Jeep Confirms Next-Gen Cherokee Is Already in Development

The revived Jeep Cherokee has barely hit the market for the 2026 model year, but Jeep has already confirmed a successor is on the way. That means the current Cherokee could have one of the shortest lifespans in the nameplate’s history. When the next one arrives, it won’t simply be a refreshed version of today’s SUV.

Jeep announced last week that it is deep in development of a next-generation Cherokee built on Stellantis’s new STLA One platform. This flexible architecture supports electric, hybrid, and internal-combustion powertrains. The current Cherokee, known as the KM, rides on the STLA Large platform shared with the Dodge Charger, but with transverse engine mounting.

STLA One is designed to consolidate five separate platforms into one, offering economies of scale that could lower production costs and potentially make vehicles more affordable. Stellantis says more than 30 vehicles are being developed on STLA One across its global brands for launch by 2035, including many for the US market.

The first STLA One vehicles will launch in Europe next year, but the US won’t see the platform until the new Cherokee goes on sale, currently slated for the second half of 2029. That means the current Cherokee would have just a four-year shelf life, arriving as a 2030 model.

The shuttered Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois will serve as the initial production hub for STLA One in North America, with more than $800 million earmarked for the facility. The plant is confirmed to build at least two vehicles on the platform, with pilot production targeted to begin in the first half of 2028.

The investment is part of a wider $13 billion spend in US production over four years. The plant last built the previous-generation Cherokee before being idled in 2023. In 2025, Stellantis initially planned to build Ram’s new midsize pickup there, but shifted that program to Toledo, Ohio.

Later that year, it announced plans to build the Jeep Compass and Cherokee at Belvidere, with Compass production originally expected to begin in 2027. However, it remains unclear whether the Compass will still be built there, as Stellantis has not provided a firm update. The next-generation Compass has been built exclusively in Italy since late October 2025 and hasn’t gone on sale in the US yet.

The next-generation Cherokee could be a very different proposition from the SUV it replaces. STLA One gives Jeep flexibility in powertrain choices while sharing more components across a larger vehicle family, potentially lowering costs and allowing a sharper price. Also, the current Cherokee, which starts at $35,000, is built in Mexico.

Moving production to the US should help shield the next one from tariffs, giving Jeep another way to keep costs in check.