As tough as it gets

JEEP is a brand that needs little introduction among petrolheads. Having been around for more than seven decades, its vehicles have won wars and have pretty much gained a very strong reputation for being tough.
In fact, the original Jeep, which was built by Ford and Willys in the 1940s, has been around longer than its rivals such as the classic Land Rover Defender.
When Willys finally won the right to turn the generic jeep nickname into the trademarked Jeep brand in the 1950s, there have been countless variations on the classic, and the model that you are looking at now is one of the most recent – the 2015 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, which is the top of the line Wrangler model in the stable today.
Since the 2015 model is still being built on the JK platform that made its debut in 2007, the Wrangler's design has not changed much over the past eight years.
From the lights, the bumper design, to the door, the Jeep still looks the same. But that does not mean that there have not been any improvements at all.
New colours and wheel designs have been introduced every time the Wrangler went through a facelift. Things have changed under the hood as well. The previous generation's 4.0-litre V6 engine by AMC has been replaced by Mopar's 3.6-litre V6 Pentastar engine which kicks out 282hp and 347Nm of peak torque.
The engine is paired to a five-speed automatic transmission. In case you are wondering, no, the Wrangler does not come with a manual transmission in Malaysia. Since the Rubicon is the top of the line variant of the Jeep Wrangler, it comes packed with goodies.
Outside, the model gets the Rock-Trac 4WD system, a front sway bar disconnect system, Dana 44 heavy-duty axles, monotube shocks, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Hill Start Assist (HSA), skid plates for the fuel tank, a Premium Sunrider soft top, and 17-inch aluminium wheels.
Jeep's generosity with equipment continues inside as well, with Alpine's nine-speaker audio system with a subwoofer, Sentry Key anti-theft engine immobiliser, leather seats, and Uconnect 135 infotainment system being offered as standard.
Just by looking at the Wrangler Rubicon and the features that come with it, it's obvious that Jeep made this vehicle with one thing in mind – to tackle the roughest and toughest of surfaces.
In fact, even the Rubicon's cabin is built with sturdy material. Regardless of whether we laid our hands on the steering wheel, the dashboard, glove compartment, or the seats, everything felt sturdy.
If you're interested in spending a lot of time off-road, there is hardly an argument against the Rubicon, because if you opt for a Japanese 4x4 that is most likely much cheaper, you're eventually going to buy a ton of equipment on top of the truck itself and still not get the capabilities that the Rubicon offers.
For instance, the Rubicon comes with Dana 44 front and rear axles, which are among the toughest in the world, as opposed to the lighter duty Dana 30 on the lesser trims. And then, there is the convenience factor. From the dashboard on the Rubicon itself, we could lock the front and rear differentials.
Normally, one would have to spend thousands of Ringgit just buying the parts needed to perform as well as the Rubicon off-road. Also from the dash, we were able to disconnect the front sway bar.
Normally, one would have to get out of the vehicle to do it, but in the Rubicon, it was nice to know that much greater front wheel articulation was just a touch of a button away.
On the road, the Rubicon behaved like a typical top-heavy SUV. Noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) level was decent for a vehicle in its class. Comfort wise, we had no complaints at all as seats were big and comfortable.
On top of that, they were clad in leather. Adding to the experience was the impressive audio system with Alpine speakers. The only setback is that the Rubicon is a "shorty" (two-door variant).
So, space in the rear comes at a premium. Besides that, the Rubicon was an absolute joy to be in and a brute when taken off-road. What more could you possibly want in a tough off-roader?