WindyCityWilly
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I just got back from a week in the Outer Banks with my 2021 Willys. I've been going to the OBX for about a dozen years and have taken a wide selection of vehicles to the beach, including a 2016 4Runner and a 2019 Sequoia. This was my first time taking the Willys.
To trip out there is about 1,100 miles. We stop for the night at my in-laws in Richmond VA and Day 2 we drive to Avon, NC. I was pleasantly surprised with how comfortable the seats were in the Willys. Day 1 was about 14 hours and it didn't feel bad at all.
I had the roof of the Jeep loaded with a Rhino Rack, a Thule case, and an ARB awning. Inside was me, my wife, 1 dog, 1 puppy and our stuff. Overall the 2.0 Turbo returned about 20mpg traveling @ 75mph + about 30 miles of 4wd in the sand.
Although people out west would laugh at the mountains we hit on I-64, I was very happy with how the engine + transmission handled it compared to my old 4Runner and even the Sequoia. There were a couple 7% grades east of Charleston WV and Afton Pass VA but the transmission down-shifted and was easily able to hold 75mph. I remember my 4runner (4.0 V6, 5-speed transmission) sounded like it was going to die trying to go up the same hills with the same load. When I had my 4Runner I would turn off cruise and drop my speed to about 65mph to keep things happy. Even the Sequoia (5.7 V8, 5-speed tranmission) would down-shift and rev the engine to the point where I would turn off cruise and hold the speed at about 70 mph.
The sand at the beach this year was extra powdery and took some work to get through. My Willys was happiest with about 17psi of air in the tires and leaving it in 4Hi with the traction control off.
Selec-Fill seemed like a gimmick and I never thought I would use it, but I was wrong. It's a really good idea. Even though I have an ARB Deflater, I'd set Selec-Fill to 17psi and the horn honking would tell me when it was time to stop. It was also nice to have when filling up the tires. I have the Up-Down Air inflation system and I set Selec-Fill to 36 psi while I had my compressor churning away. I was able to do other things (feed the dogs, etc) while the compressor was running and Selec-Fill would tell me when it was time to check the compressor.
Earlier this year I pulled the carpet and replaced it with Armorlite floor mats. In the rear I put the BedTred Cargo area liner. It was so much easier to clean out the Jeep today without having to vacuum sand out of the carpet. It took me about 1/2 as much time to clean the Jeep as it took me with the 4Runner. And the Sequoia felt like it took all day to clean.
What didn't work well? The stock MT/2 tires that come on the Willys are really good for mud, but they are too aggressive for the sand. A good set of AT's would have been better for me but it's not bad enough that I feel the need to replace them before my next trip back.
Here's a video of my wife driving it in the sand:
To trip out there is about 1,100 miles. We stop for the night at my in-laws in Richmond VA and Day 2 we drive to Avon, NC. I was pleasantly surprised with how comfortable the seats were in the Willys. Day 1 was about 14 hours and it didn't feel bad at all.
I had the roof of the Jeep loaded with a Rhino Rack, a Thule case, and an ARB awning. Inside was me, my wife, 1 dog, 1 puppy and our stuff. Overall the 2.0 Turbo returned about 20mpg traveling @ 75mph + about 30 miles of 4wd in the sand.
Although people out west would laugh at the mountains we hit on I-64, I was very happy with how the engine + transmission handled it compared to my old 4Runner and even the Sequoia. There were a couple 7% grades east of Charleston WV and Afton Pass VA but the transmission down-shifted and was easily able to hold 75mph. I remember my 4runner (4.0 V6, 5-speed transmission) sounded like it was going to die trying to go up the same hills with the same load. When I had my 4Runner I would turn off cruise and drop my speed to about 65mph to keep things happy. Even the Sequoia (5.7 V8, 5-speed tranmission) would down-shift and rev the engine to the point where I would turn off cruise and hold the speed at about 70 mph.
The sand at the beach this year was extra powdery and took some work to get through. My Willys was happiest with about 17psi of air in the tires and leaving it in 4Hi with the traction control off.
Selec-Fill seemed like a gimmick and I never thought I would use it, but I was wrong. It's a really good idea. Even though I have an ARB Deflater, I'd set Selec-Fill to 17psi and the horn honking would tell me when it was time to stop. It was also nice to have when filling up the tires. I have the Up-Down Air inflation system and I set Selec-Fill to 36 psi while I had my compressor churning away. I was able to do other things (feed the dogs, etc) while the compressor was running and Selec-Fill would tell me when it was time to check the compressor.
Earlier this year I pulled the carpet and replaced it with Armorlite floor mats. In the rear I put the BedTred Cargo area liner. It was so much easier to clean out the Jeep today without having to vacuum sand out of the carpet. It took me about 1/2 as much time to clean the Jeep as it took me with the 4Runner. And the Sequoia felt like it took all day to clean.
What didn't work well? The stock MT/2 tires that come on the Willys are really good for mud, but they are too aggressive for the sand. A good set of AT's would have been better for me but it's not bad enough that I feel the need to replace them before my next trip back.
Here's a video of my wife driving it in the sand:
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