Shuddering to a corrugated stop on a craggy gravel road somewhere outside Alice Springs, program manager for the all-new Jeep Wrangler John Adams is in no hurry to alight from the sanctity of four wheels and an aluminium body, courtesy of the slithering traveller making its way across the road.

He’s even less keen once we point out the slim – now somewhat agitated - reptile is some sort of brown snake, “likely highly venomous”.

But it’s a minute later that his eyes widen further, his broad hands madly flicking away the persistent flies he is fast learning to hate.

A battered Commodore is stopped, hovering on a jack as two Alice Springs locals remove the rear wheel.

We’ve stopped to see if they need a hand but are casually informed they’re just checking the drive shafts and diff to locate the source of a noise when turning.

Aussie ingenuity at its finest.

But it’s not the rough road repairs Adams is most impressed by.

“They’re doing this 100 metres from one of the world’s most deadly snakes?!” he says, fast gaining an appreciation for life on outback roads.

 Testing times

Adams is in our red centre with development engineer Bernie Trautmann, a German-born Michigan native who is likely to be hunting bears with a bow and arrow when he’s not tinkering on the underside of one of his beloved development cars.

At the encouragement of local Fiat Chrysler chief Steve Zanlunghi the pair have added Australia to the far flung assortment of countries that are on the global tour for Jeep prototypes.

It’s all about subjecting an important new model to another rigorous test.

The weapon of choice for this test is the latest Wrangler, codenamed JL, which has recently rolled out to dealerships across America and will be in Australia later in 2018.

To call it an important model is understating things. The Wrangler is the heart of Jeep.

It’s not the best seller – the Grand Cherokee and city-focused smaller Jeeps such as the Compass and Cherokee account for the big numbers – but it’s the most recognisable as a Jeep. Like the 911 is to Porsche, the Wrangler defines Jeep as a brand.

Plus, it’s the car that most closely sticks to the original 1941 Jeep formula.

It’s fitting, then, that Jeep is using one of the harshest countries on earth to test its mettle.

Sure, most Wranglers are likely to be sunning themselves on the backstreets of Bondi or cruising the St Kilda foreshore, but the DNA screams ability.

Owners not only want the Wrangler to look like it’s ready for business but be able to tackle whatever business it is they throw at it. They may not do it, but they want to know it won’t complain when asked.

Despite adopting some modern thinking – including lightweight aluminium panels - some things on a Wrangler will never change, at least on Trautmann’s watch.

Whereas the rest of the world is switching to a button in lieu of a handbrake, the old school mechanical lever is here to stay on a Wrnsgler, as is the second gear lever that selects four-wheel drive.

The Wrangler is also one of the few cars to continue with live axles front and rear, the core of its substantial wheel articulation, which we put to the test on a random boulder.

It’s also conducive to the aftermarket tuners who often attack a Wrangler to take that ability to the next level.

“The Jeep Wrangler has so many sweet spots we have to hit, there’s a lot of pressure,” says Trautmann, the man in charge of ensuring the Wrangler’s off-road credentials head in the right direction, adding it won’t be running off the rails on his watch. “This vehicle must have live axles, we get full articulation and the type of durability and rock crawling that the customer demands.”

Corporal punishment

In the quest to ensure the Wrangler is king of the rock-hopping kids when the going gets rough, Trautmann aims to push them to the extreme.

Belting through a dry river bed is about working the engine and transmission hard, the relatively low speed limiting air flow through the familiar seven-slot grille.

With ambient temps hovering around 44 degrees there’s pressure on the cooling system to ensure key components are within tolerance.

I’m tracking Trautmann’s eyes as he watches the transmission temp creep into triple figures. It’s hovering around 103 degrees, dealing with multiple gear changes, heat and wheel slip through soft sand.

Trautmann says there are safe guards built in once the transmission approaches 120 degrees, something we’re nowhere near today.

He’s clearly proud of its ability – and the fact everything is working as it should.

It’s also clear this black Wrangler is not just another one off the production line, at least to him.

“I get emotionally attached to some of these cars, I remember their VIN numbers, you spend so much time in them…”

Not that this sort of punishment is the worst this car has seen.

The black four-door Wrangler Rubicon we’re riding in has seen plenty, from 57-degree desert heat to minus-40-degree snow and ice of Alaska.

It’s even been driven by talk show host and avid car collector Jay Leno, who took an interest in it when it was clad in camouflage undergoing testing in California.

Stepping up

Our convoy includes a couple of Grand Cherokees and the previous generation (JK) Wrangler.

There was a two-door new-gen Wrangler early on, but an issue with a kill switch left it stranded in Alice Springs.

So, the black four-door JL – complete with a new turbocharged four-cylinder that won’t initially be offered in the local lineup - is the focus.

From the passenger seat it’s clear the JL is a big step forward in suspension maturity.

Tailing a previous (JK) Wrangler through a challenging section of yumps and dips, the new car is vastly better controlled, particularly in the rear end.

Inside, too, it’s a more modern environment, the dash smattered with well placed chrome and purposeful and functional controls.

We didn’t toy much with the infotainment system, other than to notice its navigation system had maps surrounding Moscow, a vast departure from the dry, penetrating heat of the outback.

For an early prototype it also feels surprisingly tight, the rigours of its tough life so far only obvious from its exterior scrapes and spills.

A hard life

Like a soldier marching off to war a prototype is at the front line.

It’s put through punishment with the aim of ensuring the cars that end up in dealerships can cope with the worst those often adventurous and overzealous owners will put them through.

They can be rough and ready, especially early test vehicles such as the one we’re using here.

Ours still had some prototype components – smooth plastics instead of those carefully grained for effect – and the occasional scar and scratch from previous expeditions.

Yet the prospects of a cruisy retirement are non-existent.

The rules allowing work-in-progress prototypes on the road mean they are not allowed to be sold or reused later.

“I’m afraid as soon as she gets back home she’ll probably get crushed - and I’ll get a big tear in my eye,” says Trautmann, only half joking.

Before then there’s more punishment to come.

And time for sight-seeing; while looking for challenging roads, Adams and Trautmann are just as keen to spot some kangaroos.

The 40-plus-degree temps means most are hiding under trees during the day, although we spot a couple having a sip in a dam.

As for the terrain, Trautmann sees elements of Arizona in the small pocket of the Northern Territory surrounding Alice.

“I wasn’t really sure what the terrain was going to be like,” he says talking of his first trip to Australia, adding it’s the remoteness than has surprised him most during this fleeting visit. “I see this expansive land that just seems to go on forever.”

That last part is key. The American engineers are fascinated with the Toyotas and Nissans loaded with gear, heading off into the surrounding desert for adventures that could last a week - or more.

It’s not just the Aussie terrain that will be taken into account, but how Australians use their off-roaders.

Data driven

While there’s a practical side to the testing, it’s clear testing prototypes is as much about data as it is the seat of the pants experience.

The glovebox of our Wrangler has been removed to make it easier to access some of the wiring looms, in turn making it easy to connect cables.

During our drive, Trautmann is collecting gigabyte after gigabyte of 1s and 0s that will be taken back to Jeep’s research and development centre in Michigan.

One area he’s particularly interested in is a stretch of corrugations of varying intensity.

They’re not as bad as some sprawled through the outback, but are indicative of the suspension challenges in remote areas; high frequency movements not only jar occupants and test a car’s structural integrity but quickly build heat within dampers.

The data is fed into computers to then be replicated on rigs, simulating a lifetime of punishment in a far shorter period.

Australian influence

Exactly what changes with the new Wrangler – if anything – before it arrives Down Under for good will depend on the additional testing that takes place utilising the data gleaned in central Australia.

The engineers can clearly see some unique circumstances that at least require additional investigation and durability testing.

That said, any changes will be relatively minor, likely down to tuning or durability.

Adams lists spring and shock absorber changes as something that could come in for Australia-specific updates.

Trautmann says the next step in the process is “scrubbing through the data, looking at it with the extended engineering team” to work out if changes need to be made.

“Do we need to do anything? We have a situation where we may want to make an improvement for the Australian market,” he says. “We may have to look at something like that for Australian roads, don’t know (yet).”

Either way, it’s the first step in (hopefully) ensuring one of the world’s most recognisable and longest running off-road brands is better suited to life in our wide, brown land.

During what has been a fruitful test there are some things the guys won’t miss about Australia.

“The ability for you guys to produce so many flies in one area is outstanding,” jokes Trautmann. “I don’t know what the secret is, but please keep the secret!”

2018 Jeep Wrangler Price and Specifications

On-sale: October 2018

Price: From $40,000 (estimated)

Engine: 3.2-litre V6 petrol

Power: 213kW

Torque: 353Nm

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic, 4WD

Fuel use: TBA

• For more information visit our Jeep showroom.