Little Help... JL experience vs. expectation

[rtg]

Hi folks,
I am interested in hearing experience of new JL owners.

I am considering buying my first Jeep. I've been considering for a year and waiting as the JLs have gotten into the market. I've rented a JL and JKs on vacations and loved them (Colorado Mountains, Islands to get to surf spots).

I was about to make the plunge when I found the NHTSA site with 573 complaints 433 of which have to do with steering (death wobble), weld problems, and other problems.https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2018/JEEP/WRANGLER

I've researched Wranglers and I am excited about lifestyle promise. What I'm not excited about is a $40K car that comes out of the box with serious quality issues.

Ask: For those of you who have purchased a new JL (2 or 4 door), would you share if you are experiencing build quality problems. What is your experience vs your expectation?

Appreciate your thoughts.

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[OldGuyNewJeep]

Hi folks,
I am interested in hearing experience of new JL owners.

I am considering buying my first Jeep. I've been considering for a year and waiting as the JLs have gotten into the market. I've rented a JL and JKs on vacations and loved them (Colorado Mountains, Islands to get to surf spots).

I was about to make the plunge when I found the NHTSA site with 573 complaints 433 of which have to do with steering (death wobble), weld problems, and other problems.https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2018/JEEP/WRANGLER

I've researched Wranglers and I am excited about lifestyle promise. What I'm not excited about is a $40K car that comes out of the box with serious quality issues.

Ask: For those of you who have purchased a new JL (2 or 4 door), would you share if you are experiencing build quality problems. What is your experience vs your expectation?

Appreciate your thoughts.

2dr Rubi 6sp. Zero issues and 11,000+ miles. Test drive with PROPERLY INFLATED TIRES on the highway. Ask to see the underbody. Sign on the dotted line if you’re happy with what you experience and see, but not before.

 

[UNC Rubicon]

My 18 had horrible welds...so bad that the track bar mount separated from the frame. However, the welds on my 19 are fantastic. It appears FCA has rectified the problems in that regard.

There are a lot of complaints on here regarding the steering and death wobble. I haven’t experienced that yet, so I can’t comment on that.

My experience in my 19 has been nothing but positive and I’d buy again without thinking twice.

 

[rtg]

2dr Rubi 6sp. Zero issues and 11,000+ miles. Test drive with PROPERLY INFLATED TIRES on the highway. Ask to see the underbody. Sign on the dotted line if you’re happy with what you experience and see, but not before.

Thank you. I will check YouTube to consider what to look for on underbody.

Anything you feel I should look for specifically (e.g. the welds?, other?)

Thanks so much for advice.

 

[rtg]

My 18 had horrible welds...so bad that the track bar mount separated from the frame. However, the welds on my 19 are fantastic. It appears FCA has rectified the problems in that regard.

There are a lot of complaints on here regarding the steering and death wobble. I haven’t experienced that yet, so I can’t comment on that.

My experience in my 19 has been nothing but positive and I’d buy again without thinking twice.

Thank you. Appreciate your candid perspective. br rtg

 

[nerubi]

2019 exceeding my expectations. Weld problems were on select number of 2018s. Steering problems can occur on any solid axle vehicles and the vast majority of Wranglers have no steering problems.

 

[rtg]

2019 exceeding my expectations. Weld problems were on select number of 2018s. Steering problems can occur on any solid axle vehicles and the vast majority of Wranglers have no steering problems.

Thanks Nerubi!

 

[Edorand]

I have an 18 JLUR 6mt built in March 18. I've had no quality-related issues to speak of.

 

[MikeinMD]

I have a 2018 with 18k miles and nothing but happiness. No steering issues or weld problems here. It's been a fantastic rig.

 

[Grumpy Wrangler]

2018 2 door rubicon hard top automatic at about 5k miles. Love it. Not my first Jeep. It’s been great with no real issues. Uconnect is like any other software based systems. It works well the vast majority of the time but does glitch from time to time as updates change between the Jeep and apple. I may be going in for a rear seat latch release that seems to be getting a little loose. That would be the extent of my experience so far. I grin every time I see her and have done some real off road wheeling with big smiles.

 

[melendez69]

Several of us have posted about our experiences... there are plenty discussing problems; some are random, some are specific to a handful of owners, others are widespread and well-known. A handful poo-poo their JL & say 'never again.' I'm a first-time Jeep owner, so I didn't have many specific expectations outside of not having to make trips to the dealer for random, unexpected problems. I wanted to enjoy the vehicle for what it is, its capabilities, and the overall experience. So far, I'm 3-for-3. It's a fun drive, it's great up in the mountains, it's fantastic for the beach, and I'm glad spring is almost here. It also totally owns neighborhood speed bumps.

I'd say most of us are already well aware of the NHTSA findings. You've done your research (as anyone should), but you'll also find a lot of information here in the forum, which I like to call, "the owner's manual." I have an '18, 3200 miles, and I've not experienced the infamous death wobble. I'd buy another, but I'm keeping this one since I've made a good number of modifications & I want to get the most out of the work I've done for as long as I can.

A little bit of the good, the bad, and the ugly > > >

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/positive-jl-jlu-observations.23405/
https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...-jlur-but-now-not-sure-too-problematic.22605/
https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/positivity-thread-only.20476/

 

[MikeLewisMusic]

I ordered my 2018 JL Rubicon 2.0l in July of 2018, received it at the beginning of August. It has 8000 miles or so to date, along with a treasure trove of mod's. I am very pleased, on road and off. Definitely the most fun vehicle I've ever had. This is my 4th Jeep over 25 years, and it is the best yet. It is not perfect, mind you, but I would use the word "great" without hesitation.

I've owned GM, Ford, BMW, Toyota, Nissan, Chrysler, Harley Davidson and Victory/Polaris products over the last 35 years. This easily beats the quality I experienced on all of my Dodge, Chevy, Ford, BMW, HD and Toyota products, no question. Victory/Polaris, GMC and Nissan were as good an experience, yet those were not perfect, either.

I think this may be the first time I have expressed on a forum how pleased I've been with my JL experience (knocking on wood), although I am pretty active here. I think it is human nature for us to be more vocal about our issues than about their good experiences...so I would weigh that in when judging the number of issues/complaints posted. Definitely not diminishing the issues others have had, just emphasizing that a lot of us are quiet, but happy.

 

[GunnersJL]

2019 JLUR delivered 3 weeks ago. 1800 miles so far, zero issues. Today was my first day off-road. I replaced a 2008 JKUR with the 2019. I cannot stress strongly enough the difference in the two vehicles off-road from a comfort level. Today was a bounce house of articulation, slow crawling and challenges that required moving back and forth between lockers and no lockers. The JL (automatic) also has a manual mode for shifting through gears by hand, so I was able to control speed on hills both up and down quite easily. Trails that would have jarred my back last year were handled in comfort (a relative term) this year.

Order what you want, be darn sure before you sign that everything is to your standards, then enjoy it.

 

[am1978]

Two 2018 JLU Sahara’s in my garage. The only issue is going to be fixed—ESS and ESC simultaneous error lights come on for one of the JLs. Both are factory orders, one received in April (18k miles and no issues) and the other in September (9k miles and only that ESS/ESC).

 

[rtg]

I have an 18 JLUR 6mt built in March 18. I've had no quality-related issues to speak of.

Thank you Edorand

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