I Just Drove Every New Jeep Concept, And These Are The Ones It Really Needs To Build

Held in Moab, Utah, the Easter Jeep Safari is an off-road event and week-long meet-up and set of trail challenges that attracts outdoor automotive enthusiasts and explorers alike. It's also where Jeep shows off some of its wildest ideas every. For several years now, Jeep has been using the event to showcase concept vehicles with madcap styling, the latest in factory-available upgrades, and stylish takes on their vehicles. For the builders and designers at Jeep who create these concepts, I imagine Easter Jeep Safari is a bit like summer vacation, Christmas morning, and their birthday all rolled into one, and all set in the backdrop of one of America's most beautiful natural landscapes.

This year Jeep brought out seven new concept vehicles. I got some limited driving time behind the wheel of each of the concepts, sitting next to their designers and hearing all about the inspiration behind the builds. With the limited wheeling I had, and the one-off nature of concept vehicles, it doesn't make much sense to wax poetic about the vehicle driving dynamics — they're clearly concepts and not finished products so that would be a bit silly anyway — but I did come away with a few favorites based on the styling and the stories behind each rig.

More of a showcase and less of a concept, the idea behind the Jeep Blueprint is to show off all the parts that Jeep already makes and sells for the Wrangler. Doors, wheels, bumpers, mesh tops, lights, rock rails, fenders, and upgraded pedals: if you can buy it from Jeep, it's probably bolted onto Blueprint. All the parts are labeled with QR codes, so passers-by can scan the code and look up the product.

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Some of the less-obvious modifications — like the 2-inch lift and the suspension components required to accommodate said-lift — are on display if you look close enough, as are three different sets of wheels (different on each side of the Jeep, and a third style used for the full-size spare), along with two different sets of doors. The windshield wipers, seat covers, and snorkel are all painted blue too, so that means they can be modified. 

Since it's not really a concept, it ranks as my least-favorite of the bunch. If you didn't know that the Blueprint was a brightly-colored marketing exercise, it would seem a bit like someone got carried away with a can of blue spray paint. Still, I think it's a solid execution.

Aimed squarely at adults who grew up carrying Trapper Keepers to school in the 80s and 90s, it makes sense that the Rewind concept would appeal to someone in my age range. Park the Jeep at your local Radwood meet and it would fit right in, thanks to its track-suit sourced fabrics and its special edition Grimace purple paint. And as a concept, it's a great rival to Toyota's recently-released TRD 4Runner Surf Concept, especially with the missing doors and roof.

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The Rewind has all sorts of stickers on the interior, as well as items like a 90's boombox in the trunk, and a period-correct dashboard-mounted cell phone (if the period it were built in was 1996). According to the Jeep designers, using the 17-inch AEV Savegre II wheels was partially inspired by 80s and 80s era supercars like the Countach and the Diablo. There's not much in terms of performance modification on the Rewind. It's more of an exercise in what someone could do, given a bit of funky fabric and a modification streak of their own. I felt like this one was mostly a style exercise with a bit of whimsy, and that's fine by me, just not enough to earn it a top spot on the list. 

Of all the concepts being shown at Easter Jeep Safari, Sunchaser is probably the closest to a future reality. Sure, the Blueprint model shows all the stuff you can get now, but Sunchaser has gear that Jeep might produce in the near future. On top of a bright-yellow (Solar Flash) wrap, Jeep added significant exterior modifications including a 2-inch lift, vented fender flares, a Warn winch, rock rails, 37-inch mud-terrain tires, a pivoting light bar, and side storage boxes that fit in the space once occupied by the rear windows.

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The pivoting light bar is an excellent addition, capable of turning towards the side of the vehicle and angling up or down to light up your campsite at night: a huge plus if you're trying to set up camp in the dark. The side storage boxes are a top-notch addition in my book, too. They open easily, look very well integrated into the vehicle design, and you can store all sorts of small items in there that you'll only need out on the trail. Mods like these may make their way into the Jeep parts catalog in the very near future.

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The Sunchaser's interior isn't wildly different from a stock Wrangler, but it did have some nice dress-up pieces like two-tone leather seats, gloss black paint on a few trim pieces, and Jeep's mounting rail for dashboard accessories: a plus if you like to have a GoPro or phone mounted to record off-road adventures.

The J6 Honcho is the Wrangler pickup-truck Jeep we all want, but we get the Gladiator instead. Why? Because people need four seats, space for their stuff, and something more practical for family life. Throw all that practicality aside, though, and you get the J6 Honcho: a four-door Wrangler Rubicon that's been converted into a two-door pickup truck via some slicing and dicing. And no, the "6" in the J6 name doesn't stand for the day after the fifth of January, instead it's a reference to the six-foot bed, a feature that the Jeep Gladiator doesn't offer.

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The J6 Honcho's design is enhanced with some retro details like the white-and-blue paint scheme, some excellent bronze fifteen52 wheels, and a custom roll bar that's sporting six lights up top. Like you'd expect from any serious off-roader, it has a 2-inch lift kit, big 37-inch mud-terrain tires, a winch, rock rails, and a full-size spare in the bed. The paint-matched panel that stretches across the dashboard and eliminates the radio (yup, it's got no radio) is a bit of a drawback for me, but I still love the overall style.

According to Jeep's design team, one of the questions they've received the most about the Convoy concept is whether or not they've lengthened it — and it's a question that makes sense — but the answer is no. The Gladiator-based concept has a sleek profile with the windows gone and the doors replaced with chocolate-brown canvas half doors making it visually even slimmer. The low-slung canvas top completes the thin non-window line and the "Ghost Ops" exterior paint wraps things up nicely.

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Inspired by Jeep's history with military vehicles, the Convoy uses a pointy retro design for the front grill called the J-truck nose. It also uses a seven-slot grille. Warn wheels and massive 40-inch tires make it look like it could ford just about any river you put in front of it, even if they do make turning the thing a pretty Herculean task. The massive fog lights used in the place of the Jeep's headlights are a nice touch too. 

Inside, the Convoy feels much more upscale than its canvas roof would lead you to believe, thanks to distressed brown leather seats, but they are what Jeep calls low-back. Also known as: they took out the headrests to style it up a bit.

We've seen a High Top Gladiator Rubicon at Easter Jeep Safari in the past. Just last year Jeep showed off the High Top Concept with 40-inch tires, Dana 60 front and rear axles, and AccuAir adjustable suspension. And wouldn't you know it? Those are all bits of equipment that made their way onto this year's High Top Honcho. Styled similarly to 2024's version, the new Honcho also has 40-inch tires but the wheels they're wrapped around this time are white-painted steelies, a top-notch style choice if you ask me.

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Like the white and blue J6 Honcho concept, this bigger Honcho has some retro-inspired graphics, but I'm an even-bigger fan of the color scheme on this one. The big roll bar and the truck bed storage system set things off in the rear while the quilted, diamond-stitch, perforated and embossed leather seats really spice up the interior. At this point in the lineup, there are lots of trends you're likely noticing such as winches, lifts, and fender flares — all of which are naturally present here — but something about the High Top Honcho's style was particularly appealing to me.

My favorite concept at Easter Jeep Safari this year was the Bug Out. Underneath, it uses Wrangler 4xe architecture, but up top it's very unique. Using ultralight camping as a source of inspiration, the Jeep designers took away the windows, replaced the front doors with half doors, and replaced the rear doors with extra battery packs (or at least gas-can shaped items they're calling auxiliary battery packs). 

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As someone who uses a set of portable solar panels and an auxiliary battery bank while camping, and who also appreciates a good lightweight backpacking rig, this sort of setup tugs right on the heart strings for me.

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The roof on the Bug Out has been raised by 4 inches, giving you more room for gear, or simply a covered space to sit up if you're camping and a bit of rain starts to fall. A concept electric off-road scooter is mounted in the trunk, with a quoted ride time of 40 minutes from a full charge, but Jeep insists it's still in the development stage. And, if you're in the mood for a good summer nap, there are mounting points in the roof to attach your hammock. The bright yellow contrasted with the flat gray is a fun color scheme too. Now, all that's left to do is convince the Jeep folks to loan me this one for a few weeks of camping.