Jeep logo above front grill?

[Mccorm67]

Unimportant observation, but I’ve noticed that some Wranglers have the Jeep name badge above the front grill, not on the side(s) what model years had that? Just the JKs?

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[calbake]

Yes, they stopped that badging with the JL. None of the JL’s have it on them

 

[mark203]

Actually only the JK had the JEEP mark on the front grill in the first place. No model of the CJ, nor the YJ, nor TJ had it.

I would speculate that was during the time when Hummer was also producing vehicles with a 7 slot grill (Hummer traces its trademark ownership back to when AM General was spun off as a separate company).

 

[multicam]

Another contributing factor may be that with the release of the 4 door JK, Jeep wanted to cement the branding in people’s minds and leave no doubt that the 4 door was in fact a Jeep. mark203 makes a good point about the Hummer brand too. I can practically hear the executives in design meetings: “This is the first four door Wrangler... we have to make sure the public sees the Jeep name on it.” “But sir, it looks awkward and forces us to make the seven slots shorter than they should be.” “Shut up Jones, BRANDING!!!”

Now, by the time the JL was being designed, not only was Hummer gone but the general public is completely used to the fact that jeep now makes a 4 door. Good thing, too, because the JK’s front end is lame compared to the JL’s.

 

[The Last Cowboy]

When I had my JK, I thought that it looked so weird that I removed it with days of buying the Jeep. Just looked off to me.

 

[jblackst]

Of course, there is one thing that the JK grill had that the JL grill should have: the parking lamps / turn signals in the grill forward facing. It goes all the way back to the CJ2A (and even into the MBs of WWII heritage). The only Jeeps that don't have grill mounted parking/turn lamps are the TJ and JL.

</rant>

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