The liberation of Europe after the Second World War was an arena in which the Jeep was ubiquitous. It was seventy years ago that the idea germinated… the idea of building for the military a vehicle with off-road capabilities. Today the cars of the marque are civilians, out of uniform, and not only found where the going gets tough.
SRT8 versions of the Chrysler 300 and the Jeep Grand Cherokee were highlights of what the Chrysler concern had to offer at the 2011 New York Auto Show in a serious bid to be perceived as performance oriented.
Maserati stands for sporting motoring and for luxury. The SUV concept presented by the marque at this year’s IAA, the Kubang, shows that the Italians not only aim to broaden their model range but also to prove that their traditional virtues can be applied in an entirely new vehicle category.
In comparison with the Willys Jeep the first Range Rover must be seen as a young upstart. It was only just after the end of the Second World War the there was a Jeep which combined the attributes of a normal automobile with those of a vehicle which could handle rough terrain. And refrigerators were part of the story of the great-grandfather of modern all-wheel-drive SUVs.