UPDATE: Fiat-Chrysler to Produce Jeeps in China

Fiat and affiliate Chrysler Group have reached a framework agreement with Fiat's joint venture partner Guangzhou Automobile Group to build Jeep SUVs in China for the local market.

The deal requires the approval of regional and national authorities in China.

Jeep CEO Mike Manley told reporters earlier this week at the Detroit auto show that the brand could start production in China about two years after a deal is finalized. Manley declined to identify the models to be made in China.

The Jeeps will be built by GAC Fiat Automobile Co. at its plant in Changsha in southeastern China. The 50:50 joint venture began producing the Fiat Viaggio compact car there in June. The Changsha facility has initial annual capacity of 140,000 vehicles, which could eventually be increased to as much as 300,000 units.

When Manley first disclosed the GAC talks in October, he said the entire Jeep lineup could be built in China. But Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne says the Grand Cherokee and Wrangler will be made exclusively in the U.S.

Chrysler assembled Jeeps in China at its Beijing Jeep joint venture from 1985 to 2009.