By: IOL Motoring Staff
Moab, Utah - We're probably reading too far into this but with Jeep having revealed three pick-up truck concepts at the Easter Jeep Safari in Utah, just two months after it emerged that Jeep will be launching a bakkie around 2018, we can't help but wonder if there aren't a few clues in at least two of them.
If there were any clues to the production model they would be minor styling details as none of these concepts is an obvious preview of the upcoming Jeep bakkie.
The Jeep Comanche concept might foretell the name if nothing else as this badge has appeared on a few historic Jeep pick-ups, but the concept itself is clearly based on the Jeep Renegade compact SUV, while it has been confirmed that the upcoming pick-up will built on the next-generation Wrangler's platform.
The military-inspired concept is based on a Fiat car platform, Jeep did at least send it to the off-road mall, from which it returned with a 5cm lift kit, winch and BF-Goodrich All Terrain tyres.
The Jeep Crew Chief 715 concept is closer in spirit to the forthcoming Jeep pick-up, being based on the current-generation Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. However, instead of looking into the future, the concept salutes past models, particularly the Gladiator-based Kaiser M715 military vehicle of the late '60s.
How ever the showroom pick-up turns out, it won't look anything like the FC 150 concept, which is essentially a restored and beefed up FC 150 cab-over pick-up, which was built between 1956 and 1965.
Jeep's Easter Safari effort wasn't all about bakkies though, with a full spread of SUV concepts also making an appearance. Our favourite was the Jeep Trailcat concept, a Wrangler-based vehicle designed to rattle any trail with its Hellcat Hemi V8 engine, rated at 527kW. Designers had to stretch the wheelbase by 30cm just to get the thing to fit under the bonnet, but we're sure they agree that it was well worth the effort.