Need help Sahara or Rubicon

[limeade]

Food for thought:

I've never heard a Rubicon owner say: I wish I would've bought a Sahara/Sport.

But I've talked to many Sahara/Sport owners who said: I wish I would've bought the Rubicon.....

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[scottijohn63]

My wife and I want to add a JL unlimited jeep to the family in the next week or 2
Here is my issue
She wants a Sahara with sky one touch
I prefer rubicon for purely stylistic reasons
Besides the Sahara running boards, the rubicon being 2 inches taller and different wheels are there any other exterior differences?
What ever we get will have a small lift and 35’s
Fender flares, fenders, etc???

I think something else has to be different
The Rubicons to me seem to look way better
I can’t figure it out

Why does your wife want the Sahara?

 

[Mikester86]

Buy the Rubicon......here's why:

You can get the sky one touch on the Rubicon.
You can immediately fit 35" tires on the Rubicon without having to buy a lift.
The Rubicon has 4.10 gears (vs Sahara 3.45) and Dana 44 axles (stronger than Sahara's and better able to handle the 35's) so you won't have to re-gear as soon as you would if you had a Sahara.
Front and rear lockers and electronic disconnect sway bar.
Get the Rubicon with leather seats, cold weather group, and the upgraded Alpine/8.4 system.....makes for a very nice interior (for a Wrangler)

You can always add bling on to the Rubicon (if you want to do that), but you're saving money by buying the Rubicon vs. having to add lift, lockers, gears, etc. to the Sahara.

I just got my wife a JLUR and she didn't even want to look at the Sahara. She wanted a Rubicon cause it's more capable. The only thing I'm adding to hers is Mopar front LCA's (adds caster to get rid of the wandering), Fox shocks, Synergy steering, and a stronger front track bar.

You will need a lift if you plan on off roading the Rubicon after slapping 35’s on it. The tires will rub when flexing. On road, may be ok most of the time.

 

[limeade]

You will need a lift if you plan on off roading the Rubicon after slapping 35’s on it. The tires will rub when flexing. On road, may be ok most of the time.

If you're not wanting to do anything too extreme, just add some bump stop to it and spend that lift money on something else.

 

[jlroman2]

Get a Rubicon. Coming from a a Sahara owner. I love my Jeep but wished I had lockers and better axles on both ends.

 

[jrjr1229]

Don’t get both, just get a recon

 

[702SaharaJL]

Well..speaking from experience.

Get the Rubicon...You'll be happier if you plan on doing any off roading.

 

[Cappy]

Don't want to hijack thread but don't need to start another as others have mentioned. Here is my question on Rubicon vs. Sahara question

I won't be doing any serious off road, mainly 2 tracks and sand filled water puddles on dirt roads while hunting up north which my trail rated 2019 Cherokee handled fine. Except the time so much sand got up in the wheels that we had to find a car wash to spray the sand out because the wheels were all temporary out of balance with sand. For some reason they fill giant water puddles that fill with water on back woods dirt roads with mushy sand in northern Michigan. It was quite the experience getting through these with my trusty Cherokee. Any, I am not a 100 city driver and to a little bit of stuff where off road capability is needed.

The Rubicon is much too expensive and pretty to take off road. Those two tracks with branches occasional brushing the sides scratch the paint stress me out enough.

However, it seems everyone that posts photos here has the Rubicon. Is there any reason other than the branding and styling cool factor that would make the Rubicon a better choice (not counting supreme off road capabilities)? It seems with all the nice options the pricing is not much different.

I have also heard that Rubicon lease deals can be better because of the higher residual value. Not sure how true this is.

 

[Notorious]

However, it seems everyone that posts photos here has the Rubicon. Is there any reason other than the branding and styling cool factor that would make the Rubicon a better choice (not counting supreme off road capabilities)? It seems with all the nice options the pricing is not much different.

Not everyone who posts here has a Rubicon.

You asked if there’s a reason people have a Rubi besides the marketing, the coolness factor, the off road capabilities and or price because you’ve come to realize that pricing is not much different from the other models.

Well, what else is there left? Not withstanding the reasons you’ve stated, because they want to?

 

[Cappy]

Not everyone who posts here has a Rubicon.

You asked if there’s a reason people have a Rubi besides the marketing, the coolness factor, the off road capabilities and or price because you’ve come to realize that pricing is not much different from the other models.

Well, what else is there left? Not withstanding the reasons you’ve stated, because they want to?

So given the choice with price being nearly equal, sounds like the Rubicon would be the one to get. A negative would be a rougher ride during normal driving? Also, probably more expensive tires to replace. But I do love the Rubicon branding on the front fender and chunky tires.

I have been looking at lots of photos here and a large percentage are Rubicons. I guess the Rubi people are more likely to be into upgrading over time so have more photos to share .

 

[Notorious]

I have been looking at lots of photos here and a large percentage are Rubicons. I guess the Rubi people are more likely to be into upgrading over time so have more photos to share .

The Rubi has curb appeal and since Jeep now caters to a wider audience, they’ll attract more buyers who can afford the Rubi.

Get the Rubi. You’ll love it!

 

[ThirtyOne]

Every time this question comes up everyone on the board recommends the Rubi. That's just how it is. Both trims are nice and you will be happy with either.

TLDR: The Rubi gears will be better for running 35s than the Sahara. There are a lot of other awesome things about the Rubi but they are only for off-road.

The cosmetics that make the Rubi look cool are 5 things:

1 - Suspension adds about 1.5 over Sahara
2 - More aggressive wheels and bigger AT tires
3 - Hood with functional vents (function is looking badass)
4 - Fenders that site a couple inches higher
5 - Rock rails instead of plastic steps

If you don't go off-road, the Rubi is still better because the gearing is adequate for 35s so you don't have to re-gear. You don't even have to put on a lift though many do. If you don't go off-road a cheap spacer lift and 35s are definitely an economical option on the Rubi. On the Sahara, the gearing will be underpowered and you will need a bigger lift to run 35s. You will find that 35 inch tires for the 18 inch wheels to have fewer options and require spacers and perhaps be more expensive. So I personally think if you are going 35s Rubi is a better choice even if you don't go off-road.

Main advantage of the Sahara has been the AWD-ish system. But they are offering that on the Rubicon for 2021 and you live in Texas so probably not that big a deal anyway.

The other nice things about the Rubi are:

4:1 Transfer case
Dana 44 axles front and rear with lockers
electronic sway-bar disconnect
Some more protection under the body

 

[Cappy]

With similar trim levels the Rubicon is only a little bit more expensive. Seems like a no brainer. If you can afford say $550 a month for a Sahara, you probably can afford $560 for a similar Rubicon. If you are buying in the end you will have a vehicle with higher resale value.

 

[BrntWS6]

I wanted the most luxury in a Jeep so went Sahara. I had no use for the rubicon options and personally don't like lifts and overstated tires. If you are into rock crawling etc I get it. But 90% of lifts and 35s out there are just a $4,000 fashion statement.

 

[scottijohn63]

Don't want to hijack thread but don't need to start another as others have mentioned. Here is my question on Rubicon vs. Sahara question

I won't be doing any serious off road, mainly 2 tracks and sand filled water puddles on dirt roads while hunting up north which my trail rated 2019 Cherokee handled fine. Except the time so much sand got up in the wheels that we had to find a car wash to spray the sand out because the wheels were all temporary out of balance with sand. For some reason they fill giant water puddles that fill with water on back woods dirt roads with mushy sand in northern Michigan. It was quite the experience getting through these with my trusty Cherokee. Any, I am not a 100 city driver and to a little bit of stuff where off road capability is needed.

The Rubicon is much too expensive and pretty to take off road. Those two tracks with branches occasional brushing the sides scratch the paint stress me out enough.

However, it seems everyone that posts photos here has the Rubicon. Is there any reason other than the branding and styling cool factor that would make the Rubicon a better choice (not counting supreme off road capabilities)? It seems with all the nice options the pricing is not much different.

I have also heard that Rubicon lease deals can be better because of the higher residual value. Not sure how true this is.

I went with the Sahara because I wanted automatic full time four wheel drive and the limited slip diff. Also our 18” rims and tires have slightly lower side walls for better on road handling. I spend more time on road than off.

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