In this episode of Munro Live Sandy is joined by a long time legend at Munro, David Oberholtzer (OB1) as they look under the Jeep Wrangler 4xe and tell the audience what they have found. Once again, Sandy brings up his lifelong love of Jeeps and so it is no surprise that he is considering buying another one soon, as the Cybertruck’s delivery have been pushed out until late 22′ or early 23′.
First Sandy rattles off the specs of the vehicle, stopping to emphasize that the 17-kWh Lithium Ion battery which can bring extra torque to the vehicle (an important point for Jeep off-roading enthusiasts).
Overall though, the Jeep Wrangler 4xe Rubicon has been reported to have a nice feel while driving with reduced noise and comfortable seating and suspension. Cory remarked that he didn’t hear the engine kick in once when driving the vehicle back and forth from Munro & Associates to home which is impressive.
When looking at the suspension, Dave points out that it is the same as all of the newer Rubicon Jeep Wranglers. It also has the smart bar, which has an electronic disconnect on the sway bar allowing off-roaders to keep a better connection to the terrain when encountering highly uneven surfaces such as rocks/boulders at varying heights, logs, etc. This Jeep Wrangler 4xe Rubicon also has a front camera that allows the driver to better see the terrain in front of them and make better navigation choices when confronting rugged and difficult environments.
OB1 gives praise to the engineers that designed this vehicle as they had to fit all of the suspension and 4×4 drive train components as a regular Jeep while accommodating all of the electric hybrid aspects. There is a lot going on in the underbelly of this beast.
The electronics and mostly kept within the super module except for the battery pack which is housed underneath the rear seat which unfortunately didn’t get a chance to look at in this video. Another amazing fact about this vehicle is that it also houses two electric motors – one in the front on the engine which is a motor generator unit and one inside the transmission coupled directly in the drivetrain. OB1 points out that this same hybrid with all of it’s complexities is assembled on the same line as the regular ICE Jeeps which in and of itself is amazing.
The rear of the vehicle also contains the same drivetrain and suspension components as what you would find on a standard Jeep while also accommodating the extra hybrid infrastructure. The tow package and trailer connections are the same rugged build, which makes it one of the only hybrids that we know can really tow loads that are heavy.
All in all, the Jeep engineers have maintained all of the cherished characteristics their customers desire including the ability to modify the vehicle with the packages for lifts, bushbars, etc. Our hats off to their team. As a former Jeep owner myself, I am glad that Jeep can maintain it’s brand and quality while moving into the electric sphere.
On a sad, note one of our dearly loved associates, Mark Ellis, our god of electrification has passed on. He would have loved to have a look at this vehicle as he really enjoyed pulling apart anything new. He will be sorely missed.
