The Jeep Wrangler Sport re-defined enthusiast off-road lifestyle on a global scale, and, finally, India joins the bandwagon.
We live in a brand-dominated world wherein, for many, if things are not branded, they’re not ‘cool’. Similarly, some brands have grown so tall that they have become synonymous with the product. A photocopy may come from a Samsung or Canon machine, but still gets called a ‘Xerox copy’; glucose biscuits are ‘Parle-G’, toothpaste is ‘Colgate’, and the diesel fuel pump is called a ‘Bosch’ pump. Another major name that has been around for a while is Jeep. Every SUV is referred to by the rustics and the educated alike as a ‘Jeep’. Such is the depth of the brand’s reach and now that the company is officially here, cult followers will rejoice. Those who came in late will watch with dropped jaws as a vehicle passes by that looks so familiar, yet brings so many differences with it as well.
That brings me to the Jeep in question – the Wrangler Sport. We did drive the longer, four-door model; although that was powered by a 200-PS, 2.8-litre, four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine and had a five-speed automatic gearbox. This smaller two-door Sport version is much lighter and comes with a more powerful petrol engine. Not just any petrol engine; it’s the famed Pentastar 3.6-litre V6 from Chrysler’s range with 285 PS and 354 Nm ─ the staple engine in the United States for many Dodge, Chrysler and Jeep models. To say the least, we are thrilled to have it here too. What’s more, it’s mated to a six-speed manual transmission.
First things first: we must make it very clear that the Jeep brand will offer lifestyle vehicles. Yes, they can be used in the city, on the highway and pretty much everywhere else too. But that’s just it: it’s the ‘everywhere else’ bit that is particularly of interest. These are hardcore off-roaders. They sit high off the ground and bring a good amount of kit, all of which is needed to tackle the path less travelled. On the highway, there are several cars which would behave much better and do things very differently indeed. But off the road, there are only a handful of vehicles that can match the ability Jeep have endowed every Wrangler with.
The styling is particularly rugged. There is so much cladding, you get leftovers up front and at the back. The large front grille is typical Jeep and the straight lines and panes of glass only add to its butch appearance. The removable roof sections and standard-issue roll-cage provide quite the initial thrill as well, as do the reasonably large wheels with high 75 profile Wrangler tyres, which are best suited for dirt, mud, rock and anything you never want to see your shoes in or on. Needless to say, they do an excellent job and deliver when the going gets tough, keeping the explorer within alive and kicking.
The inside offers all the equipment you need and nothing more. You have a good air-conditioning system, a music player, two power window switches, four individual seats and a meaty steering wheel and two shifter levers, as you would expect to see in a Jeep. You won’t find a feather-touch little rotary knob in here.
