Super stiff/ horrible suspension. Bought an 02 for my girlfriend when I lived in the USVI and had it for a year actually driving on real bumpy roads and dirt.. Was not impressed. When we broke up sold the jeep and kept my 94 4x4 Suzuki sidekick that I bought for 1000 dollars because I felt it was a better ride. The jeep cost 12 times that. That should say something. Is it for fun or a real driving car?
For wife to use it for commute when it snows and when is nice to drive around trails and desert behind my house. Actually was thinking about getting can-am side by side to play but jeep could be used for same and bonus if she can use it for snow days. Her car is 2wd and she does not want to drive my truck, she thinks jeep is cool
Most girls do, it's the cool girl off road version of a VW beetle. And if you put tons of work and money in to them most guys would want one too. My simple advice, get what makes her happy and if she doesn't like it, sell it. Make your life easy
I have had an 04 jeep 4.0L Sport (same drivetrain as Sahara) since new. It is shitty in the snow. You can't run it around in 4wd because it has an old-style locked center diff, so unless you are in real snow (inches deep) you have to leave it in 2wd. In 2wd the short wheelbase makes it a real handful on ice, especially at highway speeds. They get shitty gas mileage, they're loud and the suspension is very stiff. Good on rocks and off-road in general, bad most other places. But actually feels more planted than many pickup trucks on smooth roads with the soft top. That said. The engines are completely bulletproof and parts are easy to find and really cheap. Mine has been incredibly reliable and I have thrashed it off-road and use it almost exclusively for towing the bike trailer now. Fun to drive around in summer/desert with the doors off. Only mechanical I have ever had was a worn thrust bearing. Squeaked during engagement for 110,000 km before it finally needed to be replaced. Sahara has more electrics that will probably not age as well.
Best snow Jeep is a '99-'04 Grand Cherokee (WJ) with the V8 and Quadradrive. Can you say stupidly easy to control four-wheel drifting? Just pitch it sideways and steer with the throttle.
Y'all seriously expect smooth rides in a Jeep? I've had 98 and 01 TJ's, and now the 2010 JK. Love it. Works great in snow. No issues running it in 4 hi all the time wet dry or snowy. Got the Rubicon just because I want lockers damnit - no I don't care that I don't use them. Yep, it rides rougher than a car. They're loud too (wind noise) so if she likes tunes I'd suggest the better stereo with the sub - really helps with the top down or the soft top flapping at highway speeds. Helps even more if you put louder tires on it. It's not a car. Just like you wouldn't expect a 3/4 ton 4x4 truck to ride like a caddy you can't expect a Jeep to act like a family sedan. They handle a lot better than you'd expect when pushed, they're not top heavy like you'd think, they are absolutely amazingly capable off road. It honestly sounds perfect for what you'd described. With the winters you guys get I'd suggest getting one with a hard and soft top - there's no point in having a jeep without a soft top. One of the best things when it's nice out is the top down and the doors off.
Some people need to work up to our level of idiocy... Somewhere around I've got an adapter I made to plug my gerbing gloves into the lighter socket in the Jeep.
You are WAY better off getting a side by side to play with off road and a beater car with good tires for snow commuting. The short wheelbase, high COG, 2WD with no weight in the rear Jeeps are shit in snow and only slightly better with good tires and in 4WD. But then they are horrible to drive when you need to turn on dry roads in 4WD. Good tires on a decent car is far safer. And that side by side will do far more off road too.
I purposely look forward to pre-plowed, snow covered streets. Usually ends up being some time after midnight but the experience is worth it...all quiet and shit, no one else on the road. If it goes into the ditch, it's a Jeep. They might break down on the side of the road but that's not where they get stuck. Disagree. Larger tires trump smaller tires in all areas. An open differential Jeep is a liability that supports your claim but with LSDs or lockers, there's no comparison.
Okay - what Jeeps are you guys talking about? The SUV's that have a jeep badge on them or the Wrangler? I haven't run across any of the issues raised in any of my Wranglers. Then again I don't try and drive it like it's an Audi Quattro
XJs, WJ Quadradrives, JKs and their predecessors. (We can skip the first two.) There are no other Jeeps. There are some Trail Rated SUVs but, seriously, they have no business off road. Take this SUV for instance...
Stock for stock, an RZR 1000XP will go anywhere a Wrangler won't. Yes, you can dump truckloads of money into Jeeps and make them incredibly capable off road. But you can do the same with the RZR market and make it even better. Mountains, open desert, slickrock of Moab. Been there, done it, seen it. Was frustrating when I had my Jeep. For me and the terrain around here, the side by side world is much more fun.
Challenge accepted. No, I can't go rippin' through the desert at breakneck speed (I've seen that end poorly for SxSs, too.) but slow it down a bit and there's nothing I've seen a SxS do that I couldn't or haven't also done, assuming the trail is wide enough. Given the lack of ground clearance relative to performance SxSs, it's impressive...and I don't get wet, hot, cold, dusty or muddy if I don't want to. I do have serious reservations about floppin' it, tho', so some of the more challenging obstacles won't be attempted w/o the proper set-up - where the money kicks in. Tires, it's really all a factory optioned (LSDs or lockers) Jeep needs. Anything else is the same mods I see the SxS crowd doing...suspension, bumpers, winch, roll cage, etc., but I can be a daily driver, too, 24/7/365.
Oooh - dos the RZR have air conditioning? That kicks ass when sitting still or moving slowly in the summer. How about a stereo?