No more flip forward driver's seat

[3TV]

Can confirm my 2025 does not have the driver-side flip-forward seat either. But I am happy with that. I don't have to worry about the position changing as people climb in and out of the back. I just send them to the passenger side.

That is interesting because my 2025 does have the driver-side flip-forward seat.

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[Cartman]

It's so stupid to make such "improvements" when it's just a cost saving and justifying it with safety. So next time, don't give us the steering wheel because when you're driving with it, you're dangerous.

 

[Jeep Wick]

Absurd. My 2020 had folding seats, the only issue was the handle was prone to break. We've had folding seats on 2 doors for decades. This is the dumbest move Jeep could make. Might as well delete the back seat too. SMH

 

[MntGoat]

A driverside slide and flip would be awesome for my 4dr, more room for sitting and changing. Wonder if the seat frames are the same?

 

[Mabar]

It's most probably that, but I also wonder if some arcane "safety" laws are coming into play here. Like on the off chance someone grabs the latch while a person is driving and causes them to lose control of the vehicle. (I'm reaching here, I know, but that's what most of these laws do as well.)

I don't believe it has anything to do with safety. 2-door cars and Jeeps have had fold forward driver's and passenger side seats for 80+ years now. This is strictly cost cutting by Jeep. It allows them to use the same driver's side seat for both the 4-door and 2-door, thus saving them having to produce a special seat for only the 2-door.

It is a ridiculous cost cutting measure, that will actually reduce 2-door sales even more. I use my driver's side fold forward seat almost daily to access packages, winter hat, gloves, sweatshirt and lots of other stuff which I keep in my back seat. IT'S NOT JUST FOR PASSENGERS!

If an item (groceries, etc.) I have placed on the back seat, slide toward the driver's side, It is impossible to access from the passenger side, without actually getting into the rear seat. I can't reach that far standing outside the Jeep on the passenger side. What a total pain in the A$$.

This one feature (or lack thereof) will prevent me from purchasing another 2-door Wrangler, and I do not want a 4-door.

Jeep treats the 2-door like the "black sheep" of the family. No 3.6L V6/auto transmission combo on the 2-door, but it is available on the 4-door. Now, no fold forward driver's seat. What will Jeep do next to reduce 2-door sales?

I have purchased 5 brand new 2-door Wranglers since 2001. I guess it's now time to look elsewhere. Bronco maybe?

It's about time Jeep gave the 2-door Wrangler "some love".

Sigh...

 

[Cartman]

I absolutely agree with you on everything. They should at least offer a folding seat as an optional extra. But for example, in Europe they completely banned the sale of the 2D model from 2020. I wanted mine, I had to buy it in the USA and transport it across the ocean at my own expense and homologate it in Europe so that they could let it on the roads. Maybe the 2D is the black sheep of Europe too.

 

[mysto]

It is a ridiculous cost cutting measure, that will actually reduce 2-door sales even more.

I have purchased 5 brand new 2-door Wranglers since 2001. I guess it's now time to look elsewhere. Bronco maybe?

It's about time Jeep gave the 2-door Wrangler "some love".

I'm pretty sure the plan is to reduce 2-door sales so that it's easy to justify the end of the model. Have you seen the grand cherokee? It's a minivan with extra profit, the wave of the future.

I'm in the same boat though, neither a jeep without a flip seat nor a jeep with 4 doors really works for me. I'm probably going to be looking at something else someday. OTOH I have this Idea of just keeping this 2-door and limping it along forever, that might work out. Get a slate for daily. I would consider the 4 door if I had a higher opinion of FCA, maybe someone will buy them.

 

[Sreth4044]

I totally agree. Have had 2 two door wranglers in past and getting ready to purchase my last and probably final wrangler. Been waiting for the 3.6 automatic 2 door this time because I am over 70 now and this latest driver seat cheap shot by Jeep may be the last nail in the coffin for me. Been looking at Broncos myself lately for first time in my life. Maybe will just be making a revenge purchase soon. Please Jeep come back to what made you great before it is too late.

 

[Keepmoving]

Anybody have a mod for this '26 problem without setting off an airbag or trouble codes? I miss the access behind the drivers seat nearly every time I drive it. The bike rack stays in the receiver so no tailgate access either. Unbelievable. Starting to miss the old '21.

 

[Mabar]

Anybody have a mod for this '26 problem without setting off an airbag or trouble codes? I miss the access behind the drivers seat nearly every time I drive it. The bike rack stays in the receiver so no tailgate access either. Unbelievable. Starting to miss the old '21.

The missing "fold-forward" driver's seat is a HUGE inconvenience for me and will prevent me from purchasing another 2-door Wrangler. I use this feature on my 2021 Rubicon on an almost daily basis.

Many buyers don't even realize this feature is missing on the '26. In fact, many Jeep salesmen don't know it's missing either, and if they do know, they certainly won't point it out to the buying customer. The customer only realizes it's missing when he takes his new Jeep home and tries to access the rear area behind the driver's seat.

 

[GinaC]

Related:

Has anyone seen an aftermarket seat tilting device for the passenger seat so it can tilt up against the dash like it did in my TJs?

 

[Mabar]

Related:

Has anyone seen an aftermarket seat tilting device for the passenger seat so it can tilt up against the dash like it did in my TJs?

The passenger seat still has the "fold-forward" or "tilt-forward" feature.

It's the driver's side "fold-forward" seat that has been eliminated for 2026, on all 2-door Wranglers.

 

[GinaC]

The passenger seat still has the "fold-forward" or "tilt-forward" feature.

It's the driver's side "fold-forward" seat that has been eliminated for 2026, on all 2-door Wranglers.

It does? How do you get it to do that? I use the shoulder latch and all it does is tilt forward, not come up off the rail like the one in my TJ did.

 

[Mabar]

It does? How do you get it to do that? I use the shoulder latch and all it does is tilt forward, not come up off the rail like the one in my TJ did.

The TJ did have a different style "fold-forward" passenger seat, and yes, on my 2006 TJ it did flip up and slide, and fold forward a little more than my 2011 JK, my 2016 JK, and now my 2021 JL Wrangler.


On my 2021, 2-door Rubicon, the passenger seat does go all the way forward up to touch the dashboard, but not quite as much as my old TJ.

 

[agentdr8]

I don't have any skin in this game, as I'm one of those extraneous door-having plebs, but I doubt Stella would have changed the folding mechanism itself and instead just removed the release lever, cable, and associated mounting pieces.

If some brave soul were so inclined, they could probably source the parts from the 24/25 models and add them to their driver seat. I'd probably verify first whether the tilt mechanism has an empty spot for the "easy entry" cable end (and maybe give it a tug to see if it works as intended).

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