Jeeps have been part of my whole life, and with the cultish appeal of the community, Jeeping has also become a day to day activity for me. I find myself rummaging through the internet looking for new off-road spots to explore and searching forums to find information for the best upgrades. Through my research I’ve found myself with a lust for more power to add to my Jeep, and like most Jeepers the options I thought I had were small, especially since my intent for my rig is to maintain the things that I love about it, like low end-torque and ability to get me places other vehicles can’t. As I started my pursuit toward an electrical engineer degree, I learned of an option that facilitates these needs, and that option is an electric motor. The Jeep community should push Jeep to design the future Jeep Wrangler models as electric vehicles.

Jeep owners use the term “It’s a Jeep thing” quite often. In reality, that term is just a way of accepting that Jeep Wranglers don’t facilitate the basic needs of a vehicle to getting from one point to the other well. Trotter’s description of the 2017 Jeep Wrangler as being, “Uncomfortable ride and subpar handling on pavement, poor fuel economy, and cramped rear seats with few standard features”. What the Jeep has is outstanding off-road capability, standard part-time four-wheel drive, and a Powerful V6 engine. These are the features that make Jeeps so loved. They might not get a driver to their location comfortably or efficiently but rain, shine, or snow a jeep will get them to their desired location. Jeep owners contribute part of this reliability to the current 3.6L Penstar gasoline engine or the legendary AMC 4.0L from the older Jeep models. The only upgrade from this reliable gas motor Jeepers have been talking about is ability to get a diesel option from the factory, which is unarguably an upgrade from a gas motor. A taboo but better option, though, would be an electric motor. The Jeep community raises their pitch fork and torches at the idea of a green energy Jeep, because they relate the prospect of an electric Jeep to a Toyota Prius or a Smart car. In reality though, an electric Jeep has the potential to out perform any current motor on the market. Tesla is the example that the Jeep community should use to see the current potential an electric motor can offer. According to Sorokanich, “The Tesla P100D Dynoed at 920 Lb.-Ft of Torque at the Wheels!” That is almost four times the amount of torque than the Jeep community’s beloved 4.0L motor. Even more impressive is that, electric motors create their peak torque instantly, and do not need to build RPM to create power like traditional gas or diesel motors.

One of the biggest killers of motors on the trail is water. Water gets sucked into the intake and since water can’t comprise, bends the piston rods and the motor is toast. Because oxygen is needed in order to produce combustion there is no way to close the intake of the vehicle off to protect it from this. The only resolution to the issue, is to raise the intake and hope that the water doesn’t find its way in. In electric motors, power is stored versus created, so for an air intake is not needed. Electric motors can be made to be completely water tight and the proof that this will work is diesel electric submarines do this every day. The diesel sub surfaces to run motors which powers the battery and then goes under water once they are charged. The reliability gained from being able to water-proof an electric Jeep is unmatched by any other form of motor.

Aside from performance, electric motors offer a unique advantage that gas and diesel motors could never achieve, which is silence. Loving the outdoors and going off-road go hand in hand. Normally off-roaders use their off-road rigs to get them to those secluded area in the woods, that they can get out and listen to birds chirping or the way the wind blows through the trees to produce that calming whooshing sound without the disturbance of the city and traffic around. The problem is that there has to be a compromise in order to enjoy this. Turning the motor off is the only way to enjoy nature, since their motors rumbling carry the sound of the city with them. With electric motors, though, there is no compromise. Off-roaders can travel down the trail listening to nature with-out the rumbling of gasoline exploding above piston heads. Electric motors are not just green energy, but a way to be part of nature.

Also, jeeps are not just a vehicle to their owners, but part of what makes Jeeps owners themselves. My grandfather passed away before I was born, and I was never able to meet him. Most of the stories I’ve heard of him involve a jeep and through my own experiences with my own jeep I’ve been able to relate and build a connection with my grandfather through my Jeep. It is almost as If can view myself standing next to him when my father talks about the time they used their Jeep to traverse the roads after the earthquake hit Nicaragua in 1972 and my grandfather was my Dad’s Hero. Regardless of anyone’s feelings toward global warming, it is a fact that Gasoline and Diesel are non-renewable resources. So, at the Jeep’s current state, if the world ran-out oil, the Jeep would go away with it, too. If Jeeps were to convert to electric motors though, the legacy of myself, my grandfather and every other Jeep owner would be saved for eternity.