Born for the battlefield, the first Jeeps rolled off assembly lines in 1941 and headed straight to active duty for the United States Army. They would \u201cforever be known for helping win a world war,\u201d according to a history of the brand, which had bold plans early on, according to one imperial slogan: \u201cThe Sun Never Sets on the Mighty Jeep.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the war, Jeep came home to the farm with an off-roader available to the public. The Willys-Overland \u201cjeep,\u201d which had won the government contract for the Army vehicles, was converted into a civilian Jeep, or CJ, and hit showrooms in 1945. It was the world\u2019s first light-duty four-wheel-drive vehicle.<\/p>\n
Celebrating its 80th birthday on Thursday, Jeep has been held by a steady succession of owners over the years. It is now part of Stellantis, and has held a firm grip on the off-road market ever since. It has a fervent fan base, and with an electric focus for its future, is intent on maintaining its status as a king of the off-road.<\/p>\n
The goal, according to Christian Meunier, the Jeep brand\u2019s chief executive, is ambitious: \u201cto make Jeep the greenest S.U.V. brand in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are bringing capability to the next level by combining sustainability, eco-friendliness and fun,\u201d he added. \u201cFor 80 years, the Jeep brand has been indelibly linked to freedom, adventure, authenticity and passion,\u201d he said. And Jeep\u2019s latest release, he added, the Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid, \u201cis just the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jeep owners \u2014 who have grown to consider the \u201cGo Anywhere, Do Anything\u201d slogan as a way of life, not just words on paper \u2014 will be watching.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a Jeep thing, you wouldn\u2019t understand,\u201d said Rick P\u00e9w\u00e9, the brand\u2019s longtime unofficial evangelist-critic, employing another slogan often used among the faithful. Mr. P\u00e9w\u00e9, a writer who spent 25 years in publishing, much of it covering Jeep, is retired and part of Gone-Gpn, an online outlet dedicated to Jeep and its cult following.<\/p>\n
He has been true to the brand for many decades. \u201cMy dad was a field geologist, so we always had Jeeps,\u201d said Mr. P\u00e9w\u00e9, 64. \u201cI got my first Jeep in high school, which I still have.\u201d It resides among two dozen other Jeeps at his Arizona home. \u201cOf course, that\u2019s my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\n
He has piloted many major Jeep excursions himself. Like a monthlong jaunt from Phoenix to Fairbanks, Alaska, and back driving his father\u2019s restored 1943 World War II Jeep. Outfitted with a \u201csoft top, open doors and lack of power,\u201d he said, it provided a wonderful yet wild ride \u2014 including a rollover. The Jeep was rebuilt and made it home safely. That same Jeep went on to complete the famed Rubicon trail and has been driven from Los Angeles to Nova Scotia and back.<\/p>\n
Jeep\u2019s rugged abilities are a draw to fans, and the brand has cultivated that mystique over the years. In 1978, what was known as the Expedition of the Americas \u201ctook Jeep vehicles across North America, Central America and South America,\u201d Mr. Meunier said. \u201cThese vehicles traversed the Dari\u00e9n Gap\u201d \u2014 at the Panama-Colombia border \u2014 \u201cfloated rivers and cut through terrain that no vehicle before, or since, has even attempted.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over 22 million Jeep vehicles have been produced worldwide since 1941, the company said. Its top models now are the Wrangler and Grand Cherokee.<\/p>\n
Shannon Ross, 33, grew up in small-town Dallas, Ore., wrenching on rigs \u2014 particularly the 1953-56 Ford pickup trucks her father and brothers fixed up.<\/p>\n
\u201cI learned a lot of skill sets from my dad, who was a mechanic on D7 Caterpillars in Vietnam,\u201d Ms. Ross said. \u201cI built my first car from the ground up with him.\u201d The vehicle? A 1981 Mercury Capri.<\/p>\n
She recently became a member of the Salem, Ore., Jeepers club and started customizing her 2014 Jeep JKU, which she bought after her parents\u2019 deaths in 2017 and 2018. Ms. Ross, who is going through a difficult divorce after a 14-year marriage, as well, has made \u201camazing friendships and started to pull out of a deep depression I hadn\u2019t realized I was in until I found happiness in the off-roading world,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She was drawn to Jeep \u201cbecause of the simplicity of being able to modify them fairly simply and the availability of parts.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Mr. P\u00e9w\u00e9, the Jeep Life goes deeper than a hobby.<\/p>\n
He graduated from college in 1980 with a degree in geography and worked at four-wheel-drive shops to support \u201cthe habit,\u201d he said. In 1984 he bought <\/strong>a Jeep parts distribution company and turned it into Republic Off-Road, a Jeep-centric four-wheel-drive shop in Tempe, Ariz. After 10 years of growth and successful Jeep builds, he worked his way into auto writing, with a particular focus on Jeep.<\/p>\n He has substantial insights into the brand, and opinions, too. \u201cJeep has gone through so many owners,\u201d Mr. P\u00e9w\u00e9 said, \u201cwhich leads to challenging bureaucratic type of messiness that none of the engineers want to give into.\u201d<\/p>\n However, he described a core group of brand stalwarts who do understand Jeep. \u201cWithout those top-notch \u2018lunatic fringe\u2019 Jeep people down in the trenches, the Wrangler would have failed as an icon years ago,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s the core people, the true Jeepers of the group, that kept it successful.\u201d<\/p>\n Jeep recently recognized Mr. P\u00e9w\u00e9\u2019s dedication and advocacy throughout the decades by placing an \u201cEaster egg\u201d of sandals on the Jeep Wrangler JL windshield cowling \u2014 in honor of his favorite footwear.<\/p>\n To the enthusiasts, owning a Jeep gives them freedom, confidence and a sense of adventure. Ms. Ross conquered a fear of heights by traversing off-road obstacles in Moab, Utah. \u201cI felt confident enough in my Jeep to get me where I was going and to get me home.\u201d She says the Jeep community is helping her heal and become more self-assured.<\/p>\n \u201cMy Jeep has helped me reconnect to the girl I am,\u201d Ms. Ross said. \u201cKnowing how my Jeep works helps me help others on the trails, particularly the ladies of the Jeeping world.\u201d She helps empower other women as they learn how to wrench on their Jeeps. \u201cIt\u2019s important we build a strong group of educated women wheelers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Jeep has supported events such as Jeep Jamborees, the Jeep Adventure Academy and the all-women\u2019s Rebelle Rally. \u201cFor more than 50 years, thousands of passionate Jeep enthusiasts have trekked to the annual Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah,\u201d Mr. Meunier said.<\/p>\n Jeep has an impressive history, beyond its battlefield success. Its 1963 Wagoneer was the first S.U.V. to combine four-wheel-drive with an automatic transmission, and the 1984 Cherokee XJ was the first compact S.U.V. with a car-like unibody construction and shift-on-the-fly Command-Trac four-wheel-drive system.<\/p>\n The 2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid is the first production Jeep with E.V. features, available now. It sports 21 miles of all-electric range, and packs 375 horsepower overall.<\/p>\n \u201cAll Jeep models will carry an electrified option in the next few years,\u201d Mr. Meunier said, \u201cand will take green and 4×4 technology to the next level.\u201d<\/p>\n The hot-ticket item during this year\u2019s Easter Jeep Safari was the 2021 all-electric Magneto BEV concept. The Magneto was tuned to emulate the vehicle\u2019s original 3.6-liter V6, going from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 6.8 seconds.<\/p>\n The Magneto, unexpectedly, featured a stick shift, and its electric \u201cwhine\u201d was boisterous, unlike the near-silent sound of other E.V.s. Its hum matched its throttle response and effort over obstacles, increasing in pitch and effort as it traversed its testing ground.<\/p>\n Off road, the electrified Magneto felt sure-footed and capable, just like its combustion-engine forebears.<\/p>\n