Pure-electric Jeep Wrangler unveiling weeks away

Jeep has announced that it is planning to unveil a concept for a pure-electric Jeep Wrangler as part of the annual Easter Jeep Safari celebrations that are usually held in Moab, Utah.

This year the event was set to kick off on March 27, when Jeep was expected to pull the drapes off the Wrangler EV, but it's thought the reveal will be shifted online following the cancellation of the festival.

Posting pictures online of the battery-powered Jeep, the US SUV-maker says the pure-electric Wrangler has been created to take "green and 4x4 technology to the next level".

Sharing its styling with the current JL-series Wrangler, the pure-electric Jeep will also be based on what looks to be an identical ladder-frame chassis.

Instead of a dedicated architecture, Jeep engineers have divided a typical battery pack in three sections to slot in within the existing Wrangler's frame.

Look closer at the rendering of the exposed platform and as well as plentiful wiring connections it looks like Jeep will mount a large electric motor and control modules under the bonnet.

While others mount a motor on either axle, it looks like Jeep plans to use a traditional transmission and transfer case, ensuring there's a mechanical connection between the front and rear axles.

The move to use mechanical hardware, despite using a pure-electric powertrain, will no doubt delight the purists as it means less software will be needed to manage torque off-road.

If approved for production, the pure-electric Wrangler will join the plug-in hybrid Jeep Wrangler 4xe that's already on sale in some markets and offers a zero-emissions range of up to 40km.

The hybrid Jeep remains unconfirmed for the Australian market.

If approved for production the Wrangler EV could be just two years away from reality, although it's not known if the concept's mechanical all-wheel drive will carry through to production as it's believed to have huge implications for efficiency and range.

As well as the zero-emissions Wrangler, Jeep is also set to reveal its new solar charging station that can be installed in off-the-grid locations to support the brand's growing number of electrified models.