The next-generation Jeep Wrangler won't follow the 2015 Ford F-150's lead with an aluminum body.
Instead, the off-roader will keep its steel body structure but add aluminum doors, fenders and other parts after Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne said last week that the costs of the switch outweigh the benefits.
"We've run the numbers and we've simulated mileage and the impact. Because of the difference in cost not just of the material but the actual assembly process, I think we can do almost as well without doing it all aluminum," Marchionne said.
It's a stark reversal for the man who acknowledged a year ago that there was no better vehicle in FCA's lineup to make from aluminum than the Wrangler. Internal sources with direct knowledge had told Automotive News that the next-generation Wrangler would have an aluminum body.