You mentioned it's poor "engineering" and now that Wranglers are "pathetic". Can we wonder why you own one then?
That's more detail than necessary but "we" appreciate your taking the time."We" certainly can. Is that the royal we, lol?
First of all, let's address your mischaracterization:
Here's what I actually said,
That's a far cry from calling Wrangler's pathetic. It's acknowledging that the frame rail clearance is "pathetic".
Moving on......
So, since you asked...I'll just assume you don't know the back story and why I most always refer to it as "our" Jeep...not mine.
My wife was diagnosed with cancer in 2018 and she wanted a 4 door Jeep. She already had a TJ I was going to build for her with Tons, an LSX, 3 speed Hero Tcase, coilovers, full hydro, 42s, etc. (Have most of the drive train minus the built up 700R4 and full hydro/coilovers). But, faced with cancer she wasn't sure how long she had so she said "fuck it" and bought the JLUR. (Worked out well for me, as I'd been telling her for years not to build the TJ and to put those parts in a buggy instead....since she hadn't been wheeling in a full bodied rig since probably 2006, it was pretty apparent when she took the JLUR out just how limited a full bodied rig was and she ditched the plan for the TJ to build a buggy...long story even longer, I was building a buggy for a friend, he couldn't afford to finish it, so I bought it for her, but it still needs a solid year worth of work).
New buggy (next to my old one):
All the major parts are there...still need a radiator and ordered different seats as well as have to build a fuel cell...but overall, just detail work (and new tires/wheels....not a fan of the MRT beadlocks and want 43" stickies or possibly 42" reds).
Now, had it been up to me, I'd have likely gone with the JK....mainly b/c of FAD. The deciding factor for her was the bigger screen and the rear A/C (a feature I admit I liked as well, though as to now, I can't recall sitting back there). I also liked the A pillars being included in the "sport bar" for a fucking change (hey! something the Jeep engineers finally got right!).
All that said, after our first major road trip to Colorado for wheeling in the JLUR, I'm glad we went with it over the JK surprisingly. The 8 speeed trans is far superior to any other auto I've driven (I am a manual guy for everything but crawlers) and it got 15.6mpg calculated doing over 100 mph passing on mountain grades up there and back.
But in all honestly, I'm just not a "Jeep" guy. The reliability is shit, the engineering is pretty sub-par and overall quality of Chrysler products in general is pretty poor. I can say that owning 3 Chrysler products including a Ram diesel. I only own it for the drivetrain, which Chrysler didn't make.....if it wasn't for the wife, I wouldn't own a Jeep at all; though I freely admit the Rubicon package is the most capable passenger vehicle available in the current market off the showroom floor. One can build something much better suited to offroad use and still have creature comforts, but that takes time, money and lots of knowledge. I'm in that process now, but with all my other projects (currently have 9 vehicles, soon to be a 10th....probably another Ram diesel for towing)....it's going to take a while (though I've already amassed all the parts except the full hydro and coilovers). I'm embarrassed how long it's taken just to make a set of fenders for the wife's JLUR.
Any other questions, just ask.
