I am not against change, but, why must DCX get away from the 4.0...other than the fact that it is basically bullet proof. The 3.7 has nowhere near the torque of the 4.0

The whole idea of all this new technology is to lessen breakdowns. I will take the new cars to the old ones anyday.
Of course I don't drive my Jeeps until they have 200,000 miles on them. I guess I may have a different opinion if I had no warranty or money to fix them.

You forgot to mention 10 Years of learning how to cost cut and cheapen things with plastics and glue. Gotta love that quantum technology leap. I think my favorite part is not even being able to work on my own car without a laptop and 100 other custom tools. Cutting away plastic covers to actually see the engine.
Sorry I just don't dig the cost cutting trends which is what most of the so called "improvements" are. Can't work on it yourself and they expect you to bring it into thier shop for 100$ an hour for a computer software tune-up.
Anybody else miss the days when an engine was just an engine? I have so many pressure vessels and canisters under the hood all wired together into sensors and crap. 100 some odd fuses, 900 vacumm tubes that primarly re-feed carbon back into the engine, and WHY IS EVERY FREGGEN BOLT A DIFFERENT SIZE??? They should pick a couple sizes and stick to it.
I think the only purpose of todays cars is to break down pre-maturely so the dealership can overcharge you to fix them.
A car should be built so that its owner can mantain it. You should not have to be a computer programer and master electrician to adjust your fuel ratio.

Well - at least it won't have square headlights. {{{ putting on flame suit }}}

Don't defend that FJ too quickly, they already watered down lots of the big features on it. Originally it featured a built in winch, 33" tires, spotlights on the mirrors. All of those features are not going to make it to production, sucks to be Toyota. Id put money on the jeep Rubicon anyday.

Be nice if jeep would offered up a fixed roof SUV with stock 33" tires... and a manual! ;)

Actually, check out the assemble on the rear tires from the back view. Is that a disk brake assembly or something more? Also, when looking from the side view at the front axle, you can see a diff. housing but it looks like there is light where there should be axle. Am I looking too far into this simple spy shot or are we seeing something more? Something similar but less complex than the Hurricane 4wd system maybe?

OnlyOneJeep, if everyone was like you and decided to "stick with the original" we wouldn't even have jeep ... we'd all have a horse-n-buggy because no one would try to improve on something that already works.

A god forbid it be easier to remove the hardtop, possibly even store the hard top inside the jeep. You just keep your jeeps. No one dissagrees tht they are good jeeps, but belive it or not there are jeepers that like improvement and would like a "new" jeep.

The "new" Jeep will not have an "open tub" and hence....will greatly deviate from the original..

Take your 5-panel removable top and shove it up your 5-panel a**!

[quote]I have been S
EAMING it...Are You People Deaf, or Just Stupid?!?!?!?!?

I find that some of you people really dont read the news posts, you just pick up a few key-words and run your fat pie-holes off, and then get mad when people dont agree with you...Besides, there are other places that provide Jeep News besides the Internet...They are called (read in a condescending tone) MAG-A-ZINES...

OK... ONE MORE TIME FOR ALL THE STUPID PEOPLE...[/quote]


Are you even old enough to drive?

I'm not so sure the FJ will be watered down. Not that it
means anything, but they are saying that they consider
the Wrangler Rubicon to be their benchmark. That is a
pretty brash statement if they are planning on RAV4ing
it. I personally don't care because a 4 door wrangler
finally looks like it will be a reality. My XJ will have a
worthy successor.

My sources say the same thing, removable panels soft and hard and hemi v6 option in the 4 door.

Ten years from now when the succesor to the TK arrives we will have the same types of arguements, just like when the tj arrived!!!! I hope the camo is hidding the tub...a wrangler without the tub?????? Now that would be starying too far away from the heritage of the wrangler.

It needs the new 3.0 diesel from the Grand Cherokee or the new 3.2 and 4.2 liter Mercedes diesels.

Which brings me back to the prophetic words of Jim Allen in
JEEP, pg. 133:

"Will safety mavens and roadless initiative supporters legislate
the trail-worthy, short-wheelbase Jeep out of existence...[and]
kill the concept as 'unfit for human consumption'"?

Bet Jeep still manages to find a way to put a D35 under it. I'm not impressed. I'll keep my 97 Sport till it turns to dust.

Another one of those smiley, happy, shiny Jeep; always a sunny day- owners I guess..?

Sorry to burst your Day-Glo bubble...but sometimes it rains....

And without rain; there be NO mud...

Kinda makes the Real Definition of a Jeep pointless; wouldn't you say?

The new Wrangler might have a re-designed 3.8, V6 or the
totally new 4.0, V6 instead of engine currently powering the
Liberty.

For more information on these new engines:
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?
ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/05-16-2005/
0003630438&EDATE=

Blah blah blah, pessimism, blah blah blah, negativity, blah blah blah, I hate airbags, blah blah blah, someone hold me.

Ha! The FJ Cruiser is going to be so watered down by the time it hits the market it and the RAV4 are going to be "stuck in the mud" buddies!

I really don't think that there is anything in these pictures that suggest that it has a fixed roof. In fact there are a few things that actually may indicate that it dose have a removable top after all.

First, if you look close it looks like there may be hinges for a folding windshield, and second, look at the location of the third brake light. It is mounted on the spare tire carrier like on the current TJ. I would think if the top was fixed they would put the third brake light on the top above the rear window like on the Grand Cherokee and Liberty.

Here are a couple of reasons that might lead Jeep to not put the 3.7l in the Wrangler.#1 Does the engine plant have enough capacity. The 3.7l is in the Grand Cherokee, Liberty, Dakota & Ram truck. All these vehicles sell fairly well. #2 If you look under the hood today and see all the electronics & emission controls stuffed in there a 60 degree V6 engine would probably fit better than a 90 degree V6

offer the new Wrangler with the
D and the 6 speed manual and I'll be first in line to place my order.

The TK represents 10 years of evolution from the TJ model...

10 more years of production fine-tuning...

10 more years of suspension development...

10 more years of fit-and-finish fine tuning...

10 more years of material and fabric perfecting...

10 more years of paint and rustproofing knowledge (my TJ paint is holding up pretty well after 9 years)...

10 more years of Research and Development (Jeep engineers were looking to the TJ's replacement as early as 1997 with the Jeep ICON concept...)

The list can go on forever, but the bottom line is that YES, the TK will represent a quantum leap from the TJ model, just as the TJ took a quantum leap from the YJ model.

While there are still many variables that each individual Jeep owner and prospective buyer would like to see met (some people want a fixed roof, some want a removable 1-piece hardtop, I want a 5 panel removable top system, some want SFA some want 4WIFS, etc) I think that overall, the TK will satisfy the needs of all customers.

If I ever have money again I am leaning towards the new FJ Cruiser.

No,I checked the previous spy photos for the 4 door and the front arms connect to the inside of the front frame rails. SFA!!!!!!!

Until now I was uncertain about waiting for this new wrangler, but It looks to be well porportioned and the 4 door rubicon will look very simular to these spy photos. I also like the bigger wheel openings, those are 33" tires on that second jeep rubicon. The big word is the 2006 wrangler will have a 3.7 v6, I will know for sure next week.

P.S> looking at the side view photo, you can see the cammo cover being pushed into an open space on the side, suggestion that there is an integrated rollcage under there, ala' the Jeep ICON concept.

Doesn't look bad at all from what we can see. I wouldn't expect a whole lot of body change. If that is a metal roof we will probably end up with something like the Defender 90 set up. A hard top wagon model and a soft top model. I bet you will see that the front end is very close if not exactly like the Gladiator Concept where the front grill is angled back a bit. As far as the interior upgrade you can probably expect something like a Liberty dash variation. The Liberty dash is very upright already and it would probably work pretty well in the new Wrangler. Air bags are not going to have any effect one way other the other. There are already several true offroad vehicles that have had to deal with that problem i.e. Land Rover and Jeep GC, Liberty. I don't expect that will cause very many problems and I would bet that it has a shut off switch. Actually..with the mention of the Wrangler being wider it is probably going to come in real close to the size of the 2 door Defender as that vehicle is a bit bigger than the Wrangler. Bottom line....we can't see much and we don't have many details but from what we can see so far so good. Good news is for people who don't want the changed version, you should be able to make a real sweet deal on a Wrangler around this time next year. The more info we get the more people are going to want to wait for the new version.

From the pics it looks like it has a metal roof.

Cool! It is too hard to tell much from these photos but it does appear that DCX has it in mind to keep the Wrangler as a true to the original as possible while still meeting contemporary crash standards. I believe (and pray) that it will continue to be the fun ride it is. Oh and I hope and pray that we see a truck version with a 4 cyl diesel. Are you listening DCX?

Bill

Not that I doubt anyones sources, but I can't fully understand why they wouldn't use the 3.7 V6? Other than wanting to market the "hemi" option to get more sales and possibly have MDS, I don't see the point. I'm not saying that the hemi V6 is a bad idea, I guess I just don't understand why they even built the 3.7 a few years ago in the first place if this 3.5 hemi is coming out.

Almost makes me wonder if there is something wrong with the 3.7, or that DCX is also planning on phasing out the 3.7 and it's parent V8. This is only my speculation.

Don't argue w/ him... he gets his information from MA-GA-ZINES.

I dont see why everyone thinks there will be no soft-top option...

Daimler is looking to build a convertible 300C, so I dont think that they are too worried about the liability issues of a convertible top...

I have been S
EAMING it...Are You People Deaf, or Just Stupid?!?!?!?!?

I find that some of you people really dont read the news posts, you just pick up a few key-words and run your fat pie-holes off, and then get mad when people dont agree with you...Besides, there are other places that provide Jeep News besides the Internet...They are called (read in a condescending tone) MAG-A-ZINES...

JP magazine wrote a report on the Next Gen TK, this is but one of my sources...

OK... ONE MORE TIME FOR ALL THE STUPID PEOPLE...

The Friggin' Side Impact Airbags are going into the Integrated Roll Bar, which will mount the 5-panel removable hard top, and/or the 5 panel canvas soft top...

The doors will still be removable, and the windshield will still fold down (cant do that with a fixed roof)...

In a worst case scenario, there will be a side impact module that stretches across the door, which will hold all of the necessary door equipment (hinges, door lock and paddle, and side-impact module) and there will be a removable door panel (again, soft or hard).

The Wrangler will offer a 2.4 liter 4 Cyl engine (Mabye we can expect the turbo Wrangler SRT?), the 2.8
D, a 3.5 L V-6 (possibly Hemi-based), not the 3.7L currently in the Liberty, and the 5.7 Liter Hemi...

It would make sense that Daimler engineer a Hemi-based V-6...They would only have to engineer for 2 engines, not 3, as the V-6 and V-8 Hemi engines would be virtually the same from the engine mounts back, and there would be the option of MDS...

Also, I wouldn't count out the current 2.4L engine in favor of the much-discussed 'Global Engine', It is still a solid, proven engine...

Remember, Daimler walked from a previous 'global' engine program with BMW that powered the Willy's concept car, and was (or may still) to power the entry level Scout...You may have heard of it, BMW used it for it's Mini Cooper (Imagine, a John Cooper Works Willys...).

Pardon me for Ranting...but some people get the idea that there will be no soft-top on the Wrangler..They got this idea from the Motor Trend Photoshop pic of the Rescue, that was made into a 'What-If' photo, but was not any type of representation of what the next-gen Wrangler would be...

Besides, a full on-hard-top would be too Top Heavy, causing the Wrangler to be roll-over-prone (ever Really wonder why the DAKAR wasn't built?), which is what the Jeep engineers have spent the last 25 or so years trying to prevent...

I believe the exhaust was moved to the rear because of some legislation regarding the placement of the fuel tank (ie. Grand Cherokee moved theirs to the side middle, Pontiac GTO had to move theirs to right behind the rear seats).

Most of things everyone is complaining about on the newer vehicles comes from the US Govt and Insurance companies not DCX. All of the computer tech in the engine is required by the govt to meet the OBD-II, emission and mpg requirements. The added weight and weaker plastic bumpers are required to meet saftey standards. The lack of a softtop will be a result of side airbag requirements. If the EPA and the insurance companies could have everything their way we would all be driving the exact same little econo boxes.

The rear suspension looks to be lifted from the Liberty,
complete with the vulnerably low shock mounts. The exhaust
placement mirrors that of a Chrysler Mini-van. As least they
removed the dreaded "shovel" transfer case/transmission skid-
plate in favor of a "tummy-tuck" model. Ground clearance is not
noticeably higher.

The design will probably be the same as the Gladiator Concept
from the front-end to the rear-edge of the doors; the square
back-end looks very Defender-90-like. Sadly, the doors will lack
high sills (just like a car) to prevent water intrusion. The
bumpers will lose their ruggedness and be made of plastic (just
like a car). I doubt a soft-top will be an option.

Overall, I am not impressed. The Jeep has finally become
modernized both mechanically and in design, and in the process
-- well, sterilized.

My point exactly; Mr/Mrs. "comment"!

Right on!

Taller, longer, wider, heavier, more expensive ... but better?

The rake angle of the windshield of the TK is the same as the TJ...

That is a straight axle in the spy shot...

Yes the control arm is a bit skinny, buut current TJ owneres are driving an a stamped piece that is probably made out of the same amount of metal...

That is not a fixed hard top under the Cammo...It is a soft-top frame...Remember the ASC soft top concept that was in a news story a few months back on this site? That may just have been a dropped hint as to the next soft top on the Wrnagler...

Would definitely be a one-person job to raise the soft top.

""Kinda makes the Real Definition of a Jeep pointless; wouldn't you say?""

How about you travel back in time to the US Army motor pools circa 1917 and find out what exactly the mechanics meant by the term "Jeep" when they coined it, then come on back to the present and fill us all in on what you learned.

Gotta love that new 3/36 warranty.....that new Jeep is gonna be a keeper............As American as a Marysville Honda..........

It seems like from that angle the front axle is in a higher position??? If you look close everything underneath is tucked into the frame even the control arms...they do seem a bit small????

i also wasnt sure about solid axles or not from the photos, but in my opinion DCX should split the wrangler segment into 2 vehicles: give us a hard SFA SRA offroad vehicle, and give a separate vehicle for the people who want a convertable. best of both worlds... but if the TK has SFA and SRA, then i guess i'm happy

This jeep defiantly has a solid front axle. If you look close at the front tire in the second picture you can see what appears to be the bottom of the axle tube. Also if it was IFS you would probably be able to see the lower A-arm like on the Liberty and GC.

The origninal spy photos are of a vehicle that is mostly TJ parts, so naturally that would have SFA. However, I believe the TK shown in these new photos also has SFA, from the side view you can definately see a front control arm similar to the TJ's.

Another note, look at how much more sloped the front windshield is over the TJ. And is that a muffler under the back or the gas tank? It looks like the exhaust pipe is coming out of the side of that canister, but its hard to tell. Also note the different shape of the wheel arches, and the pointed instead of rounded corner on the passenger door (much like the front Gladiator doors.)

it appears to have IFS on the front,but its hard to tell on the rear????? The front suspension arms are not in the same location if it is sfa????????

Looks like it is a fixed top, with the trailer hitch mounted on there I would expect they plan to expand the C.R.D. engine into this model as well... with a Slush-box undoubtably.

Isn't it the law they put air-bags in?

That "fixed metal" roof is probably the 5-panel removable hard top and integrated roll cage.

I can't see Jeep giving up their bread and butter convertible. They wouldn't even be able to attract new Jeep buyers with a "fixed" roof that is not removable.

And I don't know why rockcrawler.com is making such presumptions about the roof being fixed, under all of the padded camo...Those corners could be cardboard duct taped to the roll bar for all they know.

If anything, an integrated rollcage would serve as mounting points for the 5-panel hard top, the 5 panel soft top, the stereo speakers, and the mandated side impact air cushions.

Looks more evolutoinary than revolutionary, just like Jeep said.

I have a Wrangler and my wife has a Liberty
build a Gladiator and I will buy it.
Don't and I buy a Toyota.
It's up to you Jeep.
I would like to stay with a Jeep, but need a truck at home.

Airbags still SUCK......

My YJ doesn't have 'em...doesn't need 'em....

I don't live in a bubble...

I ride my Harley with no helmet....

Ride it fast, ride it hard....just like Jeep used to be.....

Just because it walks like a duck; and talks like a duck....don't make it a Jeep...It could be just a quack after all.....

At least now they have a nicer vehicle to affix their shiny trail-rated badges to..........................

"Who needs 'dem stinking badges, anyways?"

If this has airbags....then it's NOT a REAL JEEP..!!