2022 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4xe: More Desirable Than the 392? Very Possibly

But another more quietly predicted historic moment for the Wrangler line more eco-minded of us have been waiting for is the day it finally becomes a plug-in electric hybrid. Well, friends, that day is here. The future is bright, and not only because it says so on the sign in the front of the convention center.

On first impressions, the 2022 Wrangler 4xe is still unmistakably, well, a Wrangler. No amount of plug-in battery tinsel is going to change that. But it's not exactly like the 4xe wouldn't be hard to spot in a crowd if you were looking for one.

The trademark blue pinstripe accents sort of giving it away. Remember, when automakers want something to look eco-friendly, but leafy-green is too in-the-face, electric blue will always suffice. If that's not an unspoken rule of the EV biz, it is now.

If you ask us, the four-door Wrangler Rubicon 4xe on display in New York sans doors this year makes wears its eco-warrior PHEV markings very nicely. We can only suppose we've seen so many disingenuous attempts with some American hybrids of the past that anything tasteful looking is only the more enticing. (We're looking at you, late 2010s Tahoe Hybrid, the confounded piece of junk it is).

That Tahoe Hybrid looked like a rust-prone tin-can the day it rolled off the lot, but you can't in good faith say the same thing about the Wrangler 4xe. Stellantis promised Jeeps ascendancy to European and Japanese levels of quality in its 4x4 off-roaders.

If the new Grand Wagoneer is any indication, so far, it's working. If anything, this plucky Wrangler bears a striking resemblance to its war-fighting ancestors, especially without its doors. It's like Willy's Overland rose from the dead.

If you're curious, ten unique paint color options are available with the 4xe, debuting in stages as the launch progresses. Are you ready? Here it is. Bright White, Firecracker Red, Granite Crystal Metallic, Hella Yella, Hydro Blue (late availability), Sting-Gray, Snazzberry, Sarge, and Billet Silver Metallic. As for the interior, your options are Black with Heritage Tan cloth and Black with Dark Saddle leather.

Powering this gas-electric hybrid is a two-liter turbocharged inline-four-cylinder engine paired with a set of two electric motors powered via a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that, combined, give this four-door light SUV a merged fuel economy of 50 MPGe.

Or, for some more context, a shade under three times the fuel economy of the Wrangler Rubicon 392. It shows you just how versatile the modern JL Series Wrangler's appeal can be with just a change in the drive train.

While you might as well run sports car summer tires on a Wrangler 392, although we doubt anybody has the stones to try, the Rubicon 4xe sports available 17-inch, off-road wheels and 33-inch tires as factory equipment in the Rubicon 4xe.

20-inch wheels come standard on base Wrangler 4xe and Sahara 4xe. Of course, there's all the modern sat-nav, infotainment, cruise control, and all the other tech stuff all modern drivers require.

Modern Wranglers are known for having the bare minimum of comfortable seats. They have to make it cheap somewhere, after all. Even so, they're inoffensive and hopefully shouldn't hurt your spine on long trips.

With 375 horsepower up to 21 miles of completely-electric driving capability, this 4xe could keep up with the 392 in an eighth-mile drag race only to be taken to gapplebees in the quarter. There's plenty to like with what Stellantis managed to build with a platform that predated Jeep-Chrysler's new corporate overlords.

It's anyone's guess as to whether the Wrangler 4xe will sell. But one is for sure. There is indeed a market for plug-in gas-electric hybrid 4x4s in North America. The only question is how big it truly is. Is it really worth $55,225 for the most technologically advanced production Wrangler ever made? We can only say time will surely tell.

Thanks for reading our coverage of the 2022 New York International Auto Show here on autoevolution.