The Jeep Grand Wagoneer Concept Has Seven Screens For Some Reason
The Jeep Wagoneer is an American icon. Its revival needs to be suitably attention-grabbing, so FCA has sought to do this with the new production-previewing Grand Wagoneer concept by offering a lot. Of everything.
It’s big, it’s brash, it has seven seats - a Wagoneer first - and the same number of displays. Yep, it’s a proper screen-fest on the inside, with almost 45 inches of screen real estate spanning the dash.
The driver gets a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a 12.1-inch infotainment screen and a 10.25-inch ‘comfort’ display for climate controls and the like. The front passenger gets a 10.25-inch touchscreen, while those in the second row each get a 10.1-inch infotainment screen and a 10.1-inch ‘comfort’ screen to share.
All of that runs off FCA’s Android-based Uconnect 5 system, said to be five times faster than its predecessor. The sound system should be first-rate - for the Grand Wagoneer, American home audio brand McIntosh has made its automotive debut with a 24-channel, 23-speaker system.
You won’t find any exterior wood panelling on the outside as on Wagoneers of old, but there’s heaps of it on the inside. To go with the heat-treated lacewood, there are some more sustainable elements Jeep is keen to shout about, including carpets using something called ‘Thrive’ - a fibre made using recycled “post-consumer” recycled materials.
The exterior features the usual seven-slot Jeep grille, but here, the spaces between the slots are lit with LEDs for extra spangly-ness. Above that, you’ll find bronze ‘Wagoneer’ lettering, while either side there are LED light clusters with teak interior elements.
It’s a boxy thing featuring a big glasshouse, with the imposing aesthetic made all the more eye-popping thanks to the arch-filling 24-inch wheels. We suspect (and hope) the production version will roll on some more modestly-sized rims. No mechanical details have been revealed, with Jeep merely noting that the Grand Wagoneer has a “plug-in hybrid electric vehicle powertrain system”.
The production Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer will be built from next year in the Detroit metro area.
Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.
Comments
From some angles, especially the rear 3/4ers, this reminds me ever so slightly of the latest gen Discovery. Not sure about the whole styling though. Not bad, but not great, either.
the rear reminds me of the rear of the Rivian RS1
Who ever designed or confirmed that D pillar area needs to be fired ASAP
JLR: “Let’s use a iconic Nameplate for our newest SUV so our Fanboys can have a Internet war!”
FCA: “Hold my (very watered down American) Beer!!”