It's always great to see car manufacturers taking a jibe at one another and we've seen the likes of BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar and even Audi take their gloves off and brawl on social media. But it's not always the case.
We saw Mercedes-Benz take to its social media platforms and congratulate BMW on their centenary celebrations, which was a great gesture on their behalf yet a bit tongue-and-cheek but it wasn't the same case with Jaguar Land Rover and Jeep. Jeep officially set foot on the Indian soil yesterday and we brought you all the updates. We also told you about its rivals in India, chief among the lot was Jaguar Land Rover and what happened on Twitter yesterday was nothing short of a refreshing change in the outlook of car manufacturers.
Jaguar Land Rover took to social media to welcome the iconic brand, Jeep, to India and this is what it tweeted.
Welcome @JeepIndia ! Hope the Indian outdoors are as fun for you as they are for Land Rover. #JeepNowInIndia pic.twitter.com/vlPfBnYTAd
-Jaguar Land Rover IN (@JLRIndia) August 30, 2016
Jeep was quick to respond and heartily appreciated the kind gesture from a fellow manufacturer.
Thank you @JLRIndia for the warm welcome. We are here to chase every adventure. #JeepNowInIndia pic.twitter.com/QwPu6ds4yH
- Jeep India (@JeepIndia) August 30, 2016
Besides being rivals, Jeep and Jaguar Land Rover have a lot in common. The World War II military Jeep, the forerunner of today's Wrangler, was responsible for the Land Rover in 1948. In fact the Land Rover Series I, II, and III are off-road vehicles produced by the British manufacturer which were inspired by the US-built Willys Jeep. Well, the first Land Rover prototype, built in 1947, had a Jeep chassis, so yes, there's a lot of Jeep DNA that the Land Rover carries.
Now the Willys Jeep was designed to a strict brief - that it should be light enough to be lifted by four soldiers, have four-wheel drive and should have a wheelbase of 2032mm. It was built for a purpose and yes, on a big scale. Around 600,000 units of the SUV were built during WWII and the design predates the Series I Land Rover's launch by nearly a decade. In fact this one was the template for quite a few car manufactures to build their SUVs.
Toyota built the BJ and FJ in the 1950s which morphed into the Land Cruiser. The Willys Jeep CJ series became the inspiration for the Ford Bronco in the 60s and of course the Suzuki Samurai and Daihatsu Rocky. Mind you, the 1984 Jeep Cherokee XJ which was the first unibody SUV became the template for the modern SUV.
We still see the design used extensively in cars and the Mahindra Thar in India is the perfect example. The appeal for the legend remains and there's no doubt in our mind that Jaguar Land Rover India extended the utmost respect for Jeep. Well, it deserves it, doesn't it?
