3.6 vs 2.0 turbo?? Which is better??

[viper88]

We have the 3.6. I’ve never driven the Jeep turbo. My bro in law has one. I’m sure, like most all modern turbo motors, it’s very good. But for me, I’ll always, always, go for larger displacement over forced induction. I’ve owned a Mazdaspeed 3, and a Kia Sportage turbo. Both powerful, very good engines. The Kia had very little lag. But it still had lag. That momentary pause, no matter how short, always happens when going from mid/light throttle cruising to WOT. And it‘s annoying.

Modern turbo vehicles are a lot better as far as lag. They seem to be getting better and better every year. I tried a Kia and it was very good. BMW and Porsche turbos are excellent. Virtually no lag.

The JL 2.0T is definitely not as liner in power delivery as the 3.6L. And that is expected. It has a little more torque and the torque band is is nice.

There are even slight differences between the JL 2.0T options. I owned a 2.0T w/ eTorque. I test drove a couple of 2.0T w/ ESS. The eTorque lag was less noticeable off the line. After rolling from a stop they were the same. Both had mild lag under certain conditions. My current 3.6 eTorque definitely drives less "sporty" then the last 2.0T.

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[vegasblue]

Personally I don't think there is much difference between the two motors and if there are, it is disconcernable. It's hard to compare apples to apples when we are talking about our Jeeps. We have all done something different. I've owned both the 3.6 and now the 2.0T. Just came back from Sand Hollow. I only ran Fault Line and West Rim and was never left thinking I didn't have enough power, oh man there is lag, it's so loud, nothing. Just enjoyed the shit out of my Jeep, watching an Armbruiser grand cherokee with a healthy V8, all the way to a split case TJ on coils. My two observations have nothing to do with the engine....

1) The eight speed transmission is tits. Light years better than the JK transmission.
2) Get a throttle controller. It was great being able to adjust the input for rock crawling, then adjusting to play in the sand, then setting it again for the drive back home.

Both of those omit the cylinder count. Please excuse me while I go peruse aftermarket companies for all the items I now "NEED" and not "WANT". 38 degree decents and climbs neccesitate some better storage options. Haahaha!

 

[DadJokes]

I scratch my head too, but from the opposite perspective. I had a 2.0 and went to a 3.6 cause I couldn't stand the 2.0. It doesn't just make more noise on startup. It is significantly louder and harsher from startup all the way through the powerband. It is something that is so pronounced, it caused me to factory order a new vehicle.

Now don't get me wrong, the 3.6 isn't what I would call "smooth". The GM 6.0 makes my Tahoe feel like a luxury sedan in comparison. But it's by far the more refined option in the 2.0 vs 3.6 debate. I will note, once again, that I realize that NVH is not high on everyone's list, and for some not even on the list at all, and that's fine. But it's something that the 2.0 is abysmal at.

One additional note, and this is also a subjective one, but I don't find the 2.0 to FEEL quicker. To me the 3.6 is the quicker and more fun motor. That said, the data doesn't lie, the 2.0 does have more midrange power so I can certainly understand how many would find that it feels faster.

The heating up thing is something I never took note of. I don't feel like the 3.6 takes any longer than the 2.0 did but then BOTH of them heat up a lot faster than my Tahoe or Challenger so I don't know that I would notice the difference between them.

Everything in this engine debate comes down to personal preference which is why these threads just won't go away.

Well, let’s just keep on scratching.

After riding as a passenger in my own Rubicon 3.6 all day yesterday in the hills, it just reaffirmed my earlier post. RPM’s from downshifts due to lack of torque to maintain speed make NVH from the valvetrain, intake, exhaust, & rotating V block assembly elevated.

I don’t really think you can’t get a more equal comparison between my two eTorque Jeeps and I switch back and forth with some frequency. My Rubicon is the “nicer” Jeep with a meh engine. It goes though. I had hoped, through Miraculous intervention, that eTorque would bump things up some. Maybe they have and that is what is imperceptible. Anyway, it’s not going anywhere and I owe considerably more on it than the other. It has the options that were must haves for her.

I think I might see about getting a decibel meter for cheap.

 

[volant165]

I have a 2013 JK with the 3.6 Pentastar. 67K miles and it has been on the autobahn cruising at 115mph, off road, on road and everything in between. Regular oil changes and never had an issue.

Reluctantly took delivery of a 2.0 turbo as 3.6 not available in the UK. Off the line amazingly quick! Turbo lag most noticeable around 35-40 mph when you hammer it.
THEN, put 33 inch tires on it and my wife said "can we put the stock ones back on? It has lost its pep" whereas on our JK with the 3.6 the performance difference when putting on larger tires was not noticeable. The chipmunks seem to have lost some of their lustre.

 

[vegasblue]

I have a 2013 JK with the 3.6 Pentastar. 67K miles and it has been on the autobahn cruising at 115mph, off road, on road and everything in between. Regular oil changes and never had an issue.

Reluctantly took delivery of a 2.0 turbo as 3.6 not available in the UK. Off the line amazingly quick! Turbo lag most noticeable around 35-40 mph when you hammer it.
THEN, put 33 inch tires on it and my wife said "can we put the stock ones back on? It has lost its pep" whereas on our JK with the 3.6 the performance difference when putting on larger tires was not noticeable. The chipmunks seem to have lost some of their lustre.

And here I experienced the exact opposite. Had 35's on the 3.6 and hills became "fun" as others passed. Acceleration was "acceptible". 35's on the 2.0T and acceleration is entertaining and have had a few comments "didn't know Jeeps were quick". Up hills and in altitude I enjoy passing on the regular.

115mph huh? "Cruising".....in a brick.

 

[TeleJeep]

Answer was simple for me. 3.6 was the only choice for a manual transmission. Jeep should offer the 2.0T with a 6-speed or even better a 7-speed with a creeper gear. Also don’t like to buy premium or midgrade fuel for the 2.0T!

 

[Tazsmom]

So this is probably been talked about before but I really want some reviews on who has what engine and how do you like it?

i’m going with the automatic but I was so intent on getting the 3.6 L. But I drove a 2.0 liter turbo for about 10 minutes and the low end torque and power was amazing lol. It had a lot more get up and go off the line than the V-6. And i liked that!!!

i’m looking to get a brand new 2021 or 2022. I do a good amount of my driving on the highway. If you have one engine over the other, how do you like it? I might do a small lift and 33s but it’s my daily driver so nothing too extreme. Is there one engine better than the other? I’m not worried about miles per gallon, that doesn’t phase me one bit because my truck now gets 12 lol. But I do see the 2.0 liter turbo gets a little bit better miles per gallon but nonetheless what engine do you have and how do you like it? Thank you so much

So we have one of each at our house. I love the 2.0 but I do miss the throaty sound of the 3.6.

 

[QiWiz]

I love the performance of my 2.0T.

Full disclosure - I haven't even driven 3.6.

Same here

 

[WorkingMan]

So this is probably been talked about before but I really want some reviews on who has what engine and how do you like it?

i’m going with the automatic but I was so intent on getting the 3.6 L. But I drove a 2.0 liter turbo for about 10 minutes and the low end torque and power was amazing lol. It had a lot more get up and go off the line than the V-6. And i liked that!!!

i’m looking to get a brand new 2021 or 2022. I do a good amount of my driving on the highway. If you have one engine over the other, how do you like it? I might do a small lift and 33s but it’s my daily driver so nothing too extreme. Is there one engine better than the other? I’m not worried about miles per gallon, that doesn’t phase me one bit because my truck now gets 12 lol. But I do see the 2.0 liter turbo gets a little bit better miles per gallon but nonetheless what engine do you have and how do you like it? Thank you so much

3.6 all day long.

 

[Gunfighter]

Drove both as rental vehicles more than enough times times. The 3.6 won me over for it's good basic power delivery/predictability and I liked the sound of the motor. The 2.0 was a little zippier, but the engines in every rental sounded like they had rocks in them. Plus, I am not into having a stop light racer Jeep anyway. The fact is the 3.6 is plenty for on/off road situations. The 3.6 has been offered in the Ram, 300, and Charger for a long time too so I took that into account. That is for ME...YOU should decide what is best for YOU. Enjoy either way.

 

[JSBean18]

I originally wanted the V6 3.6 Liter, I bought my Rubicon in January of last year. I have the 2.0 Turbo and I have been pleasantly surprised with the way it drives and it does have decent power and torque. I also recently added a 2.5" Metal Cloak lift and skid plates, and I am also running 35s now. When you do get a lift your mpg will drop some just be prepared for that. I have no regrets.

 

[John VonJeep]

2) Get a throttle controller. It was great being able to adjust the input for rock crawling, then adjusting to play in the sand, then setting it again for the drive back home.

I use Off-Road+ for this. In 4Hi, it’s optimized for sand driving. In 4Lo, it’s got soft response for crawling. And in regular/off it‘s, well, normal.

A great, and under-appreciated, feature.

 

[tecnic1]

I can't speak to the 3.6. I'm sure it's a good engine. I don't actually know that there are any bad engines anymore.

I bought the 2.0 based on the torque curve, fuel efficiency, and my expectation that the turbo engine would lose less performance at altitude then the NA engine. I live in Colorado and a lot of the wheeling I do is at 10K+ feet.

The 2.0 is a really good engine. I don't have any complaints with it, and if I were to buy another Jeep, I would want the 2.0 again. I haven't noticed the delay in throttle response people talk about, and it doesn't seem to have much lag. The sound is definitely unique in 4lo, but it's not a deal breaker.

 

[Old Dogger]

The 3.6 in now a longevity proven engine. The verdict is still out on then 2.0. We own two 3.6 engines, one in a 2013 JKR, and the other a 2018 JLR. If I was buying another one today, it would have the 3.6, with a 8 Speed Auto.. Great combination.

 

[digitalmdsmooth]

I own a 2.0T but I’m not in love with the noisy racket. Also, the pedal is extremely spongy so a pedal commander or similar really wakes it up. The power band is very V8 like compared to the 3.6

Ok I was looking for this response. I've had a 2.0 for almost a year and a half and the whininess of the engine, turbo, or whatever it is has always kinda bothered me.
I took it to two different shops thinking it was a wonky serpentine belt, but they both said it's just how the turbo sounds.
I've had turbos in a VW and a Honda and they didn't like sound a fucking kazoo. I've never driven a 3.6 or a different 2.0 so I've nothing to compare. Does the 3.6 whine too?

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