The least traditional Jeep gets a hybrid off-roader option that impresses on the rough stuff
The Jeep Avenger has always felt slightly oxymoronic in its conception as a diddy urban crossover from a brand so intrinsically associated with go-anywhere mud-plugging. The Avenger Electric, mildly electrified eHybrid and pure-petrol variants are each competent and charming family runarounds, but have little of the off-roading ability of the likes of the larger Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee.But now, the Avenger can follow its forebears and range-mates at least some way off the beaten track with the addition of this new 4xe range-topper, which adds an off-road-flavoured makeover to the eHybrid, along with an electric motor on the rear axle for four-wheel drive. It is, you might say, the Jeepiest version of the least Jeepy Jeep. This is actually the smallest 4×4 Jeep has offered in about three decades, and while it is far removed in its billing from the likes of the old CJs and Wranglers that went before, there’s a certain whiff of Willys in the Avenger 4xe’s compact footprint and Scrappy-Doo-style chunkiness. “Let me at ‘em”, it yelps, brandishing its beefier bumpers, standard-fit roof bars, tow hooks and underbody cladding – the telltale cues to its rugged, range-topping billing, and the chief differentiators from the standard eHybrid.It’s on sale now in the UK in three trim levels, with prices starting from £30,999, ahead of deliveries beginning in May – but is this the new gem of an expansive Avenger line-up? Read on to find out.
