1975 Jeep Cj5 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Sunday Drive: Variety is the spice of life

If there's any one new vehicle the entire world is anxiously waiting for, it's the Jeep Wrangler. Yes, of course the iconic off-roader has a loyal following here in America, but you could plop a Wrangler pretty much anywhere on the globe and everybody will know what it is. Put simply, the redesigned 2018 Jeep Wrangler JL has big, muddy shoes to fill, and the readers of Autoblog are just as interested in the Wrangler's rebirth as anyone else. Moving along, we were fortunate enough last week to spend a bit of time in nearly every version of the venerable Volkswagen Golf all in one day. There isn't a Golf we don't like, but there's one, easily identifiable by its three-digit name, that stands above all the rest: GTI. We think it's the best Golf you can buy, even if there's an R-badged variant that slots above the GTI in VW hierarchy. Rounding out our recap are three vehicles that could hardly be more different. The 2019 GMC Sierra, which was seen wearing pretty light camouflage, is a truck. The Lamborghini Terzo Millennio – which isn't going to go on sale, ever, at any price – is a conceptual supercar. And the Honda CB1000R is a retro-themed naked standard motorcycle. Variety really is the spice of life. 2018 Jeep Wrangler spy shot mega gallery Driving nearly every VW Golf: Base, GTI, R, Alltrack — here's what we learned 2019 GMC Sierra spied sporting just a thin wrapping The Lamborghini Terzo Millennio is a brutally fantastic EV supercar concept Honda unveils 2 new motorcycles, including retro-flavored CB1000R Image Credit: Brian Williams GMC Honda Jeep Lamborghini Volkswagen Technology Truck Convertible Crossover Hatchback SUV Performance sunday drive vw golf gti lamborghini terzo millennio

Jeep Wrangler 4xe's hybrid powertrain: Could it be headed to other FCA products?

On its own, the 2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid is a big deal for the brand and the model line. It's the most powerful and most efficient Wrangler by significant margins, and it doesn't give up the off-road capability that makes the Wrangler so special. But another great thing about this hybrid powertrain is its potential to be transplanted into other FCA vehicles. Just to recap, the layout of the Wrangler's hybrid powertrain, front to back, is as follows: engine, clutch, electric motor, clutch, transmission. The engine is the same 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that's a standalone engine for the Wrangler. The transmission and electric motor are sort of one unit, with the motor and clutch replacing the torque converter of the transmission. And the transmission itself is the ubiquitous eight-speed ZF automatic gearbox. Its transmission code name is 8HP75PH. The ZF eight-speed is available in every FCA product with a longitudinally-mounted engine and rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, with variations in the amount of power and torque it can handle. Not only that, but the Ram 1500 and 2500 and the Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator all have powertrains that utilize the non-hybrid version of the 8HP75 transmission specifically. Even the gear ratios for that transmission as well as the 8HP70 used in the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Dodge Durango, Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 are nearly identical to those in the 8HP75PH. And a Fiat-Chrysler representative confirmed that the transmission portion of the hybrid drivetrain is basically carry-over from the regular 8HP75. So a transplant could be a relatively simple process. As for which of these models would be the most likely to receive the hybrid powertrain first, the Jeep Gladiator and Ram 1500 would seem like good bets, since they likely have the most similar transmissions, and the Gladiator in particular because of its closely-related underpinnings to the Wrangler. Both are also highly profitable trucks that sell well and could justify the development costs of adapting another powertrain. And in the case of the Ram, there's the impending F-150 hybrid to think about. Although Ram isn't going after a fully electric model, a PHEV could be a nice middle ground. A potential limiting factor would be whether the hybrid powertrain would be sufficiently robust to handle heavy payload and towing demands, particularly over longer periods.

Off-roading the Lyman Trail in the 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk

Lyman Trail is in the backwoods of the Chelsea Proving Grounds in Chelsea, Mich. It's where FCA goes to push off-roaders to the limits. Autoblog's Greg Miglore made a recent visit to Lyman Trail with the 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk. Check out the video to see how the SUV performed. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] We are on Lyman Trail here, deep within the Chelsea proving grounds in the woods. This is where they test all the off-roaders, the Jeeps, the Rams, everything that's capable and needs some sort of a trail rating - this is where they bring it to shake it down. It's all downhill from here. Except when it's rocky and wet. Here we go! [00:00:30] Grand Cherokee Trailhawk is very capable off-road. Of course it's trail-rated. It definitely has all of the gizmos and things that you need to get over the obstacles that we're going to encounter. This first one is called traction. This is where, basically, to be trail-rated the vehicles need to have a certain degree of traction so they can basically, you know, stay sure-footed over certain obstacles. When going up things like this, pick your line, I'm going straight up the middle, and just stay nice and even. [00:10:00] Go straight up let the Jeep do the work, keep on going, skid plates doing their thing, there ya go. This one is over the riverbed. This simulates a dried riverbed. It's rocky, lots of stones here, things you might see on the shores of Lake Michigan. We're just gonna go right over it. Keep it nice and simple. Nice and easy. Okay, hit it kind of hard, gonna straighten the wheels. Again, you hear those skid plates, they are protecting the fuel tank, ... [00:01:30] the transfer case, and the front of the vehicle. So I'm not gonna touch the brakes, I just want to go over it nice and easy. We've come upon one of my favorite events here. This is where you go through the water. It's basically mud, a little bit of a bog kind of thing. Jeeps are so capable, you don't even have to worry about it.The trick about going through the water is to keep a nice even pace ... [00:02:00] and don't loose your nerve. Some people go in the water and are like "woah," freaking out because literally there's water all around you. So, just keep right on going, steer, point the vehicle right on through. We're making some waves here. Keep on going. Keep it smooth. Up the hill we go. And there you have it. Your Jeep not only went off-roading, it went off-landing. That's a bad joke.