Ahead of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ (FCA) release of the snazzy new Jeep Wrangler this Fall, Jeep has detailed what’s new in the final model year of the current JK.
The final year of the JK welcomes the return of the Golden Eagle trim for the Wrangler. Offered with a tan soft top and optional tan half-doors, it will feature a body-color grille and fender flares while low gloss bronze accents are slathered on the grille slats, headlamp rings, badges, and tow hooks. The 17-inch rims are bronzed and wrapped with BF Goodrich KO2 meats. Jeep is promising Golden Eagle decals on the side and center of the JK’s hood and this author deeply hopes that the center hood decal is the size and style of the one offered in 1977.
READ MORE: Everything We Know About the 2018 Wrangler JL
No photos from Jeep are available of the Golden Eagle or the other new special editions just yet, so for now, we all have to use our imagination. To kickstart your brain, here’s an example of a 1979 Jeep CJ-7 Golden Eagle:
The most American of all Wranglers, the Freedom Edition, returns for 2018 with military-themed exterior and interior design cues. Painted in a more subdued color than the Golden Eagle, the Freedom will have body-colored fender flares but feature a low gloss crystal-hued grille and a black soft top. Heavy duty rock rails and black tail lamp guards are on board, two features which will also be found on the Golden Eagle described above.
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Based on a Sahara, the 2018 Wrangler JK Altitude package will have a body colored grille with high-gloss black accents and Bridgestone Duelers on 18-inch rims. It will come standard with a body-colored hard top. Inside, black leather seats are piped with Diesel Gray stitching and Liquid Titanium trim details. Black tail lamp guards show up here, too. Altitude drivers will look out at the trail over a manly Power Bulge hood.
Joining the cadre of fresh special editions, the 2018 Wrangler will roll out a few changes across all JKs. Eagle-eyed Jeep fans will spy a new “Wrangler JK” decal on the driver’s side front quarter to help identify their compatriots on the trail who just couldn’t wait for the new JL.
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Presumably, in a bid to use up items left in the parts bin before the big JL changeover, an eight-speaker audio system will now be standard on all Wranglers. A Tru-Lok locking rear diff is also now available on the Willys Wheeler and Freedom Edition.
Understandably, powertrain options are unchanged, with the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 delivering 285 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. Axle gear ratios continue to range from a 3.21 to a stout 4.10, depending on the model selected. The Wrangler JK can tow up to 3500 lbs.
The Wrangler is a huge seller for Jeep, with many of its fans anxiously looking forward to the introduction of the new JL this Fall. Until then, the 2018 model and its new trims will quench the buying public’s thirst for all things Wrangler.
READ MORE: The Wrangler JL will Debut in Late November
