Jeep® Is Backing Three Teams For This Year’s Rebelle Rally Competition!

The Rebelle Rally is the longest competitive off-road rally in the United States. Made up of more than 1,400 miles (or about 2,250 kilometers) through Nevada and California’s iconic terrain, it is an endurance competition for women consisting of precision driving and navigating, and not by the fastest speed. The competition is innovative and unique, using maps, compass, road books, and strategy which is known as Rebelle Format. GPS and other electronic devices are strictly prohibited.

Remote and off-grid for eight competition days, the Rebelle Rally is considered a providing ground for people, products, and stock manufacturer vehicles. 

While Stellantis has showcased the off-road capability of its Ram pickups in the past, this year there will be three factory-backed teams showcasing the new electrified 2021 Jeep® Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4xe. The Unlimited Rubicon 4xe propulsion system combines two electric motors, one of those electric motors is mounted to an 8-speed automatic transmission and a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four-cylinder engine from the Stellantis Global Medium Engine (GME) family.

The Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4xe allows the electrified model to retain its running gear. That means a Rock-Trac 4×4 system that includes a two-speed transfer case with a 4:1 low-range gear ratio, full-time 4×4, front and rear next-generation Dana 44 axles, Tru-Lok electric front- and rear-axle lockers. The Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4xe also has an impressive crawl ratio of 77.2:1, which makes scaling any obstacle easy. 

The E-Selec modes let the driver tailor the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 4xe propulsion to the trip with Hybrid, Electric, and eSave modes, which conserves the battery pack charge for later use. The Wrangler Unlimited 4xe’s 17-kilowatt-hour battery pack can recharge in approximately two hours on Level 2 (220-volt) power and in about 12 hours on Level 1 (110-volt) household power. According to its economy numbers the Wrangler Unlimited 4xe can deliver 49 MPGe and 21 miles of all-electric range with no range anxiety.

The three factory-backed teams will include…

• Team 4xeVenture (#129) of Nena Barlow and Teralin Petereit. Between the two veteran competitors, they have four class wins and seven podiums. (you can follow Nena on her Facebook page HERE).
• Team Jeep Thrills (#177) of Christine and Emily Benzie. The mother and daughter team is competing in their fourth Rebelle Rally. Last year, they won the coveted bone stock award in a two-door Jeep Wrangler Willys which Emily uses as her daily driver. 
• Team Asdzáá Skoden Rebelles (#160) of Shandiina Peters and Racquel Black. This is the first year for the team, which also happens to be the first Navajo team to compete in the Rally. (you can follow the team on their Facebook page HERE).

“We refer to the Rebelle Rally as the ultimate authentic proving ground for people, products, and vehicles,” said Emily Miller, Founder — Rebelle Rally. “When we started this event in 2016, we had two goals: to create the ultimate, women-only, off-road competition and adventure, and to create an event that showcases just how capable stock vehicles can be.”

“Not only is the Wrangler 4xe powerful, it’s also very versatile and efficient — all of these are critical attributes for success in the Rally,” said Nena Barlow of team No. 129. “With both electric and gas energy available, we won’t worry about the range at all, even when I am gunning it in the dunes.”

Of the 2021 Rebelle Rally competitors, nearly one-third of the field (18 teams) will be competing in a Jeep 4×4.

The Rebelle Rally starts tomorrow, Wednesday, October 7th and will go through October 16th. For those who want to follow the teams and event LIVE, you can go to rebellerally.com/live. There will also be updates on the Rebelle Rally YouTube channel and Facebook page throughout the event.