The next-generation Jeep Wrangler might have an aluminum body, instead of steel, and be assembled somewhere other than Toledo, Ohio. Perhaps more than any other vehicle currently for sale in the United States, purist fans views the Jeep Wrangler as a vehicle that simply must maintain the status quo. In this case, that means a body-on-frame design, solid axles, a relatively large engine sitting up front and a removable top. It has always been that way, and it always will be.
However, there was another, larger issue at hand were Fiat-Chrysler to move forward with its aluminum ambitions. Currently, the Wrangler is made at a Jeep plant in Toledo, Ohio. If Jeep moved to a speculated unibody design, it would mean moving production of the Wrangler out of Toledo. Aluminum requires different assembly techniques than steel and so the Wrangler factory in Toledo would need extensive modifications that could temporarily slow production.
Wrangler sales are up 12 percent through September, to more than 134,000 vehicles sold compared to the first nine months of 2013. Toledo Assembly also produces the Jeep Cherokee, which went into production in June 2013.