JEEP - Everything You Need to Know | Up to Speed

(engine roaring) - Oh yes! - It is one of the most recognizable vehicles in the entire world. An all-American workhorse designed to go anywhere! Mountain passes, deep forests, the high desert, (bleep) underwater! Anywhere! This is

everything

you

need

to

know

to get up to

speed

on the Jeep! (8-bit music) Our story begins near the end of the war. The big one. The Willys-Overland Company

know

s that the global conflict will not last much longer and, as a result, they will not sell as many Jeeps. Now this is a problem because the only thing the company is equipped to make right now are

jeep

s.

So they got to work adapting their MB war machine into something a little more accessible to the civilized market. This new civilian Jeep, or CJ, would have special modifications to help transition from the battlefield to the cornfield, ♪ We're farmers, dum-da-dum-dum dum-dum-dum! ♪ the first of which was a tailgate so you could put things in the back more easily. The headlights were larger and not recessed into the grille like the old MB. The transmission was also different. But aside from these changes, the CJ was the same workhorse as the MBs our soldiers drove in the war. Willys-Overland started selling the CJ2A in 1945.

And naturally, people loved it, right? No, not really. They realized that even though they marketed the CJ2A as a rugged, utilitarian work vehicle, people still wanted to be comfortable. So in 1949, they released the CJ3A, which had better seats, more legroom, and a host of other amenities for the average civilian driver. Unfortunately, this measure did not stimulate sales as they had hoped and Willys-Overland's financial situation became dire. Enter Henry J. Kaiser. Henry was a shipbuilding industrialist and was an early founder of Kaiser Permanente hospitals. Henry also wanted to start a car company, but he knew it was too small to compete with large companies like Ford and Chevy, so he offered to buy Willys-Overland and continue Jeep production under the Willys brand.

Before they could release an all-new model, they had one last CJ3 update up their sleeve. The new CJ3B was a little more comfortable, but this time also more powerful. The new Hurricane engine made a whopping 74 horsepower and

need

ed a larger hood to fit the car, and so the Jeep began to bulk up! The first Jeep designed and produced under Kaiser ownership was the now iconic CJ5. Introduced in 1955, the CJ5 boasted a new focus on universal utilitarianism. If you wanted a car that could handle anything you wanted between work and play, the CJ5 was the car for you. - The hardest four-letter word on wheels! - Overall, the CJ5 was very attractive to the civilian market because, for the first time, it was designed for them.

This was the beginning of Jeep culture as we know it. Next to the CJ5 was the CJ6, and it wasn't as popular as the CJ5 here in the United States. Although sales of the CJ5 and 6 were good, Kaiser Jeep was still on the sidelines of the automobile industry. Forward-thinking as ever, Kaiser knew they needed a bigger foothold to survive, so they contacted American Motor Company, or: - AMC. - Who was looking for a more utilitarian platform to complete their more performance-oriented line. Jeep was already using some AMC engines in the mid-60s, so merging the two companies wasn't too far-fetched.

So in 1970, Kaiser sold the Jeep brand to AMC. The first order of business was to convert all Jeep models to AMC engines. The CJ was now available with two AMC straight-six engines and a 304 cubic inch V8. With the engine conversion complete, AMC ordered a new design to bring to market before the bicentennial in 1976. This new Jeep would be 10 inches longer, much more comfortable, and equipped with the sweet sound of Quadra-trac all four wheels. -Management system. ♪ Only in a Jeep! ♪ - The CJ7 was an immediate bestseller as soon as it debuted. My dad bought one! Throughout its life, the CJ7 was available in many different trim levels, all with cool names.

You had the Laredo, the Renegade, the Golden Hawk, the Golden Frickin' Eagle! But the best thing about the CJ7 was the Jamboree. It was Jam... ...packed with special features and released to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the most famous Jeep event at the time, the Georgetown Jeepers Jamboree. Creeper Jeepers! Around the same time as the Jamboree launch, Jeep also launched a long-wheelbase truck version of the CJ7, called the CJ8 Scrambler. Like the CJ7, the Scrambler had a removable roof, but unlike the CJ7, it also had a short bed. Less than 28,000 Scramblers were sold in its five-year lifespan. 1986 was not only the last year of the Scrambler, but also the CJ7.

The 41-year run from the CJ2A to the CJ7 had ended, and with it, AMC's ownership of the Jeep brand. As was tradition at the time, the Jeep name would move from a struggling company to a new home, now at Chrysler. Development of the new model began before the handover, but the first new Jeep was the YJ or, as it was officially known, the Wrangler. Have you ever heard of him? It was a completely new design, independent of the CJ line. Gone were the circular headlights, now they were square! And that wouldn't be the only departure from CJ's old days, oh no!

The YJ Wrangler was designed to be even more comfortable on the road. With the launch of the YJ, Jeep mania was in full swing. It had been years since the brand was perceived as a quirky cult classic and had fully immersed itself in the mainstream. (dinosaur roar) The first time the Jurassic Park characters see a real, live dinosaur, it's in the back of the iconic red and gray 1992 YJ Wrangler Sahara. Oh yeah. - What is the difference between the different trim levels of the Wrangler? - Um, I think you meant "levels." The Wrangler S is the base model.

Above is the Laredo with its chrome grille and removable hardtop. Then, there's the Islander with special color options like Pacific Blue and Malibu Yellow. Above is the Sport, which had a more powerful inline six-cylinder engine. The Renegade then replaced the Laredo and was basically the top choice for the YJ. Then in 1996, Jeep replaced the YJ with the TJ, whose styling cues were a bit of a throwback... a bit of a throwback to the CJ. Round headlights returned, but the TJ entered the modern era of suspension with the inclusion of coil springs borrowed from the Cherokee. Eight years after the TJ's debut, the Wrangler Unlimited followed.

This was another long wheelbase Jeep, four inches longer than the regular TJ. The biggest leap TJ made was the introduction of the Wrangler Rubicon. It had super-tough Dana 44 axles, 31-inch all-terrain tires, and diamond-plate rock rails so the paint wouldn't get scratched on the trails. (metal crunch) The TJ's replacement took five years to develop, and the new Wrangler was launched in 2006. The new JK model was no joke. (edge ​​image) It had a completely new body and chassis, as well as tons of computer-aided bits to help off-road. Possibly the biggest change to the Wrangler line was the reintroduction of the Wrangler Unlimited.

This time, with four doors! Now, Jeep fans will argue whether this is a real Jeep or not, but the fact is that about 75% of all JKs sold were the four-door version. The first JKs came with a 3.8-liter V6, which was stupidly heavy and underpowered, generating only 202 horsepower. When paired with a four-

speed

automatic, it was a bit (bleeping). But fortunately, in 2013, Jeep upgraded the engine to the smaller 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 that made a monstrous 265 horsepower by comparison. Chrysler also produced a diesel version, but we will never see it in the United States because the engine did not meet emissions standards. (complaining) After the 2008 economic crisis, Chrysler urgently needed help.

Fiat came in and bought a 20% stake in Chrysler. Then in 2014, Fiat closed the deal and bought full control, with big plans for Jeep in mind. Jeep had always been an American-focused brand, but Fiat was thinking bigger picture and wanted to take the legendary workhorse global once and for all. Today, Jeep is by far the largest brand in the Chrysler range and sells more Jeeps every day. The JL is the latest Wrangler and continues the Jeep line since its wartime introduction in 1941. And yes, it's much more comfortable than its grandfather, but it's still ready to go anywhere.

As Willys-Overland would have liked. Subscribe to Donut, you are the only reason we make things. Click on this little yellow man right here. (kissing) Hello, yellow dot! If you like off-roading, check out this episode of Up To Speed ​​on Landcruiser. If not, check out this episode about the Ford GT. Do you want a shirt? Go to shop.donut.media. Follow me on Instagram and Twitter @jamespumphrey. Follow Donut @donutmedia. I love you.