There’s A New Jeep Scrambler Coming And I’m Insanely Excited

The Jeep CJ-8 Scrambler is one of the most beloved Jeeps of all time. It took the fun convertible Jeep CJ, and threw a somewhat awkwardly long bed on the back, yielding a lovable off-road workhorse. Jeep chose to call its Wrangler-based pickup the Gladiator when that vehicle launched in 2019, but now Stellantis says it’s going to offer a new Scrambler, and we need to talk about what that might be, because that’s one of the most beloved nameplates in all of Jeepdom.

When Jeep was developing the Wrangler-based Gladiator, there was lots of conversation within what was then Fiat Chrysler about what to name the truck. Both Gladiator and Scrambler were on the table, and I’m fairly sure Comanche was as well, though I’m sure there was some controversy about resurrecting a Native American name for a nameplate. In any case, Gladiator won out, which I thought was bit odd. You see, the Jeep Gladiator, historically, has been a work-focused (not off-road-focused) pickup truck based on a separate platform than the convertible Jeep CJ/Wrangler.

Here’s a look at an old Jeep Gladiator:

The Scrambler, to me, made more sense as a name, since the new Jeep truck was to be based on the Wrangler and it was going to be convertible, like the old CJ-8 Scrambler:

But anyway, the current truck was ultimately named the Gladiator:

Now, at its investor day today, Stellantis has announced a new Scrambler, and I have no idea what the heck it’s going to be:

So let’s talk about that.

The Dream

Let’s get straight to what I would consider the ideal Scrambler — a vehicle that would knock my socks off and send me straight to the Jeep dealership: any sort of two-door pickup.

The reality is that the Scrambler name, like the old Gladiator name, was associated with a two-door truck — a configuration that I think is much, much cooler than a four-door. Will Jeep desecrate the Scrambler name like it did the Gladiator, and append that badge to a four-door? Most likely. Two-door trucks are niche and sell in small numbers, though if we’re being honest, if there’s any brand for which a two-door does make sense it’s Jeep, since Jeep is all about off-roading, and the most capable pickup trucks are two-doors. Jeep also has a lot of brand-damage to undo, so this could be a fun enthusiast’s vehicle to get the brand’s mojo back.

I’m dreaming, here. But please, Jeep gods, present us with a two-door pickup! The world is a complicated and sometimes dark place; please shine upon us the light of a regular cab Jeep truck!

Please?

The More Likely Reality

If you look in the Ram section of this Stellantis Investor Day presentation, you’ll see what the company has been mentioning for years: A mid-size Dodge pickup:

I have always assumed that the Gladiator and Dakota would share a platform, but what if the Gladiator remains its own thing (or is just nixed entirely), and it’s the Scrambler that shares a platform with the Dakota?

This is obviously a less exciting proposition than a two-door Wrangler-based truck, as the Ram Dakota is almost certainly going to be a four-door, high-volume, street-focused truck instead of a two-door off-road brute. You could use the platform to build a Jeep that’s more capable than the Dakota, but if the Gladiator stuck around, I’d be a little confused about how a Dakota-based Scrambler would be different enough. If the current Gladiator were nixed, why not keep that name?

So I’m not sure how this one makes a lot of sense. Maybe the Dakota will be smaller/cheaper, so this would slot in below the Gladiator? Or maybe the answer is a combination of this and the previous idea: What if it were a regular cab version of the Dakota? Then you could offer both configurations on the Ram for folks looking for cheap work trucks, and the Jeep Scrambler would just be the two-door off-road beast.

I have no idea.

[Update: I’m just seeing the Rampage in the image above. Maybe the Scrambler will be a rebadged Rampage (small hybrid truck) and the Gladiator will be the Dakota? -DT] 

A Left-Field Idea

I’ve been thinking a lot about how Jeep should position itself for the future, powertrain wise. For years, Jeep has been showing off electric Wranglers at the Easter Jeep Safari. I don’t think now’s the time for an EV Wrangler, and if you look at the EVs the brand has offered (the Wagoneer S and Recon), those have been met with lukewarm receptions. The Wagoneer S’s sales volumes are sad, and the Recon’s will almost certainly be, too.

It’s time for hybrids, and I mean proper ones. Yes, there have been the Jeep 4xe models, but those were half-baked, with low range and all sorts of quality issues. I’d like to see something a bit more…baked. I’d like to see an EREV like the Ram Ramcharger, whose chassis is shown above.

I think it’d be cool for Jeep to offer both an EREV and a gas Wrangler-like vehicle. That way, no matter what happens with gasoline prices or regulations, Jeep will have a halo machine with a powertrain that will work for the long-haul in all markets.

Imagine a 600 horsepower off-road electric Jeep truck with a gas generator in the back. It’d be awesome.

What Do You Think?

Anytime a journalist ends an article with a question, it means they really have no idea, and I’ll admit it: I have no idea! I don’t know what this new Scrambler will be. I think we should prepare for some kind of Dakota-ized four-door truck. Maybe it’ll be less off-road focused than the current Gladiator, hence the new name? That’s my guess for now, but I would love if it were actually a two-door off-roader, and I’d especially love if it were an EREV, though then you’d probably have to give up solid axles.

Please Jeep gods: Present us with a regular cab Jeep truck, finally. It’s been 35 years!

Top Image: Jeep