Here’s a fun fact:
Every Jeep vehicle since the 1990s has a little surprise, known as an “Easter egg.”
No, we’re not talking about the colorful eggs your kids hunt down on Easter, but an unexpected, hidden feature added to a product as a bonus. Think of it like waiting until the end of a Marvel movie! You’d never turn off the TV without watching the post-credits scene.
Given that Jeep has 23 years of experience hiding these little gems, it can be difficult to find them.
In 1997, a designer, Michael Santoro, who was working on the Jeep Wrangler wanted to come up with a way to leave his own unique mark on the vehicle—or as he said, “Make it more Jeep.”
To do this, he incorporated the Jeep’s iconic 7-bar grille design and hid it within the cowl (the space between the windshield and the hood) of the Wrangler. This Easter egg is the most popular one to find. The rest is history.
Now, each Jeep that rolls out of the factory has its own Easter egg.
If you’re a Jeep owner who wants to find your vehicle’s Easter egg on your own, beware: spoilers can be found beyond this point.
Popular Jeep Easter eggs
Here are some of the most popular Easter eggs and how to find them on your Jeep:
- Vintage Willys Jeeps are found on Jeep Wrangler windows and on some Jeep wheels.
- Flip flops are hidden within the cowl of Jeep Gladiators. These flip flops pay homage to Rick Pewe, an automotive journalist.
- A topographical map of Moab, Utah can be found on the gear shifter of some vehicles.
- Some Jeep Renegades have paint splatter on the redline. This mimics how a Jeep vice president of interior design’s goggles looked after a staff paintball game.
- Jeep Compasses often feature an image of the Loch Ness Monster on the rear window. This pays homage to the fact that Compasses can ford up to 19 inches of water.
- Some Jeeps have a scene showing a T-rex chasing a Willys Jeep that is chasing BigFoot. You might also find a Willys Jeep on some roof latches or a T-rex skull molded into your floor mats.
- Some Jeep Liberties have a stamped “JL” under their hoods. Below the “L” is the Morse code that stands for “JL.”
- If you’re lucky, you could have a lizard hiding under the windshield wipers of your Jeep!
- Jeep has always been rooted in U.S. history. To commemorate this past, some Jeeps have an American flag-shaped C-pillar vent.
- Jeep Renegades often feature a spider saying, “Ciao, baby!” on the fueling door.
- Some Jeep Gladiator owners can find the number “419” engraved into the rear. This is the area code for Toledo, Ohio, where it’s manufactured.
This is just a sampling of the Easter eggs that people have found on their Jeeps in recent years. It is possible there are others yet to be found!
