TWO DECADES LATER… In 2002, Jeep launched a vehicle that was to become its flagship off-roader. The Rubicon
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lsewhere in this issue, we’ve taken a look back at some stories from the first ever edition of Total Off Road – the magazine which, years later, was to rescue 4x4 from oblivion and make it what it is today. We’ve chosen this issue because it’s the 20th anniversary of TOR’s arrival in the world. But however big a deal this was, we have to confess that it wasn’t 2002’s only big debut in the off-road world. Over on the far side of the Atlantic, Jeep was up to something. The much-loved XJ-generation Cherokee had been replaced by the KJ ‘Liberty’ model, with its independent front suspension – and the die-hards weren’t happy. Maybe the company had second-guessed the reaction its new model was going to get among its most loyal (and critical) fans, however – because it was already working on a vehicle that would turn the off-road market on its head. No, not the Patriot. In 2002, the TJ Wrangler was halfway through its model life. Having done such a fine job of converting America’s off-road masses to coil springs, it was already a hit of monster proportions. But America’s off-road masses had for years, nay decades, been showing their love of modifying – and Jeep tapped into that with a Wrangler that came modified as standard. This was the start of something very, very big. It was the world’s first glimpse of a model which, since then, has been synonymous with the Wrangler’s championing of traditional off-road values. It was the dawning of the age of the Rubicon. Named after the legendary off-road trail in the Sierra Nevada, the Rubicon was an out-of-the-box Wrangler for customers who had until then needed to build their own super-Jeeps. It came with Dana 44 axles, front and rear lockers, a disconnecting sway bar, rock rails and 31” mud-terrain tyres, and nothing else in production could match it off-road. It’s been a Jeep icon ever since. The Rubicon only came to the UK when the TJ model was replaced by the JK in 2007, but even by then it stood for the ultimate in factory-fresh off-road ability. And that’s how it’s been ever since. In the company’s own words, it continues to be ‘a proof of concept for the Jeep brand, where lessons learned in off-road meccas like Moab and feedback gleaned from enthusiasts and brand loyalists continue to push the brand and the entire Jeep line-up forward.’ Hence the Rubicon 20th Anniversary concept. Whereas the original TJ Rubicon was a 2-door, this is a long-wheelbase 4-door model. And it’s special even by the Rubicon’s own elevated standards – because it’s based on the Rubicon 392, the 6.4-litre V8-engined animal at the pinnacle of the range that makes even the everyday Rubicon look ordinary. As well as 470bhp and 470lbf.ft, full-time four-wheel drive and a 4.5-second 0-60 time, it has a strengthened chassis, 33” tyres and
34 | OCTOBER 2022
3pp Jeep Rubicon 20.indd 34
4x4 30/08/2022 14:02
