Jeep AEV J8 Milspec - Steel Wheels

Owing to its stiffer springs and more precisely tuned dampers, the J8 is only slightly less comfortable than an ordinary Wrangler. It trundles over the road with a nose-down, dog-will-hunt sort of vibe, oozing just enough raw focus to remind you that you're in a machine designed to haul people off to war. It also handles better - a lot better - than an ordinary Wrangler on paved roads, with much less pitch and roll and a lot more high-speed stability. The turbo-diesel four is a little sleepy when prodded, but it offers bags of torque and feels unburstable. John Wayne would approve. Leaving Bodie on the sole eastbound road out of town, we dove into a mirror-scrapingly narrow canyon, crossed the Nevada border on an unimproved two-track, and headed toward the closest village on the map. A short jaunt up a nearby ridge, one torrential rainstorm, and some knee-deep mud later - nothing claws through soupy dirt like a Jeep getting its war on - we found a marker commemorating the long-dead mining burg of Aurora, a hilltop whistle-stop that peaked during the Civil War. Once the J8 dug its way past the dirt-spattered marker and into the next clearing, we both fell silent. Like so many defunct western towns, Aurora didn't so much die off as vanish into the bush. Unlike Bodie, there were no tourists poking around the old buildings, just a barely visible dirt road, a bunch of mud, and a handful of tombstones. Oddly, the contrast of wilderness and spent humanity hit me harder than the perpetual still-life glory of Bodie - unlike much of modern California, Aurora came across as honest and organic, a stark reminder that America's love affair with progress can often be a little heartless. In the end, that notion has a lot to do with why the J8 works. By honing in on a compelling mix of history and purposeful charm, it reminds us of what we love about, and what has gone missing from, Detroit's most iconic brand. By focusing on progress - a tamer disposition, greater ride comfort, etc. - instead of personality, Chrysler has strayed from the intangible qualities that make Jeep, as a marque, so special. Thankfully, the J8 is rolling, reassuring proof that the basic ingredients are still there, just waiting to be unearthed. And although Chrysler may not offer Jeep diehards the old-school Wrangler that they deserve, that's OK, because Dave Harriton does. And I suspect that he'll sell every last one he can make.