JK as a family vehicle

[Spicy McHaggis]

For those with kids and dogs (or just kids), what do you think of the JK as a family vehicle??

We took a new '09 for a test drive last night and I'm totally in love with it. Still reminds me somewhat of my old '48 CJ2A, as well as my '98 TJ that I had.

Now with a 6 year old, and a baby on the way... we are looking at getting another vehicle...and I most definitely want a new JK.

So...thoughts for use as a daily driver (stock for now)?

Thanks much!
Spicy

[haven]

As a family vehicle, the Wrangler is marginal, IMO. Sure, it's got plenty of room, but it's a farm implement compared to vehicles designed for family errands.

If your wife will be the primary driver, then let her choose the vehicle. If you're driving it most of the time, then you can live with the bouncy ride, poor gas mileage, wide turning radius, and other side effects of being "trail rated." I'm not picking on the Wrangler here, all the off-road-oriented SUVs have similar shortcomings.

The tall tires do have the advantage of making you bend over less when putting the little one into the car seat. The six year old can climb in without assistance.

A friend's father insisted that they own a car large enough to take the entire family to the airport for their annual vacation. So they were stuck with a huge "Blues Brothers cop car" sedan for the 364 days they were not taking that trip to the airport.

I suggest that you consider how often you will be using the Jeep for off-road adventures and camping trips, versus how often you will need a nimble, economical grocery-getter. If you must have a Jeep to wrench on, buy an inexpensive used model.

Chip Haven

[Scott Brady]

My sister uses a 4-door as a mom machine. Two boys and her run all over Phoenix in it. They love it.

It actually has more useable space than the GC they replaced.

[Zeero]

I agree with Scott....my partner in Overland doubles our second JK 4 Door Rubicon as a "Baby Bus" and even in its modified form it still does great.

If you drove it once and love it, then its the right choice for you.

:victory::sombrero:

[Taz]

I sure wished we had waited 6 months before buying the Liberty as the Unlimted JK would have been a much better all around SUV. It gets about the same gas milage, rides about the same if not better, costs about the same yet is a far more capable plateform. I would take the JK Unlimited over any of the other Jeep brands for a family vehicle.

[The Swiss]

When I traded my Jeep Commander for a JK Unlimited, my wife was less then thrilled and announced that from now on, her Nissan Maxima will be used for family trips. So much for that. Our 4 door Rubi established herself very quickly as the primary family vehicle. No problems at all.

(BTW, our family consist of my wife, me, 2 teenage boys and 4 Yorkies)

[FlexdXJ]

I say go for it throw a 2in OME kit on it and some 33's on a nice 17in rim, If your feeling "adventurous" throw an RTT on it. I like them because they remind me of an XJ with a removable top! You can actually carry stuff along with people in them!

[alosix]

I had a 4 door rubi when they first came out (nice rescue green, but I digress).

For the ride and handling, they are noticeably better than a TJ wrangler. They still drive like a solid front axle truck, but they are much more refined.

With the 6spd, we would get about 20mpg on the highway. I was quite impressed with that. The new stability controls also stop you from doing any stupid in it.

The nice tall top, and the higher doors to me would be a help with kids. bending down to help them in would hurt the back more. With this thing you can do it standing up.

Jason

[Outdoorsben]

do it. It's the best riding wrangler ever. Very livable on street performance and I get 18mpg city.

[JPFreek1]

Yep, I agree if you like it and your wife is cool with it, go ahead and go for it. My wife and I recently purchased a Jeep Grand Cherokee with the CRD engine because we wanted a vehicle capable of carrying the family on off-highway excursions with ample room and still be comfortable when driving around town. We LOVE the CRD engine and are running B100 biodiesel exclusively, and at 21mpg in town and 23mpg on the highway, it has been perfect for us.

With that said, the 4-door JK has capabilities our GC doesn't have but the cost-benefit, at least for us, was worth it.

[Backwoods Rambler]

I agree with the first post. I drove one for the first time last weekend and was less than impressed with the power vs. my over-tired and under-geared XJ with 150k on the I-6. The ride was fantastic for a solid axle vehicle. That being said: the one I drove belongs to friends who a have a large dog and just had a baby; they love it! Even more than the Nissan Pathfinder and GC they traded in for it. So although it might not make sense to some, if you love it. You love it!







BTW: After driving one, I would not buy one due to the lacking power.

[Outdoorsben]

I agree with the first post. I drove one for the first time last weekend and was less than impressed with the power vs. my over-tired and under-geared XJ with 150k on the I-6. The ride was fantastic for a solid axle vehicle. That being said: the one I drove belongs to friends who a have a large dog and just had a baby; they love it! Even more than the Nissan Pathfinder and GC they traded in for it. So although it might not make sense to some, if you love it. You love it!







BTW: After driving one, I would not buy one due to the lacking power.
I'm assuming it was 3.21 gear unlimited maybe an auto. All that needs to be done is re-gear which will solve that problem. The 3.8 and 4.0 are very similar engines in output.

[booger]

BTW: After driving one, I would not buy one due to the lacking power.


i had the same opinion of an 09 Rubicon that i drove. my 07 Commander with the 3.7 felt like it had more pep.

i'd buy one, but only to replace one of my current Jeeps if one was totaled.

[durango_60]

I find my JK a perfectly acceptable daily driver for taking my two kids to school every morning and still allowing me to live a fantasy life on the weekends. That being said, I don't live within 100 miles of an Interstate and rarely hit 65 miles per hour so a lack of power for acceleration/ maneuverability is not an issue for me. If I had a commute that required merging into traffic and other crazy things like that I think I would want a different vehicle.

[Zeero]

Wow, this under-power argument is old...and unfortuneately totally inaccurate.

The JK has a modelling program in it that adjusts itself to the driver. It usually takes about 3000 km's for the JK to adjust itself to the drivers style of driving, then adjusts output accordingly.

So if you're heavy footed, then it will adjust for max HP output, but it will cost you in fuel mileage, just as an example.

Mine, driving now at 54,000 km's on it drives like a dream. Picks-up when I need it to, keeps my mileage in check and runs smooth and clean all around.

These things aren't race cars anyway....if you want an SUV that goes fast then get a BMW or Porsche baby bus. These are Jeeps, not the latest edition of Juan Fangio's race car.

The torque with the 4.10 in low range is far more than adequate, what else do you need??

:victory::sombrero:

[troy]

Wow, this under-power argument is old...and unfortuneately totally inaccurate.

:victory::sombrero:

I'd agree with that statement. I test drove a Rubicon last week and it felt very similar to my YJ, TJ, XJ.

I think it would be a great family hauler, if you know what you are buying. Will it handle the highway better than a GC, no. Will it be as convenient as a minivan, no. For what it is, it comes as close to all-around utility as you get, and the top comes off.

That being said, I still won't buy one until there are more used ones on the market and price has come down. I'm too cheap.

[booger]

i can only go by my personal experience. granted i drove the 09 for under 100 miles, but it was more than just an around the block test drive.

i currently own a 98 XJ, an 06 TJ, and an 07 XK so i have plenty of variety to compare to. my XK should be on par with the weight and overall heft of a JK Unlimited, but it was a night and day difference between the two as far as performance goes. the JK was doing good to get out of its own way and my XK is nice and peppy.

i may have to go drive a used one to see if they pick up a bit with some mileage under their belts.

[keithro]

We have two kids and it is our family car. They aren't as nice as others, but it works well for a family car if you need something that you can wheel and is convertible...

[kjp98TJ]

wife, 2 kids and a big dog here. kids are 10 and 7 and had only 1 yr when we didn't have a SWB jeep (TJ). it's a PITA w/ small kids, lg dogs and lack of space. and we wouldn't want it any other way. :sombrero:

[pskhaat]

For 2 kiddos I think they'd be great, but you can't fit 3 brittaxen in the 2nd row. I wish they'd introduce even 1 3rd row OEM seat.

[grahamfitter]

In think once one has caught the Jeep CJ/Wrangler bug its impossible to let it go. People get the same somewhat irrational affinity with Series/Defender Land Rovers, VW Buses, etc. I'm sure that other vehicles would be more practical, comfortable, economical, etc. for a family car but they'll never feel quite right.

So I say go for it!

Cheers,
Graham

[GTABurnout]

I like the 4 doors, Kinda a new age XJ.

[alosix]

Never really had any issues with the power of the 4 door rubi.

It didn't have the 'grunt' of my TJ, but I wouldn't call it underpowered. I'd consider the 3.8 to have a more 'civilized' delivery of power.

Granted.. I'd much rather have a factory hemi option.


Jason

[mcm4090]

The JK has a modelling program in it that adjusts itself to the driver. It usually takes about 3000 km's for the JK to adjust itself to the drivers style of driving, then adjusts output accordingly.

So if you're heavy footed, then it will adjust for max HP output, but it will cost you in fuel mileage, just as an example.


I have seen people making a smellier comments before and a vehicle ECM does not work this way.
Yes, the ECM does have "Leaned Values" but it dose not matter if grandmother drive a car for a year or a teenager drives the car. The car will perform the same way.

[Spicy McHaggis]

Holy cow...!!! Thanks for the answers, everyone! I truly appreciate it!

We just gotta get rid of our POS truck first (for downpayment) and then we'll be getting one.

The wife absolutely LOVES the new JK, fyi!

:victory:

[pskhaat]

I have seen people making a smellier comments before and a vehicle ECM does not work this way.

Now I have no idea about a Jeep computer, but many control modules do indeed have fuel and delivery curves that have timed and decayed factors applied to them, not simply a set of distinct maps like the old GM's.

Is there a reason Jeep would not have the same?

[Zeero]

It does have the same and it does work as I described. My partner in Overland is also an Employee of Chrysler in manufacturing and has spent many months in Toledo OH building the JK and assures me this is the function. He is now in the Brampton plant building Chargers and Challengers....for how long? Who knows...yikes.

Spicy McHaggis, you're going to love it. You love it now, but you'll love it more when you own it! Pictures when you get it!!

[durango_60]

Holy cow...!!! Thanks for the answers, everyone! I truly appreciate it!

We just gotta get rid of our POS truck first (for downpayment) and then we'll be getting one.

The wife absolutely LOVES the new JK, fyi!

:victory:


Great, sounds like you certainly have a good wife! Where do you live?

[chuck45]

i can only go by my personal experience. granted i drove the 09 for under 100 miles, but it was more than just an around the block test drive.

i currently own a 98 XJ, an 06 TJ, and an 07 XK so i have plenty of variety to compare to. my XK should be on par with the weight and overall heft of a JK Unlimited, but it was a night and day difference between the two as far as performance goes. the JK was doing good to get out of its own way and my XK is nice and peppy.

i may have to go drive a used one to see if they pick up a bit with some mileage under their belts.

I think the JK's are misgeared from the factory - even the Rubi - and especially the automatics. I would grant that it would be nice if it had more power but the only time I feel that there is a problem is high elevation highways in the 55-75 mph range. And that was pretty much fixed when I regeared. Off road with the Rubi you are never short of power. Most of the time I am around 1500 rpm and rarely see 3000 and have never been unable to do something because of power.

The 4 dr JK is a hell of a platform. It has an amazing amount of rigidity but it is heavy. I love mine and can't think of any other vehicle I would rather own. The kids are long gone and it's just the wife and I and we love the space, wheelbase and access to the rear thru the rear doors. I do think that due to the wheelbase a 4 dr needs a lift and more rubber; something like 2 1/2 to 3" and 34's or 3"-3 1/2" and 35's makes a huge difference. And the power problem goes away with 4.88's with a stick and 5.13's with an automatic. I'd factor in the costs of the above into the purchase price of a 4 dr JK. Probably 3000 on the low side up to 6000 depending on the lift and if you used stock or aftermarket wheels.

[Spicy McHaggis]

Great, sounds like you certainly have a good wife! Where do you live?

Right now...Juneau, Alaska. In 3 months - Kodiak, Alaska!

[The Swiss]

In think once one has caught the Jeep CJ/Wrangler bug its impossible to let it go. People get the same somewhat irrational affinity with Series/Defender Land Rovers, VW Buses, etc. I'm sure that other vehicles would be more practical, comfortable, economical, etc. for a family car but they'll never feel quite right.

So I say go for it!

Cheers,
GrahamLOL, there are actually some people who change one bug you mentioned for an other. My first vehicle was a Fiat Bus (very similar to the original VW Bus), then I had 3 Land Rovers (Series IIA Ambulances, 90TD and a Defender 110), moved to the US and got converted to Jeeps, tried a Toyota and returned to Jeep. LOVE my 4 door Rubi, just feels right to me.

Spicy, if your wife is cool with it (if momma ain't happy, nobody's happy, and no Wrangler can make up for that), I definitely too would say to go for it!

[Jeep]

We're reluctantly downsizing from our 1998 Ford Expedition, we drove EVERY other SUV out there. We will be buying a 4 door JK for our family of 4, we noticed the headroom and visibility of the JK to be far better than most midsized SUV (the Mitsu Endeavor was a very comfortable surprise but dislike the looks). It was one of the very few midsized vehicles that didn't make us feel like sardines or drive with our heads cocked to one side.

[Backwoods Rambler]

I'm assuming it was 3.21 gear unlimited maybe an auto. All that needs to be done is re-gear which will solve that problem. The 3.8 and 4.0 are very similar engines in output.

It was a Rubicon Unlimited w/Auto.

When you live/work in/near Denver Colorado and tow a pop-up camper over the passes a few times a year you need more power. 5:13's would probably bring the power to where it needs to be.

[chuck45]

It was a Rubicon Unlimited w/Auto.

When you live/work in/near Denver Colorado and tow a pop-up camper over the passes a few times a year you need more power. 5:13's would probably bring the power to where it needs to be.

I'm also in Colorado and yes, for an auto, 5.13's are the answer. They make a HUGE difference. Gears are the single best JK mod.