floor pan

Parts from the running gear and engine were salvaged and refinished, but practically everything else had to be replaced or recreated – including the body and floor pan.

“Gas, gas. More gas. You full throttle?” he said as the high-revving 4-cylinder engine screamed over the squish of tires on mud and the click-click of stones being kicked up against the floor pan.

The Renegade starts life atop the FCA global 4x4 small-wide architecture: that means a majority-steel unit-body, front-transverse engine layout, slightly raised floor pan, strut suspension, five seats, five doors.

The electric architecture locates the heavy battery pack on the floor pan of the car, lowering its center of gravity and making the vehicle almost impossible to roll over, he said.

Both changes, along with a 2-inch lower floor pan, contribute to increased interior space, making the optional third-row seat more functional than its predecessor. Overall interior space is up by 1.5 cubic feet, with 2 more cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row. The updated exterior looks more aerodynamic because it is, with a new rear spoiler, revised front and rear deflectors and a smooth underbody giving the Sorento a 0.33 coefficient of drag and reducing wind noise at highway speeds.