Jeep
 

Anyone owned one?

Thinking about getting a 4 door wrangler. Need something that can haul the trailer but also hold 4 adults. Don't really want a truck (yet).

Pros?
Cons?

I drive an 08 2 door Jeep Wrangler X. LOVE IT. I cant stand the 4 door models, but I know unless I'm carrying midgets, theres no way in a 2 door you can carry 4 adults.

Dont know how great it would be for hauling a trailer, but so long as you dont put ridiculous tires and a lift on it, the handling and power are good and it's a blast to drive. Like a convertible and 4 wheel drive in one.

If you buy one, make sure you have it checked out first and that the previous owners didnt do a bunch of crap to it that will cost you money down the line. It may look cool now, but when it breaks its not so awesome.

I'll see about getting a picture of mine up in a minute.

Horrible ride
Horrible handling
Decent amount of cash for it

Wranglers are great when the going gets rough and when ur around town.
I say get a used one

I differ with Paul. If you get one with good tires and again dont have ridiculous tires or lift, the ride is great.

I also had an 07 bought brand new and loved it as well and with the tires I had on it, it rode okay, just noisy. My 08 has good tires, both for on and off road, and the ride is incredible. Especially compared to the older models.

You can also buy new if you want, they dont usually offer rebates, but some dealers will still have last years models brand new at reduced price. Wranglers hold value VERY well and unless you finance way over what its worth, you dont have to worry about getting upside down like on other vehicles.

Here's mine. It's dirty and a crappy cell phone pic, but it's one of my babies. Cargo net is for the dogs. I've got a hard top for cold weather too, if you can, get the hard top. Little more expensive, but quieter and definitely warmer in the cool months.

http://i113.photobucket.com/albums/n210/raerr/Jeep.jpg

Thanks for the input!

I don't love the look of the 4 door but I need to be able to put more adults in there so. Sigh.

This will be my track vehicle and daily driver. Don't plan on doing any off roading.

I've been doing some checking online and looked at a couple of dealerships. Probably get one a couple of years old, but dealers have awesome deals going right now, so might just go new.

What do you like the best about it?

What do you hate about it?

:lol:

What do I like best?

The versatility. If I want to check out that muddy dirt road out in the middle of nowhere, I can. If I happen to hit streams or rocks and small trees, I can go right on through. If you want to make it "yours" there are so many things you can do to it that dont cost a fortune. On the flip side, if I want to strip everything off it and ride down the road with no doors and my foot resting in the sunshine, I can. It's a good daily driver, fast enough and gets decent but not great mileage and its just FUN.

Theres nothing I "hate" about it but I do dislike:

Lack of HP, but I did go from a Mustang GT with the V8 to a non sports 6 cylinder engine, so thats to be expected. I just dont pull out in front of people. (This only really matters if you tend to be an aggressive driver, which I am.)

The moment I take the top and doors off, it rains EVERY damn day for weeks, but the moment I put them back on, it stops raining. Just remember to pull ALL the plugs in the floorboard unless you like driving in your own personal pond.

If you're hauling really tall folks, its not great. My hubby at 6'4" or so doesnt fit comfortably in the front seat.

I'm glad to hear you like it so much. I've never even test driven it.

I thought it was a good compromise between fun and utility. I'll just be glad to be back in something a little higher than my bloody Mazda 3! :lmao:

my '08 (as seen in my things for jeep thread) has 60,000 nearly trouble free miles. I have had a rear axle seal go out, and the horn went out from mudding. otherwise it is a great little vehicle. I have seen a couple ofthe four doors around me that actually look pretty good. they are lifted a little. A 2 1/2 kit can be had for under $300 and have good tires.
the two door as stated is not really meant for rear passengers. many people take the back seat out, mine is on it's way out soon to make room for hauling groceries and dogs.
big drawback is cargo area is very small. you get very good at shopping by size or stacking things in the little area.
they are noisy. it is a Jeep they make noise just a fact of life. I go for a ride in my truck and feel like I'm in a limosine compared to the Jeep.
It goes through anything. mud snow whatever it goes.
Freeway riding is not like older versions. it will cruis at 80 with no problems whatsoever. acceleration is not fantastic unless you wind it up through the gears. I just take my time more. Not to say it's slow. many cars don't accelerate as well as the Jeep.
Soft top takes a few times to get used to putting it up and down. they are much tighter now days for noise and weather proofing issues. that make a bit more difficult to put up and down. not a huge issue just don't do it for the first time in the rain. LOL
go to 4wd.com for aftermarket parts. they specialize in Jeeps. have great customer service and good pricing as well.

This is what I want.

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...kellX/jeep.gif

Goddamn, don't tell the wife. She is absolutely dying for a Wrangler Unlimited.

I've never owned a Wrangler but I guy I work with has owned a few and seems to like them a lot. He currently has a Rubicon and is rough on it and oftenl comes in on Monday's bragging about his off road adventures from the weekend.

I've owned two Jeep products and have liked them both. First was a 99 Jeep Cherokee 4x4 that I owned for 8 years and with 150k miles on it traded it for a 2010 Jeep Liberty 4x4 that I currently have. After 8k miles so far...so good.

I wish the gas mileage was better 17/21 and wish it had a little more power as well 210/235 but I knew this when I bought it. It has a 5000 lb. towing capacity and can haul 4 adults easily.

I know it's not exactly the Jeep you're looking for but I'm just saying that I've owned two Jeep products and have not had the trouble that some have had and have enjoyed them regardless of the negative publicity that they seem to get.

I don't really care for Jeep Grand Cherokee's and several people do seem to have trouble with them for some reason. :idk:

Mine looks similar to this...

http://photos.ebizautos.com/5444/5676724/5676724_1.jpg

Do the Jeep Liberty's come in Diesel? Do any others come in diesel?

They used to have one but discontinued them in 2007 I think.

*edit* Maybe they are coming out with another one soon ?

http://blogs.insideline.com/straight...rter-2010.html

Whoa! That'd totally be worth waiting for. Thanks for the link. :dthumb:

I have 2000 TJ (Sahara) with about 140k that I bought in 2004. So far the only problems its had have been a bad coil pack which caused the engine to run on 4/6 cylinders, buying a replacement on eBay solved the problem. I had leaking brake cylinders and a leaking water pump which I replaced. The biggest repair was a burned up transmission which cost $1200 to replace.

Its definitely a loud ride (soft top), when Im on the highway I use the same noise isolating ear phones that I use on my bike to listen to music. If you have a soft top the wind noise is always going to be there but you can reduce road noise by using different tires. There is no insulation of course, when its hot you need the A/C on full blase to stay cool and when its cold you need the heat on full blast. The thing that irritates me the most is the gas mileage, my average is 15 MPG but I assume the new ones are better.

That being said, I like it and I dont plan on selling it. One day I might get a grownup car for my daily driver and then Ill pimp my Jeep out, I love all the aftermarket options there are. Its very spartan, sometimes I wish I had a in-dash GPS or a 7-speaker sound system but when I can leave my top down in the rain and not worry about anything getting ruined and pull the plugs in the floor boards the drain water out its pretty nice.

There are tons of Jeeps around here and the stock 4-doors do look weird, however Ive seen a few 4-doors with lifts and they look pretty cool, its a big difference.

Some of the TJs had LWB 2 doors that weren't too bad for the back seat, and they are decent at towing with the longer wheelbase.

I have a Jeep Cherokee 4x4 and really like it. It's versatile, very maneuverable, you can carry stuff or people in it, as you want. My previous vehicle was the same but without the 4-wheel drive. I seem to like Cherokees... but the older square versions (my current Jeepie is a 2001).

It delivers. :)

I think as all SUV's it doesn't have great gas-mileage, but it's on the small end of the SUV family so it's not so bad.

You could find the Liberty in a diesel from 04?-07
08 and 09 they put a 3.0L diesel in the Grand Cherokee. It was definatly better in the liberty, I got 17-18 with it in the ND winter, with warm up time, and mostly town driving.

I have owned two, a tj and a xj and I miss both dearly

I have owned two, a tj and a xj and I miss both dearly

We heard you the first time^^^ dude. lol

Jeeps are extremely durable vehicles. They still use VG components. I think the newer 3.8L engines will get around 19-21mpg.

snort


They may tell you that, doesnt mean they actually GET that.

Maybe on the highway. My 3.7 does get 20-21 but not around town...more like 17...so a combined of about 19. It may not have gotten 21 yesterday on my trip back from Raleigh, NC since I was pretty much running constantly 80ish with a couple of 90 mph spurts. I found a rabbit and there were 4 or 5 of us rolling right along.

mine gets 19-21 all day. not quite half and half city and highway driving.

My cuz got a wrangler when they first came out with the V6. Of course she got it when gas was spiked. She got rid of it and got a Jetta.


I've never owned a "jeep", but have driven a few. Sadly a lot of assholes own them. They tend to be the BMW of 4x4's.

:lol: The BMW of 4x4's ?

Yes, marko does have a jeep. :lol:

AND my ex husband had one. :lol:

There are actually normal people that own them and even the ones that are heavily modified seem normal, but man one asshole seems like a dozen. I love the ones that have the WWII syndrome. The "if it wasn't for the willys" the world wouldn't be what it is today. Sorry to tell ya, but it's not the 40's anymore. Yes the Willys was a great vehicle. You know why it was great? It was great because it was super simple. Now vehicles have so much shit on them, they what??? Break down that is correct children. So this must mean that even though you have a "Jeep," you DO NOT have a willys. P.S. Not all willys jeeps where made by jeep. There was a ton made by *drumroll* FORD!!!! I just heard the sound of pigs being slaughtered, women screaming, and the sound of Armageddon. If ya want to know if your willys or willys part is Ford just look for an "F" in the part code. Ford gave the military a big F.U. on the warranty. LOL

I will say, I get giddy when I see someone spend ten grand on their vehicle to modify it and something either breaks or he can't make it over a hill. Then you got Joe Bob with his $500 beater and its zipping through stuff like butter on a hot skillet.


I know I sound bias, but I would love to own a Rubicon edition. When they first came out I thought they were the shit. Stock 31" tires, ARB lockers front & rear, etc etc. I'm not going to comment on Jeep's mistake vehicles other than I LOL really hard with I see the "Trail Ready" emblem on them.

My blabbering is more towards offroading and modding. If you're in the 95% Road Warrior class then I really don't care what you drive. Anything ANYTHING will work for you. I drive a 1" 4x8 plywood on wheels. When I hear someone say they have a bumper vehicle I just turn around and walk off.

The "BMW of 4x4's" comment just made me :lol: because I thought..."then what is an actual BMW X3 or X5" that's all...or a Range Rover...Hummer...but I know what you meant. :lol:

"Trail Rated" obviously is a marketing tool meant to highlight the Jeeps abilities to do some off roading compared to other vehicles designed for the street with or without 4x4...AWD...or 2x4.

It's not designed for hardcore off roading...yeah I know...DUH !! :rofl:

All the "Trail Rated" designation means is...

The Trail Rated® badge means that your Jeep 4x4 has been designed to perform in five categories of off-road conditions: traction, ground clearance, maneuverability, articulation, and water fording.

A random Jeep of every model is sent to a military test site in Nevada to test those conditions. If that particular model passes it gets Trail Rated.

Traction:
Traction in 4x4 is equivalent to grip on Asphalt. Trail Rated® traction helps you stay in control on untamed terrain, slippery (wet, mud, snow) conditions, and on steep grades.

Ground Clearance:
Don't drag your belly through the mud—just clear nasty logs, rocks, and uneven ground without sustaining undercarriage damage. Jeep® Trail Rated® 4x4s feature optimized approach, departure, and breakover angles to keep you in the clear.

Maneuverability:
Athletic. Agile. Trail Rated®. Jeep® 4x4s have the footwork to navigate narrow gaps, dodge emergency situations and avoid cosmetic damage to underbody sills thanks to precision steering and optimized wheelbases. Even gazelles don't move like this.

Articulation:
A Trail Rated® suspension is limber like a gymnast. How exactly? Flexibility is the key to good articulation. The more a wheel can travel, or flex, the better it can maintain contact with terra firma and provide the traction needed to cross an array of obstacles.

Water Fording:
Hit that riverbed with confidence. Trail Rated® Jeep® 4x4s feature additional electrical and body sealing, along with a high air intake location for optimum water fording capability. Note: Do not attempt water fording unless depth is known to be less than 19 inches

An old video showing this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBjZCybzqlk

Kel, depending on the type of trailer and if it's just for your bike most cars can handle a bit of towing. I towed a small trailer with the GSXR on it with my Mazda 6 just fine. I only did it about once a month and if you drive it right I don't think it's that horrible on them.

Maybe you just want a jeep but if you don't want a truck and aren't sure about the jeep you may find a car with a V6 perfectly capable of towing, hauling 4 people AND better gas mileage...just a thought.

If I could get away with a car I would.

Trailer is 2000 lbs dry. Add 2 bikes and some gear and we're looking at a tow rating of 3500 lbs minimum. :(

I'm thinking more and more of just keeping my car and shamelessly borrowing my father's truck all the time.

WOW I didn't realize you were pulling that much. A Jeep is probably not going to help you much. Tow capacity on mine is like 1500 lbs. I think the 4 door auto gets you to 2500 or so. these are not towing machines. I would pull one bike on a flatbed trailer but no more then that with it with my Jeep. That was one of the reason I kept my truck was for towing because I knew the Jeep wasn't capable of towing things I need hauled.

I did the mileage on my 08 last night. Keeping in mind the last couple days I have driven 20 miles one way out to the farm, 20 back at 65-70 mph, on a full tank I got 245 miles. Average mpg = 15.5. Most of my driving is in town and I get less than that. I dont have ridiculous tires, or a lift, and while I do have a lead foot, thats ridiculous. I think I'll be looking at some upgrades to help out the mgp...I think the info when I bought it said I'd get 16-19 mpg, so Im not too off I guess. Still, if you're worried about mileage, something to think about.

I would be getting a tow package. The unlimited Wrangler can tow 3500 (according to the brochure).

But ya, it's looking more and more like we'll be sticking with my father's truck. I just hate that I have to ask to borrow his truck every time I go to the track. He knew that when he bought the trailer and was okay with it, but I hate to bug him.

I know you're talking about a Wrangler and not a Liberty but my towing capacity is 5000 lbs.

However if I had a free truck to borrow...sign me up !! :lol:

I would stick with the truck. Dad's never mind lending to their baby girl's LOL

That is crazy. mine is an '08 and gets 20 easy and if I'm slipping down the highway a lot then it gets 21 or a little better. my tires aren't huge but they are 32's.
what gears do you have? mine are 3.73's I would imagine the 4.11 would get worse mileage.

I know that this isn't going to be a popular answer but if you really want something to tow but will only use it a couple of times a year, get a 1K-2K Ford F-150 beater and see if you can insure it as a limited use or weekend vehicle.
Keep your current car