49th Annual Easter Jeep Safari concepts

Seven very cool Jeeps created for a week of off-roading in Moab. Wrangler Red Rock Responder anyone?

Sometimes it's easy to forget how serious off-roading is taken in America. Ignorant Europeans probably think immediately of quarter-mile drags and canyon blasts in the US before considering the 4x4 craze. It takes something like Jeep producing seven (!) new concepts for a off-road rally to jog the memory.

Based on a Wrangler!

The 49th Easter Jeep Safari takes place on the Moab trails from March 28-April 5, where thousands of die-hard off-roadists will rock across to Utah for nine days of Jeep appreciation. Concept cars have been part of the event since 2002, with over 50 shown since then.

The seven cars for the 2015 event are built using a combination of production and prototype Jeep Performance parts meaning, in theory, similar cars could be built up by willing customers. There isn't space to go through all seven here (and the Renegade isn't that interesting) but a few of the concepts certainly merit attention.

Jeep Chief is a good name for a car. It's the blue thing here, based on a Wrangler but intended to evoke the 70s Cherokee. There are mag wheels, chrome bumpers and a 'French Bread' white roof. The beach is calling...

Well if you want to do retro off-roader...

The Wrangler predictably forms the basis for many of the Jeep concepts. The Staff Car is another retro themed offering, built 'as a salute to legendary Jeep military service vehicles.' So there are no doors, no B-pillars, military style headlamps and a built-in cooler capable of holding 85 cans. Of what isn't disclosed... It's not all style without substance either, the Staff Car riding on 35-inch Firestone military tyres (with a spare), a Jeep lift kit and new Fox dampers.

Need more luxury? Try the Wrangler Africa. With four doors and painted in 'Desert Tan', the Africa is designed for 'overland expeditions'. Auxiliary fuel cans on the wings, 35-inch mud terrain tyres and new axles should ensure you get a long way!

But all those are made to look rather tame compared to the Wrangler Red Rock Responder. Not coming to a superhero film near you soon. It's designed as a support vehicle, that rear cargo box carrying spares and tools for a vehicle emergency. It has the full roster of off-road extras, from 37-inch mud terrain tyres to new Dana axles, a winch and a fire extinguisher. Stuck off-roading? Red Responder to the rescue!

Can we have one for Le Mans?

There are Cherokee-based Easter Safari concepts too, with the Overlander probably the best of them. Why? It's got a tent on it! According to Jeep it represents the 'rough-and-tumble side' of the Jeep Cherokee, designed for those enthusiasts who travel and camp out of their vehicle on expeditions.

So it promises to be an entertaining nine days for Jeep and its fans over Easter. How on earth do you top the Red Rock Responder for the 50th Safari?