Mighty Mopar Machines
By Budd Stanley, photos courtesy of Jeep
Jeep and Mopar excite the faithful once again at Easter Jeep Safari
It’s now becoming an annual tradition. In a magnificent show of customer and fan appreciation, as well as an exercise to let the leashes off the designers and engineers, Jeep and Mopar have introduced another seven special vehicle concept builds to the throngs of 4WD enthusiasts at the 49th annual EJS (Easter Jeep Safari). Taking place in Moab, Utah, the EJS is a grand collection of Jeep enthusiasts that flood into the small town and spend the week sampling the myriad of off-road trails throughout the region.
Jeep and Mopar use the event to judge the opinions of Jeep enthusiasts regarding Jeep Performance Parts and Mopar equipment, both production and experimental. This is precisely why they also build a series of project vehicles. They double as a toast to the fans as well as showcasing upcoming products.
“Jeep is proud to be taking seven new eye-catching and extremely capable vehicles to the Easter Jeep Safari, where we expect to delight our most loyal enthusiasts,” said Mike Manley, President and CEO of the Jeep Brand. “We go to this legendary event each year to showcase our latest Jeep production vehicles, as well as a variety of new ideas in our concept vehicles. In doing so, we receive a tremendous amount of valuable feedback, while interacting with our customers in the Jeep brand’s natural environment.”
This year’s collection of concept vehicles do not feature many of the “big wheeled” hardcore rock crawling vehicles as in years past. This batch was designed to be a little more realistic. Vehicle themes seem to have ruled the 2015 class with some impressive salutes to the past honouring both military and expedition vehicles.
A small team of dedicated and passionate engineers, designers and fabricators created the seven new concept vehicles built for Moab this year. Customizing production vehicles has become an annual tradition with the company since 2002, having now introduced more than 50 concept vehicles.
With that, we give you the class of 2015 Easter Jeep Safari concept vehicles:
Jeep Wrangler Red Rock Responder
Red Rock Responder to the rescue.
Jeep Wrangler Red Rock Responder
Our first Jeep Wrangler based concept is an impressive one, and one that may in fact point to the possibility of a future pickup. The Red Rock Responder is a support vehicle purpose-built to get into harsh terrain to respond to any vehicle emergency with spare parts and tools stored in the built-in drawers and compartments of the cargo box.
The exterior is dominated with a Vibrance Responder Red exterior paint, 10th Anniversary hood, high-top fender flares and 17-in beadlock wheels with body colour beadlock rings. In addition, the Responder features LED headlamps and fog lamps, LED A-pillar and off-road lamps to help light the way.
Functional capability is increased with the addition of 37-in BF Goodrich Mud Terrain T/A KM2 tires, four inches of JPP lift, Fox shocks, and front and rear Dana 60 axles with 5.38 gearing from Jeep Performance Parts. The vehicle also sports a cold-air intake, prototype off-road rock rails and a Warn winch. Red Rock Responder is also armed with Wrangler Rubicon 10th Anniversary Edition steel front and rear bumpers.
Side cargo boxes on each side of the vehicle hold a hi-lift jack and accessories, fire extinguisher, roadside accessory kit, first aid kit, Snap-on tool soft bags and recovery kit. It also stores an air hose and accessories, a dual compressor and air reservoir and has room for a cooler or a case of water.
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Jeep Staff Car
Who knew you could make a JKU look like a Willys.
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Jeep Staff Car
Not exactly a 40’s looking dash.
Jeep Staff Car
Paying homage to the legendary Jeep military service vehicles that ushered in the entire personal 4WD production vehicles, the Jeep Staff Car is an open-air Wrangler 4-door-based concept. We like the blend of old and new, with a healthy dose of heritage design cues. The modern dash does not quite look the part, but you have to love the grenade shifter and “official use only” bottle cap remover.
The Staff Car keeps the military theme rolling with basic steel wheels, minimalist fender flares, “hungry horse” stretched canvas roof and bench seats, which all echo the original military Jeep vehicles.
The exterior features a Sandstorm colour scheme that is carried throughout the vehicle including the wheels, frame and axles. The Jeep Staff Car has no B-pillar and no doors. Jeep designers incorporated military-style round headlamps, Jeep J8 front and rear bumpers, fender-mounted blackout lamp with guards and a rear-mount spare tire and vintage military gas can. The Jeep Staff Car sits on 16-in wheels with 35-in Firestone NDT military tires.
The minimalist interior features low-backed bench seats in the first and second row, an integrated roll cage and a painted steel floor in place of carpet. A built-in cooler draws its inspiration from an old artillery box and accommodates 85 cans.
The Jeep Staff Car is powered by the standard 3.6L Pentastar V-6 engine mated to a six-speed manual transmission. The Staff Car has a Jeep Performance Parts 2-in lift kit with Fox shocks and front and rear Dana 44 axles.
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Jeep Chief
A Wrangler Cherokee, or is it a Cherokee Wrangler?
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Jeep Chief
Lots of Surfer lifestyle going on in the interior, but no racks or boards on top?
Jeep Chief
We were in Moab back when Jeep pulled the covers off the Nukizer concept a couple years back, and the new Wrangle-based Chief looks to be just as nostalgic. A tribute to the classic 1970s era full-size Jeep Cherokee, this Wrangler-based concept vehicle evokes the west coast surfer lifestyle of sun and fun with a nod to classic beach rides.
Custom exterior design cues include a vintage Ocean Blue colour scheme with a white, French Bread roof; a custom modified razor grille that the original Wagoneer made famous; halogen headlamps; removable sides for an open-air feel and flexible hauling; chrome front and rear bumpers and classic, 17-in slotted mag wheels for a true ’70s vibe.
Jeep designers developed the Hawaiian themed interior complete with Jeep-designed “Surfer” pink, blue and white flowered cloth and leather-trimmed seats; vintage-style surf stickers on the centre console and door handles; a Rosewood front-passenger grab handle and tiki-style shifter handle.
The doors and windshield were chopped two inches and the Jeep Chief sports a selection of Jeep Performance Parts that include a two-in lift kit with Fox shocks and front and rear Dana 44 axles with lockers, cold air intake and modified Rubicon rock rails.
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Jeep Wrangler Africa
It might look a bit basic, but that's a good thing.
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Jeep Wrangler Africa
Extra storage and fuel means the Africa is ready for wide-open spaces.
Jeep Wrangler Africa
It might look like the most basic of the bunch, but don’t let the utilitarian look fool you. The Africa is the ultimate Jeep Wrangler for backcountry and overland expeditions, with room for extra gear and auxiliary fuel tanks.
The Wrangler 4-door-based vehicle sports Desert Tan exterior paint, a high-clearance steel front bumper with winch, power step rock rails, power dome vented hood and an extended rear body and high-top roof. Powered by a 2.8L diesel engine mated to an automatic transmission, the Wrangler Africa also features fender-mounted auxiliary fuel cans. The Africa sports 17-in body colour steel wheels with 35-in BF Goodrich Mud Terrain tires.
The Jeep Wrangler Africa is outfitted with a two-inch lift kit with Fox shocks, sway bar links and front and rear Dana 44 axles from Jeep Performance Parts. The spare tire is underbody-mounted and the cargo area, inner roof and floor are finished in a durable spray-in truck bed coating.
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Jeep Grand Cherokee Overlander
Shelter in the wilderness.
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Jeep Grand Cherokee Overlander
Having been on an overland expedition with the EcoDiesel Grand Cherokee, this is just how we’d envision our own.
Jeep Grand Cherokee Overlander
The Grand Cherokee-based Overlander concept vehicle represents the long-distance explorer, just as we see in the Grand Cherokee. And we are equally pleased with the way Jeep equipped the Overlander as it shows what the Grand Cherokee is truly capable of when an enthusiastic owner wants to get adventurous.
The Overlander sports Sage Green exterior paint. Custom features include a one-off front fascia, integrated front winch, tow hooks, larger wheel flares, SRT tail lamps and hood, off-road rock rails, front and rear skid plates and 18-in milled wheels with BF Goodrich All-terrain T/A tires.
The powertrain is the 3.0L diesel V-6 engine mated to the eight-speed Torqueflight transmission. To top it off, the Grand Cherokee Overlander has a durable spray-in truck bed coating on the roof and a two-person hard-shell rooftop tent that is easily deployable.
Jeep Renegade Desert Hawk
Renegade gets a very nice rack… but that's about it.
Jeep Renegade Desert Hawk
As fans of the Renegade, right from the launch of Jeeps newest compact 4WD, we were quite interested to see what the concept version might look like. Mopar have been known to keep the smaller vehicles fairly low-key at this event, and unfortunately, that seems to be the case this year as well.
The Desert Hawk concept receives a Desert Tan exterior and features a topographical hood decal that depicts the “Fins and Things” Moab trail, off-road rock rails and a skid plate kit. Also featured are Mopar’s trailer hitch receiver and roof rack.
On the interior, the Renegade Desert Hawk has been outfitted with Mopar Katzkin seat covers, body colour bezel accents and Mopar all-weather floor mats. We were hoping Jeep would get a little more aggressive with the Renegade, perhaps next year.
Jeep Cherokee Canyon Trail
The Cherokee gets similar treatment to the Renegade.
Jeep Cherokee Canyon Trail
Like the Renegade, the Cherokee got a modest list of additional equipment to help make it even more capable when it makes its way into the wilderness. The Cherokee Canyon Trail concept makes use of a Desert Tan exterior paint that is accented with a Satin Black hood with a topographical hood decal showcasing “Hell's Revenge,” a renowned off-road trail in Moab.
The Canyon Trail interior features Mopar Katzkin leather seat covers and accent stitching, Jeep Performance Parts embroidered logo on the headrests, body colour bezel accents, a cargo tray mat, Jeep Cargo Management System, Moab Off-road bag and all-weather floor mats.
Off-road capability is turned up with the addition of JPP off-road rock rails, a two-piece fuel tank skid plate, two-piece underbody skid plate, oil pan and front suspension skid plates, as well as concept 17-in painted wheels with BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A tires, which provide an additional one-half inch of lift.
The Jeep Cherokee Canyon Trail is powered by the 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir2 I-4 engine mated to a nine-speed automatic transmission with Jeep Active Drive Lock, which includes low range and a locking rear differential.