625-HP Jeep Wrangler EV Leads 2022 Easter Jeep Safari Lineup

If you've never been to any part of this nine-day event, add it to your bucket list. The rock-crawling is intense, enthusiasm for the off-roading scene is palpable, and the scenery is dreamlike. This year is no exception with seven new builds, so let's check them out. 

An all-electric Wrangler Magneto debuted last year in Moab, and the Jeep team decided to amp it up even more for 2022. Magneto 2.0 started with a custom-built axial flux electric motor, six-speed manual transmission (Caleb explains it here), four distributed lithium-ion battery packs, and a race car inverter. Now, the Magneto concept boasts 850 pound-feet of peak torque, which is more than three times the output of the 2021 concept. On top of that, the Wrangler brings 625 horsepower. 

It's fast, yeah. As in, if Road Runner could turn into a Jeep, he'd no doubt be Magneto 2.0. Wile E. Coyote would be left in the dust, of course, because it can't end any other way. The Jeep was newly calibrated to blast from zero to 60 in a blistering two seconds. TWO. SECONDS. Engineers pumped it up by giving it the ability to maintain peak amperage for up to 10 seconds, which Jeep describes as "electronic nitrous oxide." Meep meep, indeed. 

If Keanu Reeves’ Point Break character Johnny Utah had a Jeep, this would be it. The Bob Concept is for those who like the Gladiator but don’t want all that pesky overhang. Jeep slashed the back end of the truck bed by 12 inches, added custom steel front and rear bumpers, and jacked it up with a three-inch lift kit. Holes were punched through the custom hardtop and a swath of canvas has been stretched across the top for open access to the sun. 

Gonzo 40-inch tires are wrapped around tough-looking 20-inch beadlock wheels so if those monsters go flat, you can still limp along like Johnny Utah after he twisted his knee chasing the robbers. Dynatrac Pro-Rock 60 axles, King Coils, and Bypass shocks round out the mix.

As the late, great Patrick Swayze said as renegade surfer Bodhi, "We stand for something. We are here to show those guys that are inching their way on the freeways in their metal coffins that the human spirit is still alive." Amen. 

The devil went down to Moab and said, "Gimme a Jeep that suits me" and the D-Coder Concept was born. Beelzebub was apparently into tech, because this particular vehicle is emblazoned with a series of scannable QR codes that link to the Mopar eStore. The D-Coder is equipped with 35 JPP and Mopar accessories, each painted can't-miss-it Maraschino Red. The idea for this concept is for Jeep enthusiasts to see a multitude of available parts in real-time as a sort of catalog on wheels.

Sitting on beefy BFGoodrich KM3 37-inch tires, the D-Coder has been fitted with a JPP two-inch lift kit with FOX shocks. JPP 17-by-8.5-inch five-spoke beadlock wheels accost your eyes with a blaze of red, and a crimson snorkel snakes around the frame, clinging to the edge of a JPP Gorilla Glass windshield. A monster bumper hosts Tyri 7-inch LED off-road lights and a Rubicon Warn winch, and inside the cabin, super-soft Katzkin leather is folded around both rows of seats. 

You'll hear it coming: the D-Coder is equipped with a Mopar cat-back dual-exhaust system. 

The newest member of the Grand Cherokee family, the hybrid 4xe, is debuting at the Easter Jeep Safari resplendent in a coat of Industrial Blue, accented by 4xe Lagoon Blue tow hooks. Jeep says the 4xe's two electric motors, a 400-volt battery pack, 2.0-liter turbocharged, four-cylinder engine will return 56 MPGe and 25 miles of all-electric range. 

In the Trailhawk 4xe trim, this concept arrives with air suspension, sway-bar disconnect, and 20-inch metallic matte wheels surrounded with 33-inch BFG mud-terrain tires. Open the door and you'll find custom upholstered seats with fancy houndstooth inserts. This is the carriage Cinderella would have wanted if she had a craving for some kombucha at the local Whole Foods after the ball. 

From the outside, you'll see this concept as a tribute to the Wrangler Willys of yesteryear, but the '41 Concept is a modern Wrangler 4xe underneath. It's fitted with two electric motors, a battery pack, a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission. With an estimated 49 MPGe and up to 21 miles of electric range, this Jeep might sneak up on you on the trail in EV mode. 

Jeep's D.R.A.B. ‘41 matte green takes center stage here from the exterior paint to the instrument panel inserts to the Rhino-lined heavy texture floor. It sits on seventeen-inch Fifteen52 wheels, 35-inch tires, and a JPP two-inch lift kit. Retro design touches include a tan soft top, JPP half doors, and a throwback shifter with custom Army-style graphics. Fans of M.A.S.H., Saving Private Ryan, and Hogan's Heroes are going to dig this one. 

Imagine Clint Eastwood in a Jeep. It would probably look like this one, which employs rugged interior colors like Tobacco Leaf and Cocoa Brown. Riding on massive BFGoodrich KM3 37-inch tires, the Birdcage is equipped with a JPP two-inch lift kit with FOX shocks, a custom rock-slider skid plate, and underbody rock lights. 

A custom JPP instrument-panel accessory rail holds mobile devices in place, and Armorlite vinyl flooring has drainplugs installed to hose out the whole thing after Dirty Harry chases the bad guys across Moab. Then, of course, he would grab a frosty beverage from his cooler, which is concealed by a concept decklid panel. Jeep says this trunk feature uses gas-assisted shocks to lift the top so you can still access your stuff when the swing gate is open. 

Go ahead. Make my day. 

Happy birthday, Wrangler Rubicon. Two decades ago, Jeep launched its Rubicon in the summer of 2002 and it continues to hold its own in the market. Based on the Rubicon 392 with a wonderfully obnoxious (says me) 6.4-liter V8, the four-door 20th Anniversary Concept comes with active dual-mode performance exhaust. The belly of the beast is protected by a steel plate and the whole thing is raised up with a JPP two-inch lift kit. Steel bumpers and a Warn winch bookend the Wrangler, and 17-inch Mopar beadlock-capable wheels with 37-inch mud-terrain tires ride in between. 

Twenty years ago, the Rubicon was a trendsetter, including rock rails, Dana 44 axles, front and rear lockers, disconnecting sway bar, and more. Now it also has a power roof that opens with one button. Classic Jeep owners will appreciate the history on this one, as will fans of loud, roaring internal combustion engines. 

Finally, Jeep is showcasing three more concepts that were unveiled at the 2021 SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) Show last fall. Designed to encourage owners to stretch their imaginations of what a Jeep can be, the lineup includes the Jeep Wrangler Overlook concept, which started as a four-door Wrangler Sahara that was stretched out like Silly Putty into a three-row off-roader. The Kaiser Jeep M725 concept started out as a 1967 Kaiser Jeep M725 military ambulance. And the Jeep Wrangler 4xe concept shows off the options available for the newest hybrid Wrangler. 

I'll arrive in Moab on Sunday to see these unusual beasts in person. Got any questions? Leave 'em in the comments. 

Want to talk about Jeep? Send me a note: kristin.shaw@thedrive.com.