Test drive: The 2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 392 is a V8-powered king of the hill
The 2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 392 is the most powerful Wrangler ever. Fox News Autos Editor Gary Gastelu took the V8-powered truck to the Monticello Motor Club to see what it can do.
The new Jeep Wrangler Xtreme Recon can drive through 33.6 inches of water, but future Jeeps may be able to go much deeper than that.
(Jeep)
During a recent electric vehicle presentation by Jeep's parent company Stellantis, a Wrangler was depicted driving while fully submerged, and that vision could become a reality.
"There is a little wink we have at the end, which is probably post-2030, but I know a lot of enthusiasts and a lot of our communities are requesting it," Jeep CEO Christian Meunier told The Detroit News. "There are some crazy, very amazing people in the Jeep community who do that type of thing already with an ICE, so you can imagine with a battery car what it would be."
Electric vehicles don't have air intakes or exhausts, so as long as their equipment is sealed they can operate underwater without any issues.
In fact, the currently available Wrangler Rubicon 4Xe plug-in hybrid, which has an all-electric range of 21 miles, is equipped with a waterproof battery pack and rated at a fording depth of 30 inches.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The capability may be useful even without scuba equipment. Meunier also teased future off-road autonomous capability that will allow Jeep owners to have their vehicles drop them off in the wilderness and meet them at a location at the end of a hike, rafting trip or other activity that could involve a body of water along the way.