Last summer, my wife reminded me (as if I needed reminding) that our oldest would be getting her driver’s permit in the spring and inevitably the conversation turned towards cars and what she might be driving when the time came. Knowing me, this was a topic with many potential avenues to explore but my wife suggested it might be fun to look at a Jeep just to “check it out”. Uh-huh.
Usually such a suggestion wouldn’t exactly require a lot of arm-twisting, but I’ve historically not really been a Jeep Wrangler fan. When pressed as to why, I didn’t really have any good reasons as to why that was the case beyond a voyage I took years back that involved a long highway trip in the back seat of a Wrangler with a leaky soft top in the rain at night.
Anyway, as I said above my wife suggested it might be fun to take a look and if we liked it, it might be even more fun to drive around for a year or so until our daughter actually got her license.
So in the end we went to the dealer and took a look and drove a new one. To my (but probably nobody else’s) surprise, we actually both liked it more than we expected. Our dealer only had silver and black ones though and after looking at the options there we decided to look around a bit more.
Our goal was not to spend a lot of money and so we decided on the 2-door as it was $3000 cheaper than the 4-door and we already had two other larger vehicles as well as it being the “classic” Jeep shape although nowadays the 4-door supposedly outsells it 3-1. This was late last summer and although I knew Jeep Wranglers were popular, especially around here in Colorado, I figured I had time to see what my options were.
I was surprised to learn that the Wrangler is one of the few cars in the U.S. that many people actually custom order, in addition an order would usually be filled in less than six weeks, and even more interesting a factory order was often discounted as much or even more than one sitting on the lot. At the time it was still unknown if this model would still be in production for the 2018 model year of it it would be superceded by the new “JL” version.
As it turned out, Jeep ended up producing BOTH versions side by side for the 2018 model year, with the “JK” version finally wrapping up in April 2018 but at the time of looking it was thought that 2017 might be it. The best pricing was to be had from several out of state mega-dealers, one of which was in Idaho and another in Virginia, and the pricing was usually around 5-7% under the invoice (not MSRP) price with some aggressive shopping.
After submitting details of what we were interested in to both of them along with a couple of more local dealers, and receiving written bids back with very minimal hassle (a welcome change from the usual), we backed off and decided that even though the pricing wasn’t bad, it was still more than we really wanted to spend and we decided to see what was available used.
That’s when we realized that these things hold their value better than most other American branded vehicles and due to the large amount of customization options from the factory as well as aftermarket, this wouldn’t be as easy as for example deciding on a Honda Accord EX in a particular color.
After looking for a month or two at a few used ones with various prices, ages, and accrued mileages, I saw an ad on Craigslist for the one we ended up purchasing. It was being sold by the son of a gentleman from Arizona that had passed away, so the son brought the Jeep back to Denver to sell it out of the estate. We went down, looked at it, kicked the tires, drove it, kicked the tires a bit more, looked at it again, made an offer, rejected the counteroffer and eventually met around the middle as we all sort of figured we would.
At $24,000, it was more than we ideally wanted to spend but better than the $31,000 that a new one would have been with the same options (all of which we wanted). Wranglers seem to drop in price around $2000 per year until they are worth about half the new price and then drop even slower from thereon out, based on that we did alright.
A quick trip to the bank around the corner and all of a sudden we owned a Jeep Wrangler!
So here it is. It was two and a half years old when we bought it, had 19,000 miles on it, still was under the factory 3yr/36,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty as well as the 5year/100,000 mile powertrain warranty. My wife wanted to drive it and give me the Highlander and we still also had the Mercedes at the time, all of which was fine with me.
Of course then my wife drove it for a few days and decided maybe the Jeep life wasn’t for her after all, and she returned to the cushiness of the Highlander…I on the other hand have sort of fallen in love with it and currently use it as my main transportation, especially since we sold the Mercedes back in February.
It’s officially the Sport S model (the base is the Sport without the extra S) and like every one of this series in North America comes equipped with Chrysler’s Pentastar 3.6liter V6 engine producing 285hp @ 6000rpms and 260ft-lbs of torque at 4800rpms and a manually shifted 4-wheel-drive system with a low range.
This engine has been fitted to all versions of the JK-series Wrangler, both 2- and 4-door, since 2012. Before that (since this series was introduced in 2007) it had the 3.8liter “minivan” motor. The Pentastar is considered a better engine with more power and refinement and is currently used in a vast array of FCA’s products from the Wrangler to the ProMaster to the Dodge Challenger to the current minivans etc. (basically whatever it can fit into really).
I’ve personally driven this engine in a ProMaster van, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, a Dodge Caravan and now this Wrangler and enjoyed it in every application. It makes plenty of power, is reasonably economical, quite reliable and while the sound it makes doesn’t remind you of tearing silk as with a good BMW inline-6, it sounds at least as good as a higher quality polyester blend tearing if that exists…
Getting the Sport S version as opposed to the base Sport (no S) means it came with Air Conditioning as standard along with 17″ alloy wheels, 255/75-17 tires and a few other niceties. Standalone options on ours included power windows and door locks, the hardtop with removable front portions (for a targa-top feel), a 5-speed transmission derived from a Mercedes unit that is considered quite bulletproof and may have been very similar to the unit in my Chrysler 300C with the V8, 3.73 gearing, tow package, limited-slip rear differential, connectivity package (bluetooth, trip computer), and a couple other minor things. Of course, like all Wranglers it was built in Toledo, Ohio.
The gearing is interesting in that the standard gearing is a 3.21 set. This one has the 3.73 set which makes it quite a bit more sprightly at the expense of a little bit of fuel economy. In reality it’s a brick, hence the fuel economy would never be stellar anyway. I average in the high teens and can reach 20mpg on a very good day at a steady cruise when I keep my foot out of it, at least it takes regular.
What I found interesting is that as fuel economy became more and more important is the cost of the gearing option. When the JK-series debuted choosing the 3.73 over the 3.21 was a $50 option. Last year it was a $695 option. This is for something that costs the company NO additional money whatsoever to manufacture/install except in the way that the fuel economy is calculated and affects their corporate average.
The color is called Sunset Orange Pearl and changes quite a bit depending on the light. It’s probably most similar in shade to those orange road construction signs, sort of a very dark orange with a lot of red in it. Originally I thought it was the same as what is available on the Dodge Challenger and a few other Jeep models but having parked next to them since we’ve had it, realized that the shade is slightly different.
It was only available for 2015 and wasn’t introduced until later in the model year, our car was built in February of 2015. It’s a distinctive color and we’ve only seen a couple of others like it, unlike white or black or silver ones that seem to be everywhere. The new Wrangler JL now has a very similar color called “Punk’n”. It’s a Jeep, might as well have a fun color, leave the gray tones for the boring cars.
The Jeep was in very good condition when we got it with the exception of some very minor surface scratches but an extremely scratched glovebox door. The owner’s son had no idea what happened but it appears that maybe something heavy and irregular shaped was placed in the passenger footwell and proceeded to heavily gouge the glovebox door.
After pricing out a new one at the dealer I looked on Ebay and found the actual 2015 Jeep Wrangler that was used for crash testing by the IIHS that was being parted out by a wrecking yard on the east coast. I called them and they had the door at a reasonable price. They sent me pictures of it (above) and I also found the video of the crash test (below). The door was basically brand new (the crash test car had 75 miles on it when crashed), had probably never been used and popped right in after I swapped out the locking latch.
As I alluded to above, I had not really been a Jeep fan. I could probably be best described as having been ambivalent. However, driving it is not like the really old ones, it is surprisingly quiet, is plenty quick (dare I say sprightly? It really is!) enough, has excellent visibility, and being a 2-door is absolutely fantastic at turning in tight quarters and parking anywhere. The biggest problem is that you tend to “over”steer it into parking spots or corners and end up making a much tighter turn than anticipated when switching to it from a different vehicle.
With the hardtop on, it is easy to carry on a conversation or hear the radio, and on the freeway, while noisier, it is nowhere near as bad as the old ones were, especially old ones with a soft top. The hardtop seals well, and does not leak (at least mine doesn’t).
On the freeway, it’s happiest at around 70-75mph, but will do and maintain 80-85 with a bit more determination. And faster speeds with even more… The handling is better than expected, at higher speeds with the short wheelbase it’s perhaps a little bit squirrelly but again you get used to it. In the winter it’s amusing to drive if there is some snow on the hood, as you reach a higher speed the aerodynamics are so bad that the wind hits the windshield and turns around, blowing the snow off the FRONT of the hood in the travel direction as opposed to up and over the roof.
Around town at more moderate speeds it takes corners quite well, sitting so high up you have excellent visibility and tend to take it a little easier around corners anyway. I don’t really think I could get anywhere appreciably faster in any other car, at least not in town. It has a pretty wide track, as a result does not feel overly “tippy”.
Ride comfort is obviously not its forte, and it is nowhere near as comfortable in that aspect as the Highlander for example. Then again, on normal roads it is not at all bad (really), the only time it gets ugly is on really bad roads or especially on a railroad crossing with poorly maintained asphalt, then it can be brutal and you learn to sort of brace yourself and keep your teeth away from your tongue. But while it spends the majority of its time on paved roads, I completely realize that isn’t what it was really made for.
The interior I find to be very well designed, while the plastics are all hard (who cares, it’s a Jeep), they are easy to clean, look attractive, and the cloth seats are very comfortable. Everything falls well to hand and there are enough cubbyholes and little nets to hold everything.
The deep well on top of the dashboard is great to throw the phone in while driving and the sunglasses in when going indoors. This interior replaced the original version for the 2011 model year and having been in both, this one is quite a bit nicer but the old one wasn’t exactly horrific either.
Instrumentation is crisp, clear and comprehensive with the trip computer also showing transmission and oil temperatures along with other operating parameters. The heater is like a blast furnace, even on the coldest winter days it spits out heat almost immediately and very strongly and the A/C in the summer, well, it’s an American system, i.e. it gets cold enough that I frequently actually have to turn it down.
The top is not at all insulated (although an insulation package is available both from MoPar as well as aftermarket vendors that supposedly helps a lot), but the climate control systems is strong enough that this is not a must-have at all. I believe it also suppresses noise at higher speeds which might be a bigger benefit.
I’ve made a couple of minor modifications, the first one was after driving to Laramie a couple of times and being scared absolutely out of my wits when driving past an oncoming big rig at 70mph on a two lane road. The wind blast causes the hood to lift up against the rubber hold-downs and the hood slams violently up and down several times causing the whole vehicle to move on the road and sucking it towards the oncoming lane and almost causing a “code brown” condition for the driver.
Looking into it I came across a couple of incidents on the forums where the hold-downs had actually failed people in this scenario by snapping and the security latch didn’t do its job, resulting in the hood slamming back against the windshield and causing major damage.
I found a product manufactured by DayStar that for $23 provided a much heavier duty set of rubber latch centers with metal holding pins that once installed make it harder to latch and unlatch the hood but stop ALL movement whatsoever. These things work extremely well and make my trips to Laramie as uneventful as in any other vehicle with a normal hood latch setup.
This problem, colloquially called “hood flutter”, is commonly noted by people that drive their Wranglers at higher speeds in windy conditions or with oncoming traffic and really should have been addressed by Jeep many years ago. Along with the DayStar product there are other hood latch options as well as hood locks, all of which are better than the factory setup. The new JL series of Wranglers introduced last year has a very different setup that eliminates the issue as well.
The other thing I did is replace the stock headlights with a set of European Cibié lenses and reflectors, better bulbs, and wiring harness adapters. As a result, with careful aiming, I have a better/sharper cutoff and much more focused beam that puts out more light (or at least the appearance thereof) and I can see better at night.
The rear bench in the Jeep can be either removed completely or just folded up against the front seat and held in place with a bungee cord. Either way results in a remarkably large and more importantly square space for cargo. The picture below shows the result of one of my trips to Laramie.
I fit all of that into the Jeep with the rear bench removed, some of it was in the front passenger seat but the majority was in the back. (That’s a 30″ sinkbase cabinet in the back and a table saw in the middle left). All doors and windows were able to close and I had as much room in the driver’s seat as normal. Removing the rear bench takes mere seconds but it’s heavy and awkward to stagger around with, just like a two seat minivan bench back in the day.
The tow package came in handy a few weeks ago when I needed to rent a post hole digger for my new deck footings, I simply hooked it up and towed it home. Who needs an F-150!? The only issue I faced is that this towed device was so low and narrow I could not see it out the back. So I just avoided having to back up. A regular trailer should be better due to its width, I’ll have occasion to try that next month when I need to take some appliances up to Laramie.
Our daughter absolutely loves it and wants it as her car when she turns sixteen. The jury is still a little out on that. While I love driving it and am much more impressed by it than I had thought I would be I do realize it may not be the best vehicle for a new driver.
It’s considered fairly safe but it does have some handling characteristics that are “different” than other vehicles, mainly to do with its height and short wheelbase. At least it has a wide track, I do not feel like it’s ever about to tip over, actually, and in the snow it’s a lot of fun to turn off the stability control and slide it around. Some specific training regarding those aspects would be a good idea for her, and the winter might be a perfect time for that.
What is great about it for a new driver though is all of the bits at the extremities. If she (or anyone) should have a minor “incident”, I love the fact that I can just replace the bumper or the fender liner or whatever easily and very cheaply. With all of the customization options out there, many owners either sell their stock items for very cheap or just give them away.
Ours came with an aftermarket tubular metal front bumper. I acquired a perfect condition stock unit, complete, for $40 across town, it’s currently on a shelf in the garage, I may install it eventually as it would weigh less than what’s installed now and would cause less damage to someone else’s car in a minor incident.
At this point I’ve driven it over 13,000 miles in ten months (32k total on it now) in all weather conditions and it is still as solid as it was when I got it, there are NO rattles, and nothing has gone wrong with it. I’ve gotten a couple of oil changes done and when the dealer “offered” to change the differential fluids front and rear for $329 at the time the manual recommended it decided to buy my own fluids for less than $50 and spent an hour in the driveway without a jack and drained and replaced the fluids myself, there is plenty of room to crawl underneath and work on it.
If you’ve never driven one, and like me thought you aren’t really missing out, I urge you to reconsider. Especially if you live in a city and don’t do a ton of high-speed freeway driving, I think it’s almost the perfect vehicle and can be equipped to be far from spartan. Easy to see out of, extremely maneuverable, comfortable, excellent resale value even when abused or cosmetically damaged from what I’ve seen out there, simple to repair, rugged, durable, it’s great.
AH HA the mystery color.
Great looking Jeep, especially in the mystery color 😉
I was impressed reading the story of how you acquired it – it seems like you and your wife were very deliberate in buying process and waited for the right deal. I’m glad it came along. Best wishes with the Jeep, and hopefully your daughter will enjoy it. If you start her off with something older and more economic, the Jeep can be a great incentive for later.
I’m in favor of placing new drivers in vehicles with the most air bags possible, including side curtain bags. I was suprised to see that, at least in MY 2017, Wrangler JK’s had seat mounted side air bags only as an option. Were any produced without them, or was just a case of desire to show a low base price?
They were an option but a relatively rarely chosen one. Ours doesn’t have them. Most owners feel that the body on frame design along with the elevated seating position and the padded roll bar is enough. I don’t fully agree with that personally (what if you get hit by another higher BOF vehicle, right?) and it’s one of the things giving me pause. Then again the side impacts that I have seen so seem in Wranglers seem to end up with less damage than a similar impact in a unibody CUV or car. I know that’s a highly unscientific observation and the whole point of crumple zones is to, well, crumple.
IIHS gives the 2015 Wrangler a Marginal overall rating for side protection – that would give me pause. The Jeep did reasonably well in some of the other tests, including the side offset crash.
Last week-end I was in NYC and while walking came upon the result of a yellow cab running a red light and t-boning an old Lincoln Town Car (Panther) in livery service. There was considerable rear side damage to the Town Car (it wasn’t clear that the rear door would open and the passenger on the impact side appeared to be injured). This incident reinforced my thinking that side airbags are absolutely essential (and how vulnerable those Panthers are to side impact crashes, as Jack Baruth’s accident, Bob Simon’s death, and countless police car crashes have demonstrated).
Many years ago one of my nieces wanted a Wrangler as her first car. My sister nixed that idea, and since she was going to be co-signing the loan, my niece was strongly encouraged to look for a small sedan….preferably a Japanese branded car.
I have only ever ridden in soft top Wranglers. As a result, they always struck me as being noisy and in cold weather they were almost as cold as a convertible with it’s top down as their were lots of gaps in the tops and side curtains.
I applaud you for staying with your desire to go with the 2 door. They seem to have all but disappeared from the road.
I also own a 15 2 door and will echo everything you said. It seems 80% were made in black but the JLs seem to have more variety so far.
With the doors and top off it’s a car like no other. But you need a soft top because taking the hard top off is a commitment.
The parts thing is a good point too; so much new stuff available on Craigslist for instance. I know when I need new tires I will just find a new takeoff wheel and tire combo for less than the new tire cost.
Funny part is my wife says it’s scary on ice. It’s just very different from the typical awd on demand stuff, it can be hard to explain to people these days.
And yes that heater will have you rolling the windows down in January.
I was going to say that one of the benefits of a vehicle that is frequently heavily modified is that you can often buy a set of tires and wheels with 20 miles on them for less than a set of new off-brand tires.
Personally I feel more in control with the front and rear axles locked together in the really slippery stuff than I do in a vehicle with a center diff, a slip then grip or a gas and go system.
I rented one for a day and didn’t really like it all that much. The highway ride is not very comfortable or quiet. The in town manuverability is good and in town driving is acceptable. Off road performance is probably very good but there’s no way I’m taking a 30,000 dollar vehicle into the deep woods.
Nice write up, a friend has a 2017 Wrangler that we took a road trip in, rode really nice on the highway and was pretty quiet, even with 3 inch lift and larger wheels/tires. Very nice machine.
I did notice a little hood flutter as he has as well. I sent him a link to this write up on how you replaced the latches with the $23.00 aftermarket replacement. Typical CC coincidence!
Sunset Orange Pearl was an early Honda Element color name.
Wow, what a coincidence! I know that color but it’s definitely different. There is a different (earlier) Wrangler JK color that is similar to that Honda color though.
Yeah, I don’t know about a Wrangler being a great first car. Certainly desired by many a young driver but more of a handful to drive than many other choices.
That said I do know a young girl who’s first car was a Wrangler, a modified one at that and she regularly takes it for real wheeling. Of course my friend, her Dad, is either by her side, leading the pack or sometimes eating her mud bringing up the rear in his Jeep.
It sounds like for your next ride you need to break down and seriously consider a pickup. Put a canopy on back and you’ve got a great place for tools and materials and with an extra or crew cab a back seat for more delicate or expensive items or just as overflow for either cargo or passengers.
Yeah a pickup with a canopy or a minivan. How do you get the stuff out of the truck that’s up against the front of the bed? Climbing up the tailgate and crawling into the back seems like it might get old. But yes, I’ve had similar thoughts, it’d be more convenient at times for sure.
Well it all depends on the canopy. With my current pickup there was never an intention to have a canopy. It just so happens that the truck I found that checked all the boxes and was at a good price came with one. I figured hey winter is on its way, I’ll leave it on for now. However I came to really like it.
It is a Gem Top Workmaster with most of the options. The driver’s side has a solid panel that opens hatch like. Behind that is a set of shelves that run the length of that side. The passenger side has glass and also opens. That means I can reach the front stuff at the front of the passenger side of the bed through it. I keep my “old man’s hook” just inside that windo that allows me to pull just about anything that is on the driver’s side front. The other thing that makes it easier to load and unload is the fact that it has a full rear panel with barn doors. So you are not reaching over the tail gate to get to things. Most of the time though things that are that far from the door for me are long things like 2×4’s and sheet goods.
So yeah now I say any canopy has to have openings on the side.
My father in law has driven pickups exclusively for the last 30 years. Usually with a tonneau cover, so to solve the “how to reach stuff” issue, he keeps one of his old Hockey sticks, with one of those “J” shaped bike hanging hooks screwed into the end of the handle. So he can either pull stuff to the rear with the hook, or push things around with the … puck end. Genius!
One of my “old man hooks” is from my Father in law. I remember many years ago when he had his Toyota with a canopy and he had a hook he made from some scrap plywood that he had laminated to give a nice handle. As a young man I kind of scoffed at the idea style being flexible and able to jump in easily. His next truck didn’t have a canopy so it went in the garage where it stayed for many years. Eventually he passed and my Mother in law decided it was time to sell the house, so when I found it while cleaning out the garage I made it mine and use it since I’m an old man now.
I find a pickup truck good for my needs. If you don’t buy a ginormous one that takes a step ladder to climb into, then it is easy to get at your stuff in the back. I have a 2011 Chevy Colorado regular cab and I can reach all my items out easy without climbing into the back. I actually use a hoe to snag the items in the back.
Oddly enough I bought the truck just to use for dump runs and other jobs that required carrying things. I ended up making it my daily driver.
Among the countless toy and model cars I had as a kid were many Jeeps, as the family knew I loved them. I still have these three toys. It strikes me as how little the styling changed over 60 years, given the similarity to the one on the left, which was a gift in the late 50’s, to your Wrangler (though mine is a redder red). You don’t mess with a classic design!
My sister lived for about 18 months with a Subaru Outback that she just never took too (it also had some nagging electrical issues). She got a 16 Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon (with a stick) and has loved it. Loved it so much that she has ordered a new 18 (or 19?) JL.
I have driven her JK and like it. I know, however, that it is “too much” for me and the way I use an in-town second vehicle. The smaller 2 door might suit my lifestyle better. I am glad to see your experience with this one.
I admit I have a grudging affinity for Wranglers, and now more than ever with the latest, much improved JL. Wranglers are terrible everyday vehicles (they have the worst reliability/maintenance of any new vehicle) and about as far from, say, a Corolla as is possible.
But they’re ‘lifestyle’ vehicles and that, just like Harleys and VWs, makes a world of difference in how owners will put up with their myriad deficiencies (as well as keeping resale values high). The JL looks to be even better, particularly with the new hybrid drivetrain. It has a turbocharged 2.0L four, with a mild hybrid system that has both excellent drivability and, while not stellar, much improved fuel economy (up to 22 city/25 highway). That’s excellent (maybe even outstanding) for pushing a large, high center-of-gravity brick through the wind. Frankly, I see sales to go nowhere but up.
So far I’ve had no issues. Maintenance has been oil changes every 5000 even though it calls for them less frequently and the differential fluid change. Other than that the maintenance regimen is pretty the same as any other application for this engine assuming it’s used normally.
Reliability has been perfect, granted I’ve only driven it 13k miles myself and the total is 32k but this and the last Chrysler I had (which admittedly wasn’t for too long either) neither were unreliable, rattly or shoddily assembled. Then again I generally take care of my vehicles in the manner prescribed. There are plenty of used Wranglers of this generation out there with well over 150k miles, people seem to drive these things far and wide. Some have issues but for the most part they are cheap to fix. Many of the issues I have heard of on the various Jeep forums frankly have more to do with people putting ill-advised modifications on them. Adding 37″ wheels/tires to a stock drivetrain without re-gearing seems to be a recipe for disaster etc.
The turbo 4 looks interesting but my understanding is that it requires premium gas. There goes much if not all your fuel savings. I’m also one of the biggest turbo-4 apologists/aficionados on this site but have a hard time believing that the current 3.6 Pentastar V6 is any less reliable than the T-4 will be.
That sucks that the 2.0L requires premium. That’s a deal-killer and really too bad because, IIRC, the turbo four is only something like a $1000 option. It would have fallen into the category of being ‘just right’ between the Pentastar and much pricier diesel.
FWIW, the Pentastar engine family seems to have garnered quite a good reputation with only one major engineering issue (improperly designed cylinder head fixed in second year) since its 2011 introduction. Don’t know if it’s eventually going to acquire slant-six status but, so far, it seems to be quite a good engine worthy of Chrysler’s engineering prowess from years gone by.
One of the more worrisome issues with Wranglers is what is known as the ‘death wobble’. Apparently, some Wranglers have an unnerving tendency to abruptly veer at highway speeds. The cause is unknown and difficult to correct, with the most likely culprit being the inherent design geometry of the front suspension.
An acquaintance of mine experienced the “death wobble” himself and found it fairly worrisome. He knew it was a possibility and how to deal with the situation, but it would be interesting to know how common the condition is in newer Wranglers.
It apparently has to do with one or more worn components in the front suspension. My understanding is that it can affect any vehicle with a solid axle in the front, the Wrangler happens to be the most common vehicle so equipped. If we had anything resembling actual mandatory vehicle safety inspections in the US as in Germany for example most cases would likely be corrected before becoming an issue.
This is true, but it’s much more pronounced on a short wheelbase vehicle, hence the reputation. You’re right, it is due to suspension wear, and is exacerbated by changes in geometry due to lifts, bigger tires, etc. that the Jeep is often subjected to.
“Wranglers are terrible everyday vehicles (they have the worst reliability/maintenance of any new vehicle) and about as far from, say, a Corolla as is possible.”
Who told you that? I’d say the opposite is true. The Wrangler is a solid vehicle reliability-wise. It does have some unique problems (like windshields that crack due to being so flat and the aforementioned hood flutter) but they aren’t reliability issues.
By all measures, my late-model Grand Cherokee is considerably less reliable than the Wrangler (mainly due to electronics gremlins).
Who ‘told me’ that Wranglers are the least reliable new vehicle is any readily available reliability report, with the most common being Consumer Reports. They’ve consistently been at the bottom, year-after-year. Yet, they also manage to maintain a high resale value and an enviably loyal customer base.
But, loyalty and reliability aside, does anyone really think a Wrangler is an easier vehicle to live with and drive daily than a Corolla? I mean, c’mon, the Wrangler is still based on a freaking half century old, WW2 military vehicle. There’s only one category where it really excels, and that’s serious offroading ability.
Reliability and livability are two different things. And, again, you should check out the JL. It’s a lot more livable.
Wranglers tended towards the bottom of the Consumer Reports and JD Power surveys in the past. I wonder, though, if some of that wasn’t due to the unique problems you mention. Someone buying their first Wrangler may not be expecting the wind noise, hard ride, etc. that come with the platform. Something like that could be put down as faulty door seals or another reliability issue.
“Who Knew?” is apt. You had me guessing for six months and figuring past actions are the best indicator of future behavior there was nothing (nothing and nothing) to indicate a Jeep. Ever. Besides, I thought these were all either black or red.
If you daughter ends up with this (and, being a contrarian, I think it would be ideal for her as a Jeep will teach her driving isn’t a point and shoot experience) you’ve sort of set a bar for yourself in future vehicles. You did rather acknowledge (at long last) a need to haul and pull things. Your epiphany makes me proud.
While I won’t say what, I’ll only post a little hint.
It seems that the stars are aligning, seeing as how I currently don’t live in an HOA neighborhood your County Fair Special up there could sit in front of (and/or obscure) my house.
You had some excellent/interesting guesses over the last few months, in order: used DeVille, new VW Atlas, new Silverado, new Civic, Dodge Charger R/T, Focus ST/RS, 1985 Mercury Topaz GT, Orange 2017 Ram 1500 Sport, GMC something Professional Grade…
Yeah, I’ve spent a goodly part of two of the last three days at the state fair. The F-750 I saw intrigued me and we just happened to be texting at the right time(s).
Trying to determine what you bought was one of the biggest stumpers I’ve had in a while.
Jst give it a couple of years and most of your guesses will likely prove to be accurate. 🙂
What a great story! Makes me want to drive one now, and normally this is a car I have little to no interest in driving.
That is exactly the mindset I had before I really tried it. Check it out, it’s a fun ride if your use case allows it.
Nice Jeep! And much fancier than the 1991 Wrangler that I used to own. It was a 5-speed, and came with a heater but that was about it (no A/C, no radio, I think the back seat might have been an option?) And forget about air-bags. It had a partial roll cage that just covered the driver and front-seat passenger. They do keep their value well. I bought it new for $11,000 and sold it for $7,500 seven years later. That was enough for me. The fun had worn off, I had gotten it out of my system, and I’ve never wanted another one since.
Great post, and heartening to hear you’re having such a good time with your Jeep. They’ve always looked like a lot of fun, though a Wrangler’s never fit into my vehicle needs so far. A neighbor has an older model that – from the regular slatherings of mud – sees a lot of off-road use, and that must be a blast. Keep enjoying your Jeep and a sincere welcome to the driving life to your daughter. May there be many intriguing vehicles in her future.
Congrats Jim, great dadding. Just don’t hold-on too tightly to the keys when it comes time to hand it over.
The cargo capacity of your Jeep is surprisingly impressive. We needed to rent a car a while back and the agency had a Wrangler on offer, so I checked the listing out for curiosity’s sake. “4 Passengers, 1 (!) Suitcase” was how they described it. Removing the back seat is the key, of course, but yours looks roomier in general than I expected.
I was curious about the removable back seat, as well. Can it be taken out without tools? If so, I was completely unaware that was possible and makes the larger Unlimited version even more appealing.
The 2door’s back seat can be removed without tools, there is just a spring loaded bar to press once you fold the seat and it lifts out. (Fold seat back onto seat bottom, fold up again, press bar, lift it out.
The 4door (Unlimited) DOES need tools to get the seat out completely (there are a number of bolts), but the seats can fold down more or less flat. It’s a very different design than the 2door and is also a split 60/40 design.
They are correct if the back seat is up as far as the one suitcase goes. It’s a 4-seater (the 4door is a 5-seater as the rear bench is wider due to not being between the wheel wells). It still has enough room for the groceries, a Costco run however is generally a no-go if the whole family wants to go with you.
If you fold the seat up it nestles up against the front seats but you need a bungee cord or something to hold it, Jeep cheaped out and didn’t include any way to lock it in the up position. This gives room for most things.
But if you take the rear seat out you have a lot of room as well as being able to put longer items between the front seats. I have been able to fit 8foot lumber with the back glass still closing if I tuck it into the front passenger footwell. Even longer items fit with the back glass in the raised position.
A very unexpected choice from you Jim, but I guess there’s a first time for everything!
Personally, I am not a Wrangler fan and it’s always a vehicle I struggle to say something positive about. I’ve driven enough of them on trade to know it’s a vehicle I’d never voluntarily drive, but it isn’t hard to see it embodies the exact opposite of most qualities I look for in a vehicle.
For those who prioritize utilitarian nature over comfort and off-roading over highway driving, and a high degree of customization, I can see why it is a popular choice. And I can respect the deep cult car nature of the Jeep Wrangler!
You’re happy with it, so that’s what matters most. As always, an enjoyable COAL piece!
Thanks Brendan! At least I’ve got two cars at completely different ends of the spectrum automotive, although both have a 3.6l 6-cyl and 4 seats… 🙂
Hey, you sort of enjoyed that older Land Rover Discovery you drove a while back, so there’s hope for you yet!
Haha good point! I did really enjoy that old Land Rover… probably even more so than I made it clear in my article 🙂
Interesting choice. I had guessed Ferrari or Fiat based on the red, but I guess a Wrangler is just another FCA product. Living in Colorado you have lots of great off-pavement exploring you can do and no doubt, a huge Jeep community.
Nice! There’s times I think one of these would make a possible replacement for my xB, which I consider (and drive) something Jeep-like. You should have seen the roads I took it down today to get to a remote trail head.
But then the rear doors and seat of the xB come in real handy. As does 30 mpg. 🙂
So the waiting was worth it, I wouldn’t have guessed!
I like the 2D one more than 4D one and absolutely wouldn’t mind Wrangler as a first car (18, driving 1,5 year). In my opinion being actually colored (not white, silver, black) is a big +1. My father likes Wranglers for some time, so next time car buying I’ll try to convince him 😀.
In Slovakia, and especially in my region (Nitra), there is significantly more four-doors, many times lifted. Who knows if they’re really off-roading, or just observing the traffic from above.
PS – thank you, Jim, for the puzzle and keeping my brain at least a bit active on Sunday 😅
Jim, I’m always impressed with how varied your car purchases are. Like Brendan, a Wrangler isn’t for me – I don’t foresee myself ever doing much off-roading – but I’m happy you’re happy. And you’ll probably continue to have a lot of fun with it. A coworker of mine who’d never owned a 4WD bought a Wrangler and it seems he’s always going off-roading and driving along beaches nowadays. If that’s what you want to do, you can’t go wrong with a Wrangler!
Right after I read this today, I saw a Wrangler that caught my eye. The headlights were encircled with orange (!) LEDs and there was some slanted trim over them to make them look like the menacing eyes of a beast. It was intriguing.
Thanks! There are a zillion different headlight options like what you described out there. The slanted trim you describe is called the “Angry Bird Grille”. Not really my thing but one can certainly make any statement one wants to make with a Jeep and the accessory catalog…
Congratulations! Excellent color for a Wrangler and apparently, given the sign in the first picture, also for the state you live in. I prefer the 2-door, perfect dimensions for such a vehicle. The LWB Wrangler just looks too Hummerish.
Since December 2000, my brother owns one of the Wrangler’s forefathers, a 1977 CJ7 304. Most certainly not a daily driver, though…Happy on- and off-roading!
After my experience with a 1992 Wrangler bought 10 years ago, I hope yours in in better condition – mine nickel and dimed me to death, which is why I got rid of it less than two years later.
They sure are fun vehicles, though, I have to admit. Part of me wants another one!
Thank you for this write up and I have never seen a motorized post hole digger until now. That has to be one of the smallest trailers I have ever seen.
It was actually fairly long! It’s kind of a teeter-totter affair with the motor dangling at one end and the wheels being the fulcrum. Then the drill mounts at the front end (not pictured) and you handle it from there. Super easy one-man operation.
It mounts onto the towbar/frame and can be basically unclipped without unhooking it from the hitch. It took me longer to rent the thing than to wheel it into my back yard, drill three 10″ wide by 30″ deep holes and hook it back up to the Jeep.
https://www.homedepot.com/tool-truck-rental/Towable-Hydraulic-Auger/HD99-H/index.html
I’ve had a soft spot for Wranglers ever since I first drove one 20 some years ago. It has always annoyed me how Consumer Reports would constantly berate these things for being good at doing what they are meant to do. It’s not a CRV competitor, thank goodness Jeep never listened to the naysayers and kept it honest.
I’ve always wanted one but they’ve never had quite enough utility to meet my needs. Someday though, hopefully.
I like how the JK Wrangler has a bit lower floor so you lose the bathtub feel of the previous Wranglers. I hated the high sill on the 1998 I drove for a few weeks.
The thing that I always worried about is the ease in which the hood could be opened. Yes you could get those locking clasps that replace the original hood hold down clasps or replace it with the Bolt JK Hood Lock kit which uses your ignition key
But I would prefer a inside the vehicle hood release lever.
I can understand about the noise. A lot of folks that I know that have JK’s with the hard top use dynomat and have the underside of the plastic hardtop upholstered with a sort of headliner that drops the noise level by a lot with the top on.
Tell me, do folks in your neck of the woods wave at you when you go past? I found out that when I was driving a Wrangler that if I passed another Wrangler by the driver waved at me more times then not. It is almost like the experience of driving a Miata for a few days. fellow miata drivers waved at me.
Yes, the Jeep Wave is alive and well out here. Most likely to wave or wave back are other men in 2-doors. Then it’s men in 4-doors. Then women in 2-doors are maybe 50/50 compared to the men. And women in 4-doors are generally not going to wave at all. But if the woman drives any kind of modified/lifted Wrangler then she’s right up there with the men in 2-doors.
It actually gets a little tiring sometimes… The Porsche crowd (at least the sportcars, forget the SUV’s) tends to wave at each other but there are way more Jeeps around here than Porsches.
Nobody in a Highlander waves at anyone. Highlanders sometimes get a 1-finger salute depending on how they/we drive but that’s totally different 🙂
In the DC area drivers typically only interact with each other via horn, screaming, or gunfire, so a friendly wave sounds pretty good. 🙁
Hey Jim, it’s great that you like your new Wrangler. I’m headed back to CO soon to recover my ’97 from a storage unit so I can turn it back into my daily driver. Only 80,000 miles so far.
I’ll add a safety factor you might not have considered yet, and it may not apply where you live. In Denver, traffic often moves at high speed when winter storms are just starting. And of course, you can’t drive any traditional four-wheel-drive vehicle at those speeds due to the lack of a center differential. So when your Jeep is in that situation, it’ll be in two-wheel drive mode…and it will spin like a top, due to the short wheelbase. On the other hand, it’s great fun in light snow on empty parking lots…
Have fun!
Thanks for the info, I played around with it a lot last winter. The LSD in the rear helps but I think tires will help a lot too, it’ll be due for some betore the winter at this rate, so something snow rated is on the horizon for it. And of course just using common sense, no need to be the hero and be the first one home!
This generation has Stability Control as well, which you can definitely feel kicking in on the snow. Your ’97 is I’m sure a good bit hairier!
Stability control. Wow. It pains me to admit this, but cars really are getting better. On mine, I had to go with studded snows to handle stopping on ice…which probably made light snow/rain conditions even worse.
I’ll wave in your general direction when I run through Northern Colorado next week.