Jeep recently unveiled its first hybrid vehicles based on the Compass and Renegade SUVs, but the FCA-owned brand is also working on an all-electric hauler. Recent intel claims that the upcoming crossover will be even smaller than the Renegade and that it will benefit from technology by PSA, following the recently announced merger between FCA and the French group that owns Peugeot, Citroen, and Opel.

A baby SUV that will slot below the Renegade

Introduced in 2014, the Jeep Renegade is the company's smallest SUV at 166.6 inches long and 71 inches wide. Spanish outlet Periodismo del Motor claims that the upcoming baby SUV will be even smaller than that. How small? The Japanese off-roader is 143.5 inches long in its biggest configuration, so this new Jeep will be 150 to 155 inches long. The vehicle will retain the boxy design of the bigger Jeeps, so it will probably look like a more rugged Jimny.

While it won't be the smallest Jeep ever, it will be the company's smallest SUV since the TJ-generation Wrangler, discontinued in 2006. Its size will enable it to compete not only with the Suzuki Jimny, but also with the Nissan Juke, Volkswagen T-Cross, and Ford EcoSport, all of which are very successful in Europe. In fact, this new SUV is being developed with the European market in mind and will be built at FCA's plant Melfi, Italy, where the Jeep Renegade and Compass are built alongside the Fiat 500X.

The baby Jeep will be fully electric

Although Jeep just introduced its first-ever hybrid vehicles, the brand's European marketing chief, Marco Pigozzi, said earlier this year that "we have the capability to deliver the electrification we need." He also claims that the electric Jeep will retain the off-road capability of its bigger siblings. "The car will be able to be used as a bad-ass Jeep, but it has also been designed to be used every day," Pigozzi told Auto Express earlier this year.

The baby Jeep will feature PSA underpinnings

While the Renegade is based on the Fiat 500X, the new electric SUV will feature underpinnings from the PSA Group. Specifically, this hauler will be based on the Common Modular Platform (CMP) that's currently being used in the Peugeot 2008 and DS 3 Crossback. These small crossovers are available with gasoline and diesel engines, but also in all-electric form with 50-kWh batteries. The DS 3 Crossback comes with a single electric motor rated at 136 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque that provides a top speed of 93 mph. The drivetrain is able to run for up to 332 km (206 miles) on a single charge on the WLTP cycle.

Since both the 2008 and the DS 3 Crossback are also available with gas and diesel engine, we can't rule out the possibility that the baby Jeep will also offer something similar. If it happens, it will probably share both PureTech and BlueHDi engines with its PSA siblings. The 1.2-liter PureTech, inline-three gas engine generates up to 155 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of twist, while the BlueHDi, a 1.5-liter four-cylinder diesel, cranks out 102 horses and 184 pound-feet of torque.

This is possible thanks to the recently announced merger between Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the PSA Group. The newly founded global group will be called Stellantis and will enable brands under FCA and PSA to share platforms, drivetrains, and technology.

The baby Jeep EV will be in showrooms by 2022

Jeep has yet to confirm a release date for this hauler, but recent reports claim that it will hit European showrooms by 2022. This means that the EV should debut in 2021, which also means that we should start seeing camouflaged test vehicles soon. It's not yet clear whether this new Jeep will be sold in the United States or not.