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By
MURRAY HUBBARD
19 October 2009
In late 2008 the Jeep Wrangler was upgraded for Australia. Changes
include 17-inch alloy wheels across the range, a standard tyre
pressure warning system. Wrangler also has two new colours:
Sunburst Orange replacing Rescue Green and Deep Water Blue
replaces Steel Blue.
From a mechanical point of view there was a strong boost in torque
from 410 Nm to 460 Nm in from the 2.8-litre CRD when it was fitted
in front of an automatic transmission. And finally, a 3.73:1 axle
ratio, replacing 4.10:1 on Sport models with automatic
transmission.
At the same time Unlimited (four-door) versions had their fuel
tanks upgraded to 85 litres and dual tops were made standard on
the extreme off-road variants Rubicon and Rubicon Unlimited.
Wrangler was further upgraded this week for the 2010 model year.
This time the Off-road pack is now being made available on petrol
variants and U-connect multimedia now with a 30 Gb hard disk
drive.
This Jeep is a serious off-roader, not a toy as is the case with
an increasing number of so-called 4WDs these days. The
Wrangler’s Off-road pack is aimed at the serious four wheel
driver and includes for the first time on petrol variants
electronically controlled rear axle differential lock, 3.73 axle
ratio on manual and automatics, and electronic front sway bar
disconnect. Even better news is that the price of this option pack
has been reduced from $3000 to $1500.
The latest incarnation of the Wrangler was launched in 2007 with
the big news being a diesel engine option and, for the first time,
a four-door variant, tagged the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited.
The Unlimited has been a resounding success, opening the door to
sales to families who may have wanted a Wrangler, but could not
have lived with a two-door. Unlimited sales now slightly exceed
the traditional two-door version.
Australia is the second largest market for Wrangler outside the
USA so the company is treating our market very seriously with the
numerous changes announced above being aimed at our local
four-wheel drivers’ tastes.
Jeep supplied a number of test vehicles for the press to drive at
an event where we were introduced to the latest Wranglers. There
were manual and automatic two- and four-door variants as well as
two Unlimited models with the Rubicon package. We managed to
sample our fair share.
By the very nature of being a serious four-wheel drive Wrangler is
a compromised vehicle. Its on-road manners are no match for its
off-road ability. Saying that, significant steps were taken back
in 2007 to improve Wrangler's on-road ride, handling and passenger
comfort and it is a far more acceptable proposition than previous
models.
There's no doubt that in off-road conditions the Jeep Wrangler
really shines and this is witnessed no more so than in the
Rubicon. Wheel travel is enormous, the 410 Nm of torque from the
diesel/manual variant is more than adequate, the six-speed
transmission, with dual-range, meets just about any challenge and
clearances are generally not an issue.
The Jeep Wrangler Unlimited, because of the nature of its long
wheelbase is more prone to scraping the centre underbody than the
shorter wheelbase vehicle as we found in steep climbs that
culminated in a sharp angle to reach the plateau. The Rubicon has
the lowest crawl speed we have ever encountered in a production
4WD and its ability to both descend extreme hills at snail’s
pace and rock-hop ascents has to be experienced to be fully
appreciated.
The complete Jeep Wrangler range, with prices (excluding
government and dealer charges) is:
Sport 3.8-litre V6 petrol: $31,590 (manual), $33,590 (automatic)
Sport 2.8-litre 3.8-litre diesel: $35,590, (manual), $37,590
(automatic)
Rubicon 3.8-litre V6 petrol: $40,590 (manual), $42,590 (automatic)
Unlimited Sport 3.8-litre V6 petrol: $35,990 (manual), $37,990
(automatic)
Unlimited Sport 2.8-litre diesel: $39,990 (manual), $41,990
(automatic)
Unlimited Rubicon 3.8-litre petrol: $44,990 (manual), $46,990
(automatic)
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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