Jeep Wrangler EV given thumbs up by 4x4 fans

Senior global Jeep executives are encouraged by the positive reception 4x4 enthusiasts have given the Jeep Wrangler Magneto EV concept and their support for the US off-road brand’s plans to offer full-electric models across its range.

In an interview with Australian journalists, including carsales, ahead of the 2022 Jeep Easter Safari, Jeep’s exterior design studio chief Mark Allen said the all-electric Magneto concept was greeted with “wide-open” arms last year.

He also said the brand’s broader initiatives in the EV space will open up new possibilities for design that Jeep owners may never have imagined, not to mention new-found levels of performance.

The latter is being amply demonstrated by the 466kW/1152Nm Jeep Wrangler Magneto 2.0 concept that broke cover today ahead of its premiere at the Easter Safari in Utah.

“So far I’m super-encouraged by what we’re going to get out of it (full electrification),” Allen said, referring to the mountainous low-end torque and quietness afforded by all-electric powertrains.

“I’m also really encouraged by the wide-open arm reception that we got last year for Magneto and what the future of electric holds for off-road.

“The benefit for myself (as a car designer) … is electric platforms finally offer us a shift in packaging; we’ve forever had the iron block up front and the transmission, all that stuff, and it’s forced us to a similar proportion over and over.

“The ability to move some of that stuff around in the future with electric powertrains genuinely excites us.”

These packaging constraints explain why the original Wrangler Magneto and the just-revealed 2.0 version feature multiple battery packs stashed around the body.

When asked what configuration a production-spec Wrangler EV would take, Allen confirmed it would adopt a more traditional EV powertrain set-up rather than the rudimentary set-up of the concepts.

“The Magneto, to be clear, is a kind of open door to the laboratory,” he said.

“If we do something electric on Wrangler, pure-electric, it’s not going to look like that and I speak mainly for the transmission.”

Despite the warm reception given to the zero-emissions off-roader, Allen said concrete plans for a full-electric Wrangler were still to be announced.

“I think we’ll have to wait a little bit longer before we can talk about that,” he said.

Jeep plans to offer EV models in every segment in which it competes by 2025, with its first all-electric SUV set to arrive in Australia early in 2023.

However, Allen conceded there was still work to be done, especially in the off-road arena.

“The concerns that I get from people are still centred around range, charging, access etc, and I’m sure those same kind of things happened when we switched from horses to gasoline engines,” he said.

“But I’m also convinced the range and charging issues, weight and complexity are going to go away as we get further down the road.”

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