Jeep Wrangler: the CJ’s successor

The Jeep Wrangler is a series of compact and mid-size off-road SUVs built by Jeep since 1986, now in its fourth generation. It follows the wartime Jeep through the CJ models of Willys, Kaiser-Jeep and American Motors, and it keeps the formula: separate body and frame, rigid live axles, a tapering nose with flared fenders, a fold-flat windshield and the possibility of driving without doors.

Jeep Wrangler at a glance

History of the Jeep Wrangler

The YJ of 1987

The first Wrangler was formally announced in February 1986 at the Chicago Auto Show and introduced that May as a 1987 model; by August 1987 it was being built under Chrysler, which had bought American Motors. Outwardly it resembled the CJ-7, but AMC’s François Castaing insisted that “the product philosophy behind the two vehicles is completely different”. The YJ had a wider track, slightly less ground clearance, better handling and more comfort, with wider leaf springs than the CJ, trackbars and anti-roll bars to make it less likely to roll. It kept the CJ-7’s wheelbase, part-time four-wheel drive and live axles on leaf springs, and it is remembered for its rectangular headlamps, the only Wrangler generation without round ones. YJs were built at Brampton and then at Toledo South, and in Egypt in short and long-wheelbase forms.

Coil springs and round lamps: the TJ

The second generation, introduced in 1996 as a 1997 model, brought back the round headlamps of the classic Jeeps and replaced leaf springs with coil springs at both ends, the change that most improved the Wrangler’s road manners. Its main engine was the AMC 242 4.0 litre straight-six, and the automatic gearbox lever moved to the floor. A long-wheelbase Unlimited appeared in 2004: the first use of the Unlimited name, 10 inches longer, with more rear legroom and cargo space, and from 2005 a Rubicon Unlimited with front and rear Dana 44 axles and the Rock-Trac four-wheel drive system. Israeli Automotive Industries also built a five-door military derivative, the Storm Mark II, from 2006.

JK, JL and the Unlimited

The third generation, the JK of 2007, moved production to the Toledo Complex and changed the grille, which now angled out from the top instead of sitting flat with the fenders. From 2007 the long-wheelbase Wrangler became a four-door, with over 20 inches more room than the two-door; by mid-2017 four-door models made up three-quarters of all new Wranglers. The fourth generation, the JL, was unveiled in late 2017 and is still built in Toledo. Throughout, the Wrangler has stayed close to its military ancestor: solid axles, an open top and a silhouette that Jeep itself treats as central to the brand, much as Porsche treats the 911.

Design and features

• Separate frame: body-on-frame construction carried over from the CJ and the wartime Jeep.
• Coil springs from 1997: the TJ’s biggest step towards road comfort.
• Round headlamps: restored on the TJ after the rectangular YJ.
• Unlimited: long-wheelbase two-door in 2004, four-door from 2007.
• Toledo: the Wrangler has been built in Toledo since the JK.

Jeep Wrangler versions

• Wrangler YJ (1987–1995): rectangular headlamps, leaf springs.
• Wrangler TJ (1997–2006): coil springs and round lamps.
• Wrangler JK (2007–2018): the four-door Unlimited arrives.
• Wrangler JL (2018–): the current generation.
• Unlimited: the long-wheelbase version, two-door in 2004–2006 and four-door since 2007.
• J8: military versions built abroad.

The Wrangler replaced the CJ-7 and its own second generation is described in the article on the Wrangler TJ; its pickup version is the Gladiator. More models are in the Jeep collection.

Video: im vergleich: Mercedes G-Modell – Jeep Wrangler | motor mobil

Video by DW Deutsch on YouTube.

Sources

• Jeep Wrangler, English Wikipedia: generations, design, Unlimited, production