Jeep Girls review after first 24 hours with my JLU Rubicon

[NYJEEPGIRL]

I picked up my 2018 Firecracker Red JLU Rubicon yesterday. This is my 6th Wrangler. I traded in my 2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Willy's addition to buy the Rubicon. This is my first Rubicon. All I can say is wow. First off the color is absolutely beautiful. The red is so vivid and just pops with the black accents. This is my first red jeep past ones have been black, tan, forest green, red rock crystal, and Granite. The size of the Rubicon next to my Willy's was so noticeable. The Rubicon looked like a lifted jeep next to my 2014. My Rubicon is equipped with the following:

Dual Top
7 inch radio - but has the Alpine upgrade
Steel bumpers
LED lighting group
Remote Start
8-speed automatic

The ride of this jeep is so much better then all my previous. Much smoother and take bumps much better. The wind noise is still pretty obvious at high speeds - like 55 and above. The seats are super comfortable i feel like i am sitting higher and a bit different then my Willy's. The radio sounds so much better then the Alpine system in my Willy's. Has a lot of bass and just sounds cleaner. The touch screen is really nice. Loving the back up camera - also a little bizarre to turn it on while driving down the road. The steel bumpers are so much nicer then the plastic. I was able to drive last night at dark and the LED lights are unbelievable. I always hated the head lights in my Willy's. These are fantastic. Could not believe the difference. Saw many deer on the sides of the road on the way home that i have never noticed before - just so bright and such a wide path of coverage. Love just leaving them on Automatic, never have to think about turning them on and off. The jeep feels like i have so much more power - this does have 4.10 and my other was 3.73. It shifts smoothly and had a ton of power going up the large hills in upstate NY. I am absolutely in love with it. The photos online of the Rubicon really don't do it justice. Looks so much more stout in person. I had seen some complaints about bad frame welds in another posting and just from some quick looks under it my welds seems clean and no pitting or issues. Will look further when I have time. Mine has the black fender flares and I was worried i wouldn't like that because i really like the painted ones online but I am completely happy with the look now that i have seen it in person. Also i did not get the proximity entry so i kept thinking mine would use a key but realized all of them are push button start now, seems fine. The key fobs are a bit large - feel big when you put it in your pocket. I have not done anything with my soft top yet - just put it in my basement. Will tackle that towards May. A very satisfied customer and happy that I traded my Willy's in for this one. Jeep has done a nice job with the changes.

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[BillG]

Congrats... just ordered mine a few minutes ago. Now the waiting begins.

 

[macintux]

Using which top was the wind noise that noticeable?

Oops, never mind, I see you mentioned the soft top is going into storage.

 

[MBurgJL]

I picked up my 2018 Firecracker Red JLU Rubicon yesterday. This is my 6th Wrangler. I traded in my 2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Willy's addition to buy the Rubicon. This is my first Rubicon. All I can say is wow. First off the color is absolutely beautiful. The red is so vivid and just pops with the black accents. This is my first red jeep past ones have been black, tan, forest green, red rock crystal, and Granite. The size of the Rubicon next to my Willy's was so noticeable. The Rubicon looked like a lifted jeep next to my 2014. My Rubicon is equipped with the following:

Dual Top
7 inch radio - but has the Alpine upgrade
Steel bumpers
LED lighting group
Remote Start
8-speed automatic

The ride of this jeep is so much better then all my previous. Much smoother and take bumps much better. The wind noise is still pretty obvious at high speeds - like 55 and above. The seats are super comfortable i feel like i am sitting higher and a bit different then my Willy's. The radio sounds so much better then the Alpine system in my Willy's. Has a lot of bass and just sounds cleaner. The touch screen is really nice. Loving the back up camera - also a little bizarre to turn it on while driving down the road. The steel bumpers are so much nicer then the plastic. I was able to drive last night at dark and the LED lights are unbelievable. I always hated the head lights in my Willy's. These are fantastic. Could not believe the difference. Saw many deer on the sides of the road on the way home that i have never noticed before - just so bright and such a wide path of coverage. Love just leaving them on Automatic, never have to think about turning them on and off. The jeep feels like i have so much more power - this does have 4.10 and my other was 3.73. It shifts smoothly and had a ton of power going up the large hills in upstate NY. I am absolutely in love with it. The photos online of the Rubicon really don't do it justice. Looks so much more stout in person. I had seen some complaints about bad frame welds in another posting and just from some quick looks under it my welds seems clean and no pitting or issues. Will look further when I have time. Mine has the black fender flares and I was worried i wouldn't like that because i really like the painted ones online but I am completely happy with the look now that i have seen it in person. Also i did not get the proximity entry so i kept thinking mine would use a key but realized all of them are push button start now, seems fine. The key fobs are a bit large - feel big when you put it in your pocket. I have not done anything with my soft top yet - just put it in my basement. Will tackle that towards May. A very satisfied customer and happy that I traded my Willy's in for this one. Jeep has done a nice job with the changes.

Nice write up. I second all of your comments. Spot on.

 

[NYJEEPGIRL]

Using which top was the wind noise that noticeable?

Oops, never mind, I see you mentioned the soft top is going into storage.

Hard top - wondering if a hot heads liner would help - the noise seems more around the front doors to my ears but who knows.

 

[Bkenyon53]

Hard top - wondering if a hot heads liner would help - the noise seems more around the front doors to my ears but who knows.

Would you say the noise is more, less, or the same as your '14?

 

[NYJEEPGIRL]

Would you say the noise is more, less, or the same as your '14?

My 14 used get almost that vibration wind feeling - like when you need to open a window to balance it. This one is more just a wind noise. I almost think it is a bit more wind noise then my 14 yet i don't find it as disturbing as the vibration noise of the 14.

 

[Smarrtazz]

Congratulations on your sixth Wrangler! Thanks for the write up-well done! I appreciated your insights, as you’ve had a bit of experience with the brand. Enjoy your ride..I patiently waiting for mine

 

[Redwrangler]

My 14 used get almost that vibration wind feeling - like when you need to open a window to balance it. This one is more just a wind noise. I almost think it is a bit more wind noise then my 14 yet i don't find it as disturbing as the vibration noise of the 14.

Our JLUS has some wind noise that seems to at the doors too and I think it is caused by the mirrors which are not exactly aerodynamic. Overall, the wind noise in our previous Wrangera (‘12 JKS & ‘17 JKUS) was much worse than the new JKUS. The noise up front stands out because of how quiet the rest of the Jeep is. I concur with you, this is the best Wrangler I have ever driven!

 

[Bkenyon53]

My 14 used get almost that vibration wind feeling - like when you need to open a window to balance it. This one is more just a wind noise. I almost think it is a bit more wind noise then my 14 yet i don't find it as disturbing as the vibration noise of the 14.

Have you taken the Freedom Top panels off? Could it be that when reinstalled they were overtorqued which would lift the edges at the doors and front up.

Our '16 would leak and through some trial and error this fixed our problem. Might be worth a shot.

 

[LydiaSP613]

New York girls love the red!!!

 

[Sean L]

Have you taken the Freedom Top panels off? Could it be that when reinstalled they were overtorqued which would lift the edges at the doors and front up.

Our '16 would leak and through some trial and error this fixed our problem. Might be worth a shot.

The latches that hold the freedom tops are only "Open" or "Closed" so there's nothing to overtorque.

 

[MoDonPunkn4Dr]

Great write-up! Thanks for sharing. Enjoy your new Red Rubi!

 

[SaintNick]

Would you say the noise is more, less, or the same as your '14?

I test drove one and I have headliners in mine and the wind noise was way more than my '16 Willy's. I knew what to expect from reading these forums, but it was a lot considering they were supposed to make it better. Maybe some are louder and some are not.

 

[Bkenyon53]

The latches that hold the freedom tops are only "Open" or "Closed" so there's nothing to overtorque.

Wow I didn’t know that! I assumed they were the same. Thanks!

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