Jeep Scrambler To Make Its Long Awaited Debut
Jeep’s long-awaited Scrambler pickup will debut at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show.
It’s been a year of teasers, of spy photos, of endless speculation, but the wait is finally almost over. Fiat Chrysler Automotive will reveal the long-awaited Jeep pickup truck at the Los Angeles Auto Show on November 30th.
We know this because the Los Angeles Auto Show sent out a press release hyping the cars that will debut there next month. Among the various brands being touted was a single line regarding a “pickup truck from Jeep.” Since there aren’t any other pickup trucks from Jeep that we’re aware of, it must be the Scrambler. And if it isn’t, that’ll be even bigger news, so we’re fine with that.
What we expect to see is a Scrambler that’s very much based off the current JL Wrangler. We expect the same powertrains, namely the 3.6-L Pentastar V6 and the 2.0-L turbocharged inline 4-cylinder engines. We expect them to have the same performance figures as the Wrangler, which means 285 hp and 260 lb-ft on the V6, and 270 hp and 295 lb-ft on the 4-cylinder.
We also expect the 3.0-L EcoDiesel V6 to arrive sometime after launch, and for it to still produce 260 hp and 440 lb-ft as on the current Wrangler JL.
Power should be routed to either a 6-speed manual or an 8-speed automatic transmission which feeds all four wheels. So far, we’ve only seen 4-door Scramblers in the wild, but that doesn’t mean 2-door versions aren’t hiding somewhere, possibly to be released later in the vehicle’s production.
Jeep has already retooled their Toledo, Ohio production plant to produce Scramblers now that the JK Wrangler’s run has ended, and we fully expect to see Scramblers on the road by early 2019.
In addition to Jeep’s new truck, the LA Auto Show will also feature the Audi E-Tron GT 4-door concept, a new concept from Mitsubishi, an “all-new” car from Hyundai, and several new vehicles from Kia. These are likely to be less exciting than anything we see from Jeep, but you never know. Kia might be debuting a 700 hp Stinger of some kind.
