Jeep hits the electric trail with a design study that mixes battery-pure drive with a manual transmission.

 A FULLY electric Wrangler is among concepts Jeep has revealed ahead of an annual brand event in the United States where it traditionally serves up concepts of potential production fare.

The Magneto, if brought into the showroom, would conceivably place as the next-step alternate to a plug-in hybrid Wrangler, the 4xe, that the maker already avails to its customers as an introduction to electric-assisted driving.

That product is restricted to North America so though Jeep’s New Zealand distributor has previously expressed some broad interest in taking an alternate to the purely fossil fuel-reliant range it offers, it also accepts that cannot occur until the battery-assisted programme includes right hand drive.

The Jeep Magneto features a solitary electric motor that generates 210kW and 370Nm of torque, powered by a 70kWh battery. The battery capacity is split up into four separate units mounted around the vehicle’s body to keep weight balanced and help off-road performance.

This output should mean the Magneto can sprint from 0-100kmh in 6.8 seconds, according to Jeep’s claims. The brand hasn’t published a figure for the Magneto’s range, it’s conjected such a battery system should allow for around 338 kilometres between charges.

Unusually for an electric vehicle, the Magneto features a six-speed manual gearbox. Jeep says the system is being set up for the motor to collect regenerated power as the driver eases off the accelerator when the clutch is engaged.

The Jeep Magneto was one of four concepts revealed ahead of the traditional Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah, which starts on March 27 and runs until April 4.

The other concepts – the Jeep Red Bare, Jeep Orange Peelz and Jeepster Beach - and are a mixture of modern and traditional.

The first is cast in the mould of an ultra-rugged edition, with V6 turbodiesel power. The Peelz is more about turning heads; this concept does away with the side and rear windows, and uses prototype JPP half doors and a removable one-piece glass sunroof. The Beach, meanwhile, is a homage to a 1968 car that was a classic in the US, the C101 Commando. It runs a modified 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that produces 255kW and 500Nm of torque, about 25 percent more power than the production version of that engine.