GMC WORKSHOP

Wrangler

The national press stirred a lot of patriotic feeling when planning to retire the venerable CJ. After all, the Jeep CJ-7 was the descendant of the jeep that helped win World War II, and it was as American as apple pie. There were even petitions made to AMC to keep the CJ in production. However, when the Wrangler was finally introduced in early 1986, all the brouhaha died down.

1986 Wrangler (known as the YJ in Canada). The Laredo version has chrome bumpers and grille. AMC

The Wrangler, the CJ's replacement, isn't that much different. It is slightly smaller, and the rectangular headlights give it a more modern look, but AMC wisely did not change the basic Jeep shape. It is, though, a vast improvement over the CJ, especially in terms of ride and cornering ability. While the CJ's ride is stiff and very bumpy, the new Wrangler is a lot more pleasant to drive, but without losing its off-road capability.

However, by 1984 the situation had changed dramatically. Seven percent went off-road, twenty percent never went off-road and ninety-five percent used them for personal transportation. People's tastes had changed, and although they did not go off-road as often as they had before, they still wanted the image of an off-road machine. At teh same time, CJ sales had been declining and thus the Wrangler was designed with all this in mind.

Redesigned dash provides more information and creates an up-to-date atmosphere.

Wrangler is available with either a hard top of
soft top. Soft top shown here is designed to be used with factory steel doors.

Rear seat folds down. Carpeting is a useful and desirable option.

The Wrangler borrows most of its mechanical components from the XJ (down-sized Cherokee) line : steering, brakes, front and rear axles, transfer case, five-speed transmission, hydraulic clutch, wheels, tires and engines.

Roll bar is slightly different from the CJ roll bar. The two cross bars provide more support. AMC refers to the roll bar as a Sports Bar. Roll is a dirty word at Jeep.

No big news here. Optional six-cylinder (shown) is more desirable over the base four-cylinder. At best, the six-cylinder can be termed adequate, but the Wrangler would be transformed with the Cherokee fuel-injected six.

The Wrangler also utilizes the CJ's familiar body-on-frame construction. A standard 2.5 liter four-cylinder puts out 121 hp at 5250 rpm with 141 lb-ft torque at 3250 rpm. The optional 4.2 liter six puts out less horsepower, 112 at 3000 rpm, but torque increase to 210 lb-ft at 2000 rpm.Currently, the four-cylinder five-speed is made by Aisin in Japan; the five-speed used on the six comes from Chrysler. Only the Command-Trac part-time four-wheel drive is available on the Wrangler.

Inside, the biggest change is the dash. It is modern! Besides the speedometer and tachometer, there are four additional gauges and a clock. The roll bar is still standard equipment, and the high-back bucket seats still offer no rake adjustment (up to 1987)

The Wrangler is a worthy successor to the CJ, which will probably continue in its present form well into the 1990s. We may see the installation of more Chrysler driveline components, but it is certain that Chrysler will not attempt to alter the Wrangler from its present configuration.

1988 Wrangler Sahara. AMC

Wrangler
BASE ENGINE
Type	inline 4-cyl
Bore x stroke, in	3.876x3.188
Displacement, cubic in	150
Compression ratio	6.2:1
Horsepower	117@5000
Torque	135@3500
Optional engines	258 ci inline 6

CHASSIS & DRIVETRAIN
Clutch	single dry-plate
Transmission	5-speed manual
Transfer case	2-speed
Front suspension	leaf springs
Rear suspension	leaf springs
Axle ratio	4.11:1
Brakes, front/rear	disc/drum
GENERAL
Wheelbase, in	93.4
Height, in	68.9
Width, in	66
Length, in	152
Weight, lb	2,869 (4-cyl), 3,023 (6-cyl)