Jeep is upping the ante in its battle against Ford’s new Bronco by taking the Rubicon 392 from concept to production. That’s what we’ve deduced from today’s spy pictures of a development car looking an awful lot like the V8 Hemi-powered four-door that we were conveniently shown a day before Ford’s new arrival. See those 17-inch wheels and that large bonnet intake? We'd hedge that they're signs of a 6.4-litre lump living under the bonnet.
The concept has 450hp and 450lb ft of torque, so we’d hope for the same in the production version. Suffice to say it equates to a sizeable jump in output over the 285hp Wrangler V6’s output. The concept is said to be capable of a 0-60mph dash in under than five seconds. And that’s with the motor remaining naturally aspirated, too, a state we already know makes the Hemi fantastically responsive. And vocal.
We’d love to get speculating on the prospects of a manual gearbox to go with that V8, but even the concept used an eight-speed auto, so we’d expect the same for the final car. No doubt there’s a stronger business case for a two-pedal Wrangler, to go with the car’s already comprehensive suite of off-road systems. The spied development car keeps the concept’s mud-terrain boots, suggesting Jeep’s not been tempted to produce a road-biased performance car but rather a more muscular go-anywhere machine.
That’s fine by us, especially because we’re expecting the trick hardware beneath the V8 concept’s body to be incorporated into the production version. It’s a serious setup, with the 392 Concept using aluminium monotube Fox dampers, third-gen Dana 44 axles, a 'Selec-Track' two-speed transfer case, 'Tru-lok' electric front and locking rear differentials. The concept also has a Mopar two-inch lift kit for extra articulation and better approach and departure angles. Perhaps that’ll come as an option on the finished car for the ultimate ‘in yer face’ response to the Bronco.
The only question remains whether such a car will make it to British shores. It seems less likely, given the UK’s relatively small share of international demand for Jeeps, but then again we do like big, powerful SUVs with retro designs this side of the Atlantic. Just ask Mercedes.
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