Any PSers Have a 5-door Wrangler?

[NewEnglandLady]

Long story short, D and I are getting a second newf and thus we are going to need an SUV. I''ve always been a Jeep girl at heart...we are a super active, outdoorsy couple and I''ve wanted a Wrangler for awhile because 1.) I despise automatic transmissions and Wranglers are easy to find in a manual 2.) I love being able to dismantle the roof (or parts of the roof if need be) and 3.) I love the way a Wrangler rides--it''s definitely rough, which I like. I don''t want an SUV that rides like a car or is even a hint luxurious.

Today we looked at Jeep Liberties and the 4-door Wranglers and I''m still tiny bit torn--the Liberties are cheaper, get better gas mileage and have a rack on top so we could put a case up there to carry our luggage on longish trips with the dogs (they will take up ALL the room in the back). Still, it''s the Wrangler that D and I love, so I think we''re going to focus on the Wrangler. I''m wondering if anybody has any experience with them that they can share?

 

[oobiecoo]

I don''t have any experience with owning a Jeep but here is some info from Consumer Reports...

Liberty scored a 27 out of 100 due to fuel economy, lack of agility, unsettled ride, driving position, front-seat comfort, fit and finish, noise, braking.

Wrangler scored a 17 out of 100 due to ride, handling, braking, noise, fuel economy, fit and finish, visibility, front-seat comfort, access, reliability.

With similar scores, I''d go for the Wrangler because I love the way it feels driving with the top off!

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Aww, that was sweet of you to look up the research, Oobie, thank you so much. I''ll check out Consumer Reports. Thanks again!!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

My MIL has the 2 door and I hate it. It is loud (where you can hardly hear on the highway) and so cold. I do like that they have a 5-door now b/c I *hate* 2 door cars. Can you test drive one. I have a Jeep GC Limited and really like it. My friend loves her liberity but it would be too small for us (the limited is almost too small!)

 

[NewEnglandLady]

We test drove a whole bunch of SUVs, but the Wrangler was the most fun to drive. My mom had a 2-door soft-top for years and it was much, much louder. I think we''d stick with the hard top for noise purposes.

I think the Wrangler is the only one that fits all of our needs: manual, non-luxury, rugged, large enough for 300 lbs. of dog., I just don''t know anybody who owns one--many times you don''t discover some of the drawbacks until a few months of ownership. I think I''ll just continue to read reviews online and randomly stalk 5-door Wrangler owners at our dog park (there seem to be many there). The new pup won''t be here until December, so we have time to think about it.

 

[bebe]

Hubby has a new Sahara on order, should be here any day. He knows everything about the Jeeps. I''ll get him to post his thoughts this evening
if you''d like. I know he ordered the stick, 2-door, soft top. This is his toy, we have other cars for daily commutes. But I am concerned about the noise.
If it is delivered in time, we will drive it from HOuston, to Colorado and Utah, then back to Houston. Long and yeah, I can bet noisy, but it is what he
wanted.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Date: 9/3/2008 11:02:36 AM
Author: bebe
Hubby has a new Sahara on order, should be here any day. He knows everything about the Jeeps. I''ll get him to post his thoughts this evening
if you''d like. I know he ordered the stick, 2-door, soft top. This is his toy, we have other cars for daily commutes. But I am concerned about the noise.
If it is delivered in time, we will drive it from HOuston, to Colorado and Utah, then back to Houston. Long and yeah, I can bet noisy, but it is what he
wanted.

Congrats, Bebe, how exciting and thank you so much for offering to have your hubby comment on his decision. The great thing about Jeeps is that if the soft top does prove to be a bit noisy, you can easily just order a hard top--not a big deal. I think the soft top is perfect for summers. If the hard tops weren''t so much better now (where you can remove sections instead of the whole thing), I''d probably opt for a soft top. The Houston to Colorado to Utah trip sounds like a ton of fun!! Enjoy it!

 

[jcarlylew]

i *had* a jeep wrangler (2001 soft top with glass windows, auto) and I LOVED - L - O - V - E, LOVED it. It was noisy, but it held in the heat really well (infact, i only had the heat on in the winter time in the morning!). it was the perfect size (i could fit into ANY spot). Depsite consumer reports or abnoxious guys who "know it all about cars" i though it was a great buy. but unfotunately the engine blew and i didnt have 3k to replace it (but aparently had enough money for a loan..??). So now i have a sebring 2004.

When people ask "how''s the new car" i reply
"well, it''s not the jeep"


(but, the gas milage WAS terrible for the jeep. oh well!!!)

 

[oobiecoo]

No prob New England Lady! I definitely don''t mind looking up reviews for people.

My ex had a soft top with a wench (sp?) and i LOVED it. It obviously not very practical as far as gas mileage and safety and I don''t think I would ever put a baby in one (maybe in a hard top but I''ve never been in one) but if you''re looking for rugged and want to take the top off once in a while then GO FOR IT! I gave you those ratings just in case you didn''t know the "reality" of the jeep. But it sounds like you''re willing to look past its shortcomings. It''s a shame they aren''t rated higher... there should really be a rating for "awesomeness"

 

[bebe]

Hi NELady,

Have you read any of the Jeep forums? H gets tons of info there.
jeepforum.com JK technical discussion

jkforum.com (new model for 07 and up)



Wrangler has 3 models X, Sahara and Rubicon.
(Rubicon is for off-roading and boulder climbing!!)

Standard with Sunrider Soft Top, that is foldable backwards.
for 600.00 more you can get the hard top only (no soft top) with 2 removeable fron t panels
or both tops for 1500.00

X or Rubicon with half doors at no cost, otherwise full doors (power locks and windows)
6 speed manual hard to find in 4 door, at least down here. More to be found in X models

H ordered his to get what he wanted. $ 25, 500. for Sahara 2-door, 6 speed, soft top, trailer pkg., side air bags, limited slip diff.,
standard CD player, 7 speakers, engine block heater ($30.00 option) extra cost paint, Red Rock crystal

Sahara has more standard features and better on-road than Rubicon. about $3,000.00 more for the 4-door, more for the Rubicon

In Houston, big discount on ''08 4 door X model. But some are only 2 wheel drive

 

[crown1]

these bigger wranglers are all over the place in my area. we did consider one for a fun, recreational vehicle last year. at that time they were new and pretty hot here. no discounts and some adding premiums to them. i never pay sticker for any car. i would feel like i was stupid if i did. i did not take it out on the road but took a spin around the block and it was not the rough ride of the smaller wrangler. i understand the larger wheel base makes a much smoother ride. hth.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Thanks for all of the great replies, this is very helpful!

jcarlylew, I literally laughed out loud at your "it''s not a jeep" response and I have to agree. Jeeps have a very devoted group of followers and I can understand why. My mom recently traded in her 2-door soft top Wrangler (that was still going strong after 10 years and 180,000 miles) for a Jeep Liberty and when people ask her about her Liberty she says "It''s not a Wrangler".

You are absolutely right about the gas mileage--it''s notoriously bad. For any non-dog trips we will be using are little Elantra.

oobiecoo, your "awesomeness" comment also made me laugh out loud! You bring up a good point with safety--we tend to keep our vehicles for 7+ years, so this purchase will be made with kids in mind. That is another reason we thought the Liberty might be a better choice. We researched crash tests for the Wrangler and it did really well (5 stars), but that was only for front--the side crash test hasn''t been conducted. Safety is a big consideration, though.

bebe, thanks so much for the jeep forum info! I''m hoping we can get a big discount here as well...all manufactuers (especially the big 3) are giving HUGE discounts on SUVs and we want to take advantage. We will be buying used, but because the 4-doors are so in damand, the margin between the cost of used and new is fairly small. When the 4-doors came out we really wanted one and thought we''d give it a couple of years, but the prices are staying pretty inflated for this niche of SUV. The Liberties are considerably cheaper, though, which is what is making the decision so tough.

crown1, I also noticed the ride on the 4-door being a bit smoother than the 2-door, which was a bit of a bummer since I like the 2-door ride better. I haven''t started to negotiate any prices yet, but I''m interested to see how much we can knock off (again, we''re buying used). What did you guys end up going with instead of the Wrangler?

 

[jcarlylew]

Date: 9/3/2008 1:06:19 PM
Author: oobiecoo
No prob New England Lady! I definitely don''t mind looking up reviews for people.

My ex had a soft top with a wench (sp?) and i LOVED it. It obviously not very practical as far as gas mileage and safety and I don''t think I would ever put a baby in one (maybe in a hard top but I''ve never been in one) but if you''re looking for rugged and want to take the top off once in a while then GO FOR IT! I gave you those ratings just in case you didn''t know the ''reality'' of the jeep. But it sounds like you''re willing to look past its shortcomings. It''s a shame they aren''t rated higher... there should really be a rating for ''awesomeness''

I agree 10000% !! i got soo many "woah cool, you drive a jeep"

infact, boyf had to drive it all time time. i think he was getting bit worried there

 

[crown1]

we did not buy as we are two drivers and four vehicles. i have a vw convertible that is just a recreational vehicle. we wanted the ability to remove the top. we don''t have garage space for a fifth so we would need to get rid of something and did not move forward on the project. still might do something if the price is right and i act in a moment of mental instability. hope you find a deal on what you want.

 

[Miranda]

I don''t have one, but, I do like them! DH debated getting one before he bought his car a few years ago. He wanted something he could just throw his surfboard in an be on his way. Also, the weather is nice here 99% of the time so the ''topless'' factor was a plus!

In the end he got an Infiniti G35 - obviously not an SUV. We already had my huge Expedition which easily fits the kids, surfboards, big dog, and anything else we might be needing. Another SUV would have been overkill IMO. I love the rugged look of the Wrangler.

Congratulation on your new baby! When will it arrive? Is it a puppy? I thought of you yesterday while picking the kids up from school. A couple was walking their HUGE newf. Their dog was just a gigantic lump of love. I wanted to take him home!

 

[mobius8]

It was not the 5 door model, but my sweetie and I rented a 2dr RUBICON series in Moab, UT last September to go off-roading. The car was FANTASTIC. I loved everything about it.
Road noise did not seem excessive when you consider what the vehicle is. The power and capabilities of the vehicle are hard to comprehend. The fit and finish of the interior seems a VAST improvement over older Wranglers that friends have had.

As long as you think it will have enough cargo room and you can afford the gas, I would say go for it.
Spring for the RUBICON if you can afford it!

 

[coatimundi_org]

NEL--did you get the Wrangler? I was looking for more pics of your ring and I saw this thread! We have a Wrangler for when we go to the mountains. It is awesome! I love the rough ride--it has an amazing suspension. We like to find places off road that really challenge this vehicle. Once you fall in love with a Wrangler--you''re in it for life!

 

[monarch64]

This is an older thread, but I still feel compelled to comment: my brother and SIL have an 8.5 month old, and they sold their huge diesel truck and got a Jeep Rubicon with 4 doors...I''m not sure exactly what the model is, but it''s big. Anyway, then my brother decided to modify it so it sits up even higher, which totally defeated the purpose of having a more kid-friendly vehicle. Getting a car seat in and out of their is becoming harder as she grows! They love the Jeep, though.