Thanks for the massive debt, here's a Jeep: Buy a log cabin, get a Wrangler

Just as the Prius is an essential piece of kit if you desire to wrap yourself in the color green, if being ever-ready is what you'd like to exude, buy a house. Not just any house, mind you - that'd be like a Greenie stripped of their Starbucks intravenous drip, Livestrong bracelet, and Macintosh laptop. If it's backwood rancher/Eagle Scout that you're looking to portray, no domicile will do better than a log cabin. Of course, while the outside says 1885, modern log cabins are a luxury item commonly purchased as a weekend home for the well-heeled, or as a retirement home. Canada-based Pioneer Log Homes has just launched a UK branch, and customers that purchase a model called "The Anchorage" will be rewarded with a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited left in the drive when construction's done.

The two products definitely go together. Both the home and the 4-wheeler look like they could've been hewn with the same axe, offering a certain rugged charm. We like the idea, mainly because a vacation home is a delightful aspiration, as is a Wrangler. Pioneer says you don't have to be a millionaire to afford one of their homes, with a starting point of £650 per square meter. Let's see, multiply by two, divide by nine, hot damn - that's actually not terrible! At today's exchange rate, that square meter cost works out to about $150 per square foot. You could always turn around and sell the Jeep to pay down the mortgage.

press release after the jump

[Source: Pioneer Log Homes]

24 July 2007

BUY A LUXURY LOG HOME – AND RECEIVE THE GIFT OF A "JEEP WRANGLER UNLIMITED"

Pioneer, Canada's leading builder of log homes has launched a range of premium homes in the UK – and buyers of one of these innovative and eco-friendly country houses will find a new "Jeep Wrangler Unlimited" parked on their driveway free of charge.

Pioneer Log Homes are renowned for their distinctive and unique log construction techniques which combine modern methods with traditional craftsmanship to create luxurious yet rugged Canadian dwellings.

Marcus Munro, Managing Director of Pioneer Log Homes UK says: "Our customers love the great outdoors and want a unique weekend hideaway that offers them the luxury of their Mayfair townhouse or Manhattan penthouse – in a stunning rural setting.

"Clients may be looking for a holiday home, in which to enjoy their country pursuits or a retirement home, but when they arrive at their weekender, they will want a fun and practical vehicle to get them to their favourite walking, fishing or bird-watching spot – and back again! The 'Jeep Wrangler Unlimited' is the perfect off-road vehicle for our cabin owners."

Customers that buy 'The Anchorage' style log home from Pioneer in the UK this summer will receive a brand-new "Jeep Wrangler Unlimited" worth up to £23,000 free of charge. Their new car is the only four door convertible available in the UK, and offers a 2.8-litre diesel engine with manual or automatic gearbox, a removable hard top and seating for five adults and their luggage.

Peter Lambert, Managing Director of Chrysler Group UK, said: "With its excellent on and off-road performance, a host of safety features and an all-new interior, the Jeep Wrangler could become the limo of the off-road world. It is difficult to think of any other 4x4 that would sit comfortably alongside one of these stunning designs. I'm sure that these customers will enjoy owning their new Wrangler as much as their new log cabin."

If you aren't a millionaire you need not worry – Pioneer Log Home packages are available from just £650 per square metre, while the new Jeep Wrangler range starts at just £17,995.

Marcus Munro added: "The environment is an important consideration for our clients – from the sustainable forest where we source our wood to the geothermal heating systems for our log cabins, our approach is eco-friendly. When you look at the whole-life environmental costs of vehicles, the entire Jeep range is very environmentally friendly*, and the latest diesel-engined Jeep Wrangler is the greenest off-roader in its class."

• Pioneer Log Homes is based in British Columbia and is famed as Canada's leading builder of premium log homes.
• Pioneer's UK-based team will create a bespoke design – from a modest building to a 100,000 sq foot lodge – and build it with the customer's choice of doors, windows, kitchen and premium interior fittings. The structure is made from Western Red Cedar wood sourced from sustainable forests in Canada and is assembled by hand in British Columbia, shipped to the UK and then erected by Pioneer's British craftsmen.
• The 'Anchorage' home featured in the picture, fully completed inside and out costs around £275,000 (excluding the price of the land and cost of all other professional fees). For more information and terms and conditions of the free Jeep promotion go to www.pioneerloghomes.co.uk
• * A three year study conducted by an American market research firm, CNW Marketing Research, looked at the whole life 'dust-to-dust' costs of the energy used in the design, building, transporting, servicing and scrapping of cars. CO₂ emissions and fuel consumption were also taken into consideration.

The findings, which were revealed in the November 2006 edition of What Car? magazine, showed that the entire Jeep range had a 'dust-to-dust' energy cost that put it in the top 20 of the list of 96 cars which included hybrid-powered models.