The 2021 Jeep Renegade is a pocket-sized SUV with an endearing, almost comical look. It’s small and boxy, with headlights-like wide-set eyes. Yet, is the Renegade a Jeep, or is the Jeep Renegade a Fiat? You may be surprised to learn just how much these two vehicles have in common. 

Both the 2021 Jeep Renegade and 2021 Fiat 500X are made in Italy

Maybe you thought the Renegade was made in Jeep’s factory in Toledo, Ohio. If you did, you’d be wrong. Similarly to the 2021 Fiat 500X, the 2021 Renegade is made at FCA’s plant in Melfi, Italy. 

The Jeep Renegade has never been built in Ohio or the United States. Since the first Renegade was made in 2014, it’s been built in Italy, Brazil, and China. 

If you were to strip away all of the “Jeep” and “Fiat” exterior clues, you may be unable to tell the difference between the Jeep Renegade and the Fiat 500X. They’re both built on Fiat Chrysler’s 4X4 Small-Wide platform. 

Both crossovers are nearly identical mechanical twins

What does it mean to be built on the same platform? Being built on the same platform means that the Renegade and the 500X are made on a joint base that shares many of the same mechanical properties. 

The Renegade has a 2.4-liter, 180-hp four-cylinder engine and a nine-speed automatic transmission. The 2021 Fiat 500X has a 1.3-liter, 177-hp four-cylinder engine. The Fiat also has a nine-speed automatic transmission. 

J.D. Power says the Jeep Renegade shares many of its design elements and features with the Fiat 500X.

Despite being so mechanically similar, the Jeep Renegade and Fiat 500X are pretty different.

Even though they share so much mechanically, they’re pretty different. They certainly don’t look the same. The 2021 Renegade is taller and more outdoorsy-looking. The Fiat, on the other hand, is sleek and petite. It’s also less boxy than the Renegade. The Renegade is also covered in the Jeep logo, just in case you forget that you’re in a Jeep and not a Fiat 500X. 

You might take the 2021 Jeep Renegade off-roading, but you’d never want to venture out into the woods with the 2021 Fiat 500X. Although the interior of the Renegade is pretty well done, the 500X is nicer. Consumer Reports notes, “Unlike its rugged Jeep cousin, the 500X’s interior feels as if its designers spent some time among the couture shops of Milan. The layout is stylish and possesses some flair, with body-color panels and whimsical — though cheap-feeling — buttons, knobs, and switches.”

So, you’re not far off if you think the Renegade is a Fiat. With their nearly identical mechanical designs, they certainly have quite a bit in common. Yet their exteriors are so different they likely don’t appeal to the same buyers, even with their similar attributes.