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It can take you a long time to start truly missing someone. Three years ago, I was dating a lovely federal attorney who had ordered herself a six-speed Wrangler Unlimited Sahara as a sort of step-stool to get her to the more adventurous life she thought we’d end up living together. In March of 2013, after taking delivery of her Jeep, she left it in my custody, got on a plane, and joined one of her oldest friends on a sight-seeing trip to Utah. She’d asked me to go but I’d refused; I had a date with someone else planned for the same week and at the time I took a sort of cruel joy in crushing every dream she had about our future. “I’m busy. Go to Moab,” I told her, “and see the Delicate Arch.”
“Too far north,” she replied. “Anyway, I want to save it for a trip with you.” We never took that trip. The last time I saw her was when she came to visit me in the hospital eight months later, the day after my January 2014 crash. I was incandescent with pain and incoherent from painkillers. She did something to upset me. I told her to leave the room and never come back. In the years between now and then, I didn’t think about her much. Too many other people and things on my mind.
This past Monday I attended a preview for the new Yokohama Geolandar G015 all-terrain tire in Moab. To demonstrate the (considerable) capabilities of the new design, Yokohama rustled up some brand-new Jeeps, put Geolandars on them, and invited us to try them on the “Fins And Things” trail. Given my choice of automatic-transmission Wrangler Sport S models in both two-door and Unlimited (four-door) models, I chose a two-door because I figured it wouldn’t scrape as much on the ridges.
The moment I closed the thin door and settled both of my hands on the thick, leather-and-chrome wheel, I felt my stomach drop as a wave of unrequited longing and sadness washed across me. I thought about the day my son and I took my old girlfriend to see the Jeeps at our local dealer, and I thought about the day she called me giddy with excitement because her custom-ordered Wrangler had finally arrived, and I thought about that long trip we took to Chicago. Then I thought of all the times I’d put her off or let her down or deceived her so I could do the things I wanted to do without her. When the wave passed, my eyes were dry and my heart felt paper-thin, rattling in my oft-broken ribcage. I whispered her name and then I spoke a few private words to her, though I knew she could not hear me. Then I recited my personal mantra, stolen from Townes: It don’t pay to think too much / On the things you leave behind. I took a deep breath, then I fired up the Wrangler and headed for the slickrock.
The base Wrangler Sport two-door stickers at a touch under $24,000. Add the “S” trim, which includes air conditioning and alloy wheels but does not include power windows, then toss a hardtop on the thing, and you’ve crossed the thirty-grand barrier yust like that. That kind of money would get you a very nice Camry V6 with all sorts of luxurious features, you know. Like power windows, and power seats, and a decent stereo.
The Wrangler gives you none of that. In Sport trim, it’s all hard plastics and cheap seats. Nor do you get the hard-core off-road stuff like locking differentials or electric-disconnect swaybars; that’s reserved for the Rubicon. What do you get? Well, you get the Pentastar, which feels oddly out of place in a Jeep with its quick-revving nature, but it certainly hustles the truck along better than the old 4.0-liter six ever managed. You get manual four-wheel-drive that requires a full stop and a bit of crunchy noise to engage. You get a five-speed automatic if you want it.
My hotel for the event, the Sorrel River Ranch resort, is separated from Moab by about 15 miles of truly brilliant serpentine two-lane that follows a river through a deep red rock canyon. I’d run the road the night before in a Fiesta ST with polyurethane bushings and thoroughly enjoyed myself. The Wrangler was a different story. It’s competent enough, and it’s not like the Geolandars ever did any squealing when I loaded ’em up on the marked 20 mile-per-hour twisties, but there’s no joy in steering the thing. The steering wheel has far too much free play and, of course, it leans like the HMS Bounty in heavy wind. I hate to say it, but if you buy a Wrangler just to drive on the road, you’re going to be very disappointed unless your last car was a Model A Ford.
Once you get to Moab proper, however, you start to understand the Wrangler’s true purpose in life. While it’s theoretically possible to go off-roading in anything from an old 4Runner to a Europa-imported two-door Mercedes 280GE, the Jeep Wrangler and its immediate ancestors make up the overwhelming majority of the trucks crawling around Fins And Things. Some people, like me, bring brand-new Wranglers; my truck had about 190 miles on the odometer when I stepped in. Others create fantastically single-minded high-riders from old “TJ” and “YJ” models. I saw a couple of ’70s CJ-era Jeeps, but by and large the Moab community rolls in a Wrangler.
I owned a variety of Land Rovers from 1997 to 2006 and I took them off-road a fair amount, but it was always in the Midwest. In Ohio and Pennsylvania, mud is the order of the day and stream crossings are a fact of life. Moab ain’t like that. You follow the black tire tracks up the red and gray rocks until you’re six thousand feet above sea level, with vicious dropoffs to both sides. You can see snow-covered mountains in the distance and feel the high-powered winds attempting to toss your Wrangler into a canyon. I found it utterly terrifying, despite the fact that Fins And Things only rates a “5” on the Moab 1-to-10 scale.
Off-road, as you’d expect, the Wrangler’s vices become virtues. That loose steering? It will keep you from rolling the thing when your wheel catches a rut, the whole world tilts in front of you, and you clutch at the wheel for support. The long throttle travel means that you don’t spin the wheels when you literally slip down the backside of a rock for five feet and hit hard on the next ledge, causing your entire body to sag forward against the seatbelt. The ridiculous-looking padding on the interior rollcage will keep you from cracking your skull from “head-toss” motions brought on from uneven terrain.
The Wrangler is one of the last FCA vehicles to retain the Benz-style “Auto Stick” that lets drivers manually select a gear while in “D” by shoving the lever right and left. Here, at 5 mph, it works just fine. If you’re in 4WD-Low, pressing left once will automatically put you into first gear, no matter what you were in before. You climb in second or third and descend in first, as slowly as you can manage.
The combination of short-wheelbase Wrangler and Yokohama Geolandar tire was flattering to both; no amount of ham-fisted idiocy on my part or the part of my fellow journalists could really upset matters. I repeatedly saw people just stop halfway up climbs steep enough to make sure that nothing but blue sky showed in the windscreen. With my old Rovers, that would be a quick ticket to a slide backwards, but the Yoko-shod Wranglers could just start accelerating back up the hill. You never heard more than a single squeak from any wheel; in the absence of locking diffs, the Jeep uses traction-control trickery that is hugely effective. The sandy sections between rock “fins” were deep enough to strand the mountain-bike-riding trail monitors from the Bureau of Land Management, who were there to make sure we didn’t steal rocks or something like that, but the Wranglers were utterly unperturbed.
As trails go, Fins and Things isn’t that tough. I could have done it in my old Discoveries no sweat, although I’d have had to pull the lower bumpers or lose ’em, and a unibody Range Rover can handle it easily if you raise it all the way up on the air springs. You can even do the trail in a new-shape Cherokee, although that won’t always succeed. The Wrangler simply cruised it, however, allowing eight relatively inexperienced drivers to get through without so much as a dented door. The only damage I saw to any of the Wranglers was to the wheels, although mine made it through scratch-free.
It’s best to think of the Wrangler as a sort of off-road counterpart to the Dodge Viper. Which is to say that it’s only truly happy in its very specific environment. For the Viper, that’s the road course; for the Wrangler, it’s the dirt trail. The problem is that there aren’t enough True Believers to keep the production lines going in either case. The Wrangler sidesteps the problem by selling a lot of four-door Saharas to people like my attorney ex-girlfriend, who won’t ever really off-road the thing but likes the idea that she could. Their purchases effectively subsidize the hardcore two-door base models like the one I drove, which allows everybody to be happy. The real hardcore off-roaders do admire the Rubicon model, which is referred to as a “Ruby” by everybody with a Moab mailing address, but it’s generally understood that the locals buy the cheap ones and use the twenty-grand savings for aftermarket off-road equipment.
This happy state of affairs, where urban posers keep the production lines running so the Moab crowd continues to have new Wranglers available, can’t continue forever. Eventually, Jeep will have to make the Wrangler just another crossover-CUV-thingy, the same way the Land Rover Discovery eventually became the fat-cat LR4 and the lame-ass Discovery Sport CUV. If you’re like me, you probably won’t notice right away, or even care much. I’m not an off-road typa dude and I don’t have much emotional connection to Jeep. But trust me: in much the same way that I occasionally wake up in the middle of the night feeling lonely for my little attorney friend, you’ll miss the Wrangler when it’s gone.
Disclosure: Yokohama provided one night’s lodging, fuel for the Wrangler, and paid the trail access pass at Moab. Travel and meal expenses were covered by the author.
[Images: © 2016 Jack Baruth/The Truth About Cars; some images courtesy of Yokohama]
A Wrangler excels at only one thing in my life: A trip pulling a trailer to the local landfiill after a week of rain.
Wait… I forgot. I used my 4Runner to pull a Wrangler out of the mud at the landfill last summer.
I’ve seen Rubicons (both 2 and 4 door) with listed prices as low as $35k, that strikes me as an incredible value for the amount of hardware that you get. Now, as Jack noted, Jeep’s BLD offroad traction control is also very effective. Combine that with the good articulation of solid front/rear axles, and for many users the true mechanical locking diffs of the Rubicon become unnecessary. Alas I cannot bring myself to seriously consider a Wrangler. The soft-top nature with the intrusive roll bars just makes it too impractical for me. If they ever make a ‘tintop’ like an old FJ40 with a less obstructed interior, then I’ll certainly be interested.
A Wrangler also excels at top-down, doors-off errand running or beach cruising around town. And there’s no better way to explore on various tropical islands (I’ve bounced rented Wranglers around Maui, Oahu, Aruba, and even a little bit of Alaska on various trips).
Heartily agree. A Wrangler with a hardtop is missing a lot of the point. Top off, doors off, cruising around town or on the twisty roads at which it doesn’t excel suddenly becomes a LOT more fun.
I do miss the opposite sex attention I used to get in the Wrangler, but I sure don’t miss the commute.
Ha ha! It has been said that the Wrangler has taken the place of the two-wheeled motorcycle for those old codgers and the infirm who can no longer hold a bike upright at a stop sign.
A Wrangler is a damn shade better than a three-wheeler motorcycle to be seen in or on, except maybe a motorcycle with a sidecar.
Regretfully, some states do not permit “doors off” driving on state roads for safety reasons; mine is one of them. However, the top-off part is no problem with the roll cage, which is a lot stouter than the windshield frame of any other convertible you can name. If ya gotta roll it, let it be a Wrangler. Just roll it back onto its wheels and drive away in it.
You can buy aftermarket 1/2 doors.
You can buy factory half-doors too, you know.
The tow-down cruising is not necessarily incompatible with the hardtop, as long as you have a base where to leave the top (such as your garage). That said at the last Go Topless Day I managed to get snowed in. Good thing I left the front panels on.
So it’s a lifestyle accessory?
Are they still using that turd W5A580 trans in the Wrangler?
From what I read, yeah.
@Jack – did you get a chance to drive any Jeeps with the stock tires? I’m curious since more off-road biased tires tend to make a vehicle feel more vague and heavy on asphalt.
Not on this particular day, no.
Not to fault the Yokohamas on the trail, I found the Bridgestone Dueler Rev2 tires are surprisingly capable on-road and off in Rousch Creek ORP Pennsylvania.
Looking at the tread pattern of these tires they probably won’t be good in mud. I can see why they would be excellent for Moab. They have a “winter” designation so that would mean a fairly soft compound for gripping slick surfaces. That same winter design should make them work well in sand.
I had looked at Bridgestone Rev2’s but they did not have a winter designation. Some highways in my region or mountain passes require tire chains under bad conditions if you don’t have winter tires.
I know I’m missing the point, but, wouldn’t most of these rock-crawling trails be better traversed on a dirt bike?
The Jeep allows you to bring a friend, and do so with a roof over your head.
And a rollcage.
Note from the article that the BLM monitors were on bicycles, so probably yes, but of course the trails are a different kind of challenge with a Jeep than they are with a motorcycle.
Motorcycles are, as a truism, able to fly along a lot of “rock crawl” trails, and if you go all the way to a trials bike, they can pull seemingly physics-defying moves that in some cases can hardly be matched with a winch.
It’s all in what you enjoy, though. 4x4s make it pretty easy to bring a friend, a picnic lunch, that deer you shot…
“… wouldn’t most of these rock-crawling trails be better traversed on a dirt bike?”
Horses for courses… or in this case, trails. Mountain bikes, dirt bikes, Wranglers, ATVs, side by sides. It’s all personal preference and it wouldn’t surprise me if a good number of people used more than one.
I know a guy that flew a Waco bi-plane across the country. His Meridian would’ve been a more “prudent” choice but wouldn’t have provided what he was looking for during this particular trip.
heavy handle – that is how I see it but “it’s a Jeep thing” LOL.
I never could bring myself to pulling the trigger on a Jeep. I like the idea of one but for an off-road tool I’ve always had dirt bikes, ATV’s, mountain bikes or good boots. I can do the rest in a pickup with good tires.
In BC where I live there have been a lot of back country problems with UTV’s and typical of lazy government they just past laws for mandatory collision insurance and increased fines for non-compliance. That does open the door for considering a Jeep. Side by sides start at 15k and the one’s I like are all around the starting price of a Jeep.
” urban posers keep the production lines running ”
That comment applies equally to pickups, sports cars, and any sporting motorcycle. Even motocross bikes. The temptation is to give in to the “majority” to sell more product. Any of those products NEED to fulfill their core competency. Making them appealing to the “average” buyer is where the compromise SHOULD occur.
“Poser” is often used to label someone who has something the user of the term can not afford.
Eh. I can AFFORD a bunch of form-fitting Versace t-shirts and 7 For All Mankind skinny jeans. I’d look pretty stupid wearing them, though, and I think trying to force my aging, round-bellied body into a purchase that I hope will make me look like something I’m not (while fooling no one) would make me a poser.
In my mind, in fact, most people who use their purchases to define themselves are posers, because they’ve chosen to buy their identity with their Platinum card, instead of discovering and being their authentic selves. But that’s not a very popular opinion.
People seek out things to express themselves. I can’t decided if this is a human trait which has always existed or something learned as the result of rampant consumerism.
It started with fur
yes, ‘often’ usually means 99% of the time.
It pains me to point this out. Honestly it does and I wish I didn’t have to.
———–
It’s “poseur”. Not poser.
I know you’re following Jack’s lead but even towering intellectuals drop the ball now and then.
Correction at least 51% accepted — but really I was thinking “poser” as in the BMX/skate use of the term. To say “poseur” IMO indicates a social class pretense.
Jack’s right. A poser pretends to be cool or skilled; a poseur pretends to be upper-class or educated. I’m not sure what a hoser does.
Eats back bacon, eh?
Bob and Doug McKenzie has taught you well, young Padawan.
Why is this site becoming a medium for a sad social life? Sounds like the author likes himself more than his victims like him. Can’t imagine why “little attorney friend” didn’t stick around for more.
The only reason the Wrangle sells is because it is not “another crossover-CUV-thingy.” If FCA take the Wrangler in that direction, it will place the product in a saturated segment where it may not compete very well.
-Mike
The Wrangler seems to hold its own pretty well, and has been doing so for many decades since WWII.
I suspect it will continue to do so because it is a unique niche vehicle with a humongous fan base.
“Why is this site becoming a medium for a sad social life? Sounds like the author likes himself more than his victims like him. Can’t imagine why “little attorney friend” didn’t stick around for more.”
I’m actually preferring this more introspective (even mildly regretful?) “tortured soul” version of Jack vs the swaggering, elitist, harshly judgmental, self-professed womanizer (and trying way too hard to convince everyone) who couldn’t seem to write a piece without shoehorning a mention of his guitar collection into it. Not sure what triggered the change in tone in recent articles, but I find it rather refreshing.
Well, I haven’t bought a guitar since I took delivery of a Trussart Tone Ganja in February… my God, you’ve tricked me into something!
All joking aside, this new “baring your soul” tack you seem to have taken is compelling (I know, probably not to most here).
You may make a fan of me yet…
I agree I like the more introspective Jack. While I will read just about anything you write, I like what you have done lately.
Went to Moab 2 week ago rented a RZR. Saw a ton of Wrangler climbing rocks also used for daily drivers. They look at home climbing rocks rather than at the mall. Having said that. I’d rather own a RZR and tow it with a more comfortable daily driver.
VW16v – ironically we have seen Jeep add a row of seats with the unlimited and UTV makers now add a row of seats to their performance UTV’s. Everyone is trying to appeal to family buyers.
Back to your original point, there isn’t much of anything out their that will keep pace with a base model RZR, Maverick etc. and now those quads are available turbocharged. In some settings they will outperform a dirt bike.
Yeah, they didn’t have the turbo model for rent. But the non turbo was a blast. Unbelievable how that thing climbed. I see a lot of modified Jeeps in SLC built for rock climbing. They just seem like a lot of work for a daily driver. Then I would be freaked out about destroying my $50k jeep climbing rocks. To each their own.
I agree. I have a 2008 Arctic Cat Prowler. It’s primary purpose was to be a utility vehicle, but it is incredibly capable off road. We don’t really have rocks in our area but hundreds of km of mud and forest trails. I’ve gotten through mud holes that have caused modified Jeeps to have to winch out. My only upgrade was a good set of tires.
It’s a constant battle between our ATV club and the local Jeep owners group to keep them off of our managed trails. They tear the living hell out of our trails and don’t pay a cent to maintain them.
I bought an 06 650xt prowler the day they parked them in front of the dealer. I instantly took it to the gnar or gnar creek beds and proceeded upstream following a lifted mud tire king quad. I passed the king when it got deep. The smooth belly pan let’s it slide over the boulder hidden under the rapids. What a machine! I sold to my uncle who’s small hobby farm connects to my parents property. His whole family still beats on it. One machine arcticcat built reliable imho.
As a two time Wrangler owner (2006 inline-4 TJ, and currently 1994 inline-6 YJ) I feel obligated to post something.
Jack is correct about the JKU (4 door) propping up the 2-door model. It saddens me to see the masses of Unlimiteds with hard tops which have never left the pavement, driven by image-conscious poseurs who never wave back. But if it keeps the Wrangler alive, so be it.
I can’t exactly explain what it is about my leaking (both water in and fluids out), loud, on-leaf-springs, rough riding, no A/C, safety and creature comfort free, rust bucket that I love so much, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. As they say, it’s a jeep thing.
I I look at the casual on-road owners as the fools that take the depreciation hit and keep these capable rigs nice and not beat up. Just think of the glut of used JKUs that guys will be running on trails for decades to come! Toyotas are the same way. Guys will make fun of the latest luxo-trimmed Land Cruiser, but give it 15 years and it’s the next best thing. Happened to the FJ60->FJ62->LC80->LC100 and now the 200 series trucks will start to enter the affordable range in about 5 years or so.
Isn’t is kinda the same thing for most enthusiast vehicles? You can get very gently used power sports equipment for a fraction of the new price.
Same goes for sports cars, boats, airplanes, and most likely submarines.
There’s a percentage of buyers who like the vehicle for whatever reason. They purchase, drive it gently, then sell. This is a good thing for those who like to use them as their makers intended.
I see it all the time with motorcycles, Someone purchases the latest and greatest (in this case a BMW S1000RR) and sells it 24 months later. BMWs do hold their value better that say a Ducati, but still.
gtem and hubcap,
Yeah, that’s true. But I can’t help but wonder how the 2012 JK’s will have held up in 21 years, given their relative complexity (I say 2012 because I would probably never consider a 2007-11 with the 3.8). I mean, my 21 year old YJ has practically nothing to go wrong on it. It’s the old bullet proof 4.0.
I do appreciate the optimism though! Keep eating that depreciation for me and my fellow jeepers, o mall cruising soccer moms!
I’m probably going to need new tires for my truck as I approach the next winter driving season. These tires show a winter rating so that makes them rather appealing. My brother has run Geolander’s on some previous company trucks and liked them. The Yokohama Geolandar G015 all-terrain tire definitely has got me interested.
I have so much mixed emotions about Yokohama. I loved a lot of the workers in their SC and OH facilities, yet I despised some of their Japanese execs due to ethics.
I encourage the purchase. Their rubber R&D tech may not be as exotic as Michelin, but you’ll definitely receive a high quality product.
tresmonos – thanks
No use getting sentimental about the ex. She’s now a stay-at-home mom with three kids, and she has gained 60 pounds since the last time you saw her.
RHD, all that since January of 2014? That would be a high achievement in its own right.
Fortunately or unfortunately, she still has her looks and her sublime figure. Talk about a woman who looked good naked.
The more I read Jack Baruth, the more I am convinced that he is the reincarnation of Hunter S. Thompson.
Strange that you have to come to a stop to engage 4WD in these. Every 4WD I’ve ever driven with a manual transfer case could be easily and immediately shifted into 4WD on the fly at any speed, provided you’re not spinning the wheels at the time.
I don’t know about pre-TJ Wranglers but I have a ’97, and it’s not “at any speed” – rolling slow yes, but I wouldn’t try it at 40 mph.
I guess it’s a Jeep Wrangler thing. I wouldn’t understand!
Such a vehicle wouldn’t seem very practical to me if I couldn’t easily go in and out of 4WD as needed during highway drives on mixed winter road conditions.
4-Hi yes. 4-Lo you need to stop and shift to neutral first.
That’s what I’m used to.
I don’t imagine there are any automatic transfer cases that allow you to engage 4-Lo on the move, are there?
I don’t know of any. All of the trucks I’ve ever been in required a stop and shift to neutral. It must have to do with engaging the gear reduction in 4lo.
I stand corrected – 4H at any speed. Owners manual for the TJ actually says “slow the vehicle to 2-3 mph” to shift into 4L – so moving, but just barely.
I guess I’ve never had the need to engage 4×4 at any kind of speed, so I only remembered the 4L part.
I guess it’s probably safe to assume that Jack was talking about going into 4L. It reads like the manual 4WD is a disadvantage here. I generally prefer it because of the simplicity and immediacy of engagement/disengagement.
On further consideration, I could see how a stop would be required to get into 4H with a 4WD system where the front drivetrain doesn’t automatically spin with the front wheels. I’ve heard of such a thing, but I don’t imagine that it would be found on a base Wrangler. Though I suppose it’s possible if it gives them another half-MPG on the EPA test.
4WD at highway speed in the snow makes for a pleasurable long distance drive. Just set the cruise and let the vehicle float around underneath you while you guide it. I find it soothing, yet it keeps me fully awake at the same time.
My first couple of years of driving were in a ’80 Jeep Wagoneer with a manual transfer case, and that thing was in 4WD most of the time during the winter. In an era where AWD – and even 4WD – was rare, it was like a big winter sports car. As a result, I have a lot of appreciation for a simple 4WD system.
G.Wagens have synchromesh on the transfer case I believe, at least some of them anyway. So they could be shifted right into low range, after slowing down of course.
You dont need to stop in order to shift into 4-Hi. Any speed 55mph or less is safe for 2WD to 4-Hi engagement (and vice versa). 4-Lo requires slowing to a crawl for engagement.
thanks