autism family travels
Active member
a cherokee with some MFC gear on it looks VERY VERY interesting too. slap a gobi rack on the roof with the MFC gear and you got a dandy go everywhere rig.
Is it a sign that I'm just growing up or getting boring?? Soon to be Wrangler-less...
- Thread starter Septu
- Start date
Todd n Natalie
OverCamper
Had a TJ about 12 years ago. I didn't seem to get bitten by the bug. That being said, if I didn't have to tow, a Gladiator would seem fun.
Blue Baby Sound
A guy with a Jeep
I run without a top/doors for more than half the year, last year it was March thru October.
I'm not set on a Wrangler as much as I'm set on a vehicle giving me that top/doors off experience.
So I'll continue to build and modify my Wrangler for many, many years.
I'm not set on a Wrangler as much as I'm set on a vehicle giving me that top/doors off experience.
So I'll continue to build and modify my Wrangler for many, many years.
I'm with Grassland on that one. My current 2dr never had the tops or doors off in the 2 yrs I've owned it. I did do that a bunch early on with my 2012 however it wasn't something I did consistently. But then we usually only get decent weather from June to Aug, so that really limits things. That said on a nice day.... doorless was awesome. Just a pain to remove all 4 doors just for a few hours of fun.
pith helmet
Well-known member
I wish the JKU had come with a solid hard top option, and an extra 6 inches of headroom would be nice, too! We have a soft top if we want the top down (I never do), but the soft top up sans windows is really nice.
Jurfie
Adventurer
Congrats on the new WK2, @Septu!
If I’m honest with myself, a GC would probably serve me well for most of my wheeling adventures too and they are still quite capable. My little JKR (2-door) has taken me across Canada a couple of times and more room and better highway manners would have been nice. But I still love it. I’ll be replacing it with a Gladiator in a year or two, mostly because I still like tinkering and making it my own; for that, nothing beats the Wrangler/Gladiator platform. The JT’s longer wheelbase and more upscale interior (than my ‘14 JKR) will make a huge difference on long trips. Plus I’ll have a bed for jobs around the house when needed (I’ve had to rent a utility trailer many times).
But a WK2 would make a great rig for running the countless FSRs in BC and the Yukon. If a Gladiator ends up not serving me well, I’d definitely look at the GC. Not sure how I feel about the soon-to-be released body style though; I think I prefer the WK2.
Anyways: enjoy the new rig! Mild build or not, be sure to post a build and trip report thread; even if it consists of just local trips to a quiet lake or viewpoint. I’d love to get back up to the Whitehorse area again one day.
If I’m honest with myself, a GC would probably serve me well for most of my wheeling adventures too and they are still quite capable. My little JKR (2-door) has taken me across Canada a couple of times and more room and better highway manners would have been nice. But I still love it. I’ll be replacing it with a Gladiator in a year or two, mostly because I still like tinkering and making it my own; for that, nothing beats the Wrangler/Gladiator platform. The JT’s longer wheelbase and more upscale interior (than my ‘14 JKR) will make a huge difference on long trips. Plus I’ll have a bed for jobs around the house when needed (I’ve had to rent a utility trailer many times).
But a WK2 would make a great rig for running the countless FSRs in BC and the Yukon. If a Gladiator ends up not serving me well, I’d definitely look at the GC. Not sure how I feel about the soon-to-be released body style though; I think I prefer the WK2.
Anyways: enjoy the new rig! Mild build or not, be sure to post a build and trip report thread; even if it consists of just local trips to a quiet lake or viewpoint. I’d love to get back up to the Whitehorse area again one day.
Todd n Natalie
OverCamper
I think all that has been released are picture of the 3rd row Grand Cherokee L. As far as I know the regular 5 passenger Grand Cherokee hasn't been unveiled yet.
Jurfie
Adventurer
I believe you are correct, but I suspect it will have the same look, just shorter. Maybe I'll prefer it with those proportions. ?♂️
Right now, something along these lines (in no particular order):
- ARB bumper with a winch
- OME 2.5" lift
- 32" ATs
- rear hitch gate to get the spare out of the cubby
- dual battery setup
- armour (far more then I've ever put on my wranglers)
I'll never wheel it as I did any of my JKs (my 07 and 12 were pushed hard, my 10 saw a few trails but was more or less babied by comparison), but I do want something that I can do some exploring with without having to turn around at the first sign of something interesting. The only crappy thing is most of the crap we have to deal with up here is mud and that's the one thing I won't be dragging this through. That said lots of mining roads to explore up here and FSRs down south. The winch will give me peace of mind that I won't be spending a couple days digging whenever I make a poor decision, while the ARB bumper will give me the peace of mind against all the damn animals on the roads up here. Plus, lets be honest... looks bad *** and I can be vain like that.
For the off road stuff a wrangler is the way to go - everyone knows that. The issue is I camp/road trip with a m101 1/4 off road camping trailer (~1500 lbs) and even my built 2012 JKUR (auto) was never all that great at pulling it up all the damn mountains I have to cross to go anywhere (Alcan). My 2010 is significantly worse. And even then off roading (where one actually wants/needs a wrangler) accounts for maybe 1% of my recent use. A "built" GC/etc would do fine most of the time, will being significantly better on the 5k road trips that happen every summer, along with the weekend camping trips I do every few weekends during the summer. I absolutely love to drive (which is a good thing considering where I live and my job), and for the first time in as long as I can remember on my way home this summer towards the end of my 5k road trip (~2.5 weeks on the road), I wasn't happy in the JK. My James Baroud tent I loved just as much as when I got it 6-8 years ago, but I was fed up with the 2010. Yeah I knew I could dump money into it to make it far better (gears, suspension, etc), but that was never going to fix the lack of power, lack of space or the leaking roof (every JK I've owned has leaked at the A pillar - if I had to guess I'd say something to do with the ice it has to deal with every winter). I also knew that it was a temp vehicle and never going to be a forever one, so I struggled with dumping money into it. That said, I was hoping to get 4/5 years out of it and not 2 - opps. It wasn't long after my summer trip that I decided to start looking at WK2s, and that realistically given how I've been using my wrangler the past few years, that I didn't need a wrangler. I've had this thought before... (after driving a Cherokee Trailhawk ~4 years ago that a built Cherokee would do 95% of my travels), but at the time I was never prepared to make the move out of a JK. I think now I am - at least for a little while.
And as I've said before... if I find myself unhappy in the WK2, I'll just dump it and go back to a wrangler (or maybe the Gladiator). One thing I will say about being a jeep fan is it makes vehicle shopping extremely easy. Figure out what features you want and your budget, and then go find one. Really stress free. I couldn't imagine trying to pick a regular grocery getter SUV that I was just going to DD out of all the choices there are.
autism family travels
Active member
Well, Sad times have come again to the AFT household, I have to sell the Wrangler in order to trim the fat off our monthly expenses. Our main overland/travel ride will be our patriot again. Not a bad thing, I love the rig. I will be putting a new set of shock, lift, some exterior and interior stuff to take up the slack of losing our main rig.
Jurfie
Adventurer
Look at it as a positive as it will at the very least eliminate some financial stress; we do what we need to do to take care of our family. The memories are more important than the vehicle!
Will follow along with your Pat travels!
autism family travels
Active member
I agree. We are doing much more than just getting rid of the wrangler. We are moving to a more managable house and purging our lives of any un-needed stress. We need this to be done ASAP so we can move forward, these past few years have been rough. We are trading the Wrangler on another nissan micra for great gas milage and payments cut in half. On the up side, when the time comes I will be getting an XJ to replace the wrangler. ha ha.
