Sponsored

Ride quality of the JL compared to other models

ChuckQue

Well-Known Member
First Name
Chuck
Joined
Apr 20, 2022
Threads
67
Messages
1,679
Reaction score
2,264
Location
SoCal
Vehicle(s)
2022 JLURD
Clubs
 
I’ve done dozens of long trips on Wranglers. They are one of the best vehicles in extreme winter weather. But they won’t be much fun to drive if it has monster tires and cheap mods.
1656426304285.jpeg


1656426580280.jpeg

1656426736868.jpeg
Exactly. Go with a quality adjustable lift with appropriate shocks, and just as important: beef up the suspension and get the geometry as close to perfect as you can. Tires matter, so if one chooses a heavy stuff MT, what do they expect? All depends on what you intend with the Jeep. If you’re doing hardcore rock crawling, it’s the trade off. Short of that there’s no reason you can’t have a Jeep that rides/steers well. I put a lot of time into researching doing my mods on my ‘01 XJ and it paid off. Ironman4x4fab fully adjustable short arm system, relocated the rear shackles back about 4”, redid the steering with a 1 ton setup with OME stabilizer and made sure there wasn’t any slop or play. Even with 5100’s it rode really nicely and steering was tight. The previous owner had put on a Rubicon Express lift with stock steering, just a pitman drop. That lift rode like crap and it wandered all over no matter what I did.
 

Whaler27

Well-Known Member
First Name
Alex
Joined
Jul 1, 2020
Threads
48
Messages
1,903
Reaction score
3,758
Location
Oregon
Vehicle(s)
2019 JL, 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee Altitude Ecodiesel, 2005 Mustang GT, 2018 Ford Raptor, 2018 BMW R1200GSA, 2020 Honda Monkeybikes (2), 1972 Honda CT-70, 1980 Honda CT-70,
Occupation
Saving the world :-)
Grand Cherokee is built on a unibody so it handles like a car; further, Trailhawk rides on air springs, so it is going to feel super smooth.

You can get a smooth riding Wrangler, but you have to very deliberate in your choices.

Some general rules of thumb:
  1. High quality lifts, like Teraflex, AEV or Mopar, can actually result in a smooth riding Jeep
  2. AT tires tend to ride and handle better than MTs
  3. The wider the tire, the more bumps and imperfections are going to transmit up the suspension. In my experience, 255 - 285 wide tires is the sweet spot for these Jeeps. By the time you get into 295 - 315 wide tires, the ride starts to deteriorate
  4. Keeping the wheels light (under 30 lbs) helps maintain the factory ride and handling. OE wheels weigh 25-27 lbs; most AEV and Quadratec wheels weigh 27-30 lbs. Popular aftermarket wheels (e.g., Fuel, Method, etc.) weigh 30-35 lbs. There are a few high-end aftermarket manufacturers that make lightweight wheels for Jeeps, but they tend to be pricey.
Good luck!
X2

I‘ve put a lot of time and effort into making my 2019 JLUR a comfortable road-ride without sacrificing off-road-ability, but there are some inherent design limitations and unavoidable trades. My wrangler steers and rides great for a wrangler — so much better than all the others we’ve had over the last 45 years — but there’s no comparison to the ride of our Grand Cherokee. The Cherokee is a fantastically comfortable vehicle at 80 mph. I don’t think the wrangler can duplicate that ride no matter what we spend on it.
 
OP
OP
thegame81

thegame81

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 24, 2021
Threads
60
Messages
420
Reaction score
753
Location
NJ
Vehicle(s)
Xtreme Recon 392
Clubs
 
Wrangler for a road-trip vehicle = recipe for disappointment.
Well not a very long one but I just did a 8+ hours to Canada and it was awesome. Comfortable. Freedom tops off. No worries about any kind of weather to stop my beast. Quite happy with its road trip manners.
 

BXFXJeep

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2019
Threads
18
Messages
1,805
Reaction score
2,195
Location
Toronto, ON
Vehicle(s)
2021 4xe Sahara
Just putting this out there, I'm on my 6th Wrangler, never had an issue with ride and handling, I had YJ, TJ, JK, JKU, JLU, now 4xe, all were Sahara, the YJ was a Laredo.

The 4xe ride and handling is amazing, cornering is wild.
Sponsored

 
 



Top