Stellantis plans to invest more than $800 million to reopen its Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois, with the next-generation Jeep Cherokee serving as the first confirmed vehicle program. Pilot vehicles should begin moving through the factory during the first half of 2028, while customer-bound production currently targets the second half of 2029.
Next-generation Jeep Cherokee will bring Stellantis’ Belvidere plant back to life
The project gives the Illinois factory a clearer industrial future after Stellantis idled it in February 2023 following the end of the previous Cherokee. The company had already spent more than $60 million through July 2026 evaluating and upgrading stamping, body, paint and final assembly operations. Stellantis also plans to continue financial and healthcare support for affected workers under existing labor agreements while preparations move forward.
The Cherokee planned for Belvidere will not simply transfer the current model from Mexico. Jeep introduced today’s Cherokee for the 2026 model year on the STLA Large architecture, while the Illinois-built successor will use the newer STLA One platform. Belvidere will become the first US plant to manufacture a STLA One vehicle.
Stellantis designed STLA One to cover the B, C and D segments while supporting multiple powertrain types from one modular architecture. The company expects the platform to replace five existing architectures and support more than 30 models globally by 2035.
For electric applications, STLA One can accommodate LFP batteries, cell-to-body construction and 800-volt electrical systems. Stellantis also plans to integrate STLA Brain, STLA SmartCockpit and steer-by-wire technology. The company targets roughly 20% better cost efficiency through the architecture and wants as much as 70% component reuse across its three main global platforms by 2030.
Stellantis expects Belvidere eventually to produce at least two STLA One-based vehicles, although it has not identified the second program. Earlier plans assigned both the Cherokee and Compass to the plant, but the latest update only confirms the next-generation Cherokee.
The revised schedule pushes Belvidere’s full return further into the future than previous plans suggested, but it also gives the factory a central role in Stellantis’ next generation of North American vehicles. The next Cherokee will do more than revive production in Illinois. It will introduce STLA One manufacturing to the United States and test whether Stellantis can translate its new global platform strategy into lower costs and greater flexibility in one of its most important markets.