Edmunds 100,000 mile Wrangler JL Rubicon Long Term Update Review

[BijanF]

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[wranglerbro]

Nice find. Pretty cool to see a long term review like that, especially for a stock Rubicon that was used a lot off-road. No surprise Jeep’s can be expensive to maintain if you’re dependent on the dealership to fix things and don’t wrench yourself.

 

[somedude922]

Seems pretty on par.

 

[Mgdstar]

Of the 179,000 miles I have put on my 2008 Sahara unlimited soft top, 50,000 was commuting from Burbank to Los Angles. It was actually a great vehicle for that. The sit up tall position with great visibility made the trip nicely. I did not have loose steering issue and not sure what the guy is saying about smelling everything because it’s a Wrangler; I think he must be is from the Toyota Prius crowd.

 

[brewski]

My friend just hit 300,000 miles in his JK last month. Jeeps can last, but the JK was electrically much simpler than the JLs. Curious how my JL will last; I hope to keep it long enough to find out.

 

[Irish Creig]

My friend just hit 300,000 miles in his JK last month. Jeeps can last, but the JK was electrically much simpler than the JLs. Curious how my JL will last; I hope to keep it long enough to find out.

I agree with you, I too am curious as to how well the Jl/JLU's will last. They don't seem to be built as well as the previous generations

 

[TheRaven]

My friend just hit 300,000 miles in his JK last month. Jeeps can last, but the JK was electrically much simpler than the JLs. Curious how my JL will last; I hope to keep it long enough to find out.

It will take a mountain of money to keep a JL on the road well into the 100k mile range. Though I do have to be fair and mention that due to the extreme electrical/electronic complexity of the modern automobile, most vehicles being sold currently are going to become cost prohibitive to maintain at very high mileage. The JL is just going to be at the extreme end of that spectrum. It's not ONLY the complexity either - exploding MSRPs also push up parts cost, technician salaries are increasing to stay competitive, and automakers are more aggressively pushing the "don't fix, just replace" way of doing business.

 

[Wraith]

I think it was a fair assessment of the Wrangler. It is definitely not a vehicle for someone who wants something easy to maintain and drive. I have been driving Jeeps since 2000 so im more than familiar with the on road characteristics, and I think at times people get a gut punch when they get behind the wheel without really understanding what they are getting into. Definitely not a vehicle where you can be distracted behind the wheel on the highway for any amount of time. This is even after replacing everything suspension and steering wise under mine and easily tracking straight and true at 80+ mph. Crosswinds are still the bane of my existence. There are definitely times I wish I had a second vehicle to drive to and from work on high wind days.

I just hit 26K and 3 full years of ownership on my 21 and I am surprisingly content. I usually start getting antsy after the two year mark with a vehicle but I've been happy with my JLU. I have thought of other vehicles but there isn't really anything that appeals to me that would tick all the boxes the Wrangler does. There just isn't anything really appealing to me in the marketplace other than the Wrangler. The Bronco is cool but I am not a Ford guy and I just couldn't see myself being happy with it. If I were to change one thing it would certainly be more power, but I am at the point of having built mine that stripping it to get into a 392 would be a logistical nightmare. I have definitely considered it though. Many, many (emphasis on many) times, and likely will keep doing so until I either V8 swap it or get a wild hair up and say screw it lol.

 

[brewski]

I agree with you, I too am curious as to how well the Jl/JLU's will last. They don't seem to be built as well as the previous generations

I got a diesel JL because I tow a trailer for camping (3 young kids), but I frequently wonder if selling my JK was a long term smart decision. Short term it is for sure. My JK was nicely set up and relatively simple on the electronics and sensors front.
I don't agree about the "built as well". I think they are built as well, but there are just more things that can go wrong with all the added technology.

 

[Outside360]

It will take a mountain of money to keep a JL on the road well into the 100k mile range. Though I do have to be fair and mention that due to the extreme electrical/electronic complexity of the modern automobile, most vehicles being sold currently are going to become cost prohibitive to maintain at very high mileage. The JL is just going to be at the extreme end of that spectrum. It's not ONLY the complexity either - exploding MSRPs also push up parts cost, technician salaries are increasing to stay competitive, and automakers are more aggressively pushing the "don't fix, just replace" way of doing business.

I’ve got 120k on my 2019 JL and not one problem other than regular maintenance. Took my 2012 JK to 205k and all I had to replace was my alternator. So far, the JL is acting just like the JK.

 

[yokramer]

I’ve got 120k on my 2019 JL and not one problem other than regular maintenance. Took my 2012 JK to 205k and all I had to replace was my alternator. So far, the JL is acting just like the JK.

naw man it has those new found electrionic whoziwhatits in it its gonna fail tomorrow and cost you 3 kidneys 2.35 livers and your 3rd born child to keep it running. Dont you know that all cars since after 1980 are just total garbage and cost millions to keep running.

 

[Robertyoke]

It will be interesting to the see them 100k review of the ford, especially if they start using it as the offroad support vehicle. Taking any vehicle offroad is definitely hard on them, even the reliability king 'yota, is going to show many more problems then a pavement princess. I mean a busted visor and blown support strut, not really the end of the world, probably 1 hours time and 100 bucks if you stay away from the stealer.

 

[wanderer]

having Edmunds review a vehicle like this is like asking a farmer from Kansas to judge th pipeline masters. half the guys on there look like aliens especially the guy with the pointy chin and big ears I thought I saw him in Men in Black

 

[Dan M.]

They say it was expensive to maintain then show them driving through a river and over boulders. I would like to see how much it would cost to maintain a Camry for 100k miles if they treated it the same way.

 

[Smoke ‘Em]

They say it was expensive to maintain then show them driving through a river and over boulders. I would like to see how much it would cost to maintain a Camry for 100k miles if they treated it the same way.

Exactly.

It’s pay to play, always has been, always will be. I’m in my second JL, it’s had a couple issues, so did my previous one. My JKs had issues, same with TJs and CJs. Nothing catastrophic yet.

Irritating, well yeah. Things that should be corrected by the factory by now. Hell yes! But, I wasn’t expecting the pinnacle of reliability going in. If that’s what I was chasing it’d be Land Cruiser, period. I’ve had several of them and many other Toyotas, but none of them have ever been keepers.

I still have a TJ I won’t part with. I seeas a canvas that’s easy for me to modify and improve to MY needs….and it’s all in a package that will get me where I want to go and I can actually drive the damn thing to the trail and back and as a daily if I want.

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