JEEP Wrangler Review

This is not your average SUV with boat-like handling. As we mentioned before, both the front and rear suspension are rigid, just like in a Ford Model T. In case it's not pretty clear by now, this solution doesn't quite make the Wrangler the most comfortable vehicle out there. "Harsh" is a bit of a low-level word to define the way the suspension reacts when driving at an average speed - let's say 80 km/h (50 mph) – over a mildly bumpy road.

Let's just say that the Wrangler isn't the best car to drive at speeds higher than those achieved in the city if the road surface is far from perfect and/or if you're planning a trip through some mountain serpentine roads. At lower speeds, the archaic suspension along with the high ground clearance and tires with high side walls can actually be pretty comfy for your back though. This completely reverses in one of the situations described above though, since the ride becomes quite a bit jiggly.

As far as the other comfort areas of the car... let's just say they're not that many. As we mentioned earlier, albeit the Wrangler is rather large on the outside for a three-door vehicle, its interior doesn't exactly rise up to the occasion. The inside is cramped in almost every direction and at every bump there's a small risk so that one or more lighter passengers might actually hit the plastic roof with their heads.

Although pretty much everything in the car looks a bit utilitarian - including the seats fabric, the easily accessible but tiny luggage compartment or the tire-shaped floor mats – the overall atmosphere is somewhat inviting, especially if you're a fan of camping in the woods.

Surprisingly, unlike the European Grand Cherokee, the Jeep Wrangler 2.8 CRD isn't using a Mercedes-Benz left-over engine, despite the fact that the latest Wrangler was conceived while Jeep was still under the DaimlerChrysler umbrella. Believe it or not, the 2.8-liter diesel under that flat hood is of Italian origin, just like the one found in the Opel Antara we tested earlier.

Designed from the start to power small SUVs or trucks, the VM Motori engine isn't exactly a champion when it comes to acoustic comfort or the horsepower per liter ratio. The way it makes the driver think it can actually pull a freight train if given the chance is an entirely different thing though. “Only” 177 horsepower from 2.8 liters of displacement but 400 Nm (295 pound feet) of torque available from 1600 rpm all the way to 2800 rpm. That only translates into excellent performance when it comes to off-road driving or towing that fishing boat you always dreamed of.

Although the gear stick looks like something taken out of an antique truck, the six-speed manual transmission doesn't provide any hassle and it works free of unwanted jerks. Also, the gear ratios are perfect both for low to medium speed cruising and for exploring the great outdoors.

The all-wheel drive system is a somewhat newer version of the Command-Trac system which first debuted on the 1984 Jeep Cherokee. The system is fool proof as long as you use it the way you should. For instance, you should never keep it in 4WD mode when driving on roads with dry pavement, since there is no differential action in the transfer case. The three modes of the system, controlled by a lever on the center console, should be used like this:


2H in normal driving conditions on dry roads. This means only the rear wheels are providing traction.
4H in low grip driving situations. This is when all four wheels are engaged in providing traction.
N only when towing. All four wheels are pulling but more power reaches them through the differential.
4L to be used only when engaging in extreme off-road operations.

Especially taking into account the fact that it's only slightly more expensive than a well-equipped compact econobox, the Wrangler doesn't exactly disappoint when it comes to the number of onboard gadgets. As we mentioned in the "Interior" chapter of our test drive, some of the ergonomics are a bit on the weird side, especially when talking about the power windows and power locks buttons. Probably in a fit of backwards thinking American engineers have switched their places.

The fact that each door has its own power lock button is a gadget by itself though, you have to admit. Another interesting feature which isn't exactly found in every car out there would be all-wheel drive system command. It consists of a gear-shifter-like lever which you can tilt in order to select rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive high and/or all-wheel drive low. Oh, it also has a towing function.

For the adventurous people out there, the Wrangler has two special functions which can be controlled from the cockpit. You can lock both axles and disengage the front and rear sway bars just by pushing two buttons on the center console.

Sadly, there were no sensor-based automatic headlights or windshield wipers and not even HID headlights for that matter. Considering the noise levels inside at highway speeds we found it a bit odd to discover a lever for a cruise control system on the steering wheel. Still, that's another gadget worth mentioning.

Other than the ones mentioned, our test car was also equipped with the usual power windows, and (manual) air conditioning, two features which could only be considered gadgets on a car like this. The real interesting "gadget" would have to be the car itself, since it can transform from a three-door hard-top to a three-door soft-top in a matter of minutes.

As if the previous generations of the Wrangler weren't tough enough, the latest one is even better at this chapter. Probably realizing this is no longer just a road-friendly beach-mobile, Jeep engineers equipped it with more modern safety amenities. From the list of features our test car was equipped with we can share the most important ones.

An anti-lock braking system, electronic stability control (a first for the Jeep Wrangler) and four airbags (two frontal and two side ones) are there to protect its passengers in the case when things get out of control on the road. Also, the Wrangler 2.8 CRD's unladen weight is almost 1900 kilograms (almost 4400 pounds), which is more than enough to obliterate almost any unlucky econobox from its path.

Another good point is the fact that the IIHS gave the Wrangler "Good" ratings in almost every chapter of their crash tests, meaning the vehicle should also fare well in crash with comparable cars. Its major downside at this chapter is the fact that its high center of gravity and archaic suspension can only mean that its much easier to lose control in the hands of an unexperienced driver at higher speeds, especially since in 99% of the time the car will be driven in rear-wheel drive mode.

This is probably the reason why we can't rate it TOO high on our safety scale, but considering not that many people will drive it fast enough to crash because of the poor handling and high noise levels... well, you get the point.

Honestly, despite its major flaws as a vehicle to be used as a daily driver, we absolutely loved the Jeep Wrangler. Not a single test car we drove behaved so un-car-like. After we put to the test in a small off-road-ing session, our hearts were fully conquered. This is probably the car's greatest strength. The way it can make you feel like the king of the road when smaller cars move to the side when their drivers realize they're in front of you is absolutely priceless. Sure, we didn't just love it for its "douche-bag factor", but that same feeling transforms into a "king of hill" attitude the second you experience its go-everywhere ability. Because our friends, this thing can go almost everywhere where there's land.

The worst part about the Wrangler Sport is the fact that it's simply not civilized enough to be driven daily if you live in crowded urban areas. Sure, some people will say that you get used to the odd protuberances all over the car, or the fact that the suspension makes its passengers jump all over the interior at every speed bump taken too optimistically, but the fact remains. The Wrangler is a wild vehicle destined for the wilderness, or the beach at most.

Opinions about design are almost always completely subjective, so we won't talk about the Wrangler's exterior in our "Ugly" part of this chapter. Its interior, on the other hand, cannot be described other than completely fugly. Except for the steering wheel, everything makes you think you're in a car designed and built in a shed, from spare second hand parts taken from different cars. The materials used are hard and the design is absolutely yuck. Doesn't take way from its other qualities though.