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The Mopar Jeep Lower Forty is one wild Jeep, and even though SEMA Show vehicles are generally far from ever seeing production, this vehicle manages to push the boundaries. The Mopar folks started with a production Jeep Wrangler, and began cutting the body away until they managed to fit gigantic 40-inch tires mounted on 20-inch Mopar wheels making for one nasty off road vehicle - all with the factory production Wrangler suspension. As a final emphasis on the side of exaggeration, the Mopar Jeep Lower Forty is fitted with a 5.7L Hemi mated up to a Getrag 6-speed manual transmission sending power to the wheels via a pair of Dana axles and 5.38 gears. MOPAR loves making extreme Jeep concepts, and this one certainly falls into the fine tradition of radical Jeeps that probably won’t make it to production. Much like the dual Hemi powered Jeep Hurricane concept, this is a cool concept and awesome off-road vehicle, but not particularly realistic for street use.
Check out the gallery below for images of the Mopar Jeep Lower Forty.
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From the Chrysler Group LLC statement:
Mopar Jeep Lower Forty Image Vehicle: An Extreme Trail Rig with 40-inch Tires
The Jeep “Lower Forty” takes the Jeep Wrangler platform to a new extreme. The vehicle is equipped with massive 40-inch x 13.5-inch tires mounted on Mopar’s 20-inch forged-aluminum wheels. Mopar added aggressive wheels and tires to a stock, two-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon without the use of a suspension lift. The team’s goal was to achieve added ground clearance without dramatically altering the vehicle’s center of gravity. The team removed copious amounts of body metal in order to provide room for 40-inch meats. Three inches are chopped from the windshield frame and a 10-degree rake is added.
Custom front and rear fender flares are 1-inch wider and are located 4 inches higher than a stock Jeep Wrangler. A new one-piece carbon-fiber hood with a Jeep CJ-like power dome and an all-new drop-down tailgate stamped with the “Jeep” logo are added to complete the exterior design.
On the interior, an all-new roll cage is neatly integrated into the body tub and tied directly into the frame rails. The spare tire is relocated to the cargo floor and a custom cargo rack, supplied by Poly Performance, holds extra gear. Once all body modifications were completed, the exterior received a fresh coat of Red Eye No. 3 paint, a custom color developed by Mopar.
Custom touches throughout the interior include a color-matched center console and instrument panel. Seats are re-covered with Mopar’s Katzkin leather package in a two-tone scheme. Replacing the carpet is a durable, spray-in truck-bed liner. Rugged Mopar floor mats complete the theme.
Mechanical upgrades came directly out of the Mopar catalog. The Jeep “Lower Forty” features an all-new 5.7-liter HEMI® V-8 engine and a Getrag 238 six-speed manual transmission. Powertrain installations were handled by Burnsville Off-Road using an AEV 5.7-liter HEMI V-8 conversion kit.
The Mopar-supplied Dana 44 front axle and a Dana 60 rear axle, fitted with 5.38 gears and ARB air lockers, were assembled by Dynatrac.
(images courtesy of Chrysler Group LLC)
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