Kilroy: Rugged Ridge's Military-Themed Jeep

“You can do whatever you want with it. Just try and keep it shiny-side-up.”

All of the featured parts use factory mounting points. No drilling or welding is required.

The Rugged Ridge grille and headlight guards give the Jeep a menacing look.

A Rugged Ridge Light Bar mounts 3.5-inch, round LED driving lights to the hood.

The winch is equipped with a 10,500-pound-capable synthetic rope and winch cable stopper.

Rugged Ridge’s All Terrain Modular Front Bumper can be configured in multiple ways.

Kilroy’s cockpit is ergonomically laid out.

The Jeep uses 20×9 Rugged Ridge wheels fitted with 37×12.5×20 BF Goodrich tires.

While most bug-out rides take weeks or years to build, Kilroy was completed in a matter of days.

Rugged Ridge’s Exo Top for four-door Wranglers uses the factory soft top.

Rugged Ridge’s RRC Rocker Guards protect the body.

Neoprene grab handles help stabilize passengers.

Rugged Ridge’s Rear Seat Organizer keeps things organized.

“Kilroy has just the right blend of show and go. It’s one bad mamma jamma that catches attention wherever it goes …”

That’s right, we went after that low-hanging fruit of a headline. Just be glad we opted not to pepper the rest of this article with Styx references. And if you get that joke, apologies for the endless loop of the song “Mr. Roboto” now stuck in your head.

Speaking of Kilroy—the military-themed Jeep you see here—it almost didn’t make it onto these pages. Built by Rugged Ridge, Kilroy was created for last year’s SEMA Show, a trade event devoted to presenting the latest and greatest automotive aftermarket goods. So, you know, it’s a place to check out everything from Batman-themed floor mats and LED windshield wipers to bearded old men whose idea of fashion is a Hawaiian shirt covered in ’57 Chevys.

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And the vehicles themselves, while they may look cool and stylish, are often built more for the climate-controlled show floor than the great outdoors. Since we’re all about featuring rides that can get you outta town when SHTF, there’s no way we’d talk about something that was all show and no go.

But then the Rugged Ridge PR team sweetened the deal a bit: “You can do whatever you want with it. Just try and keep it shiny-side-up.”

So that’s exactly what we did. We teamed up with photographer and off-road enthusiast Mike Shin to see just how far we could push the capabilities of this mean green Jeep. Could it handle a bit of dirt? Or, like so many bro-dozers before it, would it crack under the pressure of facing off against a rather intimidating speed bump?

After a bouncy 90-minute drive through traffic, we arrived at our photo spot—an Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) recreational area that is packed with inclines, descents and plenty of dirt. “It’s an easy trail,” Mike said. “Anyone with a bit of off-road experience can get up and down it with no problem.”

Well, Mike’s definition of “easy” radically differs from ours. To get to these photo spots, Mike had us climbing trails with a difficulty rating of 8 or 9 out of 10. Trail markers featured the ominous black diamond—similar to the one you see on ski slopes—with the added bonus of a jagged line slashing through. You know, to truly drive home the message that this path was extra dangerous and stuff.

We pushed Kilroy up and down steep single-track grades, fighting our own feeling of self-preservation as we climbed seemingly vertical, boulder-strewn trails. And when we finally arrived at the summit, we were thoroughly shaken and stirred—both literally and figuratively. As we regained our composure, Mike casually grabbed his gear out of his own truck, lit a cigarette and nonchalantly captured these epic beauty shots.

And here’s where we confirm why this ride is worthy of Ballistic.

This terrain-conquering machine is built from a 2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon, a supremely capable off-roader in stock form. Aftermarket parts manufacturer Rugged Ridge actually built Kilroy live on the SEMA show floor in 2013, enlisting the help of technical school students. So while most bug-out rides take weeks or years to build, Kilroy was completed in a matter of days.

While that extra manpower surely helped speed the build process along, having access to the Rugged Ridge parts bin certainly helped, too. A subsidiary of Omix-ADA, Rugged Ridge offers a huge number of aftermarket parts for every Jeep built from 1941 onward. And all the parts featured on Kilroy are engineered to use the factory mounting points, so no additional drilling or welding is needed. If you’ve got a few wrenches, a few bucks and some time, you can build your very own version of Kilroy in your garage.

Rugged Ridge estimates that it would cost between $75,000 and $80,000 to replicate this build. Of course, that includes the vehicle, new body panels, custom paint, 20-inch wheels and more. That’s a bit more than most can afford, so we asked Rugged Ridge to suggest a more budget-friendly option.

Henk Van Dongen, Rugged Ridge’s director of marketing, suggested the following: “Since Kilroy is built on the Jeep Rubicon platform, it is already quite capable off-road out of the factory. I would certainly suggest going with our Hurricane fender flares, a bumper setup and a lift kit. This allows you to run bigger tires to tackle larger obstacles, and the bumpers are always good protection.”

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As it sits, Kilroy has just the right blend of show and go. It’s one bad mamma jamma that catches attention wherever it goes, and it’s got the capability to get you to areas lesser vehicles fear to tread. Throw some storage containers and your favorite survival gear in the back, and you’ve got a ride ready to get you the hell out of Dodge when “it” hits the fan. And when that day comes, who knows, maybe Chevy-themed Hawaiian shirts will finally look cool.

KILROY SPECS — The Base Ride: 2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon

Exterior:

Rugged Ridge Exo-Top for 4-Door Wrangler
Rugged Ridge Performance Vented Hood with black aluminum hood catches
Rugged Ridge Hurricane Flat Fender Flare Kit (front and rear)
Rugged Ridge XHD Modular Snorkel
Rugged Ridge Spartan Grille with Star Insert
Rugged Ridge Spartan Grille Star Insert
Rugged Ridge Euro Guards for headlight, taillight and turn signals
Rugged Ridge Door Mirrors
Rugged Ridge Smoked LED Taillight Set
Rugged Ridge Hood Light Bar
Rugged Ridge 3.5” Round LED Driving Lights
Rugged Ridge Windshield Mount Light Bar
Rugged Ridge Light Bar Lowering Kit
Rugged Ridge 7” Round HID Off-Road Lights with painted covers
Rugged Ridge All Terrain Modular Front Bumper with Stubby Front Bumper Ends
Rugged Ridge All Terrain Double X Striker Mini-Stinger
Rugged Ridge Winch Plate
Rugged Ridge Aluminum XHD Rear Bumper Pods
Rugged Ridge XHD Gen II Swing and Lock Tire Carrier
Rugged Ridge Off-Road Jack Mounting Bracket
Rugged Ridge Off-Road Jack Handle Retainer Straps
Rugged Ridge Performance 10,500-Pound Off-Road Winch with synthetic rope
Rugged Ridge Winch Cable Stopper
Hi-Lift Off-Road Jack
Axe

Drivetrain:

3.6-Liter V-6 Engine
Rugged Ridge Heavy-Duty Off-Road Axle-Back Exhaust System
Rugged Ridge Reusable Air Filter
Rugged Ridge Drakon 20 x 9 wheelsBF Goodrich Mud Terrain T/A 37 x1 2.50 x 20 tires
Rugged Ridge RRC Rocker Guards
Rugged Ridge Evaporator Tank Skid Plate
Rugged Ridge Heavy-Duty Transfer Case Skid Plate
Rugged Ridge Lower Control Arm Skid Plate Kit
Rugged Ridge Engine and Transmission Skid Plate
Rugged Ridge Steering Component Skid Plate
Rugged Ridge Frame Brace Kit
Rugged Ridge 4” Lift Kit with Shocks
Alloy USA Ring and Pinion Set, 5.13 Ratio (front and rear)
Rugged Ridge Inverted Drag Link
Rugged Ridge Adjustable Trackbar
Rugged Ridge Drop Pitman Arm
Rugged Ridge Steering Stabilizer
Rugged Ridge Front and Rear Drive Shafts
Rugged Ridge Heavy-Duty Differential Covers
Rugged Ridge Slotted and Drilled front and rear disc brakes