Push button 4WD for the Wrangler

[2nd 392]

C

No— the current Wrangler has too many creature features as-is.

Can we ask for one more feature? A removable rear window on SOT please.(with retrofit)

 

[Slev]

Leave the handle as is. If they do switch then they might as well change the gear shifter and make that a turn knob also then.

 

[Bulletbill]

While I like some of my fru fru features in my Jeep I hope they try and keep the drive drain more basic. Odd juxtaposition I know.

However I’d be interested to see where they go with vehicles like the magneto.

 

[txj2go]

I'm perfectly happy with the lever, but I'll point out that the Grand Cherokee has a button (actually a dial). I'll also point out that the lever in the Wrangler doesn't do the entire job, it might shift the transfer case but there has to be an electrical switch in there somewhere that operates the FAD at the same time.

 

[2nd 392]

Leave the handle as is. If they do switch then they might as well change the gear shifter and make that a turn knob also then.

Fumbling around to find and staring at to get a knob turned to the right place while bouncing down a trail would be far better than grabbing a lever by instinct!!! Edit- without breaking or ripping off the plastic knob while bouncing!

 

[ChadR]

I got into this debate with someone who was going on and on about push button 4WD functionality appearing in more true off-road capable SUVs, and I thought I'd check with all of you on your thoughts....

I LOVE that I have a lever I can pull back into 4HI or 4LO.

Others I've talked to claim I'm just old, living in the past, and should adopt the new way of the 4WD world.

Would Jeep ever change from a lever to a button in a Wrangler? I really hope they don't.

Thoughts?

im almost certain that flat towing a wrangler wouldn’t be an option if it was push button 4wd. Just a guess tho

 

[Enfield]

As long as there's a manual offering, switching between 2H-4H-N-4L should have a mechanical control so you can try to muscle the vehicle into 4 low while the engine is off. Just as a matter of safety if someone stalls while doing a water crossing. Otherwise, a dial or push button 4wd selector is putting form before function.

If the next Wrangler doesn't have a manual transmission I guess it doesn't really matter... but I think analog controls are important to the Wrangler identity.

 

[gregus73]

I prefer the levers…….but have all buttons in my Suburban.
I miss the column shifter that I had in my Sierra. But the 4WD system is push buttons as well.

I doubt that the Wrangler will lose the levers.

 

[Joe98]

The manual transfer case is traditional. Its a feature of Jeeps. Old school rugged.

The extra electronics required for the push button, are extra electronics that can go wrong.

On the other hand, most don't read the manual. They change incorrectly, damage the transfer case and then blame Jeep for it.

 

[JeepGeezer]

im almost certain that flat towing a wrangler wouldn’t be an option if it was push button 4wd. Just a guess tho

I am sure that is not correct.

This Wrangler is my 4th vehicle with the Jeep name on the front *. The first 2 were both Libertys and the second of those had an electronic control for switching the transfer case, and I flat towed that Liberty all over the place.

I understand that people prefer the lever because it fits better into the Wrangler style, which is rugged and basic and old-school, even with all of the new electronics in the vehicle, and I don't mind using the lever for normal usage. But I am sure I would prefer an electronic version when hooking the Wrangler up for towing and when setting it back up for normal driving. And I think it would make life easier for my wife who said that she sometimes reaches for the transfer case switch instead of the automatic shifting lever when starting to drive somewhere. I suppose it is a good thing for her that it is a bit hard to shift.

I did not expect to get very many people who agreed with me, but then I normally don't.


* I have learned that not all vehicles with the Jeep name on the front are considered Jeeps here ...

 

[JeepGeezer]

On the other hand, most don't read the manual. They change incorrectly, damage the transfer case and then blame Jeep for it.

Which is a problem that would be greatly reduced if it were all electronically controlled. By a button or a dial.

I have no real problem with the lever but given the choice I would prefer an electronic method to set the transfer case. But that is just me.

 

[Jeeb]

I did not expect to get very many people who agreed with me, but then I normally don't.
* I have learned that not all vehicles with the Jeep name on the front are considered Jeeps here ...

I'm not opposed to electronics. I just prefer the lever because it gives me a sense of being in control. Whether that's technically true or not, I feel like a button could fail, or blink and not switch over. Again, I could be way off.

I also had a Liberty and loved it! Got it after my old YJ was on its last legs. My Liberty had a lever though. I used to refer to it as a Jeep KK to fit in.

 

[JeepGeezer]

I'm not opposed to electronics. I just prefer the lever because it gives me a sense of being in control. Whether that's technically true or not, I feel like a button could fail, or blink and not switch over. Again, I could be way off.

I also had a Liberty and loved it! Got it after my old YJ was on its last legs. My Liberty had a lever though. I used to refer to it as a Jeep KK to fit in.

The first Liberty I had had the same kind of shifting lever as my current Wrangler, although it was easier to shift. The second one had an electronic version, and my last "Jeep" was a Renegade and had no transfer case, although it was also Trail Rated.

We did a lot of off-roading with the Libertys, but not much with the Renegade as I never felt it was really up to it. No transfer case meant no real 2L so I was not going to try any of those trails about Moab with it. With the Wrangler that has changed, hopefully for the better.

When I first got this Wrangler I could not shift it from 2H to 4H, so I could not even try to get to Neutral or 2L. I pulled on that lever so hard that I thought I was going to break it and finally brought it back to the dealer to see if anything was wrong. Now, after shifting it every day before use, it is easier to shift, but still is sometimes a problem, and when I need to shift it back from Neutral to 4H I can't get enough leverage to push on it unless I move the front seat all the way back.

But with all of that, I still love it.

 

[OldBlue]

My WK2 had the twist knob on the console to select the mode for the 4WD system. While it may have been fine for many people (my wife included), I hated it. When I change something on my vehicle, I want to know exactly what I'm changing. I don't want to figure out what the TCS is doing, or how the other safety doodads are set. While I'm not saying those systems are not valuable to safe vehicle use today, I want to be able to set them to what I want, not to what the computer THINKS I want. I am happy the JL still has a lever versus a dial/push buttons.

Column shifter - in the Wrangler, no. When I had my Silverado (and previous F150s) I would go out of my way to find one w/ a column shifter. I did NOT want the shifter in the console. IMHO they are best suited (today) for use in trucks.

 

[Sublime]

Leave the handle as is. If they do switch then they might as well change the gear shifter and make that a turn knob also then.

The thing I hated most about the RAM pickup I owned. Too many turn knobs in such close proximity. I did learn you can turn the shift knob to park while driving and it won't go into park.

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