Test drove my first ever Wranglers today. Thoughts and help with concerns please

[oceanblue2019]

So I test drove 3 different Wranglers today for the first time. 3 cars I have owned in the past: 98 Expedition, Mazda 3 and my current, Rav 4 Hybrid, just so you see where I am coming from

Drove a Rubicon 3.6 hard top, Diesel Soft, and a Sky 2.0. My thoughts and questions:

- Instantly liked the 2.0 better. I knew it was different without looking at the sticker
- I liked the Rubicon but was a little bit more "rough" than I was expecting
- Soft Top to me is the exact same vs Hard Top in terms of sound
- Diesel is loud as hell but responsive
- I felt the leather seats were more uncomfortable than than the cloth (and I love leather)
- Holy crap the heater works. I was sweating within 1 minute in that thing. I could imagine myself driving doors off and roof off in the winter with that
- Idk why people complain about the steering. I loved it. It felt super responsive and smooth, like I could turn around anything
- I actually enjoyed the sport model better than the Rubicon, I believe due to the tires, suspension, and the 2.0. It just felt better on the road
- Loved the 8.4 and the Alpine, hard to not go to that instead of 7.0
- The backup camera is one of the highest qualities I have seen

So my questions are

- With that good of a heater, is the cold weather group still worth it?
- I want to eventually have leather (kids, easy clean up) Is Katzkin a good seat?
- I want to upgrade the sport look (small lift, aggressive tires, hood, etc) Will this hinder how I liked the way the Sport felt better on pavement than the Rubicon?
- I couldn't test the lights do to being the day. LED group that much better?
- Didn't test the safety group. Is that worth it as well? I have all of the safety stuff on my Rav 4. I just like the blind spot and back up camera warning part. I hate the lane assist peep, the steering control stuff, etc

Sorry for long post but man I enjoyed it!

Rubi 2.0L. I'd do a hard top with sun-rider aftermarket as best of both from my perspective.

The sky touch is nice if you want to just hit a button and be topless.

Unless you need to tow or want the range I'd skip the diesel.

You might be able to find a Recon which gets you some nice options for a good package price.

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[Oncorhynchus]

My hearing ain’t what it used to be but my night vision is good. I don’t notice the noise of my 35” M/T tires at any speed or road surface condition. Don’t care for having brighter headlights than the halogens. Putting the Golden Rule in practice for me: I hate looking at other people’s LED lights and therefore don’t want to shine my annoying lights onto others. Cold weather group is a nice to have rather than a must have but it sure is nice. I never find remote start worth using on a cold day - if anything I turn on the car and blast the A/C before getting in on hot days. Heated seats pamper you and make you soft and dependent on how it toasts your nether regions on a cold winter day. 8.4 UConnect with subwoofer is sweet and the quality of backup camera image surprised me. Leather or cloth don’t matter to me because I always get neoprene seat covers for my fishing vehicle. My Sahara feels like a tank when I am behind the wheel and I drive at the speed limit or lower. May not have best skidpad grip or handling on the road but always feels like it will land on all four feet whenever it gets bumped on a curb, hits a pothole, rattles on washboard road.

My mechanic saw the Jeep for the first time the other day. He remarked “this Jeep is really nicely appointed.” Ain’t no S Class Benz but it is actually the most well optioned of all my vehicles except for the lack of power seats.

YMMV.

 

[ads75]

So my questions are

- With that good of a heater, is the cold weather group still worth it?
- I want to eventually have leather (kids, easy clean up) Is Katzkin a good seat?
- I want to upgrade the sport look (small lift, aggressive tires, hood, etc) Will this hinder how I liked the way the Sport felt better on pavement than the Rubicon?
- I couldn't test the lights do to being the day. LED group that much better?
- Didn't test the safety group. Is that worth it as well? I have all of the safety stuff on my Rav 4. I just like the blind spot and back up camera warning part. I hate the lane assist peep, the steering control stuff, etc

Is the cold weather group worth it? I say yes, remote start and having heated seats and steering wheel automatically coming on less than 40F helps. Also, more importantly, heated seats/wheel can help extend top off/down season.

I have the Rubicon cloth, and I have no regrets. I may consider Katzkin eventually, as someone else said, installation sounds like it can be hit or miss. I do think leather would be easier to clean than cloth, but I have no kids.

As far as Sport vs Rubicon, get the one you like better. But keep in mind, what the Rubicon has to offer over the Sport, including upgraded axels that can handle larger tires if you want to go that route. If you are already considering changing a Sports hood out, keep in mind that cost difference also. You can build a sport to be more capable than a stock Rubicon, but it will cost more than a stock Rubicon. Only you know your budget. But if you are considering Sport vs Rubicon, definitely look into ALL of the differences between the two trims, not just cosmetic, and what upgrades you are looking at.

LEDs are great. I have no experience with the regular lights. You can always upgrade the regular lights if you need to. Some say the LEDs do not generate the same heat as the regular lights, and are therefore less capable of melting snow/ice off of themselves. May not matter much to you depending where you live. I live in southeast Pennsylvania, 35 mile commute each way to work, and haven't had in issue with LEDs since Dec 2018.

I have both the Safety and Advance Safety group. I don't think I would get the Safety group without the advance safety group (I use the adaptive cruise control from the Advance Safety group often on the country roads near me). I also don't necessarily think they are a must have feature, and couldn't blame someone for not getting them. I would get the Cold Weather, LED, upgraded stereo, trailer, before the safety groups.

 

[Vinman]

I have a rental Sahara without the LED light group and just bought a Rubicon with LED’s. After a few night trips with both I couldn’t imagine not having LED’s. Absolutely night and day difference between the two, especially if your eyes are of the older vintage like mine

 

[Wkaz]

Still waiting for my Sahara, few more weeks. I strayed from the leather and fancy packages. Cloth seats, 2.0, 2:72/1 transfer case and anti spin diff, cold weather and trailer tow. Best thing I did was rent one for a week in CO. last Aug. 95% pavement cruiser couldn't justify the Rubi. To each his own no matter which one you can't go wrong.

 

[MacJack]

So my questions are: My comments added end of each line:

- With that good of a heater, is the cold weather group still worth it?
YES-top off, I just do the heated seats and in winter the steering wheel.

- I want to eventually have leather (kids, easy clean up) Is Katzkin a good seat?
YES-or you can do cloth now and just buy the Jeep leather and replace the cloth.

- I want to upgrade the sport look (small lift, aggressive tires, hood, etc) Will this hinder how I liked the way the Sport felt better on pavement than the Rubicon?
The Rubicon is a little more beefier and you can put 35 inch tires on it without a lift. It just different. I have had 3 sports in 40 years and this is my first Rubicon and it is great... 3.6 auto, winter package 8.4 and no soft top.

- I couldn't test the lights do to being the day. LED group that much better?
Yes get the LED lights upgrade. Also the AUX switches.

- Didn't test the safety group. Is that worth it as well? I have all of the safety stuff on my Rav 4. I just like the blind spot and back up camera warning part. I hate the lane assist peep, the steering control stuff, etc
No to the Safety group and if you are truly Jeep it in your way. I did get the Proximity Locking package which is nice and my buddy which he got it as well.

I will PM you my window sticker.

 

[entropy]

Get the Rubicon, check the differences, it’s not just a sticker. Best resale too.
Led option is good if your budget can handle it.

Sport actually has 3% higher resale value than rubicon. so they are about the same in terms of that.

If you lift the sport then youll throw the nice street drive feel away. Aggressive tires and a lift and say good bye to the nice road manners.

If you are lifting for looks, get a sport and youll save a ton of money. If you want to offroad, Thinking of tires bigger than 35s,get the Rubicon.

Most people here telling you to buy the rubicon have never been offroad. And if you decide to save some cash and go sport, dont worry about it you can still go offroad and build a beast. And yeah, put some money on it, less than the difference if the rubi and you will be able to run the rubicon trail. Youd have as much fun modifying and wheeling a sport, and will quickly realize most rubi fan boys are mall crawlers.

Cool thing about a sport, you can tweak it and really dial in how you want it. You can get lockers, better lockers than rubi. You can get bigger tires, lift, etc... build it light, heavy, anything you want. It is a joke people thinking it isnt worth it, a sport grows with you and will make you better. I wheel my sport and I am sure Ive done much more with my light stock 32 tires than most rubicon owners. If you find a great deal on a sport, take the plunge. You will be able to build it to your liking anyway.

If you are ever going extreme offroading with a JL tho, start with rubicon and youll save a headache. Youll still have to put lots of cash into it tho.

 

[jdubya421]

I will tell you now, even with the heater as good as it is, it doesn't help with the doors off haha.

Edit: if you have an iphone and want to use carplay get the 8.4" screen. Android auto uses full screen on the 7" but carplay doesn't. I didn't know this till I just switched to iPhone, kind of annoying (ultimately doesn't matter), but good to know.

 

[_olllllllo_]

So I test drove 3 different Wranglers today for the first time. 3 cars I have owned in the past: 98 Expedition, Mazda 3 and my current, Rav 4 Hybrid, just so you see where I am coming from

Drove a Rubicon 3.6 hard top, Diesel Soft, and a Sky 2.0. My thoughts and questions:

- Instantly liked the 2.0 better. I knew it was different without looking at the sticker
- I liked the Rubicon but was a little bit more "rough" than I was expecting
- Soft Top to me is the exact same vs Hard Top in terms of sound
- Diesel is loud as hell but responsive
- I felt the leather seats were more uncomfortable than than the cloth (and I love leather)
- Holy crap the heater works. I was sweating within 1 minute in that thing. I could imagine myself driving doors off and roof off in the winter with that
- Idk why people complain about the steering. I loved it. It felt super responsive and smooth, like I could turn around anything
- I actually enjoyed the sport model better than the Rubicon, I believe due to the tires, suspension, and the 2.0. It just felt better on the road
- Loved the 8.4 and the Alpine, hard to not go to that instead of 7.0
- The backup camera is one of the highest qualities I have seen

So my questions are

- With that good of a heater, is the cold weather group still worth it?
- I want to eventually have leather (kids, easy clean up) Is Katzkin a good seat?
- I want to upgrade the sport look (small lift, aggressive tires, hood, etc) Will this hinder how I liked the way the Sport felt better on pavement than the Rubicon?
- I couldn't test the lights do to being the day. LED group that much better?
- Didn't test the safety group. Is that worth it as well? I have all of the safety stuff on my Rav 4. I just like the blind spot and back up camera warning part. I hate the lane assist peep, the steering control stuff, etc

Sorry for long post but man I enjoyed it!

I got the 3.6 V6 as I wanted the 6-speed manual and I am so glad I did. Great transmission and it keeps you immersed in the driving experience.

LED lights are totally worth it. I consider it a must have.

Cold weather group was mandatory for us as it gets into the 50's in the winter here in Arizona. My daughter used the heated seats when it was 102˚ in the evening because the wind was making her cold (I am dead serious and I thought where have I gone wrong)!!

The 8.4" Infotainment is great and I am so glad I got it.

I got a Rubicon so that if I did any somewhat serious off-roading I would not be wishing I had its features in a tough situation. I also really liked the look of the Rubicon the most. I got the Rubicon because I used the Wrangler deals website to find a great deal compared to one of my local dealers, like $8000 less! I have taken it off-road many times and nothing I have thrown at it has even slowed it down. Mountain trails with steep climbs on loose rock, desert trails with boulder obstacles or rock climbing in Sedona.

Whatever model you choose you will love your Wrangler. I make excuses to drive mine and running topless is amazing.

 

[KevinD]

I didn't buy the cold weather group for somewhat obvious reasons, but I heard that the heated wheel is too hot with no way to modulate it.

I haven't felt the wheel get too hot.
When it get nice & toasty, I turn the heater off. By then, the whole cab is warm, anyway.

As for the LED lights, nearly $1000 for LEDs is ludicrous. For under $100, I put LED lamps in my Sport S, and the difference is tremendous.
The cold weather group is nice, and I use it when overnight temperatures are in the teens.
I won't comment on the handling because, well, Gladiator.

 

[zrickety]

So I test drove 3 different Wranglers today for the first time. 3 cars I have owned in the past: 98 Expedition, Mazda 3 and my current, Rav 4 Hybrid, just so you see where I am coming from

Drove a Rubicon 3.6 hard top, Diesel Soft, and a Sky 2.0. My thoughts and questions:

- Instantly liked the 2.0 better. I knew it was different without looking at the sticker
- I liked the Rubicon but was a little bit more "rough" than I was expecting
- Soft Top to me is the exact same vs Hard Top in terms of sound
- Diesel is loud as hell but responsive
- I felt the leather seats were more uncomfortable than than the cloth (and I love leather)
- Holy crap the heater works. I was sweating within 1 minute in that thing. I could imagine myself driving doors off and roof off in the winter with that
- Idk why people complain about the steering. I loved it. It felt super responsive and smooth, like I could turn around anything
- I actually enjoyed the sport model better than the Rubicon, I believe due to the tires, suspension, and the 2.0. It just felt better on the road
- Loved the 8.4 and the Alpine, hard to not go to that instead of 7.0
- The backup camera is one of the highest qualities I have seen

So my questions are

- With that good of a heater, is the cold weather group still worth it?
- I want to eventually have leather (kids, easy clean up) Is Katzkin a good seat?
- I want to upgrade the sport look (small lift, aggressive tires, hood, etc) Will this hinder how I liked the way the Sport felt better on pavement than the Rubicon?
- I couldn't test the lights do to being the day. LED group that much better?
- Didn't test the safety group. Is that worth it as well? I have all of the safety stuff on my Rav 4. I just like the blind spot and back up camera warning part. I hate the lane assist peep, the steering control stuff, etc

Sorry for long post but man I enjoyed it!

I agree with your observations.
However, I'm not a fan of the 2.0 simply because of direct injection. They have their own long-term issues.
The soft top is a winner. The 7.0 radio is great in my book. The Rubicon is comfortable, at least in 2 door trim. It pitches and rolls a bit, but I expected that.
The steering seems hit or miss, my 2020 is not terrible but it's still a handful. The new box is ~$400 ish if you shop around and are handy with tools. Zero cost if you find a dealer that will work with you on the TSB.

 

[Notorious]

With that good of a heater, is the cold weather group still worth it?

Yes.

- I want to eventually have leather (kids, easy clean up) Is Katzkin a good seat?

No.

- I want to upgrade the sport look (small lift, aggressive tires, hood, etc) Will this hinder how I liked the way the Sport felt better on pavement than the Rubicon?

No.

- I couldn't test the lights do to being the day. LED group that much better?

Yes.

- Didn't test the safety group. Is that worth it as well? I have all of the safety stuff on my Rav 4. I just like the blind spot and back up camera warning part. I hate the lane assist peep, the steering control stuff, etc

Yes.

- Does size matter?

Inappropriate.

 

[Chupacabra]

Glad you liked the rides! I just want to be one more proponent for the LED package, if for nothing but safety reasons. I would highly recommend that option more than any others. The halogens don’t even come close to the whiteness and brightness of the LED Headlights in my opinion.

For $35 I put Beamtech LEDs in mine, they work great. Maybe not as good as factory LEDs, but for $35 vs $1,000 I'm happy with them. They are SO much better than the halogens.

 

[Chupacabra]

The 2021s (if that's what you drove) all have the improved steering box as well. That's why I specifically sought out a 2021 Sport. I got the Sport JLU 2.0 turbo with cold weather package and some other upgrades, love it so far. I am more of a "soft roader" and go off roading in Colorado a lot but not on any trails that would necessitate a Rubicon. I previously had a fairly stock 2003 TJ Sport, so whatever I took that on is what I'm comfortable with. I am never going to go on any trails that need more than a stock Sport

 

[The Last Cowboy]

Buy what you like and what fits your budget. Most Wranglers never see anything more challenging than a gravel parking lot. You will be shocked at where and how well a base stick Sport will go off road if you were to ever try it.

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