Going to the glacier, opting for the live Christmas tree, driving through the circle of the ranch’s relatives, the memories that the owners have of the old Wagoneers make the oversized break with the wooden-looking panels a kind of time capsule that lasts almost 30 years. after the end of production.
“It’s kind of a classic cult,” says Ted Edginton, a loan initiator in Bloomfield Hills who bought a 1989 Grand Wagoneer restored about five years ago. “It’s the feeling of seeing a VW Beetle convertible or a big van. memories of traveling and spending time with his family.
This nostalgic explosion from beyond is the call jeep must enter the successful segment of three-row premium SUVs. On Thursday, the SUV logo featured a concept edition of a new, more modern Grand Wagoneer with nods to the afterlife. It will launch production models for Wagoneer and Premium Grand Wagoneer by the end of this year.
“I grew up with those who went to horse and dog displays in the back,” said Jim Morrison, Jeep manager in North America, recalling the vehicle driven by his most productive friend’s grandparents. “What it was, this Grand Wagoneer is going to be Our consumers asked us to return it because of the intelligent emotions they had in the past, and the iconic nature of the call and what the vehicle represented at the time. “
The concept vehicle, which according to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, has many features that will look like in the popular model, does not have the exterior finish of wooden veins, to the dismay of some vintage fans, but is full of luxury and generation finishes. to be what the Grand Wagoneer was in 1984 when it pioneered the premium SUV segment, providing popular air conditioning, leather lining and an AM/FM/CB radio.
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Designed for 1963, combining four-wheel drive with automatic transmission, the Wagoneer maintained the same bodywork, but evolved to the Grand Wagoneer, which finished production in 1991 when the smaller Grand Cherokee came on the scene. Today, those larger cars account for almost all sales in the U. S. Which leads automakers to access their historical wallets and resurrect names like Bronco from Ford Motor Co. and Hummer by General Motors Co.
“It’s a call that has some logo value, even though it’s been 30 years since we had a Wagoneer,” said Sam Abuelsamid, senior study analyst at Guidehouse Insights. “It’s much less expensive to reset an old logo than to create a new one. “
The Wagoneer is anchored in Americana, enthusiasts say, appearing in a lot of videos and TV shows from “Godzilla” to “This Is Us”.
“When you see a Grand Wapassneer pass (in a movie), without having to say the words, you know it’s a quieter, more intimate feeling,” said Chip Miller, who drives a Grand Wapassneer Green Hunter ’91. “This prepares you to return to a more peaceful environment or moment. It’s a kind of romance. “
Miller, 65, is CEO of Wagon Master, a Wagoneer catering company in Kerrville, Texas. His father had restored a Grand Wagoneer after his retirement; he had used Wagoneers in the 1960s and 1970s in the family circle.
Others saw the style reborn in 1993 and also looked for one. Since then, the store has sold about 2,100, resolving them to an almost new state (usually replacing the carburetor with an electronic fuel injection) or customizing them with checkered padding. , third row seats or other requests. The workshop has “perfected” its wood kit and moldings, Miller said. Fiat Chrysler’s own designers visited him in 2013 to reconnect with the classics.
Today, Miller cars sell for between $77,000 and $95,000, less than the expected value of more than $100,000 for the new high-end Grand Wagoneer. Miller has sold cars around the world to artists, business leaders, actors, politicians, even royalty. in the Middle East In the last two years, 75% of buyers were women.
“Our founder touched something,” Miller. Si said well, it’s no surprise that Fiat Chrysler’s new concept cars offer all kinds of technologies, Miller’s Wagoneers leave those features “voluntarily and at the buyer’s request. “
“It’s a nostalgic vehicle where you can lower the windows, turn up the radio and pass by the road at a delicious pace. He’s American as an apple pie. “
He repaired cars four or five times to sell to new visitors. Low production volumes can make the location of certain parts complicated and costly, but Miller says Wagoneer’s network is “like a family. “at a time when they were weird. After Miller sent him one, he won 24 live lobsters out of a pound in return.
“It’s a great gesture, ” he said. That kind of thing, that’s what families do. “
Perhaps it fits the vintage family-style SUV that Michael Cipielewski, 39, of Ferndale, remembers seeing a cruise on Woodward Avenue as a child. Last year, he discovered a 1987 Grand Wagoneer for $5,000 with 110,000 miles and wear, Cipielewski made some improvements.
“We picked up a genuine Christmas tree for the first time last year,” he said. “We stopped at Woodward for lunch and we might see an organization go by, then they turned around, stopped and shot with it. It’s the little circle of family moments that matters most to me.
They also do it for Ross Hoffman, 55, of Idaho, who inherited a Grand Wagoneer 89 and 91 from his father, who enjoyed running in vehicles. Hoffman recalled having to push two threads in combination into his 1970s Wagoneer “green bomb. “Growing up, the family circle took models to camp in southern Utah and off-road in Baja California, Mexico. An axle broke. His father fit the Wagoneer into the stump of a tree after a friend bought the component he needed on a two-hour trip to San Diego.
“It represents what the vehicle is, that you can take it anywhere, in the middle of nowhere,” Hoffman said.
This skill gave Shoshana Schiller, 58, of Philadelphia, “four years of genuine happiness,” the steering wheel of his 89 Grand Wagoneer that he discovered sold on the road. As a ski patrol boat, she likes being able to handle snow, have enough space for her gear, and be comfortable.
The new edition doesn’t look like old models, he says, however, “when you buy an old car, you buy much more than the car or the nameplate itself. You adhere to a philosophy and one of who you are and what you enjoy in life. The launch of a new Wagoneer does not replace the old Grand Wagoneer and what you like. “
Bryan Kreifeldt of Bay City appreciates the fact that the Wagoneer looks nothing like anything on the road. At 24, it’s not the typical front door, but in October he went to Kentucky and acquired his third, a turnkey Grand Wagoneer 90. $8,000, his biggest acquisition ever made.
“You get a lot of inches, and you might see other people looking at it, which is a great feeling,” Kreifeldt said. “It is the older men and women who exercise me while I put fuel in it. tire shop when I went to do some white side tests I was going crazy. “
Edington of Bloomfield Hills has had similar experiences. He doesn’t accept it as true to travel too far with his 1989 Grand Wagoneer, but his son loves being cared for at school. The family circle took him to places like the ice cream parlor, apple orchard, hardware store and Woodward Dream Cruise.
“It’s funny to see other people driving those much-loved cars,” Edginton said, “but they’re looking for my car,” probably remembering their own memories.
bnoble@detroitnews. com
Twitter: @BreanaCNoble