26 SEPTEMBER 2019 FOUR WHEELER fourwheeler.com
Jeep Wayout
T
his vehicle is pretty straightforward in concept: Getting away from it all in
a vintage but modern Jeep Gladiator. You know overlanding is a real thing
now when Jeep even acknowledges it with a concept at Moab—a concept that
tells a story, according to Jeep. Is the story about a bug-out kit built into the ’20
Gladiator Rubicon’s payload capacity and extra space, with a full rooftop tent
and big canopy? And around 37-inch tires paired with steel wheels with only
a 2-inch lift, custom bed rack with ladder, custom roof rack, Mopar/Decked
drawer system, ARB onboard air, auxiliary air tank from the Ram’s Air Ride
system, custom fuel tanks in the bedsides, 12,000-pound Warn winch, and
JPP snorkel? And a story about the inside of a tent continuing the vintage feel by
having old maps, Moscow mule cups, and the like? Or is the meat of the story
told through the leather seats with a topo map of Moab? Epilogue: The Gator
Green you see here will be available for the Gladiator, but not for the Wrangler.
Our Opinions
Ken Brubaker, Editor, Four Wheeler:
I love backcountry camping,
so Wayout spoke to me. No,
it yelled to me. I really like the
rooftop tent (and its cool custom
interior lighting), and the Mopar/
Decked bed-drawer system is
genius. The functional overland-
ing paraphernalia is great, but it
gets even better considering that
Wayout is outfitted with stuff to
enhance its off-road capability,
including meaty 37-inch tires and
a 12,000-pound winch.
Sean Holman, Group Content Director,
MotorTrend: At the other extreme
of the Gladiator build possibilities
is the Wayout, a tasteful nod to the
overlanding crowd. It is everything
you’d expect such a build to have,
and a few touches you wouldn’t, like
the fortified step in the rear flare, the
pneumatic happy hour built into the
awesome Decked storage boxes,
and the burrito warmer under theFeature 2019 Jeep Concepts
hood. This is one rig I would gladly
borrow for a weekend adventure
with friends.Rick Péwé, Editor, Jp Magazine: A big
part of Jeeping has always been
camping in the outback, and this
Gladiator takes it to new heights with
the glamping aspect of overlanding.
From tents on top and a surround-
sound–like awning to the blender
and bar and portable campfire and
chairs, this concept has every detail
nailed down.
Harry Wagner, Contributor, Four
Wheeler: This was by far my favorite
vehicle Jeep built this year. The
overland trend has been hot for a
while now, but most just toss on an
inexpensive rooftop tent and fridge
and call it good. Everything from
the Decked drawers to the Alu-Cab
batwing awning to the Autohome
tent was top quality, and it made
me want to take the Wayout home.Backstory Bits
->“Overlanding has been the new accessory and fashion of off-roading.”
->“The Rubicon has higher fender flares on it, we widened the axle under the
Rubicon so you can steer; you’re not into the frame. Those are learnings from
being out here.”
->“This isn’t for camping and staying in an RV or KOA park or something. This
is about getting to that secret spot that you know about, but you’ve got to crawl
over some rocks or through a creek or something, and you’re remote. You’re
out there self-supporting and it has everything you need for you, but you can
get away from people. I love that idea. I just think that’s so cool.”
->“The rack looks simple, but it was very difficult. It’s actually carbon fiber and
encasing a steel rack. When you come up with the idea, you have to design,
engineer, and create in just weeks. Making something look really simple is
hard to do.”
—Mark Allen, Head of Jeep Design, FCA North America