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Say what you want about President Ronald Reagan’s
politics, but there’s no argument the man had style, especially
when it came to his choice of off-duty vehicles. Among his
favorites: a baby-blue Jeep Scrambler that he used to chauffeur
friends, family, and occasional dignitaries—including, in 1992,
cowboy-hatted Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev—around his
California spread, Rancho del Cielo.
We mention the Scrambler, of which Jeep cranked out about
28,000 copies between 1981 and 1986, because it is undeniably
the spiritual predecessor of the splendid new 2020 Jeep
Gladiator, which was almost called the Scrambler, just like the
old stretched CJ-8 with a small pickup bed. The Gladiator name
was a catchall moniker for the full-size Jeep trucks from 1962
to 1971 and was dropped when AMC took over the company.
The history lesson given in Jeep’s press presentation, in scenic
Healdsburg, California—known for meaty Sonoma wines and
massive redwoods—was heavy on Jeep pickups such as the
J-10 and even the Comanche, but the designers and engineers
on hand skipped over the Scrambler like it didn’t exist.by
STEVEN
COLE SMITHphotography by
WILLIAM
WALKERJEEP FINALLY BUILDS
ANOTHER PICKUP TRUCK
WE SALUTE YOU