Driving from Los Angeles to the picturesque town of Lone Pine, California, we’re having a deep think about what led us to this point. Who in the world approved dropping a 470-hp V-8 into the Jeep Wrangler to create the Rubicon 392? And at the same time, who at Ford should we credit for the 418-hp Bronco Raptor? The basic vehicles beneath these badass variants are already massively capable off-roaders, vehicles able to take you places few others can. Why the need for absurd power? Neither of these SUVs makes much sense—frankly, they’re preposterous, and we mean that in the most complimentary way possible.
Of course, putting them on showroom floors involved much more than simply bolting in beefy engines. Both the Wrangler Rubicon 392 and the Bronco Raptor—a.k.a. the Braptor—underwent rigorous and thorough development before emerging into the wild. Their chassis were modified to deliver additional strength and even higher boulder-bashing prowess while also making them supremely fast on- and off-road. The Bronco Raptor, for example, is a
