Anyone Ever Own A Jeep Wrangler?

[neilman1234]

My wife drives a Prius and is now having a mid-life crisis of sorts and wants to go to the extreme and buy a Jeep Wrangler. For me, everyone I've ever known to drive a Jeep (of any kind) has had nothing but problems with them. Has anyone ever owned a Jeep Wrangler and could give some feedback? I'd appreciate it.

[rjs4470]

My wife drives a Prius and is now having a mid-life crisis of sorts and wants to go to the extreme and buy a Jeep Wrangler. For me, everyone I've ever known to drive a Jeep (of any kind) has had nothing but problems with them. Has anyone ever owned a Jeep Wrangler and could give some feedback? I'd appreciate it.

 

I've never owned one, but have friends that do. While they look cool, I hate the way they drive. Not comfortable or practical, unless you do a lot of off road stuff. It's a vehicle that simply isn't built to shuttle kids, carry cargo, or be any kind of a daily driver. But if you love the way it looks, and are willing to deal with the limitations, or a just want something as a fun vehicle to drive around and stand out from the crowd, go for it.

 

As far as maintenance costs, everyone I know that owns one, would probably agree that it costs a little more to keep Wranglers running. It's just another quirk of the vehicle.

 

I'd say if you want something that looks good, is more reliable, and still stands out some, the Grand Cherokee would be the better buy.

[bugatti]

Never a Wrangler owner, but did own a Cherokee Sport for 11 years. Loved it and people would always ask about buying it from me because they are classics. I have a Latitude now, but it is more so out of necessity because my garage is smaller. It's kind of wimpy.

 

With respect to the Wranglers, I used to detail cars and have probably broken down 100 or so Wranglers in my day. I was never a fan. From how loud they were to their unpracticality. Many go ga-ga over them, but I never understood it. I suppose if I lived in a climate where I could keep everything open year-round, it would be cool, but I would never own one.

 

Only mechanical issue I ever had with my Jeep was with my radiator. I also assume if I have any vehicle 8+ years old, I should expect some things not to operate correctly.

[Jumper_Dad]

My suggestion would to buy a barebones older Wrangler for fun times and keep your car for the rest. I had a CJ-7 once upon a time and I loved it. There is nothing more fun that tooling around in a Jeep without the doors or top on it. As stated earlier, they are not a long distance comfort ride at all. So keep the Prius and get and older used Jeep to scratch that mid-life itch if you can swing it financially.

[theguru]

My wife drives a Prius and is now having a mid-life crisis of sorts and wants to go to the extreme and buy a Jeep Wrangler. For me, everyone I've ever known to drive a Jeep (of any kind) has had nothing but problems with them. Has anyone ever owned a Jeep Wrangler and could give some feedback? I'd appreciate it.

 

I think it is "crazy talk" and I agree with your mid-life crisis read on the situation.

 

I think they look cool but are extremely uncomfortable.

 

On a side note, I recently had an Uber driver that dumped her Wrangler because she told me "customers don't like riding in them" and I agree with her. Yuck!

[bugatti]

Not sure if it has improved, but weren't Wranglers always considered more dangerous that most vehicles?

[Jumper_Dad]

Not sure if it has improved, but weren't Wranglers always considered more dangerous that most vehicles?

 

The old CJ models were horrible for rollovers, newer redesigned Wranglers had wider wheelbase and lower center of gravity to make them much more stable for highway driving.

[4x4]

98 Wrangler, 20+ years and still going strong.

I also have a 4DR 2007 Wrangler.

Like one of the other posters I had a 1993 Cherokee and miss it.

Like others have said, they are not for everybody.

[coldweatherfan]

We have a 4 door Jeep and love it, but we live in Florida.

 

Like many folks have said though, they are not the best riding vehicles. The 4 door is a much better ride than the standard Jeep.

 

But then again, you couldn't give me a Prius. So to each their own.

[JCVD]

I've owned 2 wranglers. a 94 and 02. They are not meant to be family vehicles. As far as upkeep, any issues I've had I would consider being normal with most vehicles. Nothing major, have to fix something minor occasionally.

 

The 4.0L 6-cyl. engine is a tank. My 02 is still running strong today with 120k on it.

 

I can't speak to the newer models. Those things are 40k. I can't afford that.

[John Anthony]

Everybody always looks happy on the road driving a Jeep.

[catholicdude]

I've had 4 of them starting in '93 with 4.0 straight 6. Got a '98 with the same engine. In '08 got one with the V-6 and now have a '12 4-door. In '13 they tweaked the engine to get around 285 HP out of it so I wish I would have waited 1 more year. The 4 door rides much better than the 2-door. It's the best thing for driving in the snow that I've had (not that we have gotten much of that lately). I've always liked the cloth seats better than the leather seats. You'll slide around in the leather seats. Newer models have power windows and mirrors, heated cloth and leather seats, nice entertainment systems, etc. There's so many options and so much aftermarket stuff you can do with them, you'll never really get bored with it. Knock on wood, I've never had any problems with them but I haven't kept one past 70K miles. The new models have some really nice features. The hard tops are nice for winter but now the soft tops are so thick that I wouldn't really say that the hard top is a must have. Feel free to DM me with any specific questions.

[sportsfan41]

Everybody always looks happy on the road driving a Jeep.

 

They're just happy it's still running.

 

 

All kidding aside, I like Jeeps, have had a ton of fun in them but they're just not for me. I'm a practical guy which is why I enjoy my Camry. Smooth ride, has everything I need and I fill it up a couple times a month.

[SnottieDrippen]

I think most in the auto industry would tell you they’re a really cool toy. Other than that, I couldn’t tell you anything that hasn’t already been said here except that like anything, experience varies by user.