The 2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited adds two doors to the iconic rock crawler which adds to its everyday usability and on-road handling characteristics. The new Wrangler, both in two and four-door form, adds a bevy of interior upgrades and top options which adds up to hundreds of ordering possibilities.
Along with the additional entry and exit points comes a new, modular hard top dubbed the "Freedom Top". (One has to wonder if it will be renamed for the Canadian market, remembering that the Freedeom Edition of the Liberty became the Rocky Mountain Edition for our northern neighbors. One must also wonder what reason DaimlerChrysler has to believe that the Canadians do not respond positively to Freedom.) The Freedom Top is composed of three panels; one over earch of the front seats, and a large rear component which includes the roof for the rear seat and cargo area as well as the rear side windows and backlight. Any one component can be removed independent of the others allowing for numerous top-down possibilities.
The lengthening of the wheelbase from 95.4 to 116 inches provides more space not only for passengers--Jeep claims 5 adults can fit comfortably--but cargo as well. With the second row seats folded flat, interior cargo space is an ample 83 cubic feet, beating Toyota FJ Cruiser, Hummer H3 and Nissan Xterra.
From the front seats forward the four door model is the same as its two door sibling, sharing all of its improvements to the instrument panel, radio, and HVAC contols. On road usability ought to improve with the lengthened wheelbase and what Jeep claims is a 100 per cent stiffer frame
Though the extended wheelbase cuts about a degree off of the breakover angle, the extra usability from this model should more than make up for it's minor off-road deficiencies. Given that the vast majority of even SUV drivers, even Jeep drivers, rarely get into anything nastier than a dirt road in January it seems that Jeep has made a wise choice in making its icon more usable for the masses without seriously diminishing its off-street cred.