Jeep could be quite relaxed about Wrangler. In the last three years, annual sales figures have heavily breached 200k mark, which was unseen for it before. Direct competition is virtually non-existing, while similarly capable Mercedes G-Class is extraordinary more expensive. Yes, you can go for, again very capable, Toyota 4Runner and similar things, but this is actually one step above in noncompromising.
Recent withdraw of Land Rover Defender made things perfectly clear. If you want an ultimate off-road tool, while you are not prepared to cash out six-figure numbers, this is the only thing to go for. Yet, Jeep has been quite busy about it as it has managed to offer over 40 different variations, while we just witnessed two newest ones as Chief and Smoky Moutain limited editions. So, special attention for Wrangler is never lacking, and one of the more interesting approaches is 2017 Jeep Quicksand Concept.
WHAT IS IT?
Jeep has just treated us with several novelties in concept shape of things for Easter Jeep Safari happening and this is one of those. If you ever wondered what would come out from a mixture of Wrangler and hot rod car, you have received your answer. And that answer could easily join Mad Max movie vehicle lineup.
2017 Jeep Quicksand Concept APPEREANCE
First of all, almost everything is changed. Fenders are open in hot road manner, and the same style brought hood opening and eight chromed stacks. We have Moon tank on the front bumper, but instead of fuel, it houses a winch. There is also another winch at the back hidden in dragster parachute packaging while below there is an absolute lack of bumper.
The grille is shaped in honor of old Wranglers, and roof height is reduced to half of its normal size. The whole car is elevated due to the massive tires, 32 inches at the front and 37 inches at the rear, introducing staggered setup for this vehicle. For the end, we have special 18-inch alloys with chromed spinners.
CABIN
The cabin has been heavily modified also, trying to bring back memories of old Wranglers. Usual instruments are replaced with retro units, the infotainment system is ditched to make the place for more analog gauges, climate controls is substituted with a set of switches and seats are nostalgic ones without head rests. That was enough from retro style, as Jeep incorporated some weird stuff besides that.
The main one is manual shifter which is hard to explain. Let’s say that is it shaped like a snake on the move, and the actual knob is Jeep toy car submerged in transparent plastic. That, kind of dilute whole seriousness of the thing, especially when we know that steering wheel is borrowed directly from Dodge Viper and diamond quilted leather seats are painted red same as lower half of the dash.
Video
UNDER THE SKIN
Hood area sad goodbye to the V6 and it welcomed 392 cubic inches Hemi V-8 crate engine mated with 6-speed Getrag manual gearbox. Cylinders use port fuel injection system, old school let us say, while interestingly we have individual throttle bodies as those hood stacks suggested, keeping you assured that every push of the pedal is followed by instant engine response, something that we are hardly ever going to witness in any production SUV.
Quicksand is still Wrangler, so rest assure that low range gear box is there, while Dana 44 front axle further inspires confidence. Yet, despite the fact that huge tires elevated the whole body, ground clearance is quite low for this one, making it more suitable for desert excursion than rock crawling. It is kind of sad that 2017 Jeep Quicksand Concept is never intended for production, but as we mentioned, with Wrangler you never have a lack of choices.
