By Paul Gover.
The Jeep Wrangler is old school.
There is nothing in 2020 that looks like the Wrangler.
That’s not quite right, because the tiddling Suzuki Jimny takes its inspiration from the original Jeep from World War II and it can also go seriously off-road even though most Jimnys spend their lives in trendy inner-city suburbs.
But the Wrangler is old school and authentic, from its rock-crawler low-range gears to a – wait for it – fully operational cigarette lighter. And I genuinely cannot remember the last time I drove a test car with one of those.
Previous experiences with the Wrangler have not been great, apart from the time I drove along the incredibly rugged Rubicon Trail in the USA in a drive that proved everything good that is said about the off-road ability of the bluff old Jeep are true.
Away from the Rubicon, the Wrangler always felt like it was never finished, either in the design or assembly. It was fun, for about 10 minutes …
Now, after a full week of Wrangler-ing, I’m still smiling.
The 2020 car is tight, spritely, provides a great view and triggers plenty of smiles wherever it goes.
I know it can go anywhere I want in the off-road world, but it’s also good in lots of other ways, and definitely when you want to impress the kids who are waiting for one of the endless copycat SUVs arriving for the school pick-up.
The aircon is good, the turning circle is the best I’ve met – apart from a black cab in London – and the seats are comfy.
The test model, a Wrangler Overland with six-cylinder petrol engine, is only a two-door Jeep and that makes access to the roomy back seats a bit of a chore, but it compensates with lift-out roof panels that appeal to my inner adventurer.
The boxy body that links it to the WWII original is no good for wind noise or fuel economy, but it hardly matters as I’m rumbling around the countryside and enjoying the view and the six-cylinder punch and suspension that cannot be threatened by anything short of a fridge-sized boulder.
The big failing is safety, where the Wrangler only manages a three-star ANCAP rating. But, like the Ford Mustang that also fails to clear the 5-star bar in 2020, there will be people who will be prepared to compromise.
Also, it’s not cheap at $65,450 in the two-door petrol version I tested.
According to my friend Mike, the new Wrangler is the best Suzuki Jimny he’s driven. He’s joking, of course, but the Wrangler is everything the Jimny wants to be when it grows up.
For me, it’s also – by a very long way – the best Wrangler I’ve driven and the first of the old-school Jeeps that I would happily recommend to a friend.
THE BASICS
JEEP WRANGLER
Price: $59,450
Power: 209kW/347Nm
Position: mid-sized SUV
Plus: design, comfort, off-road ability
Minus: noisy, thirsty, sub-standard safety
THE TICK: For the first time, a yes.