Stellantis has confirmed that the next-generation Jeep Cherokee will be built at the automaker’s long-idled Belvidere, Illinois plant, marking the first U.S.-built vehicle on the company’s new STLA One architecture. The announcement ties a fresh chapter for the Cherokee nameplate to a factory that has sat dormant since February 2023.
Stellantis raised its investment commitment for Belvidere to more than $800 million, up from the $600 million pledged in October 2025 as part of a broader $13 billion U.S. manufacturing push. The company has already spent over $60 million preparing the plant as of July 2026, according to Rock River Current.
Pilot production is now targeted for the first half of 2028, with full retail production following in the second half of 2029 — a delay from the 2027 restart Stellantis previously outlined, per the Detroit News. The Belvidere facility, which laid off roughly 1,300 UAW workers when it closed, is expected to run two shifts and build every planned powertrain variant of the new Cherokee, according to WardsAuto.
Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa framed the decision as a competitiveness play. “Launching the next-generation Cherokee on STLA One allows us to deliver a more competitive product while leveraging the strength of our U.S. manufacturing operations,” he said in a company statement.
What STLA One brings to the new Cherokee
STLA One is Stellantis’s newest modular architecture, unveiled in a May 2026 Stellantis press release as an 800-volt platform spanning the B, C and D vehicle segments. The company says the architecture targets 20% cost efficiency and up to 70% component reuse across models, while supporting more than 30 vehicles company-wide by 2035.
“STLA One is a clear example of a truly modular strategy, giving us the flexibility of a multi-energy platform without carrying inefficiencies from one propulsion system to another,” said Ned Curic, Stellantis’s chief engineering and technology officer, in the platform’s unveiling.
The Belvidere-built Cherokee will be a separate vehicle from the current Cherokee (KM), the hybrid crossover that returned to Jeep’s lineup for the 2025 model year and is built in Toluca, Mexico, on the STLA Large platform. Belvidere is expected to house at least two STLA One models once production ramps up, Stellantis said.
The extended timeline has strained relations with the UAW. Union leadership said in a statement reported by Rock River Current that “the men and women of Belvidere have waited long enough and have already sacrificed too much.”
Stellantis has not released styling or full specification details for the Belvidere-built Cherokee. With pilot builds still roughly 18 months out, the automaker has time before the model is due to reach dealers in late 2029.