His eyes were brown, and they were bugging out of his head. And you could smell the fear on him, see the sweat, feel the urgency with which he spoke his words: This is a safety issue. There is a cliff on the other side of the Jeep, and there’s no room for error. Do not. I repeat – do not – back up.

I was inclined to agree. Stuck on the middle of a 45-degree climb up a ledge and over boulders, the only option was forward, up, to the left, and around a huge rock. The 2007 Jeep Wrangler was stuck, though, and given the fact that we were driving a model with a manual transmission, the challenge – whether we wanted it or not – was to get that Jeep unstuck and moving forward. No room for error. No margin. Just up, slowly, out, and onward. I flipped my cap around – rally style – sat up on the edge of the driver’s seat and slowly began to let the clutch out, foot on the brake and eyes piercing the nose of the Jeep, watching for the peak of forward movement. I glanced up to check my line, looked down again and let the clutch slip out a little more. The Jeep began to surge, just a little, then stronger, the motion of the engine tugging at the frame and body of the vehicle. A little more. Just a little more…

Now!
I let go of the clutch, the brake, and hit the throttle hard. The Jeep, straining to move forward, suddenly lurched, came unstuck and followed the direction of my line, around the boulder and to a relatively flat and stable section of the hill.

We made it. And though we still had about four more hours of climbing rocks and dodging trees, after that moment the rest of the Rubicon Trail was like a Sunday stroll through a patch of daisies. In part, it was because of the drama we had already experienced, but also because the new Wrangler – the Rubicon model – is still King of Where the Pavement Ain’t. For those who have experienced the prowess of the Wrangler off-road, it comes as a great comfort to know that the new Jeep – despite being significantly wider and heavier than the 2006 model – holds its own and more when the going gets rough.

Trust me. We know, because we asked for the rough stuff and came out of it with no damage to the sheetmetal or body parts – ours or the Jeep’s. Though all Wrangler Rubicons have front and rear electronic locking differentials, we tackled Cadillac Hill without ‘em, activating them only when we felt the urgent need to do so. This way, we could see first-hand how well the system worked. All told, we activated the lockers around five times over six hours of driving, and only to assist us in navigating a tough patch of rocks or a slippery corner. When we did hit the button – once for front and once for rear – we could feel the strong lift. It was as if the Hand of the Jeep God was picking up the back of the Wrangler and helping us along. For off-road types who don’t wish to purchase a Rubicon model, the Sahara offers rear lockers only, which, given the capability of the vehicle, seems more than enough for virtually any adventure.

The revised Dana 44 axles, meanwhile, allowed for the kind of Alice in Wonderland articulation Wrangler fans have come to expect. Better than the lockers, and better than those axles, however, was the low-gear ratio. Set at a 4.0:1 on the Rubicon, the gearing is so low that the Wrangler will essentially walk itself through the second half of the Rubicon. Yeah. Like a Disneyland ride. Just steer the boat, bubba, and the Wrangler will do most of the work. It’s not quite Off-Roading for Dummies, but it’s arguably closer than the Wrangler has ever come. That gearing, by the way, is only available on Rubicon models – the X and Sahara trims get a ratio of 2.72:1.

Despite its prowess on the rocks, however, there are some trade-offs with the new Wrangler. Given the extra 300 pounds, more than the available 237 lb.-ft. of torque would be an improvement, and while we were able to navigate through all the obstacles, the nimble way in which our guide’s 2006 Wrangler sprinted through tight corners vividly illustrated the difference. As for the Wrangler Unlimited, the longer wheelbase and expanded width wasn’t a factor in traversing the Rubicon Trail, and the breakover angle is excellent when compared to most of the competition.

Inside the cabin, the secondary shifter was easy to use, clicking firmly into position and staying put. The seats were quite supportive and grippy, keeping driver and passenger from sliding around too much. For the passenger, however, there’s nothing much to hold onto except the roll bar and a handle that’s poorly placed, directly in front of the passenger, meaning that the weight of the passenger is on the forearms and not the handle. The driver, of course, has no such problem, and even gets a very helpful seat height adjuster.