by Matt Konkle
Managing Editor
Those hunting for a gasoline-powered Wrangler in over a dozen states across the country may find dealership landscapes a bit dry in the coming months. Instead, they’ll need to place a factory order if they want a 3.6L Pentastar or 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder powerplant.
That’s because Jeep owner Stellantis is no longer offering non-hybrid Wranglers to 14 states that follow a more stringent set of emission rules set by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).
These states include California, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington. Additionally, four more states — Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico and Virginia — have announced plans to soon follow CARB requirements and should see their ICE vehicle allocations dry up as well.
Instead, Stellantis is strictly sending 4xe plug-in hybrid Wranglers to dealerships in these states.
Meanwhile, dealers outside these areas are only being allocated gas-powered Wranglers and the popular 4xe is a custom-order only model.
And the reason? CARB rules will require manufacturers to sell a set percentage of zero-emission vehicles beginning in 2026.
“I think many of us expected when the CARB rules actually kick in, in 2026 in a meaningful way, that we’d have some allocation challenges," said California New Car Dealers Association President Brian Maas to the Automotive News. "The fact that it’s happening in the middle of 2023 is a bit of a surprise. People are going to go to Reno and Vegas and Phoenix to get ICE Wranglers, if that’s what they want.”
CARB policies represent the tightest restrictions on emissions in the United States.
Most automakers negotiated a compromise with CARB states to meet that percentage number with overall nationwide zero-emission sales. However, Stellantis was formed in a 2021 merger that happened after that compromise. So, it made a strategic decision to get a jump on those requirements.
“The communication to our dealers simply acknowledges the reality that we may need to adjust vehicle allocations among the California and Federal states to ensure that Stellantis complies with different standards in the California states,” the automaker said in a statement earlier this summer.
However, should Stellantis also reach a compromise with CARB states, it could resume sales of all vehicles.
“We will continue to support our dealer network as they work to meet the needs of our consumers during this time, and we will continue to seek a level playing field for our company and our dealers," the automaker said in a statement. "The ultimate solution rests with a program that allows compliance based on sales in all 50 states.”
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