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3.6 trade to 4xe

pepeborja

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I considered the 4xe and passed on it. I own a BMW i3 with the 33kwh battery and get about 100 miles of range which makes it a practical commuter and is dirt cheap to operate. I get by with a simple ($170) 16AMP/240V charger (no need to put a nuclear reactor to recharge at home overnight). I am no stranger to EV driving and the coolness of it.

To me, the whole point of an EV is to simplify the drive train and to remove lubricants from the periodic maintenance equation (and gas too, of course). The 4xe is a complicated machine with a hybrid powertrain using a turbo engine that may be subjected to repeated cold starts and reportedly suffers from gas contaminated oil requiring the computer to put the 4xe in gas only mode for a few hours to scrub the oil clean ("oil refresh mode" or something like that). Not exactly a way to live the #EVlifestyle.

The 4xe is a cool concept but at the end of all my research I was not able to find the value in the 4xe proposition. It is a lovely idea to help Jeep fans hug a tree but at the end of the day it was not for me and I am back to the gas models to replace my TJ.
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BXFXJeep

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The 4xe is definitely a very niche model, and the Wrangler is also a very niche vehicle to begin with, so the 4xe is most likely not suited for most people.

The only thing I didn't like with the 3.6 was the ESS, I found that annoying, then came the sky rocketing gas prices.

The 2.0 is indeed obnoxious when it starts up, after that I think it's fine.

It's still kinda fun to watch EV purist clutch their pearls when you pull into an EV charging spot, with the cold ICE kicking up a racket, some will come knocking on the window, hey buddy this is for electric vehicles only, then that is followed by the sheer look of horror when you plug it in.

Seems almost no EV purists are aware of the Wrangler PHEV, and I have my old regular ICE plate, so many think it's pure ICE, and even worse it's green(Gecko) in colour. I also didn't opt for the exclusive Green plate for exactly this same reason, I have no need for the crappy perk that comes with it.
 

sconrad24

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I considered the 4xe and passed on it. I own a BMW i3 with the 33kwh battery and get about 100 miles of range which makes it a practical commuter and is dirt cheap to operate. I get by with a simple ($170) 16AMP/240V charger (no need to put a nuclear reactor to recharge at home overnight). I am no stranger to EV driving and the coolness of it.

To me, the whole point of an EV is to simplify the drive train and to remove lubricants from the periodic maintenance equation (and gas too, of course). The 4xe is a complicated machine with a hybrid powertrain using a turbo engine that may be subjected to repeated cold starts and reportedly suffers from gas contaminated oil requiring the computer to put the 4xe in gas only mode for a few hours to scrub the oil clean ("oil refresh mode" or something like that). Not exactly a way to live the #EVlifestyle.

The 4xe is a cool concept but at the end of all my research I was not able to find the value in the 4xe proposition. It is a lovely idea to help Jeep fans hug a tree but at the end of the day it was not for me and I am back to the gas models to replace my TJ.

I dont think anything can replace the tj lol. Maybe starting planning on a Tesla battery/motor swap when the 4.0 goes?
 

BXFXJeep

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This is as specific as I can get

Last night I paid $3 flat rate to charge it up to 100%(7.2kw took 2 hours 16 minutes) from 1%, during the day it's $2 per hour at the same city run public charger.

This morning battery at 100% - time 8:20am
Temperature in the underground garage 7c
Temperature outside -2c

Drove 9km - 2 stops didn't shut down the Wrangler, each stop was about 5 minutes each

Battery at 68% - time 8:56am

The gas plant never came on, speed was mostly about 30kmph to a max of 45kmph

Charged it back up for free required 5.61kwh

I only put on the Steering wheel heater for about 10 minutes
 

john adams

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I considered the 4xe and passed on it. I own a BMW i3 with the 33kwh battery and get about 100 miles of range which makes it a practical commuter and is dirt cheap to operate. I get by with a simple ($170) 16AMP/240V charger (no need to put a nuclear reactor to recharge at home overnight). I am no stranger to EV driving and the coolness of it.

To me, the whole point of an EV is to simplify the drive train and to remove lubricants from the periodic maintenance equation (and gas too, of course). The 4xe is a complicated machine with a hybrid powertrain using a turbo engine that may be subjected to repeated cold starts and reportedly suffers from gas contaminated oil requiring the computer to put the 4xe in gas only mode for a few hours to scrub the oil clean ("oil refresh mode" or something like that). Not exactly a way to live the #EVlifestyle.

The 4xe is a cool concept but at the end of all my research I was not able to find the value in the 4xe proposition. It is a lovely idea to help Jeep fans hug a tree but at the end of the day it was not for me and I am back to the gas models to replace my TJ.
This encapsulates why I canceled a 4xe order. I really liked the test drive--it was great and it's what got me to order originally but the more I thought of it, the less I felt comfortable with the decision. The 4xe is a complicated machine and if you look up all the issues--particularly the many mid-highway complete shutdowns--it is not ready for prime time. The CEL being on seems like a "feature" of the 4xes at this point.

My other concern, voiced by someone upstream, was that when the new one comes out, and it will come in 2 years or so, this will be a very dated model.

I have an EV car in the house and it's absolutely an excellent A to B car. I also have a true hybrid but it's a Toyota so nothing ever goes wrong. Adding a Wrangler with so many issues, from a brand known for bad QC, and with service offerings on a new model that have been terrible (both parts not being available for weeks and technicians who don't know how to fix it)...made no sense.

I very much look forward to a hybrid or EV Wrangler someday but this model seems not ready IMO. As I keep saying (to avoid attacks from the owners), it is fun as hell to drive.
 

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mllcb42

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reportedly suffers from gas contaminated oil requiring the computer to put the 4xe in gas only mode for a few hours to scrub the oil clean
It's worth mentioning that fuel dilution is a characteristic thing of all PHEVs (well, at least all parallel/serial hybrids) by the very nature of how the engine is used. This isn't a 4xe specific thing. The 4xe refresh mode is a bit different than some other phevs, but the fuel dilution is just one of those things that a phev has to have a way of dealing with.
 

sconrad24

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It's worth mentioning that fuel dilution is a characteristic thing of all PHEVs (well, at least all parallel/serial hybrids) by the very nature of how the engine is used. This isn't a 4xe specific thing. The 4xe refresh mode is a bit different than some other phevs, but the fuel dilution is just one of those things that a phev has to have a way of dealing with.
Very true. I can only add that it is not a detection of gas in the oil. Its an algorithm that tries to prevent it. So after a set of conditions it goes into FORM in order to prevent gas in the oil, use up old gas or old oil.. I haven't had it yet. Not sure if it is because I do a longer trip every couple of weeks that has the ICE running for 20+ miles at a time.
 

john adams

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There's a facebook poll in a group I'm no longer a member of (because I didn't buy the 4xe!) but here's another one, just of 4xe owners. Given that almost everyone answering is answering for a vehicle that is less than a year old, these results are disturbing.

https://www.4xeforums.com/threads/2021-4xe-problems-poll.1994/

(I mean no offense linking to a site out of this, and apologies if that's an issue. I traveled both places before deciding not to get a 4xe and find both excellent communities of people.)
 

Maverick909

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Might be a good deal for you. You are never going to make that 7k back in fuel but it is cool. With those cheap rates you would probably be at a 35-40 cents per liter equivalent gas cost while you are electric only. Out on the open road you are not really going to see any savings. . I can't speak to the cold. I know lots of guys are having issues. I think almost all battery cars do. Heck even my Toyota FJ loses 2 miles per gallon in the Winter and I live in California. No need for premium gas unless you are towing or really hot rodding up and down mountains.
I like to bag to differ on the premium. with the 3.6L my jeep had timing pinging until i changed to 91 octane fuel. Since changing to premium I gain 2 MPG on avg and no longer had any timing pinging. 3.6L runs 100% better on premium fuel. And as for the 4Xe i myself wouldnt recommend it to the great North neighbors in Canada. The Lithium Batteries HATE the cold and Prematurely fail. Had a buddy that owned his Tesla just over a year with the norther part of the USA and ended hacing to drop 15K in batteries. I think Electric cars are great but not in cold weather. Batteries Do Not Like the Cold. never have never will
 

Echo4papa

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There's a facebook poll in a group I'm no longer a member of (because I didn't buy the 4xe!) but here's another one, just of 4xe owners. Given that almost everyone answering is answering for a vehicle that is less than a year old, these results are disturbing.

https://www.4xeforums.com/threads/2021-4xe-problems-poll.1994/

(I mean no offense linking to a site out of this, and apologies if that's an issue. I traveled both places before deciding not to get a 4xe and find both excellent communities of people.)
70% have had no issues, and some of the issues mentioned are normal Wrangler issues that have nothing to do with the 4xe specifically. Considering people with issues flock to forums for answers and are usually represented in higher numbers than usual, the results there aren't bad at all.
 

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Echo4papa

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The one piece of advice I will give is to consider your reasons for wanting the 4xe and the reasons for the person giving you the advice.

As a pure PHEV, an approach based on electric range, savings on charging vs gas etc., and a direct comparison to other PHEVs, the 4xe might seem an odd choice unless you have a minimal commute/daily mileage requirement. Most PHEVs are built to be much less reliant on gas, higher MPG etc. The average PHEV shopper is looking for this as well. The 4xe falls a bit short here for a lot of people.

From an approach of wanting a more powerful Wrangler and a lesser hit to your wallet compared to the 392, the 4xe is a big win. Fun to drive, a significant increase in power over other Wranglers outside of the 392 (and not that far behind the 392 either), slightly lower center of gravity and smoother experience at highway speeds... this Jeep ticks all the boxes for me and convinced me to purchase my third Jeep after a long absence. Traded in my 2019 Mustang GT Premium and haven't missed it at all, which is saying a lot because I loved that car.

Be honest with yourself about your reasons. For me, I don't care about saving money on gas. I care about the added power. I enjoy the ability to drive around on electric, or save electric power for off road use as well. The 4xe is amazing in this regard, AND since I work from home, I'm able to drive all of my daily 'around town' driving on electric. I also enjoy driving the 4xe and put a good number of miles on it on the weekends mostly in hybrid mode. I've put twice as many miles on it as I did my Mustang over the same period of time and never has it failed to put a smile on my face.
 

BCool

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Just got back from test driving a 22 Sahara 4xe. MSRP is 60 k and trade in for my 21 JKUR is $59500. It drove well, but those stock tires where noticeable worse on snow then the KO2’s. This is a tough decision!
Find Rubicon takeoffs ($800-1200) and sell the new Sahara takeoffs ($800-1200). I picked up Rubi takeoffs three weeks before my 4xe Sahara arrived, and had cash in hand for the Sahara takeoffs three days after picking it up.

I went from a '20 Rubicon to a '21 4xe. Very happy with the decision. I get better mpg on the 2.0T than the 3.6. No option for overnight plug-in for me, and rarely park where a plug is available, so in first three months of ownership I've only charged the battery maybe six times. I bought this for seat-of-the-pants improvement over the 3.6.
 

john adams

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70% have had no issues, and some of the issues mentioned are normal Wrangler issues that have nothing to do with the 4xe specifically. Considering people with issues flock to forums for answers and are usually represented in higher numbers than usual, the results there aren't bad at all.
I dunno man. That poll is kind of buried on the site and is set up to ask people if they have had serious issues. 30% of owners saying they had serious issues within their first year of ownership is some special kind of "Jeep thing" for owners to tolerate. Especially when you consider that over time, that number will only go up.
 

Echo4papa

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I dunno man. That poll is kind of buried on the site and is set up to ask people if they have had serious issues. 30% of owners saying they had serious issues within their first year of ownership is some special kind of "Jeep thing" for owners to tolerate. Especially when you consider that over time, that number will only go up.
That's not what it says... it's 30% have had "some sort of problem", not a "serious" problem. 13.2% of those remain as single unresolved, 5.7% multiple issues unresolved.

I'm one of the "single issue, resolved" groups that add up to your 30% and my issue was the ball joints needing to be tightened.

Someone else posted because of busted windshield wiper linkage.

There is nothing about the question or answers that deals with the seriousness of the issue. I would say that anything in the "unresolved" group could be a more serious issue (or it could be a recent issue they haven't had looked at yet).

I'm in multiple 4xe groups and forums, I see the complaints, issues etc. I'm not suggesting there are none, but there's no reason to misrepresent what is posted and shared either.
 

Echo4papa

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Find Rubicon takeoffs ($800-1200) and sell the new Sahara takeoffs ($800-1200). I picked up Rubi takeoffs three weeks before my 4xe Sahara arrived, and had cash in hand for the Sahara takeoffs three days after picking it up.

I went from a '20 Rubicon to a '21 4xe. Very happy with the decision. I get better mpg on the 2.0T than the 3.6. No option for overnight plug-in for me, and rarely park where a plug is available, so in first three months of ownership I've only charged the battery maybe six times. I bought this for seat-of-the-pants improvement over the 3.6.
I found Rubi 392 takeoffs for $1800 and sold my Sahara takeoffs for $1000.
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