Apparently the Jeep Renegade Can Handle Moab

2015 Jeep Renegade (Credit: Jeep)

Plenty of people have voiced their concern for the Jeep Renegade, the pint-sized SUV that is launching soon. While its styling can be a bit polarizing, although nowhere as much as the new Cherokee’s, even more controversial is the subject of just how utilitarian the SUV will be.

Already, the Renegade has been called a “boy” SUV, contrasting it with the “girl” Fiat 500x. Jeep has claimed for some time that the Renegade will be able to take on some pretty serious off-roading scenarios, but such claims have been backed up by words and little else. Fans of the brand haven’t exactly bought the marketing pitch.

But now, Jeep is presenting some new, more compelling evidence that the Renegade is indeed not a cream puff that will get stuck five minutes after leaving the pavement. It has posted a video (which you can watch below) of the tiny SUV tackling the slickrock trails outside of Moab, Utah. The model used in the video is the Trailhawk, which is the version of the Renegade that is most geared at driving off the beaten path.

The video clip is admittedly short and shows little of what the Renegade can truly take on, but what is put on display is fairly impressive. The little SUV climbs up a fairly steep trail without sliding backwards, then successfully makes its way back down without crunching the front end on the rock.

While there isn’t a line of people looking to trade in their Wrangler for the Renegade, that certainly isn’t the aim of Jeep. The video evidence has worked to soften the hearts of many enthusiasts, convincing them that maybe the Renegade is deserving of the Jeep name and isn’t like other recent disasters that have been taken to market (Compass, anyone?).

The real question is if MOPAR will make a 3-inch lift kit for the Renegade, allowing for bigger tires. That, and more questions will be answered soon enough.