Get your bidding skills honed and ready if you are looking to own a unique one-off 2016 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited, sculpted by NASCAR great Richard Petty's custom shop and fitted with tons of Rugged Ridge accessories.
Omix-ADA announced this week that the vehicle, its most recent SEMA Cares Jeep build, will auction off without reserve April 8 in Houston, TX through Mecum Auctions. All proceeds will be donated to Victory Junction Camp, a charity organization founded by the Petty family to help care for children with special needs.
“This is the fourth year we are partnering with SEMA Cares, with this year’s charity being Victory Junction,” said Henk Van Dongen, Omix-ADA director of marketing, in a company release. “Al Azadi, owner of Omix-ADA, decided many years ago that he should give back to the communities that have provided him and his family with so much over the past decades. Each year, he makes donations related to health, the automotive aftermarket industry, local charities and many more. SEMA Cares is one of the charities that is near to us, as it relates to the aftermarket and our industry at large.”
For those who may remember, we featured this vehicle back in November on full display at the 2016 SEMA show inside the Las Vegas Convention Center's Grand Lobby. It started out as a stock 2016 Jeep Wrangler JK Unlimited before racing legend Petty and his crew completed a total vehicle transformation, adding a full complement of Omix-ADA and Rugged Ridge interior and exterior accessories - including many never before seen in the market. Some of the more noteworthy products include the company’s Exo-Top soft top for four-door JK Wranglers, performance vented hood kit, Spartan Grille with LED lighting mesh insert, smooth Hurricane fender flares, front and rear Euro Guards, Spartacus front bumper and HD tire carrier.
Petty and his crew then made the already-tough Jeep even more rugged with new steering, transfer case, engine and transmission skid plates. Plus, they gave it a new 4" lift kit with Fox shocks and 20x9 HD Wheels wrapped with General Grabber tires, all powered by a supercharged 3.6L V-6 providing 425 hp and a five-speed automatic transmission.
The 2016 SEMA Cares Wrangler marks the first-time collaboration between Omix-ADA and Petty's Garage, but is the fourth time Omix-Ada has partnered with SEMA Cares to help improve the lives of others. Last year’s Wrangler edition, built by DUB Garage, sold at auction for $100,000.
For more details on this year's auction, visit Mecum's Auction site.
The SEMA Cares Committee was established by SEMA’s Board of Directors in 2007 and strives to make a positive difference through outreach programs and various fundraising efforts. SEMA Cares makes its mission to foster industry leadership by supporting the education of students pursuing careers in the automotive aftermarket.