[aldo90731]

My Jeep dealer, Glenn E. Thomas, held an outing on June 1 for customers to explore/become familiar with the capabilities of their Wranglers...and a clever way to foster loyalty to Jeep and their dealership.

They organize one such event each quarter. This time we started in the Mojave desert at 10am, went up those mountains through Rattlesnake Canyon, ending at 8,000 feet near Big Bear at 4pm.

21 Jeeps showed up. As usual, they split us into two groups: "Moderate" and "Advanced". It is not the most hard-core offroading but it was well organized and great fun: you get to meet other customers, spend the day wheeling and see incredible vistas and the great outdoors.

Here are some snapshots.

Enjoy!


Gathering at the trailhead

21 Jeeps in all

Up Rattlesnake Canyon

A local guy by the name of "Critter" led us up the trail; the dealer staff remained at the back of the group

Water still running through the desert, even in an super dry year like this one

The kids were having a lot of fun

Lunch break - I am in the orange Jeep right in the center of the photo

The Black Diamond section --the white JK is totally stock with the exception of the steel rear bumper

 

[UN4GTBL]

Thanks for sharing! Looks like great fun!

 

[aldo90731]

Thanks! The JK is simply one AMAZING vehicle.

 

[MoparNorm]

Ha! Ha!
Critter Davidson! A friend of mine!
When you reached 2N01, or 2N02, you passed near the scene of the Blue JKU's demise...

 

[Christopher]

THIS! This exactly what I've said Jeep dealers SHOULD be doing. If my local dealer had done something similar there is a good chance I'd have ended up in a Jeep.

 

[aldo90731]

Ha! Ha!
Critter Davidson! A friend of mine!
When you reached 2N01, or 2N02, you passed near the scene of the Blue JKU's demise...

I think I saw a wooden cross somewhere... ;-)

Critter is cool. In addition to leading the convoy, he plays the role of tour guide by giving out fascinating information over the CB on the trail, the area, etc.

THIS! This exactly what I've said Jeep dealers SHOULD be doing. If my local dealer had done something similar there is a good chance I'd have ended up in a Jeep.

Agreed. But the dealer guys were telling me how time-consuming it is to organize these --they have to do pre-runs, find a weekend that works for everyone, etc., etc.

Nevertheless, the value in building customer engagement and retention is probably worth every second they put into it.

 

[MoparNorm]

THIS! This exactly what I've said Jeep dealers SHOULD be doing. If my local dealer had done something similar there is a good chance I'd have ended up in a Jeep.

Most dealers out here do this.
The owner of Redlands Jeep belongs to a Jeep Club, Tread Lightly and CORVA. You never have a warranty problem with him just because you went off road!

 

[aldo90731]

I does make a difference to work with a dealer that understands how Wranglers are meant to be used when it comes to having offroad-related warranty work or repairs done.

 

[FreeLantz]

A friend of mine here in Houston lived in California when he bought his Jeep a year or two ago, and bought from Glenn E Thomas. He has that same spare tire cover that's on several of the Jeeps in the pic. Small world, I suppose.

I agree, dealers should be encouraged to do things like this. Around here, none would think of it. Sure, they will invite people out for show-n-shines sometimes, but the Jeepers aren't really into that.