How are Wranglers at soaking up the high speed off road stuff?

[deeve]

Hello all, I am curious how well a Wrangler 2 door or Unlimited Rubicon is as soaking up the high speed off road stuff like you might get on a desert trail? I have been in some vehicles that tend to make it feel like you are beating the heck out of the machine by not slowing down and easing over every dip or pothole. I have been in other vehicles where they seem to just float over the rough stuff. I dont want to abuse the Jeep but I also dont want to be able to cruise comfortably on mild open off road.

I suppose I need to mention that I do not want to have to spend a ton of money to get this capability. I know with enough $$ anything is possible.

Other rides I am looking at is the FJ Cruiser and Tacoma/Tundra TRD Off Road for comparison purposes.

THanks!
DAVE

 

[MTSN]

Anything with a solid axle up front will be harsher and harder to control than an IFS setup which IMO is one of the few areas they actually shine off road. You will never see a solid front axle on a desert racing truck and for good reason. I think it would be quite a bit worse in 2 door as opposed to a 4 door as well due to the much shorter wheelbase. You're right you can throw a bunch of money at it to make it somewhat better, but out of the box the Tacoma will be much better at higher speeds in the desert.

 

[deeve]

Thanks, I do not plan on doing a ton of rock crawling type of off road. More like BCDR type of stuff so on and off road smoothness would take precedence over crawling ability.

DAVE

 

[Comanche Scott]

Jeeps are designed for a slower pace of fun. They are fine on rough trails, until there are whoops. Then the chassis becomes unsettled, requiring the driver slow down and enjoy the scenery, instead of race along with all the rage of a commuter late for their Starbucks appointment.
If you don't want to modify, the Off-Road Turd or Raptor would be better choices. :beer:

If you are open to modifications, check out the Pre-runner kit video from Teraflex. I'm driving a very similar kit, and have not missed my Starbucks appointment even over the roughest whooped out trails. :beer:

 

[deeve]

Lol..I didnt say I wanted to race along and risk missing *$'s! I have done the trips on a dual sport and like a "moderate" pace with lots of stops. I will absolutely check out the Teraflex kit. Thanks!!

DAVE

 

[OCD Overland]

...race along with all the rage of a commuter late for their Starbucks appointment.

I'm sure there are several Starbucks along the WA and OR BCDRs.

 

[deeve]

There are TOOO many starbucks. That Teraflex Prerunner would fall into the expensive suspension category. It looks really nice though.

 

[Comanche Scott]

How I make it to Starbucks on time. Spendy, but well worth it for getting in line before the "competition".

If you think about the cost of a Sport-X with a dealer installed lift kit, versus the price of the other vehicles, it's really not much difference.
If comparing new vehicles, then the kitted Sport would probably be less.
So when considering your choice, think of the "overall cost" out the door.
Then of course there is the "priceless" part of driving naked to Starbucks with the Jeep. That's just not a reality for any of the other vehicles.

 

[romz26]

there are alot of kits out in the world of jeep. Different suspension options. If you look at koh looks like those solid axle vehicles are doing alright in the fast stuff. But those kits are expensive at the cheapest, if your on a budget i would go ifs(granted to do it right long arms and fiberglass is expensive also).

With the jeep, I would start out out with the sport or willis(thats what iam doing, gonna order end of april). Then build it your way. To go fast your going to be changing axles, drive shafts, tires, suspension (at the very least)(btw, not planning to do the gofast stuff with my jeep). With suspension you have regular and coil overs to choose from.

Like most hobbies: you gotta pay to play!

 

[deeve]

I'm thinking of 35-45mph or so on the open sections. I just don't want to feel like I'm beating the snot out of it. I don't know if that is considered fast or not. I do know with my TJ on some roads that was moving pretty good and bouncing all over the place.

 

[SWITAWI]

There are TOOO many starbucks. That Teraflex Prerunner would fall into the expensive suspension category. It looks really nice though.

Yup - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqbdriU_qUg

 

[lbwhotrod]

I built a 08 2dr JK for open desert running. Not for comp just for my own stress relief. 2.5 TF springs, 35's, 4" 5100's, raised shock mounts, short arms, c gussets and lightened the hell out of it. Never broke anything and had a ton of fun. On the same hand I wasn't jumping and mainly stayed to open desert, tracks, and sand washes. How you drive will determine what you break.

 

[deeve]

No jumping for me. Just smooth non bouncy ride. The TF Prerunner vid showed exactly what I was talking about. That suspension is pretty amazing. I feel it it over my budget and like some have mentioned the Wrangler might not be the right tool for this job for me.

 

[comptiger5000]

Making solid axles work in the fast, bumpy stuff is always going to be harder than independent suspension. And by the time you make it work well, it's not cheap.

My ZJ does decently with it (not super comfy, but not bad, and it keeps the tires planted on the ground well) with some much stiffer than stock springs and Bilstein 7100s. So it doesn't take anything insane to get it to work decently, but it does take a lot to get it to work as well as a desert runner truck.

 

[MOguy]

It won't win races but it will still be able to keep up a good pace. I would be more concerned about the short wheel base with a wrangler. My TJ has different shocks and springs and it can do all right. I had an completely stock 2001 Grand Cherokee and it did surprisingly well running like that.

Neither are the vehicle I would choose if my goad was to build a high speed off road vehicle.