Jeep Wrangler

Another first is an available navigation system. Glass which has not been annealed will usually at least crack, and can shatter due to a seemingly minor temperature change or other shock. Although the doors can still be removed in traditional Wrangler fashion, power windows and remote power door locks will be offered for the first time. This relieves the internal stresses, resulting in a piece which should last for many years. The new hardtop allows the sides to be removed for an open-air feeling. The piece is then slowly cooled at a predetermined rate until its temperature is below a critical point, at which it can no longer generate internal stresses, and then the temperature can safely be dropped to room temperature. A 3-piece hardtop or traditional soft top will be offered. The piece is then allowed to heat-soak until its temperature is even throughout; the time necessary for this varies depending on the type of glass and thickness of the thickest section.

Stability control will be a new safety feature for the Wrangler line. Annealing, in glass terms, is heating a piece until its temperature reaches a stress-relief point, that is, a temperature at which the glass is still too hard to deform, but is soft enough for internal stresses to ease. A 6-speed manual transmission will be standard, with a 4-speed automatic transmission offered as an option. Once finished, the piece must be annealed in an oven, or else it will eventually crack or shatter. The 4.7 L PowerTech V8 and 2.8 L VM Motori turbo-Diesel straight-4 used in the Liberty are likely to also be offered as options in some markets. All parts of the workpiece must be kept hot, at similar temperatures, or else they can crack or shatter. A 3.8 L OHV V6 producing 205 hp (153 kW) and 240 ft·lbf (325 N·m) will be the base engine, replacing the venerable AMC Straight-6 engine. The glass is heated until molten, merged with other pieces, and shaped with various tools.

The JK Wrangler is expected to be offered in three versions eventually:. Once ready to begin, the lampworker slowly introduces glass rod and tubing into the flame so that the pieces won't shatter from thermal shock. Jeep reportedly intends to cement the Wrangler's position as the marque's most-rugged vehicle as new car-based crossover SUVs take some of its on-road market share. After designing a piece, a lampworker must carefully plan how to construct it. However, it should be noted that similar complaints were heard during previous redesigns. Steel jacks, usually coated with beeswax, are used to neck down or cut off a piece. Many Wrangler enthusiasts have decried this new vehicle's larger size, claiming that it runs counter to the character of the Wrangler, and is too big to be an effective off-road vehicle. Tungsten picks can be used to drag glass around on the surface, or to bore a hole through a piece.

This next-generation Wrangler is significantly larger than the existing model, with a 2 in (50.8 mm) longer wheelbase and 4 in (101.6 mm) wider track. Brass, graphite, or wooden molds (usually of apple or cherry wood) can be used to mold the hot glass. The TJ platform will be replaced by a new JK platform. Graphite or steel pads, rods, and other shapes are used for marvering the glass. 2007 will see the complete redesign of the Jeep Wrangler, in both two and four-door models. Tools for lampworking are similar to those used in glassblowing. ^{[citation needed]}. In addition to producing a hotter flame, the use of pure oxygen allows more control over the flame's oxidizing or reducing properties, which is necessary because some coloring chemicals in borosilicate glass react with any remaining oxygen in the flame either to produce the desired final color or to discolor if extra oxygen is present.

The Wrangler Unlimited is in its final year of production to be replaced by the 2007 4-door Wrangler. Also, its working range is at higher temperatures than Moretti, requiring larger torches and the use of oxygen instead of air. In 2005, Jeep released the Rubicon Unlimited, which has the wheelbase of the Unlimited and the off-road features of the Rubicon as well as many other comfort and convenience options not offered on other Wranglers. However, it has a narrower working temperature range than Moretti, has fewer available colors, and is considerably more expensive. In 2004, Jeep introduced the Wrangler Unlimited with a 10 inch (~25.4 cm) longer wheelbase; it is also known by its unofficial designation of LJ. Borosilicate glass is considered more forgiving to work with, as its lower COE makes it less apt to crack than Moretti. To match the vehicle in the film, it was offered in Bright Silver but looked nothing like the one in the film. Chemically, some colors can react with each other when melted together, usually causing undesirable effects such as discoloration, bubbling, or devitrification.

Interior features included Dark Slate fabric seats with red accent stitching down the center, silver surround instrument panel bezel, red seatbelts and a Tomb Raider badge with serial number. Different major types of glass, e.g., borosilicate and Moretti, are not compatible with each other. Along with the standard Rubicon fare, it also included exterior features such as 16-inch Alcoa forged aluminum wheels, Tomb Raider badging, and Mopar accessories including a light bar, riveted fender flares, tubular grille guard, diamond-plated bumper guard, etc. Glass with incompatible COE, mixed together, can create powerful stresses within a finished piece as it cools, cracking or even violently shattering the piece. A limited run of 1,000 Wrangler Rubicon "Tomb Raider" models were produced in 2003 to promote the Tomb Raider sequel, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life. Different colors of glass must be carefully selected for compatibility with each other, both chemically and in terms of coefficient of thermal expansion (COE). The 42RLE four-speed automatic transmission was available from 2003 to 2005. Leaded glass tubing was commonly used in the manufacture of neon signs, although its use has been fading due to environmental concerns and health risks.

2003 and 2004 featured the NV3550 manual transmission in the Rubicon while 2005 changed to a six speed. Lampworking can be done with many types of glass, but the most common are soda-lime glass, sometimes called "soft glass", or Moretti after an early Italian manufacturer; and borosilicate glass, particularly Pyrex. It features front and rear Dana 44 axles with built-in air-actuated locking differentials, rear helical gear-driven limited slip differential, 4:1 low-range NV241 transfer case, 4.10:1 differential gears, 16-inch alloy wheels, and Goodyear MTR P245×75×R16 tires. . The Wrangler Rubicon (named for the famed Rubicon Trail off-road test circuit) was introduced in 2003. Most artists today use torches that burn either propane or natural gas for the fuel gas, with either air or pure oxygen as the oxidizer. Other changes included the 1999 additions of a larger standard fuel tank, child seat tethers and sound system improvements in 2000, and intermittent wipers, a new console, and an optional locking compartment for 2001. Early lampworking was done in the flame of an oil lamp, with the artist blowing air into the flame through a pipe.

A 2.5 L AMC Inline-4 motor was available on entry-level models until 2003 when the 2.4 L DOHC Neon 4-cylinder engine replaced it. In addition to artwork, lampworking is used to create scientific tools, particularly for chemistry. The engine is the same 4.0 L AMC Straight-6 used in the Cherokee and Grand Cherokee. Some well-known lampworkers include Roger Parramore, sometimes called "the human lathe" due to his peerless ability to create smoothly turned vessels, Bandhu Scott Dunham, author of several lampworking textbooks and artistic compilations, and Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka, who created sea-life and botanic models in glass for Harvard. This updated Wrangler featured a coil-spring suspension (based on that of the Jeep Grand Cherokee) for better ride and handling, and a return to the CJ's iconic round headlamps. Although the art form has been practiced since ancient times, it flowered in Murano, Italy in the 1300s, and spread from there to the rest of Europe. The YJ gave way to the Jeep TJ for the 1997 model year. It is also known as flameworking or torchworking, as the modern practice no longer uses oil fuled lamps.

On August 5, 1987, American Motors was bought by Chrysler, and the Jeep marque became a part of Chrysler's Jeep/Eagle division. Lampworking is glassworking using a torch to melt and shape the glass. An automatic transmission option for 4-cylinder Wranglers came in 1994 along with a center high-mounted stop light. The roll cage was extended in 1992 to allow for rear shoulder belts, and anti-lock brakes were added as an option the next year. That year, a fuel injected 180 hp (134 kW) 4.0 L variant replaced the 112 hp (84 kW) 4.2 L straight-6.

The YJ used a 2.5 L AMC I4 or optional 4.2 L AMC I6 until 1991. YJs are easily identifiable by their rectangular headlights. The YJ was replaced in 1996 by 1997's TJ. (This prompted some Jeep purists to interpret the YJ as a "yuppie Jeep" upon the model's introduction.) 632,231 YJs were built through model year 1995.

It was a new design with a longer wheelbase, less ground clearance, and more comfort, and some of its inspiration came from its stable mate, the Jeep Cherokee, rather than from its CJ predecessor alone. The Jeep YJ, sold as the Wrangler, replaced the much-loved but slower-selling Jeep CJ in 1987. . The Wrangler is produced at the Toledo South Assembly plant in Toledo, Ohio.

The Wrangler debuted in 1987, was updated in 1997, and is still popular today. It is a successor to the famous World War II GP vehicle by way of the 'Willy's' Jeep in the 1950s and later by the Jeep CJ series. The Wrangler (also known as the YJ and TJ, as explained below) is a small ORV from Jeep. URL accessed on January 12, 2006..

Jeep.com. 2007 Jeep Wrangler Specifications. URL accessed on January 9, 2006.. Automobile Magazine.

2007 Jeep Wrangler. URL accessed on January 9, 2006.. Detroit News. Jeep's target: Everybody.

URL accessed on January 9, 2006.. AutoWeek. Jeep touting ruggedness of redesigned Wrangler. A long wheelbase pickup truck.

A long wheelbase 4-door. A short wheelbase 2-door.