Perfect 10

Here's our own scaled-down version of an awards show in which any Jeep that appeared in the pages of Jp Magazine has a chance to be named one of the editors' 10 most favorite Jeeps of 2006. Whether it was a full five-page feature Jeep that appeared on the cover, a lowly Jeep in an ad in the back of the magazine, or a Jeep Shots submission, if it appeared in print in Jp, it stands a chance of being picked.

Unlike previous years, in which the staff pooled its votes anonymously to bring you the winners, this year we're going to show you who voted for what and why. And just for the record, we don't consider the Compass, the Patriot, or Bree's bikini a Jeep.

Paul Sharp's '46 CJ-2A
Truckin' Nationals, March 2006
There's just something about a relatively stock flattie getting flogged within an inch of its life that's entertaining to watch. Paul's '46 CJ-2A runs the stock drivetrain, including the Dana 41 rear, Dana 25 front, Spicer 18, T-90, and 134-cube L-head four cylinder. The bumpers, Rancho lift, and 32-inch BFG MT tires, full rollcage, and later CJ-3A windshield frame are some of the only deviations from stock. Paul takes the flattie to the Phoenix Truckin' Nationals every year and beats it hard. This year he rolled it before jumping it into the tire pit. It just goes to show there's no end of fun to be had in a flattie.

Tim Wiley's Cherokee Chief Prerunner
Truckin' Nationals, March 2006
Maybe it's the fact we watched one too many Evil Knievel specials as a kid, but just about any 1970s rig looks pretty good done up in a red, white, and blue flag treatment. Trasborg was too busy buying cheap beer and hot dogs to bring back any good details, but it appears like Tim's Cherokee runs a spring-under suspension front and rear; has a full race cage with spare tire mounts in the rear and a mid-ship fuel cell where the rear seat used to reside; and a race exhaust that exists through the quarter panel skin in front of the 33-inch rear tire. We spy with our little eyes fire suppression, window netting, cut fenders, and all the other trinkets we'd expect to see in a serious high-speed, off-road machine.