Finally ordering a Wrangler suggestion

[Luiscasta25]

Hello Everyone, after almost 2 years of debating if I should buy a wrangler, I sold my current vehicle back in May due. This process took a little longer due to depreciation, dealers, and Carmax being weird of my vehicle I was finally was able to sell it to a friend. (first, they couldn't figure out depreciation and after they were offering way low)

Anyways I was looking at the options for 2021; and I'm debating between the WILLYS or RUBICON. The rubicon being the top of the line I understand is more expensive. My build online for the Willys comes out to around 48k and the rubicon 56k is $8k difference.

List of things that I can think of I will get on the Rubicon on my build vs. Willys from factory (after reviewing specs and checking forum)

1. Steel Bumper
2. Dana 44 Front
3. Sway Disconnect Bar
4. Front and Rear Locker
5. Proximity entry
6. Rubicon Shock (most likely this will be replaced with a Mopar 2'' Lift)

Price to upgrade after a couple of years:

1. Lockers (ARB or other) $2,000
2. Steel Bumper front $1,000
3. Lift Kit $1,500
4. Dana 44 front $1,000 ??
5. Installation of all $2,000 Estimating this
   1. Total $$7,500 (so is not really a saving)

please let me know if I'm missing something, to be clear I don't know if I will use the full capabilities of the Rubicon, but I always think is better to have than need and don't have.

Thanks

Luis

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[Columbus104]

Your math makes sense. A few other things to consider.

1. I'm assuming you're going to finance the Jeep and not pay cash. If so, think about the interest rate you'd pay on the Rubicon purchase. Rolling in the extra $8k at the lower interest rate would easily offset the $500 savings if you had to put any of the Willy's upgrades on a credit card.
2. Also think about resale. No one likes to think about selling a vehicle before you even buy it, but that will eventually take place. The extra $8k paid for the Rubicon will add to a higher resale value. However aftermarket upgrades have a very small resale carryforward. So keep that in mind - you'd recoup more of your investment on the Rubicon.

Based on your planned use and future investments, I think you're better off going with the Rubi.

 

[Dkretden]

very few Jeep buyers (including myself) need a Rubicon. I bought it for looks and capabilities that I probably won’t ever really need.

if you like the Rubicon spec, buy it as adding all the stuff later will likely cost you more and not come with the OEM warranty and may cause you a few “headaches’ at your dealer if you do have a “mostly unrelated to your mod issue but the dealer wants to blame your mod.......”

 

[jdubya421]

Hello Everyone, after almost 2 years of debating if I should buy a wrangler, I sold my current vehicle back in May due. This process took a little longer due to depreciation, dealers, and Carmax being weird of my vehicle I was finally was able to sell it to a friend. (first, they couldn't figure out depreciation and after they were offering way low)

Anyways I was looking at the options for 2021; and I'm debating between the WILLYS or RUBICON. The rubicon being the top of the line I understand is more expensive. My build online for the Willys comes out to around 48k and the rubicon 56k is $8k difference.

List of things that I can think of I will get on the Rubicon on my build (after reviewing specs and checking forum)

1. Steel Bumper
2. Dana 44 Front
3. Sway Disconnect Bar
4. Front and Rear Locker
5. Proximity entry
6. Rubicon Shock (most likely this will be replaced with a Mopar 2'' Lift)

Price to upgrade after a couple of years:

1. Lockers (ARB or other) $2,000
2. Steel Bumper front $1,000
3. Lift Kit $1,500
4. Dana 44 front $1,000 ??
5. Installation of all $2,000 Estimating this
   1. Total $$7,500 (so is not really a saving)

please let me know if I'm missing something, to be clear I don't know if I will use the full capabilities of the Rubicon, but I always think is better to have than need and don't have.

Thanks

Luis

The D44 front is going to be more like 2500, which will have a front locker. If the Willys doesn't have wide axles you would need both since Rubi axles are wider. You would then need a new tie rod and drag link. You can get a bumper cheaper than 1k depending on brand. Also, depending on brand, a lift is going to be more than 1500, but can definitely be had for that price or cheaper. The upgrade to a Rubicon (ie lockers, wider axles, 4:1 transfer case (HUGE upgrade)), is more about safety than capability really. It will allow you to do the same stuff just slower and with more control which leads to safety. You can make the argument that most people don't "need" a Rubicon, but ultimately it lowers the difficulty level of obstacles and allows you more confidence and safety.

 

[breakerbaker]

Hey Luis,
Congratulations on your upcoming purchase of your new JL! I am a bit confused when you stated you were going to add are the Dana 44 and the swaybar disconnect as these come factory on all Rubicons, therefore, no extra money will need to be spent.

Looking at your possible add-ons it seems you want to remove a lot of the factory Rubicon items which will make them useless. My suggestion, if you are going to build up your JL and add items that take away from the Rubicon, why buy a Rubicon. I bought a 2021 Sport for this reason as I will be adding items that will out preform the Rubicon, so why spend money twice. Hope this helps!

 

[jdubya421]

Hey Luis,
Congratulations on your upcoming purchase of your new JL! I am a bit confused when you stated you were going to add are the Dana 44 and the swaybar disconnect as these come factory on all Rubicons, therefore, no extra money will need to be spent.

Looking at your possible add-ons it seems you want to remove a lot of the factory Rubicon items which will make them useless. My suggestion, if you are going to build up your JL and add items that take away from the Rubicon, why buy a Rubicon. I bought a 2021 Sport for this reason as I will be adding items that will out preform the Rubicon, so why spend money twice. Hope this helps!

This is what I had started to do, but unless you buy a sport with the intention of going straight to D60 axles, the next logical upgrade is D44 axles and lockers front and back. Unless you want 40" tires and need D60 axles, the JL Rubicon really is the best place to start if you want to wheel hard. This generation of D44 axles are very strong and you can easily do 37's and call it there and have a really well built rig that can handle just about anything.

 

[Notorious]

Here’s the deal, unless you eat, breathe, live and sleep wrenching and also have unlimited time, unlimited funds and unlimited patience, you’re never going to do those mods.

You’re a good example of where and when it makes sense to spend the extra money from the factory from the get go to get everything you want done.

Spend the $58k if you can justify the $100-$200 per month added cost and let the factory do it all for you. Remember, less time wrenching means more time wheeling.

 

[aldo98229]

Welcome to the forum!

ALL Wranglers hold their value extremely well, but I wouldn’t add a front D44 and axle disconnect to a Willys. We don’t recover the money we spend on mods. If you want/need those features and you can afford it, get the Rubicon.

Having said that, I get the impression you haven’t off-roader much. Do you really plan to get into it? If not, a Willys will do everything you will ever need. Heck, a Willys will get you through 90% of the trails out there. If you put a lift and some larger tires, it will do 95% of the trails out there. If you need a vehicle to go camping/finish, a Willys is more than enough.

Good luck.

 

[Luiscasta25]

Hey Luis,
Congratulations on your upcoming purchase of your new JL! I am a bit confused when you stated you were going to add are the Dana 44 and the swaybar disconnect as these come factory on all Rubicons, therefore, no extra money will need to be spent.

Looking at your possible add-ons it seems you want to remove a lot of the factory Rubicon items which will make them useless. My suggestion, if you are going to build up your JL and add items that take away from the Rubicon, why buy a Rubicon. I bought a 2021 Sport for this reason as I will be adding items that will out preform the Rubicon, so why spend money twice. Hope this helps!

Sorry I what I tried to say things that I get on the Rubicon that I don't get on the Willys.

 

[Luiscasta25]

Thank you all for the response, another thing is what engine to get, I'm familiar with the 2.0 turbo since the wife has a Guilia, so far it has been problem-free except for some maintenance warranty work on the computer chip and one-time wife was low on gas and vehicle turn off.

Or should I get the V6 engine?

 

[Timmyjoe]

While I love the look of the Willys and the whole concept of honoring Jeep history, there's one thing about the Willys I couldn't live with day in and day out. The non-power windows. The reason, the window crank is situated in the narrow Jeep cockpit where it hits directly on a pressure point in my knee. I may be the only person on the planet this happens to, but when I test drove a 2019 with manual window cranks I knew right away I couldn't live with them. Might want to check that out before making your decision.

Best,
-Tim

 

[Luiscasta25]

While I love the look of the Willys and the whole concept of honoring Jeep history, there's one thing about the Willys I couldn't live with day in and day out. The non-power windows. The reason, the window crank is situated in the narrow Jeep cockpit where it hits directly on a pressure point in my knee. I may be the only person on the planet this happens to, but when I test drove a 2019 with manual window cranks I knew right away I couldn't live with them. Might want to check that out before making your decision.

Best,
-Tim

I though the Willys with the non-power window is the Willys sport?

 

[aldo98229]

Thank you all for the response, another thing is what engine to get, I'm familiar with the 2.0 turbo since the wife has a Guilia, so far it has been problem-free except for some maintenance warranty work on the computer chip and one-time wife was low on gas and vehicle turn off.

Or should I get the V6 engine?

Test drive them both a decide.

Owners of the 2.0T love the little motor; as do owners of the V6.

There’s another thread out there discussing the differences in the smoothness of the 8-speed automatic when mated with the 2.0T and the V6.

I have the V6 + 8-speed auto: love it! It’s a match made in heaven.

 

[ThirtyOne]

I though the Willys with the non-power window is the Willys sport?

You are correct. The Willys is based on the Sport S.

You left out the gears and 4:1 transfer case. I have done the math and if your target is a Rubi equivalent you are better off buying the Rubi.

Now you can have a lot of fun with a Willys like I have with my Sport S. But I am sticking with 33 inch tires and waiting for a used Rubicon to drop into my price range. Because to mod it like I want, the Rubicon is a better platform.

If you just can't justify the spend you can get a Willys, put a Rubicon take-off suspension and 33s on it and call it a day. If you get the Turbo and automatic you can probably even put a lift and 35s on without feeling like you need to re-gear. But if you upgrade the axles, put in the lockers, and swap in a transfer case you are going to end up on the wrong side of the deal.

 

[Luiscasta25]

I test drove the 2.0 and it was a perky engine, I want to drive them for the whole weekend, I will go to National to see if they have any 2.0 and V6 to rent them for the weekend.

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