For nine days around Easter each year, a small town in Eastern Utah becomes a massive testing ground for Jeep to try out new features not only on the rugged terrain, but also on its loyal customers. The best and most popular of those ideas are often incorporated into production models.
It’s not a religious event, but the Jeep Easter Safari in Moab, Utah, is the Holy Grail for Jeep enthusiasts. What started as a modest gathering 58 years ago now attracts an estimated 20,000 people to the tourist town, which is home to just 5,500.
Jeep owners assemble in snake-like convoys for day-long trips over trails in the area’s stunning desert and red-rock scenery. Other events include a raffle, barbecue dinner and vendor expo.
Founded by the Moab Chamber of Commerce in 1967, the annual gathering is now hosted by the local Red Rock 4-Wheelers Inc. club. As the event grew in size, Jeep took notice and has been coming for about 20 years with concept vehicles, said William Peffer, senior vice-president and head of Jeep brand North America.
The annual safari “is the perfect venue for new Jeep concepts, with more than 20,000 Jeep enthusiasts gathering each year to celebrate the most iconic 4x4 brand in the world,” says Peffer. Jeep measures the Jeep owners’ reaction to stylistic themes, accessories and functional add-ons as it considers future production models.
The company’s in-house designers are encouraged to let loose with one-off designs that push the envelope. Such ideas as oversized wheels and short overhangs have found their way into production; company officials say the “steelie”-look cast wheels seen this year could appear in future production models.
Here are the four new concept vehicles:
Jeep Vacationeer concept
The luxurious Wagoneer is turned on its head in this reimagining. Its striking spearmint-coloured exterior has a textured woodgrain stripe that hearkens back to the Wagoneers of old. But the real excitement is inside, where the second and third-row seats have been removed to make room for a self-contained camper setup that includes a rooftop hard-shell sleeper. Big, 35-inch BFGoodrich mud-terrain tires, wrapped around 18-by-9-inch bead grip 701 Method racing wheels, and front and rear skid plates provide underbody protection. A Warn winch is mounted out front. A custom, carbon-fibre RedTail Overland Skyloft sits on the roof – accessible through an entrance carved in the roof. The seats have custom fabric inserts featuring classic Jeep vehicles. Power comes from the three-litre Hurricane Twin Turbo 510 engine, delivering 510 horsepower and 500 lb-ft of torque.
The Vacationeer concept has a hardshell rooftop sleeper and comes in a distinctive spearmint colour with woodgrain accents.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The luxurious Wagoneer is turned on its head in this reimagining.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The seats have custom fabric inserts featuring classic Jeep vehicles. Power comes from the three-litre Hurricane Twin Turbo 510 engine, delivering 510 horsepower and 500 lb-ft of torque.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
Jeep Low Down concept
This is an update on a concept vehicle called the Lower 40 that Jeep brought to Moab 15 years ago (and which returned this year). The two-door Lower 40 had 40-inch mud-terrain tires and a 5.7-litre V8 engine. The new Low Down concept has 42-inch BFGoodrich Krawler 42x14.5R20 mud-terrain tires mounted on 20-inch beadlock wheels, with high-clearance carbon fender flares. Front and rear bumpers have been shortened, improving breakover, and approach and departure angles. The 475-horsepower 6.4-litre 392 V8 engine is on display through a clear power dome in the carbon fibre hood. The interior features custom black leather seats with cloth inserts and the instrument panel has no radio. The interior is livened up with the glow from a red-tinted top.
The Jeep Low Down concept includes a transparent dome to view the massive V8 engine.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The '392' label proudly proclaims its 6.4-litre V8 hemi powerhouse engine.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
Jeep Willys Dispatcher concept
With a name rooted in the company’s early post-war days, this Wrangler 4xe-based concept features Super Traxion 36-inch tires on vintage-style 16-by-7-inch alloy wheels made to look like “steelies.” A custom old-school front bumper houses an 8274 Warn winch. WILLYS lettering is embossed into the sides of the hood. The exterior is in a colour called Element 115 Green, a man-made chemical element that has a mythical connection to extraterrestrial technology and alien lifeforms. Inside, seats are covered in distressed saddle leather and houndstooth cloth inserts. The floor is covered in vinyl and there’s an onboard air compressor for adding air while on the trail. The two-litre plug-in hybrid 4xe system delivers 375 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque through an eight-speed automatic transmission.
The Willys Dispatcher concept has WILLYS stamped on the hood and a massive Warn winch front and centre.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The cream-coloured 'steelie'-looking wheels are made of cast aluminum.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
Jeep Gladiator Rubicon High Top concept
The only truck concept this year, the High Top features a distinctive two-tone exterior of black and a goldish colour called Ginger Snap. Massive 40x13.5R18 BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO3 tires are mounted on 18-by-9-inch Satin Black KMC Grenade Crawl beadlock wheels. The Dana 60 front and rear axles with matching 5.38:1 gearing are driven by the familiar 2.6-litre Pentastar V6 engine and eight-speed automatic transmission. Air suspension is adjustable on the fly. Outside, the front bumper has been reshaped with a protective hoop above a Warn winch. It’s the only of the four concepts to have powered rail steps for ease of entry and exit. A truck bed storage system features lockable dual sliding drawers.
The Rubicon High Top is in black and a goldish 'gingersnap' colour. Its front winch is encased in a protective bumper.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
Returning concepts
Jeep also brought back four fully functional concepts from the past 10-15 years: the Shortcut (an ultra-short two-seater), Staff Car (reminiscent of a military Jeep), Lower Forty (a V8-powered no frills ride that inspired this year’s Low Down concept) and Sandstorm (an early take on a desert runner).
The Short Cut tested the limits of two-seater minimalism and was an early example of the steel wheel look.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The Staff Car echoed the military look, complete with rag top and military colours.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The Lower Forty concept tested the limits of massive wheels and tires.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The Sandstorm, from previous years, was an early take on a desert runner.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The writer was a guest of the auto maker. Content was not subject to approval.