that optimises power to minimise fuel consumption. Internal combustion engine and electric motor work together depending on the road type, with energy recovery phases when braking

eSave: the internal combustion engine can maintain or recharge the battery while driving (driver’s selectable options)

Electric: full-electric mode which allows for a pure electric range of approximately 50 kilometers.

The new 7″ TFT colour display shows new information in front of the driver’s eyes: the battery charge level, range in electric, combustion and combined modes, power percentage and recharge levels. The 8.4″ Uconnect colour screen features new tabs such as power flow, driving history, charging times, eSave and the different charge settings.

Needless to say that we are keen to take a test drive soon in this interesting hybrid!

Hans Knol ten Bensel