My Jeep Wrangler experience - more good than bad.

The Good

I once saw an ad that said "the Wrangler took to the terrain like a third grader hitting the playground at recess." This is right on. It's not just an SUV - it's truly designed to go off-road anywhere, anytime. For an SUV, it handles very well. The square wheelbase makes it more stable than most in corners. Gas mileage is slightly above average for SUV with off-road capabilities, but still not good. Put the top down and it's an experience better than any other convertible, including the sports cars. Strong clutch, strong suspension, powerful 4.0 L engine, good gear ratios for off-roading, and a totally unique driving experience that only a Wrangler can provide. In its own way, it's a thorough-bred that will get you through anything. It has never left me stranded due to mechanical problems and I've never been stuck on any four-wheel drive only trail.

The Bad

I've had a few, non-catastrophic quality problems with mine and I know I'm not alone. First, Jeeps are known for some electrical problems. My reverse lights went out at 65,000 miles and my mechanic had to lower the transmission and replace the back up switch. Back at 50,000 miles, the transfer case began leaking fluid. Although the leak is slow and hasn't caused any problems, we are still working on finding the source. Some additional small problems: weather stripping around tailgate keeps coming off, zippers on front windows are beginning to break after years of use, but not abuse (I plan to buy sliding glass soft doors to replace these), and the cushioning within the front seats is wearing faster than it should. At 70,000 miles, the cloth top started to wear out. Despite several years in covered parking and special cloth protector, threads are breaking and water is finding its way in. I replaced the top, which cost about $500 but was easy to install. Also, the fog light switch no longer works so I can't turn those lights on. At 85,000 miles, the air conditioner broke, the radio stopped working, the sound bar speakers were blown and needed to be replaced, and my turn signal switch would only work every now and then. Also, the side markers (lights) on the front have stopped working, despite replacing the bulbs and checking the connections. The back gate latch has become unreliable and requires a lot of lubrication in the winter to remain operable. My gas mileage has remained the same, from 0 miles to 85,000 miles. On a good day (highway driving, light tail wind, not much cargo, no air conditioning) I can get 20 mpg. On a bad day (city driving with some cargo), I can only manage 16 mpg.

Newer Wranglers (97 - present) are quieter and have a softer ride with the same off-road capabilities as my 1994. They also have more interior creature comforts, like an overhead light and more comfortable seating. These creature comforts do make the Wrangler feel a little less truck like, which can be good or bad depending on your preferences. My friend's 2003 Jeep Wrangler doesn't appear to have any better quality control than my 2004. Her steering damper started to fail at 30,000 miles, her sound bar speakers were blown, and her tires were wearing faster than they should be despite non-aggressive driving. Jeep (Chrysler) has not figured out that reliability is at least as important as durability. Also, Jeep has done nothing to significantly improve the gas mileage, which is inexcusable after all these years.

Regardless of which year Wrangler you buy, these are not all-weather vehicles. That may sound strange because they are definitely all-terrain vehicles. In the winter, the windshield wipers can't keep the windshield clear in serious snow, even with the defroster running and good wiper blades. The side mirrors can ice up pretty quickly, greatly limiting your rear vision. The rear window on the soft top models keeps itself snow free for awhile, but once it gets dirty or builds up with snow, you can't see anything without stopping to clean it off. Because the upper side doors flop outward so much at highway speeds, or at low speeds with a strong wind, rain and snow can actually fall directly into the interior as you're driving. Obviously it's going to be difficult to keep the interior warm in the winter with this happening.

Wrangler alternatives?

They don't make them. Hummers don't have near the technical off-roading capability of Jeep Wranglers and they're too big to get down the trail anyway. The Land Rover Defender is probably the only vehicle that comes close to the Wrangler's off-road ability, but good luck finding one, paying for one, and maintaining one.

If you want reliability and you don't do extreme off-roading, buy a Subaru. They are better quality, get better gas mileage, and have an incredible all-wheel drive system that gets you through any weather and any road conditions. These are much better all-weather vehicles than the Jeep Wrangler. Just don't take them on a Jeep trail (duh) and you're fine.

Conclusions

I give this vehicle 5 stars for driving experience and off-road capability. However, with the quality problems I've had, I have to give it 3 stars. Therefore, my overall rating is the average of these. One final note: anything that does break on a Wrangler can easily be ordered through one of several Jeep catalogs that are readily available, which also provide many customization options.