The Bluetec Grand Cherokee was huge news when it debuted in January 2006, as it was an engineering concept that introduced a diesel engine with technology so clean it could meet emissions standards in all 50 U.S. states. People had waited a long time to say it: F-you, California, and your impossible air standards. Outfitted with an oxidizing catalytic converter, a diesel particulate filter, and selective catalytic reduction technology (an exhaust-gas treatment system), it was good. The '07 Grand Cherokee scored diesel status with a 3.0 CRD V-6 in the Overland and Limited models-but no Bluetec meant consumers in California, and its posse of New York, Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont-had to hold off on the F-bomb speech a little bit longer.
The name may have been a little Brokeback, but the idea wasn't half bad. Either time. Yup, there were two Cowboy concepts. The Kaiser crew developed the XJ001 (XJ for eXperimental Jeep) around 1970, kind of a dune buggy that had a fiberglass body and seemingly no doors or top, based on the CJ-5 chassis. On its way back from an event, it caught on fire and burned to a crisp. Our secret source at Jeep told us, "The vehicle was insured, but the insurance would only pay for building another vehicle, and by that time, interest had waned and Jeep elected not to build a second one." Enter Cowboy 2.0. This '71 concept was AMC Hornet-based and possibly the first unibody pickup (the Ranchero and El Camino were framed), other than the South African Ford pickup. Someone who worked in the styling department actually managed to buy one of these prototypes back in the day (before the legal department made that taboo).
Concepts aren't always reality checks. Sometimes they are just about two Hemis (5.7Ls, for a total of 670 hp and 740 lb-ft of torque), approach and departure angles of 64 and 86.7 degrees, 14.3 inches of ground clearance, the ability to travel off-road like a crab (that's four-wheel steering and zero turning radius), and a carbon-fiber body. The Hurricane featured a wheelbase of 108.1 inches, was 151.8 inches long and 80 inches wide, and weighed 3,850 pounds. An absolute show-off vehicle with a slim-to-none chance of seeing a production line? True that. But sometimes you find a dollar on the ground. You don't ask why. You take it. You like it.
Is it cool because of its plastic technology and lightweight aluminum frame? Or is it cool because it is said to be the inspiration behind the Hurricane? We'll take either rationale. There was the Willys in 2001, then the Willys 2 in 2002. They seemed the most Jeeplike in appearance of any concept to come out before and after. Both featured a 1.6L supercharged four-cylinder worth 160 hp and 155 lb-ft of torque, an auto transmission, full-time four-wheel drive with Low range, and a solid rear axle and independent short/long-arm/coilover shock front suspension. Version one ran on 22-inch wheels, while numero dos on 21s. The (removable) hardtop Willys 2 also had a curb weight of about 100 pounds more (around 3,000). They were 142.4 inches long, 70.5 inches wide, and had a wheelbase of 95 inches. With the roof rack, the overall height came to 70 inches. Top speed was estimated at 87 mph.