If you’re like most folks, you’ll likely gather with family members to mark the upcoming Easter holiday. Serious Jeep fans may also like to get together with friends and family, but the gathering often takes place out in wide-open spaces.
For the 53th consecutive year, Jeep is hosting its Moab Easter Safari and, along with Fiat Chrysler’s Mopar parts division, it’s come up with an assortment of six customized models that will join in on the fun.
And for this year’s safari, Jeep will be bringing along something completely new: customized versions of the 2020 Gladiator, the brand’s first new pickup in 27 years. Here’s a look at the six Moab Easter Jeep Safari concept:
(Jeep, Mopar let it all hang out for Moab in 2018. To see last year’s offerings, Click Here.)
Jeep Gladiator Gravity
What would a Jeep be without an assortment of customized parts. The brand-new Gladiator is no exception, with a total of at least 200 parts and accessories expected to be on hand by the time the first of the new pickups roll into showrooms. Gladiator can be ordered with either a canvas or removable hardtop and the Gravity opts for the fabric roof, the truck finished in Punk’n metallic paint and rock-climbing graphics. The concept is a showcase of those initial options, including a 2-inch suspension lift, Gear wheels shod with 35×12.50R-17 Goodrich Mud Terrain T/A tires, a blacked-out grille, a grille-guard tube with LED lighters, Katzkin seats covers, a bed storage system with pull-out drawers and more.
Jeep JT Scrambler
Another pickup-based concept, this one starts out as the new Jeep Gladiator Rubicon but adopts a decidedly retro theme that pickups up on the ‘80s-era Jeep CJ8 Scrambler. The emphasis here is on improved performance, starting with an underhood cold-air intake system. With its white body and orange accents, the JT Scrambler shouldn’t have any trouble handling the Moab trails. The hard-top model also gets a 2-inch lift kit, 8.0×17.0-inch wheels with those Goodrich Mud Terrain tires, grille guards, rock rails and off-road lighting.
Jeep Gladiator J6
This third pickup-based concept gives away one key change in its name, the bed of the new Gladiator being stretched by a food, while the cab was shortened to give the truck a total extra six inches. Like several other 2019 Moab Easter Safari concepts, there’s a bit of nostalgia at play here, the two-door customization harkening back to the 1978 Jeep Honcho. That includes the classic Brilliant Blue paint that was a popular option on the J-10 truck of that era. Again, Jeep has added two-inch lifts, grille guards and off-road lights, as well as a winch and 37-inch tires on bead-lock wheels.
Jeep Flatbill
Big and bold, the name is a reference to the flat-billed baseball caps that have become so popular with Jeep enthusiasts. The SUV was clearly outfitted for desert conditions. It’s been lifted two inches, and given 20-inch wheels shod with 40-inch tires – which required some fender mods, as well. Jeep added Dynatrac air-locker axles and bypass shocks, among the suspension modifications. The bed gets slide-out ramps and can handle two motocross bikes. The interior, meanwhile, is trimmed out with material from four motocross jackets.
Jeep Wayout
It’s an appropriate name considering how far off the beaten path you’ll get on the Moab trails. This is a camper Jeep featuring a roof-top Maggioline Extreme pop-up tent and canopy and it’s designed to get you as far away from civilization as possible, with everything packed onboard. To make things a bit more comfortable, there’s also an Alu-Cab awning. The requisite lift kid has been installed, as have twin gas cans integrated into the side of the Gladiator’s bed. Here, Jeep has opted for 37×12.50R-17 Falken Wildpeak tires on steel wheels. There’s a Warn winish and a JPP snorkel to increase water fording to a full 30 inches.
Jeep M-715 Five-Quarter
Wrapping things up is a resto-mod 1968 Kaiser Jeep M-715. This military-vintage truck gets some modern accoutrements, including a carbon-fiber front end, a 6-foot custom aluminum bed and a roll-back soft top. Don’t worry about power. The “Hellcrate” badges are the giveaway, the Five-Quarter’s crate Hemi V-8 capable of punching out a massive 700 horsepower. As for the name, “five-quarter,” that harkens back to its military days,” the truck having a 1-1/4, or five-quarter ton, payload capacity. You might not want to tap into them until the end of a long day on the trail, but note the “Gin” and “Tonic” jerricans.
