Help.. Not Hate..Please

[Blessedx4]

I want to order a 2020 Jeep Unlimited. It will be used as my around town driver and for overland trail riding (no heavy rock climbing). I need advise on engine selection. For reference, I currently drive a F150 with V8 without the stop/start feature. I am leaning toward Rubicon but open to Sahara if that engine is better suited toward my needs. I hope to get friendly advise in simple terms since I am learning and Jeep world is all new to me. TIA

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[DocTwinkie]

Rubicon advantages:
Rock crawl transfer case
Dana 44 axles up front.
This is a beast off road. Lockers and sway bar disconnect.
Bigger tires.

Sahara advantages.
Select track transfer case (full time 4wd).
BSG engines avail for better gas mileage.

Disadvantages.
Rubicon.
No full time 4wd.
All that extra weight of armor, wheels, axles means worse gas mileage.

Sahara.
No lockers
No sway bar disconnect.
Less beefy front axle

Do you live where it snows? If yes get a Sahara. The rubicon you have to turn the 4wd off/on as road conditions change to avoid damaging it on dry roads. The Sahara you can set to 4wd auto and forget it.

A Sahara will have no issues doing trails for you. It will have a comfier suspension. It will get better gas mileage.

If you’re going to rock crawl or hit very difficult trails then get a rubicon. Or if you simplify like the look but won’t deal with snow.

As far as engines. Try them and see what you like.
V6 is slower with worse mileage but far better long term reliability. Also available with a manual.
4tuebo is faster, better mileage, stronger at high altitude, but it’s expensive and it’s a fiat turbo so good luck with that in the long term.

Diesel will be expensive and complicated new fiat engine after an emissions scandal. Good luck with that reliability.

PHEV will come out when Pigs fly and hell has a winter weather advisory.

 

[Thill444]

Based on your needs get the Sahara. The Rubicon would be overkill and more expensive. The above post really summed it up pretty well.

I would definitely get the full time AWD for the Sahara and proximity key. Then anything else you like.

 

[Skullfreak]

Rubicon advantages:
Rock crawl transfer case
Dana 44 axles up front.
This is a beast off road. Lockers and sway bar disconnect.
Bigger tires.

Sahara advantages.
Select track transfer case (full time 4wd).
BSG engines avail for better gas mileage.

Disadvantages.
Rubicon.
No full time 4wd.
All that extra weight of armor, wheels, axles means worse gas mileage.

Sahara.
No lockers
No sway bar disconnect.
Less beefy front axle

Do you live where it snows? If yes get a Sahara. The rubicon you have to turn the 4wd off/on as road conditions change to avoid damaging it on dry roads. The Sahara you can set to 4wd auto and forget it.

A Sahara will have no issues doing trails for you. It will have a comfier suspension. It will get better gas mileage.

If you’re going to rock crawl or hit very difficult trails then get a rubicon. Or if you simplify like the look but won’t deal with snow.

As far as engines. Try them and see what you like.
V6 is slower with worse mileage but far better long term reliability. Also available with a manual.
4tuebo is faster, better mileage, stronger at high altitude, but it’s expensive and it’s a fiat turbo so good luck with that in the long term.

Diesel will be expensive and complicated new fiat engine after an emissions scandal. Good luck with that reliability.

PHEV will come out when Pigs fly and hell has a winter weather advisory.

The rubicon is a bad option for driving in snow?

 

[Dkretden]

The rubicon is a bad option for driving in snow?

No, it’s not. But the Sahara with its optional full time AWD transfer case does have an advantage when it comes to snow. Interestingly, the European Rubicon has the same AWD setup as the US Sahara. Can’t get the US Rubicon transfer case in Europe. Not sure why.

 

[Blessedx4]

I don't live in an area with snow conditions. I love the look of Rubicon so I will most likely order it. I will go drive a Sahara to make sure before I order. I have been trolling the forums for a long time but couldn't get a grasp on engine differences. Thanks for the information.

 

[Gellie]

So when shifting the Rubi in 4wd, will it be equally as good as the Sahara?

 

[Shaved Ice]

The Rubicon also has 4.10 gearing. I would opt for the Rubicon because it is always better to “have and not need” than to “need and not have”. You never know when you will need a capability on a trail...

 

[Dkretden]

So when shifting the Rubi in 4wd, will it be equally as good as the Sahara?

Define: “good”

The Sahara optional AWD transfer case let’s you keep the vehicle in full time 4wd. So, in a light snow you can just set it and forget it. Hit a patch of something and you will have 4WD. With the Rubicon’s transfer case, you won’t even have time to shift. And you can’t have the Rubi in 4WD all the time.

That said, switching to the trail rather than the tarmac snow, the Sahara and the Rubi are still different beasts. The Rubi is far more capable but that should NOT be read by anyone to suggest that the Sahara is not capable. The Sahara with its brake lock system is very good and will work well in areas where many vehicles will fail. Off-road, the Rubi is just more capable than the Sahara but at the expense of being (arguably) less capable on tarmac snow.

 

[Gellie]

Define: “good”

The Sahara optional AWD transfer case let’s you keep the vehicle in full time 4wd. So, in a light snow you can just set it and forget it. Hit a patch of something and you will have 4WD. With the Rubicon’s transfer case, you won’t even have time to shift. And you can’t have the Rubi in 4WD all the time.

That said, switching to the trail rather than the tarmac snow, the Sahara and the Rubi are still different beasts. The Rubi is far more capable but that should NOT be read by anyone to suggest that the Sahara is not capable. The Sahara with its brake lock system is very good and will work well in areas where many vehicles will fail. Off-road, the Rubi is just more capable than the Sahara but at the expense of being (arguably) less capable on tarmac snow.

I guess what I’m asking is, on my old 2010 JKU I had to shift into 4wd in snowy conditions. I assumed a new Rubi would behave the same if not better than my JKU?

 

[RubiSc0tt]

I guess what I’m asking is, on my old 2010 JKU I had to shift into 4wd in snowy conditions. I assumed a new Rubi would behave the same if not better than my JKU?

The new Rubicons are fine in the snow. They work just like trucks and Jeeps have for years: Pull the lever, you're in 4Hi. Pull it back again and you're in N, then again for 4 Low. The Sahara full time 4wd sounds like it works more like a Grand Cherokee or other modern SUV with AWD or a center Diff/ vicious coupling 4wd system (if i recall the name correctly).

This is my 3rd Wrangler, 2nd Rubicon. I live in upstate NY and I've had zero issues in snow/ ice conditions with any of them. I run in 2wd until I feel the tires slip, then I shift into 4 Hi. This winter, when we had ~24" of snow dumped on us overnight, I came home from work @ 6am to find no plowed parking spots and at least 3ft snow drifts. After shoveling out my wife's Rav4 (AWD) and fussing with a snowblower that wouldn't start for an hour and a half, I got tired of it. I was hungry and I wanted to sleep, because i had to work again in less than 12 hours. I put my Rubi in 4 Low, shifted into 2nd, locked my axles, and plowed through the ~24" of snow in an unplowed parking spot, backed up, and did it twice more, then turned around and backed up, so i could face out. When I came out to go to work that night, of course I was plowed in. I fired it up, did the same thing: 4 Low, 2nd gear, locked axles, and it walked out. I drove to work in 4 Hi and never lost traction.

Suggesting the Rubicon is "Not good in snow" is a bit far fetched, especially when the most important factor in inclement weather is the driver.

 

[Hayseed_JLUR]

Rubiscot is right - and I also know this from experience.

 

[Gellie]

The new Rubicons are fine in the snow. They work just like trucks and Jeeps have for years: Pull the lever, you're in 4Hi. Pull it back again and you're in N, then again for 4 Low. The Sahara full time 4wd sounds like it works more like a Grand Cherokee or other modern SUV with AWD or a center Diff/ vicious coupling 4wd system (if i recall the name correctly).

This is my 3rd Wrangler, 2nd Rubicon. I live in upstate NY and I've had zero issues in snow/ ice conditions with any of them. I run in 2wd until I feel the tires slip, then I shift into 4 Hi. This winter, when we had ~24" of snow dumped on us overnight, I came home from work @ 6am to find no plowed parking spots and at least 3ft snow drifts. After shoveling out my wife's Rav4 (AWD) and fussing with a snowblower that wouldn't start for an hour and a half, I got tired of it. I was hungry and I wanted to sleep, because i had to work again in less than 12 hours. I put my Rubi in 4 Low, shifted into 2nd, locked my axles, and plowed through the ~24" of snow in an unplowed parking spot, backed up, and did it twice more, then turned around and backed up, so i could face out. When I came out to go to work that night, of course I was plowed in. I fired it up, did the same thing: 4 Low, 2nd gear, locked axles, and it walked out. I drove to work in 4 Hi and never lost traction.

Suggesting the Rubicon is "Not good in snow" is a bit far fetched, especially when the most important factor in inclement weather is the driver.

Excellent. Thank you.

 

[Dkretden]

I guess what I’m asking is, on my old 2010 JKU I had to shift into 4wd in snowy conditions. I assumed a new Rubi would behave the same if not better than my JKU?

It does and it is. As I said above, the Rubi is fine in the snow. The Sahara is arguably better however.

 

[RubiSc0tt]

Worth mentioning: AS with other Full time 4wd vehicles- if you're leaving the transfer case in that setting all the time, you will see reduced gas mileage and potentially premature wear on some drivetrain parts. I know some of the older Grand Cherokees with the NV247 case were known to eat marbles before they hit 100k mi and had to be replaced.

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