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Which engine for Colorado passes?

bikenski

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Newbie to the Jeep world, but after living in Colorado for 20+ years and driving all kinds of vehicles, I'm a little surprised how many people think the 3.6L naturally aspirated engine is a good choice for high altitude performance. It sounds better and is potentially more durable and reliable, but I have trouble believing it can keep up with a closely spec'd on paper turbocharged engine once the air gets thin.

In my experience Electric > Turbocharged > Supercharged > Fuel Injected NA > Carbureted NA

Have a 4xe on order, and really hoping that the Electric / Turbo performance combined with regenerative braking will perform very well up and down I-70 and on the high altitude trails beyond.

Look forward to some real-world reviews now that a few are "in the wild!"
 

Geos7812

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Got it.
Not that this is an off road trail, but Mt Evans Road is about 14,100 feet :)
I wasn’t thinking about driving to top of those peaks. I was thinking about Jeep trails. My B. Mosquito is outside my window currently and is the highest road in the continental US. 13,185. 3.6L did great and it drives us all over the hills of Colorado and has not had issue. 2.0 would be better and then diesel better yet. Our 2022 is going to be the 2.0L.... I think. Wife has a 10 mile commute and think the diesel emissions will get smoked with the short cycle.
 

txj2go

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but I have trouble believing it can keep up with a closely spec'd on paper turbocharged engine once the air gets thin
You are of course correct. I think the point was that the 3.6L 8-speed is adequate for most people. I've driven mine over 12k feet numerous times and felt like it performed perfectly well. Of course I wasn't towing anything and I wasn't drag racing anybody.
 

Geos7812

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Got it.

I wasn’t thinking about driving to top of those peaks. I was thinking about Jeep trails. My B. Mosquito is outside my window currently and is the highest road in the continental US. 13,185. 3.6L did great and it drives us all over the hills of Colorado and has not had issue. 2.0 would be better and then diesel better yet. Our 2022 is going to be the 2.0L.... I think. Wife has a 10 mile commute and think the diesel emissions will get smoked with the short cycle.
Turbos are great for Colorado. Had a 2.7L Exoboost in an F150.
Towed a 6000 lb camper up over the hills in Colorado. Going down is why I traded for an F250.
 

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fogby

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Newbie to the Jeep world, but after living in Colorado for 20+ years and driving all kinds of vehicles, I'm a little surprised how many people think the 3.6L naturally aspirated engine is a good choice for high altitude performance. It sounds better and is potentially more durable and reliable, but I have trouble believing it can keep up with a closely spec'd on paper turbocharged engine once the air gets thin.

In my experience Electric > Turbocharged > Supercharged > Fuel Injected NA > Carbureted NA

Have a 4xe on order, and really hoping that the Electric / Turbo performance combined with regenerative braking will perform very well up and down I-70 and on the high altitude trails beyond.

Look forward to some real-world reviews now that a few are "in the wild!"
I ended up going with the 4xe also - for the same reasons you state.
 
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fogby

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The 4xe electric range is very short. Will you experience much electric power?
It is a very short range, but I just wanted the extra hybrid power on the passes and the immediate torque for when off-road. I'm optimistic that I'll love the instant torque.
 

JeepinJason33

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It is a very short range, but I just wanted the extra hybrid power on the passes and the immediate torque for when off-road. I'm optimistic that I'll love the instant torque.
It will be interesting to see if there is a noticeable gain in torque while driving over a pass, or if it will just offset the weight gained by the batteries to begin with. Would be neat to see a side by side comparison on one of the taller passes here in Colorado.
 

Mgg253

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It will be interesting to see if there is a noticeable gain in torque while driving over a pass, or if it will just offset the weight gained by the batteries to begin with. Would be neat to see a side by side comparison on one of the taller passes here in Colorado.
Mine needs to get here and I’ll gladly let you know! I’ll take a trip up Berthoud pass to WP then circle through granby and RMNP for a good weekend getaway! My 3.6 in the grand Cherokee does fine, but noticeable loss of power and it really has to wrap up RPMs above 10k elevation to pull with any gusto
 

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Adv_aw8s

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I have a 2021 Rubicon diesel lifted on 37's and wouldn't trade it for anything. I live in Colorado and the power is great. Haven't even felt the need to regear. Last weekend on a 400 mile loop of highway and some offroad I avg over 25 Mpg.
 

FinnCustomKnives

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Put it this way, doing the trails/passes in the Ouray/Silverton/Telluride area, any will work just fine. When you drop into 4 low, the power woes are all but forgotten. Now riding on 70 on the way there is a different story.

My vote is ecodiesel, but I'm a bit biased
 

JeepinJason33

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Put it this way, doing the trails/passes in the Ouray/Silverton/Telluride area, any will work just fine. When you drop into 4 low, the power woes are all but forgotten. Now riding on 70 on the way there is a different story.

My vote is ecodiesel, but I'm a bit biased
The eco diesel is nice. I originally went with the 3.6L with the intentions of supercharging it like I did with my 4.0. However, after the lift and 37's, I re-geared to 5.13 and it has plenty of get up and go. I doubt I will mess with the supercharger at this point. The 5.13's really allowed for some nice slow crawling during my trip to Moab last week. Keep in mind, the price of the regear is as much as the difference between the 3.6/2.0 and the diesel engine. If you are not doing serious wheeling and don't need the gearing, the diesel would be the better choice for sure!
 

Louisromersh

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I have a 2021 Rubicon diesel lifted on 37's and wouldn't trade it for anything. I live in Colorado and the power is great. Haven't even felt the need to regear. Last weekend on a 400 mile loop of highway and some offroad I avg over 25 Mpg.
Hey Rob,

Wow how do you get such great MPG's? I have JLURD and it stock right now and I'm getting 22 to 23 mpg. Also did you re-gear for the 37's and if so what gearing did you go with.

Thanks
Louis R.
 

Adv_aw8s

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Hey Rob,

Wow how do you get such great MPG's? I have JLURD and it stock right now and I'm getting 22 to 23 mpg. Also did you re-gear for the 37's and if so what gearing did you go with.

Thanks
Louis R.

Louis,

I have not regeared yet. It's been doing awesome so far. We have a 3k mile trip coming up so I'll see how it does on that but so far no plans to. We are eventually going to get an adventure trailer and I may regear at that point. With stock wheels and tires I drove back from Vegas and got over 30mpg at times but finished the trip over 25mpg. I got just barely over 400 Miles on that tank before I filled up. This is all via the dash readout I haven't hand calculated it so I'm sure it's probably a touch lower. Anyhow I'm still more than thrilled.

Jeep Wrangler JL Which engine for Colorado passes? PXL_20210606_210139622
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