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FCA to open Jeep factory in Detroit, invest $4.5 billion in southeast Michigan
Powerful new engine and restyled nose keep popular SUV in the hunt.
Mark Phelan, Detroit Free Press
Detroit will get a Jeep factory, the Motor City’s first new auto assembly plant in a generation, as part of a $4.5 billion manufacturing expansion in southeast Michigan by Fiat Chrysler that will mean nearly 6,500 new jobs, the company announced Tuesday.
FCA said it would convert the Mack Avenue Engine factory to an assembly plant for the next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee and a new, large Jeep SUV. In all, the company said it will add production at five factories in metro Detroit.
“This is the way the city of Detroit fights unemployment and poverty,” Mayor Mike Duggan said of the Mack Avenue assembly plant. “Standing here today, to be back in the city of Detroit, is truly remarkable.”
Market economist Jon Gabrielsen, who consults in the auto industry, called the plan "an absolutely huge commitment on the part of FCA; $4.5 billion is over half of FCA’s average annual global capital investment being spent in just one city.”
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer concurred, noting that the economic impact was broad.
“It’s much bigger than the city of Detroit,” she told the Free Press as FCA prepared to make the announcement public. “A lot of people in our state will have job opportunities.”
Whitmer said the plans are expected to bring about 5,000 jobs to Detroit and another 1,500 to Macomb County.
FCA Chief Executive Officer Mike Manley told reporters the investment will grow core brands and electrify Jeep vehicles. He said the company is making a strong play for the large and rapidly growing market seeking three-row SUVs, which is currently dominated by General Motors with its Tahoe, Yukon and Escalade.
"Economic indicators, as we see them, are strong," Manley said, explaining that the company is diversifying products to capture new customers and further strengthen Jeep and Ram products.
