Whats so great about Jeeps?

D60 said:
If you ever sit in a Wrangler the first thing that stands out is how narrow the passenger compartment is. Then if you just think about it, you realize it's because the body is narrow. The overall vehicle kinda appears as wide as any other mid-size SUV until you consider it's just the fenders that make up a lot of that width.

The nose has effectively been boat-sided for you from the factory, which is fantastic for reducing vulnerable sheetmetal on the trail while also allowing for plenty of room for big tires to stuff. If none of this means anything to you, you may not be a Wrangler buyer.

That said, custom fab is always coolest and I've always enjoyed things like K5s that have been boat-sided. So cool but a lot of work!
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And the widest axles are on the Rubicon - which supports your point …
 
Back in May of 2002 I bought a 1999 Sahara TJ to use in an election campaign as a parade car and to shut down an avenue of attack from my opponent. I fully intended to sell it after the election but my wife, son and I really liked it so I sold our 1993 Pathfinder SE and kept the Jeep. It was my daily for several years and I lightly modified it with Bilsteins, a Banks SS header and Hella E-Codes. It was tolerable on the interstate but it wasn’t comfortable above 70 mph and it was noisy as well. It was a lifesaver on the farm, pulling fallen trees off of the driveway, crossing flooded areas and driving through 20” of snow.

I wound up keeping it until October of 2023, when I sold it to a friend and bought a 2021 Sahara 4xe. It was my DD for the last year of my term and in 2025 I sold my wife’s 2015 X1 so the Jeep is now hers. I haven’t modified all that much- only adding a Quadratec dead pedal and entry guards along with an AEV/Bilstein steering damper. I also have a set of new Rubicon wheels which my Jeep dealer gave me for free.
The 2021 is infinitely more civilized than the 1999, and it has most every option you would want. Driving at 70-80 on the interstate isn’t bad at all and it’s much quieter due to the hardtop and some sound cancellation tech. I’ve had no issues aside from a couple of recalls. We did buy an inexpensive Mopar eight year extended warranty and we
plan to keep it for at least that long.
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D60 said:
You're thinking of bump steer. DW is caster or maybe just roasted bushings/TREs/SREs

As for the thread topic: it's the last not-a-3/4-ton-truck with solid axles front and rear. And you never realize how little sheetmetal they have until you stand next to one and think about it. Both of these are HUGE advantages for rockcrawling.

I really, really wish Ford had gone SFA on the new Bronco. The Wrangler needs a blow-for-blow competitor.

That said, Wranglers are the most easily modified vehicles and thus require little skill or vision. It's like buying a paint-by-numbers kit and then claiming you're an artist. And yes, I have a JL on 37s. And yes, that does make me a lame poseur, too.
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The bump steer is what sets off the death wobble. At least it did on a JK 4in 35's.
 
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The motor guy said:
It's jeep weekend at our local beach this weekend, which inspires the question. What's so great about jeeps and their cult like following they have? All I see is a body style that hasn't been changed in 40 years
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I wouldn't know where to start. The following is a partial list of what I love about them and also is based on my experience of owning 4 Wranglers and a Gladiator...They are not in any particular order.
  • Doors and top come off....My 2018 loses the door and top all summer!
  • Off-road capability.
  • Easily modified.
  • Easy to improve capability.
  • HUGE aftermarket support with countless options for any single mod you want to do or capability you want to add.
  • History and heritage.
  • Culture surrounding the vehicle and brand.
  • Versatility. I find mine to be easy and comfortable to drive on long highway trips while massively capable off-road. Several times I have driven 22 hours to Moab, 1 weekBu of HARD off-roading, and 22 hours home...one of those trips home through a blizzard!
  • Reliable. With 5 Jeeps and nearly 600,000 miles, only once has a Jeep left me on the side of the road needing a tow. That turned out to be a weird electrical glitch that would have self-corrected by simply unplugging the electronic front sway bar disconnect. That device, btw, has been improved in the JL and JT. No issues in those. My JK had that issue.
  • Rugged. I've literally beaten the hell out of these Jeeps and they just flat take it. I've never broken one of my Jeeps.
  • Fun to drive...especially the manuals. 3 of mine have had manuals.
  • The automatics are superb. Both autos have the 8 speed. Bulletproof and performs beautifully.
  • Easy maintenance. The JL and JT are the easiest oil changes I've ever done. Especially with 2.0 and 2.5 inch lifts. Cartridge oil filters are a true blessing. No mess at all.
  • The engines have been bulletproof, even if some were not exciting. 1993 2.5 4 cyl...Excellent. A tractor engine. Would last forever. 100% reliable and easy to work on. Torque was ok, HP was weak......3.8 V6. Boring. Reliable. Bulletproof. Easy to work on. Made up for lack of power with gearing. Fairly smooth and quiet....Loved to drink oil, but ran like new at 192,000 miles.....3.6/manual...FUN...Loves to rev. Bulletproof. Decent mileage for a Jeep. Transmission has been fun and great.....3.6/Etorque auto....Smooth, quiet, nice power, best fuel economy I've seen on a Jeep (22 highway, 19 city).....3.6/auto...(Gladiator)....bulletproof, smooth, nice power, quiet, and surprising gas mileage given the heavy weight of the Jeep (22 highway, 17 city)....The 3.6 is a great motor all around. Love it. I have great confidence mine will see over 300k with no major problems.
  • Engines all have been reliable enough that I'd confidently take them into the most remote places with no worries. Even with high mileage on them.
  • Snow....they are GREAT in the snow. And fun.
  • Solid axles, front and rear. Cannot be beat off-road. They keep all 4 wheels on the ground and maintain stability and traction in off-camber situations.
  • My fiance loves my Jeeps.
  • My kids love the Jeeps.
So I had a 1993 Wrangler, 2.5/manual, a 2008 JK 4 door Rubicon 3.8/manual, 2018 JL 4 door Rubicon/ 3.6 manual, 2021 JL Rubicon/ 3.6 Etorque auto (my daughter's Jeep) and a 2021 Gladiator/ 3.6 auto.

The JK, 2018 JL, and Gladiator all were lifted and ran 35" tires. All are beasts off-road but still good on road. The 1993 was mostly stock and was shockingly capable, as basic as it was.

I'll never live without a Jeep. I sold the 93 in 2003 and was miserable until the 2008 came along. Never again, LOL.
 
It's pretty insane what a new Unlimited Rubicon prices out nowadays!!

When I got my WK2 JGC back in 16, I drove the wrangler as well. I ended up getting a WK2 Laredo with the Hi/Lo selector (winter pkg). I don't off road per se, but it has seen some logging roads and winter snow use. Coming from the turbo subaru clique, I decided avoiding the abundance of Wrangler modifications and their temptations was the prudent way to go. Eight years and 120k later.... Still the daily driver and fits the bill for weekend bird dog training and hunting.
 
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barbersurgeon said:
It's pretty insane what a new Unlimited Rubicon prices out nowadays!!

When I got my WK2 JGC back in 16, I drove the wrangler as well. I ended up getting a WK Laredo with the Hi/Lo selector (winter pkg). I don't off road per se, but it has seen some logging roads and winter snow use. Coming from the turbo subaru clique, I decided avoiding the abundance of Wrangler modifications and their temptations was the prudent way to go. Eight years and 120k later.... Still the daily driver and fits the bill for weekend bird dog training and hunting.
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Yeah the prices are killer. I bought the 2018 Rubicon for about $47,000 after discounts in late 2017.

Gladiator prices are worse, so I found a perfect used 2021 Rubicon with 35k on it for about $38,000 before tax. Much better than what a similarly equipped new 2023 would have cost. And I tend to keep them a long time. I kept my YJ 10 years, JK 17 years, the JL is 7 years old and the JT is just beginning. I have a lifetime Mopar warranty on the JL and I intend to keep the Gladiator as long as it doesn't have problems and I don't believe it will. I've put 20k on it and it has not had a single issue.
 
barbersurgeon said:
It's pretty insane what a new Unlimited Rubicon prices out nowadays!!

When I got my WK2 JGC back in 16, I drove the wrangler as well. I ended up getting a WK Laredo with the Hi/Lo selector (winter pkg). I don't off road per se, but it has seen some logging roads and winter snow use. Coming from the turbo subaru clique, I decided avoiding the abundance of Wrangler modifications and their temptations was the prudent way to go. Eight years and 120k later.... Still the daily driver and fits the bill for weekend bird dog training and hunting.
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Indeed. My wife was trying to buy a 392 Wrangler, the price tag was insane, I could have bought a Trackhawk for what they were demanding, so kiboshed that one.
 
I think jeeps are neat but growing up in a Lincoln sedan with air suspension and moving on to a ford with a lazy boy couch for a seat has turned me into a princess.
 
OVERKILL said:
Indeed. My wife was trying to buy a 392 Wrangler, the price tag was insane, I could have bought a Trackhawk for what they were demanding, so kiboshed that one.
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Yeah, they over killed that (sorry) - the base 5.7L and about $5k above a loaded Rubicon would have been seen as an honest pursuit of market share …
 
I couldn't really justify purchasing one, but I do see the allure. We got married in Hawaii in 2017. We booked some sedan for our rental and they offered us a Wrangler (they had soooo many). I must say that it was enjoyable to drive overall; very nimble, great off-road, and I felt a good sense of control driving it. I felt like it was a "fun" vehicle overall.
 
Rust_Belt_Pete said:
I think jeeps are neat but growing up in a Lincoln sedan with air suspension and moving on to a ford with a lazy boy couch for a seat has turned me into a princess.
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Ever since I was a teenager people told me that I would get tired of sports cars and sports sedans- and end up in a BarcaLounger on wheels. Now at 68 I’m happily driving a car that has -according to Car and Driver- the suspension compliance of an I-beam. My wife would be swearing out a mental inquest warrant if I brought home anything that prioritized a marshmallow ride over an entertaining drive. As always, YMMV.
 
Was there ever a time a Wrangler didn't hold it's resale value well? They've always had their niche in the market. They are a lot different from their YJ days, but still a fun, cool looking vehicle IMO.

There's times I miss my 1997 TJ, hard top, 4cyl, 5MT, but then reality kicks in and I don't miss it at all.
 
JTK said:
Was there ever a time a Wrangler didn't hold it's resale value well? They've always had their niche in the market. They are a lot different from their YJ days, but still a fun, cool looking vehicle IMO.

There's times I miss my 1997 TJ, hard top, 4cyl, 5MT, but then reality kicks in and I don't miss it at all.
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I miss my 1999 TJ as it had the 4.0 six with a five speed manual, but I wanted to reduce the size of the fleet.
 
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Allaned said:
Having read this thread I think people who don’t have Wranglers hate them and those who have really like them.
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Why can't it be both? I hate them and I love mine. The duck thing is stupid. The Jeep Wave is really stupid.

2.5 out of 5 voices in my head hate them, the other 2.5 love them. Even my split personalities have split personalities.
 
You need only drive a real Jeep, a Wrangler or one of its predecessors, to understand.
They're fun to drive and not bad at all in ride or even sound level.
No, they aren't as fleet, quiet or comfortable as a Honda Accord hybrid and you have to kind of ignore the fuel economy, but so what?
I do like the look as well as the driving dynamics.
The older ones with a less faux looking interior are my preference, but a new Wrangler would be fun to have and drive.
 
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