From Volkswagens to a Wrangler?

[YYCSahara]

I think with all the help on this forum and searching on the web, the Sahara will be the model that I get. I agree on the JK interior, but I'd love to have the willys edition. I too have/am considering the Golf R, but other than "AWD" because to me its not a true AWD & bigger turbo, what makes it better than any other car? Defintely going to go with the wrangler overall. Keep me posted on your new ride!

Will do. It's been a week since I ordered one and I'm itching to get it now that the weather is getting nicer!

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[HealthRebel]

Haha, yup I know that feeling. Until my car makes one of those little DSG Fart sounds from shifting too fast at a high rpm, then I look like the idiot. But, what pulled you into the rubicon over all other trims?

You get the fart sounds too? Lol! I am choosing the Rubicon level for several reasons. I'm in love with really good driving lights. The 2 Wranglers I owned (2002 and 2012) had terrible lighting. From what I have heard and read, there isn't much change until... are you ready? LED lights. The factory LED's are only available on the Sahara and Rubicon. Yes, aftermarket lights are available, but Jeep did an amazing job with their LED lighting efforts in the Wrangler. Plus, I am wanting to run 35" tires. The Rubicon is already set up for this with the higher fenders and 2" suspension lift over the other trim lines. Even though I am not sure I will disconnect my sway bars and tear my $50K JL up running over boulders the size of Oklahoma, like the "litebright" guys do, I want to have that potential. Also, I'm just not a fan of the softer look of the Sahara. I would have to instantly change out the wheels and tires and the side steps... NOT a fan! Just a personal preference. And... the Rubicon hood. Nothing is sexier! So, Rubicon seems to be the one for me.

 

[cjaama]

1. No, im not going to be doing anything too crazy with mods or off-roading.

Chyeah right!

1. You modified previous vehicles.
2. You're going to be looking (gawking) at forums full of people with built Jeeps.
3. You've expressed interest in going to Jeep events.

You'll be modifying this thing. It's almost impossible not to.

Take your time determining what trim level and what options you want. Once you've made a decision, custom order it from a dealer that's willing to give you a good discount off invoice (I believe there's a dealer in Warwick that sells at a decent discount. Look in the buying/pricing subforum). It's so much more rewarding to have it custom built and you end up with exactly what you want without compromise. These aren't CRV's where you choose a trim level and color, there are infinite configurations.

I ended up with a Rubicon and I'm glad I did, however if I could have gotten the Advanced Safety Group on a Sport I would have and just bought some Rubicon take-off wheels and rock sliders.

These things heat up quick. I used to drive my Passat for 20 minutes to work and it would just get to operating temp when I pulled into the parking lot and I'd freeze my ass off the whole ride. People get afraid of soft tops because they think they'll freeze. You won't. That being said, your concern about getting broken (cut) into is a legitimate concern (Poughkeepsie...Newburgh...?). In previous Jeeps with soft tops I've kept nothing of value inside and left it unlocked. I opted for the dual top and haven't put on the soft top yet. I was actually pretty impressed with how open-airy it feels with just the freedom panels off. But it's still a poseur move never taking the hard top off.

There are a lot of reports of broken windshields. Opt for a $0 glass deductible and don't worry about it.

 

[TJ2018]

I am not sure I will disconnect my sway bars and tear my $50K JL up running over boulders the size of Oklahoma,

Disconnecting the swaybar makes all off-road driving better, even mild trails. It's not just for rock-crawling.

 

[HealthRebel]

Disconnecting the swaybar makes all off-road driving better, even mild trails. It's not just for rock-crawling.

Good point.

 

[Leitwolf25]

Chyeah right!

1. You modified previous vehicles.
2. You're going to be looking (gawking) at forums full of people with built Jeeps.
3. You've expressed interest in going to Jeep events.

You'll be modifying this thing. It's almost impossible not to.

Take your time determining what trim level and what options you want. Once you've made a decision, custom order it from a dealer that's willing to give you a good discount off invoice (I believe there's a dealer in Warwick that sells at a decent discount. Look in the buying/pricing subforum). It's so much more rewarding to have it custom built and you end up with exactly what you want without compromise. These aren't CRV's where you choose a trim level and color, there are infinite configurations.

I ended up with a Rubicon and I'm glad I did, however if I could have gotten the Advanced Safety Group on a Sport I would have and just bought some Rubicon take-off wheels and rock sliders.

These things heat up quick. I used to drive my Passat for 20 minutes to work and it would just get to operating temp when I pulled into the parking lot and I'd freeze my ass off the whole ride. People get afraid of soft tops because they think they'll freeze. You won't. That being said, your concern about getting broken (cut) into is a legitimate concern (Poughkeepsie...Newburgh...?). In previous Jeeps with soft tops I've kept nothing of value inside and left it unlocked. I opted for the dual top and haven't put on the soft top yet. I was actually pretty impressed with how open-airy it feels with just the freedom panels off. But it's still a poseur move never taking the hard top off.

There are a lot of reports of broken windshields. Opt for a $0 glass deductible and don't worry about it.

Hahah, ahhhh it's so true though. Modding never stops. But, thanks for this information. Which dealer did you end up going to? I'm glad a local picked up on this. I've been reaching out to Sawyer Motors, Begnal, Healey, and a few others. & yeah, I work at a real estate firm in the city of Poughkeepsie. I'm defintely going to dive into buying/pricing forums. My gameplan is with left over 2018's & memorial day weekend, sales will be on my side. I don't mind getting a 2018 over a 2019, in fact, I wouldn't know the difference.

 

[Leitwolf25]

You get the fart sounds too? Lol! I am choosing the Rubicon level for several reasons. I'm in love with really good driving lights. The 2 Wranglers I owned (2002 and 2012) had terrible lighting. From what I have heard and read, there isn't much change until... are you ready? LED lights. The factory LED's are only available on the Sahara and Rubicon. Yes, aftermarket lights are available, but Jeep did an amazing job with their LED lighting efforts in the Wrangler. Plus, I am wanting to run 35" tires. The Rubicon is already set up for this with the higher fenders and 2" suspension lift over the other trim lines. Even though I am not sure I will disconnect my sway bars and tear my $50K JL up running over boulders the size of Oklahoma, like the "litebright" guys do, I want to have that potential. Also, I'm just not a fan of the softer look of the Sahara. I would have to instantly change out the wheels and tires and the side steps... NOT a fan! Just a personal preference. And... the Rubicon hood. Nothing is sexier! So, Rubicon seems to be the one for me.

Yeah, that's true too. That hood does look awesome. I think my conclusion is coming to Sahara.
I promised myself the next car I get will have a heated steering wheel, heated seats, great in the snow, fun in the other months, big radio screen, and amazing led lights.

If the deal is right, I may be able to get into a Rubicon. It will be nice for me to shoot for the stars, but if i fall and land on any other wrangler with those options above, i'll be happy.

I just called my insurance agent and they told me i'd save $700+ annually leaving the VW for a Jeep. So, i'm one step closer to my future wrangler.

 

[TJ2018]

If the deal is right, I may be able to get into a Rubicon. It will be nice for me to shoot for the stars, but if i fall and land on any other wrangler with those options above, i'll be happy.

Definitely try driving both. I love the Rubicon and how it handles both on and off road. But everyone is different. Don't buy into the BS that the Rubicon is the best. There's nothing magical about a Rubicon (contrary to popular belief) but it checked all the boxes for me. It's your Jeep. Get what you want and love what you drive! Everything else is superfluous.

 

[HealthRebel]

If the deal is right, I may be able to get into a Rubicon. It will be nice for me to shoot for the stars, but if i fall and land on any other wrangler with those options above, i'll be happy.

I'm with you there! You know, all of the Wrangler trims are great. It is a very unique and capable vehicle out of the box that just blows the doors off the "fun factor", no matter which one you wind up with.

 

[bamchenry]

Traded my 2008 R32 on a 2018 JLU Rubicon.

The versatility of the Jeep won me over after driving my son’s JL Sport a good bit. I hadn't done track days much anymore, and while the R32 is the last VW produced with emotion, I was also in the 120K+ mile range and dealing with a phantom coolant leak since about 80K miles and AC system that wasn’t working well anymore.

Love my Rubicon and excited to swap out the hard top for the first time this weekend.

I chose the Rubicon over the Moab because I couldn’t find a Moab with a tow package in the colors I wanted and wasn’t willing to order one and wait when there was a Rubicon with every option I wanted sitting on the lot.

 

[rkr770]

I have the 2.0 Rubi 2 door. Mine is a daily driver. It goes off pavement every day. I am a schmuck I have the hard top that probably won't ever come off. I also live in a place where mother nature tries to kill us every spring and our hail can get bigger than baseballs. Get the cold weather package!! Heated seats and steering wheel are worth there weight in gold when it's minus degrees out. Welcome to the family.

 

[cjaama]

Hahah, ahhhh it's so true though. Modding never stops. But, thanks for this information. Which dealer did you end up going to? I'm glad a local picked up on this. I've been reaching out to Sawyer Motors, Begnal, Healey, and a few others. & yeah, I work at a real estate firm in the city of Poughkeepsie. I'm defintely going to dive into buying/pricing forums. My gameplan is with left over 2018's & memorial day weekend, sales will be on my side. I don't mind getting a 2018 over a 2019, in fact, I wouldn't know the difference.

I bought mine from Armory in Albany. They’re a pretty big dealership. I had a good experience and my salesman was great. I ended up at about 10.2% off MSRP, which equaled about 4.7% off invoice. There are places that will do 7%+ off invoice, but I would have had to travel and in NY we have legally mandated doc fees, which are much lower than they charge in other states.

You’ll read it often here, the Sports and Rubicons hold their value better than Saharas (%). Whether you’ll consider resale or not in your decision is up to you. Between the added resale and everything else that comes with a Rubicon and the amount I was going to spend just to make it look like a Rubicon made the relatively small difference between a Sahara and Rubicon worth it to me.

 

[Leitwolf25]

Traded my 2008 R32 on a 2018 JLU Rubicon.

The versatility of the Jeep won me over after driving my son’s JL Sport a good bit. I hadn't done track days much anymore, and while the R32 is the last VW produced with emotion, I was also in the 120K+ mile range and dealing with a phantom coolant leak since about 80K miles and AC system that wasn’t working well anymore.

Love my Rubicon and excited to swap out the hard top for the first time this weekend.

I chose the Rubicon over the Moab because I couldn’t find a Moab with a tow package in the colors I wanted and wasn’t willing to order one and wait when there was a Rubicon with every option I wanted sitting on the lot.

I agree with you 100%. Friends of mine had R32's (04 & 08) along with vr6's & some even turbo'd, they had character, they are angry little engines that could. After that, they're pumped out of the factory with 4cylidners. Anyway, I'm believing that the Wrangler will restore that "character" feeling in a entire new way. That's something I miss in VW's and hence why I have ended up on these forums!

 

[Leitwolf25]

So, here's the update:

1. Thank you all for your opinions and help during this process.
2. Just heard back from my insurance for a new wrangler, I'll be saving over $700 a year switching to a wrangler....how? Not too sure, but i'm running with that number. Maybe because the GLI is a 'sporty' sedan.
3. Going to test drive some JL's this evening. I'm going to take out a Sport S, Sahara, & Rubicon. Not necessarily to see the difference in feel, but the difference in features, what's worth it to me and what's not, but also check out the V6's since im 99% sure the last one i drove was the 4cyl turbo.

Thankful for all the help! As I am getting ready to go to the dealer later, I don't necessarily plan to put a down payment on one yet. I actually still am deciding the leasing vs. buying, but I'll save that for a more appropriate forum section. I'm glad i'm not the only one who left VW for Jeep (soon to be).

I'll keep everyone updated post test drive, my reviews on each trim, and what I think i'll be getting.
I'm thinking once I've done that I may open a new thread more geared to pricing quotes I have gotten with my trade in, and other information so it's separate from the original goal of this post.

Lastly, any last advice when going into the dealership? Things to keep my eye out on in/around wranglers? things to ask like frame welding? recalls? I'll be diving into the dealership pricing thread to see what a good deal is considered and what i feel the good deal is to me!

 

[Leitwolf25]

I bought mine from Armory in Albany. They’re a pretty big dealership. I had a good experience and my salesman was great. I ended up at about 10.2% off MSRP, which equaled about 4.7% off invoice. There are places that will do 7%+ off invoice, but I would have had to travel and in NY we have legally mandated doc fees, which are much lower than they charge in other states.

You’ll read it often here, the Sports and Rubicons hold their value better than Saharas (%). Whether you’ll consider resale or not in your decision is up to you. Between the added resale and everything else that comes with a Rubicon and the amount I was going to spend just to make it look like a Rubicon made the relatively small difference between a Sahara and Rubicon worth it to me.

I was actually told to take a peak up in Albany at some jeep dealers, because a big lot means big savings... Or so i have heard. But, I also was told by Begnal Motors than Sahara's do not lease as good as Sport S & Rubi's. I was also informed that the LED Package CAN be added to a Sport S model. my question (to any one who wants to hijack this as well) what can we think the opportunity cost is to have a loaded sport s to my tasting vs rubicon may be?

For instance if the Sport S with all packages I like come to say (imaginary number) $40k..
Then, The rubicon as it sits is $44k (imaginary number) has anyone been in a situation where you said, "ahh whats another 4k" vs "im saving 4k for the same added features"

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