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"   Jeep has once again dropped the sheet on its latest round of concept off-roaders that are heading for a beating at the annual Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah. This year there are three concepts from Jeep Development and three from the newly minted Jeep Performance Parts division of Mopar.  Probably the coolest of the three concepts from Jeep was called Stitch. The brand&amp;#039;s engineers and designers regularly interface with Wrangler owners to see all the armor and heavy bumper and upgrades that people put on their Jeeps\u2014upgrades that push the weight way up. Stitch, by contrast, is a lightweight concept that slices an astonishing 1100 lbs from the Wrangler Sahara on which it was based. They used every trick in the weight-cutting book and even invented some new ones: Using a cross-drilled frame, removing excess bracketing, switching from steel to aluminum for suspension components, installing a carbon fiber hood that weighs just eight pounds, exchanging the lead acid battery for a tiny 4-lb lithium one, getting seats from a Viper, using a 10-gallon aluminum fuel tank, fluting the axles, building a roll cage from lighter steel, and putting an aluminum rear floor pan. Whew.   The absolute coolest thing, though, was punching huge holes in the sheetmetal and covering the whole thing with a nearly transparent architectural fabric, then using a vinyl welder&amp;#039;s curtain for the roof and tonneau cover. The final result weighs in at just a shade over 3000 lbs, leaving the 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 with a task of lugging around just 10 lbs per hp.   With the Wrangler Flat Top, the idea was to fit huge tires to a Dynatrac locking axle while maintaining stock suspension height and a low overall center of gravity. This was done by creating 3-inch higher fender flares to clear the tires and chopping the top two inches. The result is an increase of just a half-inch in roof height, and you can&amp;#039;t ignore the butch look.    The Grand Cherokee Trailhawk Concept attempts to fix a problem with the current state of the aftermarket: There are no lift kits available for the Grand Cherokee, so how do you fit 35-inch tires? Turns out, the answer is to poach the taller springs from the Durango and then take a Sawzall to the wheel openings. It&amp;#039;s a bit extreme for the average suburbanite, but not unheard of for Jeepers. To compliment the beefier look, all the GC&amp;#039;s brightwork was stripped off and dipped in black, and the SUV got a blood orange paint job. It certainly won&amp;#039;t get lost on the trail.   Mopar&amp;#039;s offerings are much closer to production reality than the Jeep division&amp;#039;s concepts\u2014in most cases the parts in use are either in the catalog or will be shortly. Like the Stitch, the Wrangler Slim concept removes weight from a stock Jeep, but to a much less extreme level. Lighter parts are used all around, including the rock rails, but the more interesting part is the 2-inch lift kit install. Hardly anything shocking by lift kit standards, but what makes this one special is that it was developed internally by the company&amp;#039;s own chassis engineers. Jeep Performance Parts is expecting it to be the best-handling, smoothest-riding kit on the market.   The Mopar Recon Concept uses eight-lug Dana 60 axles front and rear, shod in 39-inch tires riding on prototype bead lock wheels. The rear wheel mount is designed to work with the tailgate rather than fight for storage access. Fox shocks provide control and some unique finishing details are applied to the interior. Screaming neon green accents are offest by a pea coat-style seat fabric and a faux rust finish to the center console and dash accents. Basically, it&amp;#039;s a battleship for the rocks.   The biggest concept by far is the Sand Trooper 2, an evolution of the previous Wrangler Unlimited Sand Trooper concept that boasts a Hemi V-8, 5-inch lift portal axles, and 42-inch tires. The total effect of the axle and tires results in nearly 18 inches of ground clearance, but the springs, dampers, and control arms remain completely unchanged otherwise. The ST2 also gets lockable storage scattered around the interior for secure stowing of items when the top comes off.  More than most concepts, these are used to gauge interest in both aftermarket parts and larger vehicle concepts. All of these machines now will be trucked out to Moab and put to the test in front of the faithful Jeepers. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a8812/moab-easter-jeep-safari-concepts/>