2013 LA Motor Show: Jeep’s Wrangler Willys Wheeler edition displayed

Jeep has displayed the new Wrangler Willys Wheeler edition at the Los Angeles Motor Show as a salute to their earliest civilian Jeep vehicles. Displaying its true off-roading capabilities it is equipped with a bunch of extra off-roading accessories. The car will go on sale in showrooms early next year with prices starting from USD 25,795 (Rs 16.08 lakh) for the two-door variants and USD 29,595 US Dollars (Rs 18.45 lakh) for the ‘Unlimited’ four-door variants.

  

The 2014 Wrangler Willys Wheeler edition is based on the Wrangler Sport. The one displayed at the show is in dark grey colour but it will be available in the market in any Jeep Wrangler colour. The vehicle gets a gloss black grille with ‘Jeep’ badging in chrome and the bonnet has ‘Willys’ engraved on its sides. The matte-finished front bumpers have fog lamps installed with gloss black surroundings. The 17-inch wheels are painted in gloss black again and wear BFGoodrich’s meaty mud terrain tyres. The vehicle is available with the Sunrider soft top and black-spatter Freedom Top.

  

This edition of the Jeep Wrangler is powered by the 3.6-litre Pentastar V6 engine churning out 285bhp and 352Nm of torque. It is mated to the standard six-speed manual transmission but the vehicle is also available in a five-speed automatic transmission. Sticking to the off-roading capabilities displayed by its other siblings, this one has a Command-Trac 4X4 system with a Dana 44 rear axle and a Trac-Lok limited slip differential. It also features additional accessories like a D-ring, tow strap and gloves all included in a Jeep Trail rated Kit.

  

The Willys is the latest in a long line of special-edition Wranglers: The Wrangler Polar Edition was unveiled two months ago at the Frankfurt Auto Show, and was preceded by a Wrangler Arctic Edition. The Dragon Edition was based on a concept Jeep unveiled at the 2012 Beijing show. Jeep also produced the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Edition and Call of Duty Black Ops Edition in case video gamers feel the Call of the Wild.