Jeep Avenger EV review: A cracker from an unexpected source

It was something of a surprise last March when the Jeep Avenger was voted the European Car Of The Year, not least because American car makers are not, generally, top of the pile when it comes to European tastes.

Now, while Jeep might nominally be an American outfit, it now has more European influences than you’d credit and is possibly the best explanation why this American car won over the hearts and minds of the Euro-hacks who vote in this prestigious annual award scheme.

Jeep was once a part of the giant American Chrysler corporation that latterly merged with the Fiat Group (Fiat, Alfa, Lancia, Maserati etc.) to become the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles conglomerate. 

This entity then merged with the French PSA giant (Peugeot, Citroen, DS and Opel) to become Stellantis, which is now the fourth largest car maker in the world behind Toyota, VW and the Hyundai group.

This allowed Jeep a lot of room to manoeuvre when it came to access to a rather larger parts bin than it was accustomed to and the Avenger is proof positive that the engineers and designers at this most American of marques made good use of what was at their disposal.

So good, in fact, that the Avenger is so European that Jeep will not even bother selling it in the US, but they hope to sell a considerable number of them to punters on this side of the pond and, on the evidence we here at Examiner Motoring have seen, they should achieve their aims without difficulty.

In these rapidly evolving times – and especially so in an automotive sector gestating into a new electric era – things will change very quickly and you a bet your bottom dollar the Avenger will see a lot of opposition taking it on – and especially so from within the Stellantis group itself where the new Fiat 600e and the new Peugeot e-2008, which share a platform and running gear, will be with us soon.

That being so, time might well be of the essence for the guys at Jeep who, right now, have to make hay while the sun is still shining. That the car was awarded the 2023 European COTY prize will help enormously in this regard, but Jeep has to make best use of the time advantage it has on the opposition.

Now, it might seem things are a little askew when a company with the sort of hairy-chested reputation as Jeep does, is making an electric car at all. I mean, when you think of all the V8 and V6s the company has made down the years – not to mention an enduring legacy of diesels – many of which appeared in ginormous vehicles only really suited to America’s wide-open spaces, the thought of it going electric seems strangely out of kilter.

But the brand has to earn a crust and if that means plugging it in rather than filling it up, so be it. The interesting thing is that it has achieved the transformation with a degree of style and elan and has produced a car with considerable talent.

Driving the Avenger, one is immediately struck by a couple of things – it is quick, it is assured on the road and it’s a very accomplished handler. The ride might be a little on the choppy side and you could get a little picky about some of the plastics used throughout the interior. The overall feeling, however, is that this is a fine little car.

It might be based on the same platform as that of various Peugeots, Fiats and Opels, but it looks quite unique and has several things going on that mark it out with Jeep’s DNA – and the styling cues such as the seven-bar grille, the X-shaped taillights and in-your-face wheel arches are all part of the deal.

Importantly, for Jeep aficionados , it also has off-road chops and will actually take on surfaces that many electrics would eschew. It has short front and rear overhangs to give it better approach and departure angles on steep climbs and it also has a sophisticated traction control system with dedicated settings for mud, snow and sand which makes it capable of taking on more than a supermarket car park.

In fact, it is more than plausible that this car will find homes in agricultural settings and farmers will find it is an extremely useful tool – despite the fact it is only a front wheel driver. 

There will be a 4WD version soon, but the technology here is truly effective and makes the Avenger much more in line with the Jeep credo than many might credit it with.

On the road, it is a good example of the handling benefits of having each wheel as far out in the corners as is possible, as it displays a joie de vivre on twisty country roads that you’d find hard to better. However, the extra damping forces that give it its off-road abilities do affect the ride quality.

That said, the compromises that have obviously had to be arrived at do not necessarily spoil the sheer enjoyment it offers when driving either in an urban environment or when taking on B-road challenges.

A lot of that enjoyment is provided by the very perky powerplant, which consists of a 115kW electric motor and lithium-ion battery with 51 kWh of useable capacity. This translates into a near 400 km range, a top speed of 150 km/h and a decent enough 0-100 km/h time of nine seconds. Maximum power is 150 bhp and there is also 260 Nm of torque on offer.

This provides us with a relatively sprightly car, but one which does not have the light switch on/off power characteristics and the grunt is delivered smoothly and without terrifying the unsuspecting. The steering too is light, but the driver feedback is far from being the completely numb experience so many offer.

The interior is relatively innovative in many respects – the metallic strip which runs the width of the dashboard splices the aforementioned unseemly plastic bits and adds a touch of sophistication; the push-button drive selector; the folding cover for the large central storage bin which houses the wireless charging pad and various handy sockets; and, the easy-to-use touchscreen and the shortcut t the car’s active safety systems.

One beef would be the lack of rear legroom, which is noticeably tight, even if the boot is a decent size and a rather more practical space than that available to the rear passengers.

All told the quibbles with this car were far outweighed by the positives, but as we mentioned earlier, Jeep is going to have to work hard to keep this car up to pace with the rapidly evolving opposition, including those from within its own erstwhile stable.

Right now it is a very acceptable and even cute EV, but one which time may catch up with rather quickly, so it may have a rather narrower period of appeal than many. For now, though, it is right at the top of the class and Jeep has managed to pull off the trick of producing a very un-Jeep like Jeep.

That means it will certainly appeal to traditional fans and newbies in the same numbers and that’s very good news for the brand.