THE ART OF THE David Lopez-Lazaro says his dad’s Wrangler is ‘possibly the best equipped JK in the UK.’ Sounds like the sort of thing a dishonest car salesman might say – but as you look around it, you might just start coming round to his point of view… Words: Tom Alderney Pictures: David Lopez-Lazaro
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ossibly the best equipped JK in the UK.’ Now, there’s a bold claim. But David Lopez-Lazaro makes it of his dad’s Wrangler, which he bought new in 2016 and proceeded to turn into a modified adventure wagon with a six-figure price on its head. There’s no shortage of bigged-up Wranglers out there, of course, some of them very cool indeed. But not a lot of them can live with this 3.6-litre V6 Rubicon, whose 40” tyres merely hint at just how comprehensively it’s been upgraded. David says his dad bought the Jeep ‘brand new from the USA via Nene Overland,’ which is a phrase everyone who knows the off-road market will immediately identify as having a great deal of meaning. The company used to import AEV equipment to the UK, and sure enough that’s where the JK’s lift and snorkel come from. The former, a 4.5” DualSport set-up, makes room for the aforementioned Mickey Thompson Baja MTZ P3s, 40x13.5R17 in size, which sit on Fuel OffRoad rims. Big lift and big tyres, though? It’s always at the heart of a good look but if that’s all your truck’s got there’s going to be some fairly painful ho hum action coming your way. That won’t be the case here, though. The Wrangler’s spec list reads like the sort of Jeeps they build in the States. First up, what would you do within the first week of having your new Wrangler delivered? Try it out at a playday site, maybe? (Our editor did that when his Defender 90 was two days old, and he nearly rolled it then buried it up to its axles in mud.) Or a laning trip, perhaps? (Our editor was
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