New Rubicon or Sport and modify?

[Espo78]

Great thread! Am in the same quandry. Currently own a TJ and looking to get a new JKU only because of the pentastar - else i would have preferred a nicer '08 onwards.
Anyway, my mission is simply scenic overlanding with the wife, no rockcrawling (not until i get my money's worth from the overlanding). Wife and i love the Rubi in the khaki color but am finding the $40k price a bit hard to swallow. Likely will go with the base Sport and use the $7k savings for minor armor and camping luxuries. As i learn more about overlanding, am sure i can justify and future mods i need to make for particular trips.

The khaki color (Sahara Tan) is no longer in production so if that is a color you want you will have a hunt on your hands.

This topic seems to be mainly about choosing 2 brand new vehicles, but if cost savings is why the OP is considering a modified sport over a Rubicon then of course the obvious answer is to buy a used Jeep. They do hold their resale value extremely well so you might get sticker shock when pricing used Jeeps but if you search long enough you will find a good deal. Like I mentioned earlier in another post used Rubicons are even cheaper than used Sports relative to new MSRP.

A lot of Jeeps are second vehicles or pleasure vehicles and you can find many with really low miles that have been well maintained. My 07 only had 32k on it when I bought it a few months ago. I was able to get a really good deal on mine because the soft top was not in the greatest shape and it was obviously taken to the beach fairly often. I'm still getting all the beach sand out of it! I paid 16k for it and bought a used soft top in like new condition for $200 on craigslist. Keep looking and you can find a great deal.

 

[Espo78]

Compared to the short wheelbase Wrangler Sport, the Rubicon costs $7900 more.
The extra cash adds the following. Did I miss anything?

Dana 44 axles front and rear
electric locking diffs front and rear
electric sway bar disconnects
4:1 low range in transfer case
4:10 gears in the differentials
32 spline rear axle shafts
"performance" suspension
32 inch tall BF Goodrich MT tires
17 inch alloy rims
sill guards
three skid plates

power window lifts
premium stereo w/ satellite radio
cruise control
air conditioning

The Sport also has a Dana 44 in the rear, but with an open diff. There is an option for an LSD though. All Jeeps also have the brake lock assist or whatever it is called to give power to the wheel that needs it in a slip condition. Power windows, cruise control and AC are all options on a sport as well. From what I remember the 4.10 gears are standard with the automatic and a no-cost option with the 6 speed otherwise you get 3.73's on the Rubicon model. All the Rubicon differences except the D44 up front can be bolted onto a sport very easily, and used Rubicon parts are not that hard to find. The electronic sway bar disconnects are a nice feature, but hardly necessary. It only takes a couple minutes to unbolt the swaybar and its even quicker if you buy some quick disco's. The Rubirails can be found for $250 or less and a set of 5 Rubicon take off wheels and tires usually for for 700-1000. I'm also pretty sure that all Jeeps get the same skid plates but not 100% on that one. If you don't buy a 2012 model you will want to invest in a skid for the evap canister for sure.

 

[Septu]

The khaki color (Sahara Tan) is no longer in production so if that is a color you want you will have a hunt on your hands.

This topic seems to be mainly about choosing 2 brand new vehicles, but if cost savings is why the OP is considering a modified sport over a Rubicon then of course the obvious answer is to buy a used Jeep.

The OP also stated that he would only consider a 2012 model due to the new engine.

 

[Espo78]

There are used 2012's on the market.

 

[haven]

Here's what Edmunds Inside Line says about Sport vs Rubicon
http://blogs.insideline.com/roadtests/2012/04/2012-jeep-wrangler-rubicon-or-sport.html

They like the Sport, because they were planning on adding 35 inch tires and a suspension lift right from the start. Their recommendation: Don't overlook the $50 option to add 3.73 gears to the Sport.

 

[Bigjerm]

Just a matter of personal opinion really... I had a 6 speed 2007 Rubicon and it was great on trails with the lockers and E-disco and the 4:1 but I also now own a 2006 LJ (sport) with an Antirock sway bar, aussie locker in the front and factory limited slip rear and can walk things people with the Rubicon cant. I still think the Rubicon is a better rig, but if you don't need it, then I don't see much point in spending money on it. Plenty of reports of bent axle housings on JKowners with the front D44, failed e-disco systems, lockers not engaging and so on. Point is you can find good and bad reasons to go Sport over Rubicon or the other way, just up to you.

 

[voodoojk]

guess ill chime in. Been driving and modding a 2007 2 dr x since...well 2007 and dropped a **** ton of money.

Right now im in a 3.5" aev on 37's. winch ect ect. I have been everywhere my rubi freinds have been with no problem but If i had to do it again, i would def go rubicon 4 dr. Keep it stock except bumpers and winch. Maybe bump up to a 33" tire. Put on aluminum skids, plenty of lighting ( LED ) Gobi rack and that rig will go pretty much anywhere in the world except for the most extreme rock crawlin trails and be perfect for overlanding with near stock dependability.
having a 2 dr i hate it for living out west and camping. 1) not enough room 2)a 4 dr wheel base makes for a less fatiguing ride and better on moab ledges and extreme climbs found in moab area. 3)The resale will be better on a 4 dr rubi hands down. it's the top of the line model. it will hold value for a long time.

 

[JKR]

I think most of us had the same thought when we went shopping for a jeep. I looked into axle swaps they were going to be around $9,000 then you still have the ARB air pump and the time to install it. But you still don't have the sway bar discount or 4:1LO. Not to mention your looking for new jeep. And the dealership might give you trouble on modifications to your jeep if you need anything fixed under warranty.

I have driven on almost every terrain and in places that I figured would not slow me down. An that is when I am glad I have a Rubicon.

 

[Beowulf]

To me a Rubicon is like any other peice of equipement. Why buy what will just get you by. It is better to have the safety margin. Like owning a winch. I have used it for a real reason once, but was glad I had it. I rarely use my lockers, but am glad they are there.

Unless money is an issue, I say just get the Unlimited Rubicon and enjoy the fact that you have plenty of buffer for whatever you might encounter.

 

[Rovertrader]

Funny, as that was a major reason I went Sahara- wanted mechanical lockers, as when you need them, you need them. Never fail, no solenoids or air lines, etc.

 

[jam]

Lots of good information here - thanks for all the thoughtful replies.

 

[Longtallsally]

I just finished a 3100+ mile break in of a '12 JKUR. I would NOT have gotten a Sport or a Sahara. On the trip about 500 miles were off road from CO on. The only time I used 4 low was in Moab, and for a couple obstacles in NV I think. I never used the lockers and disconnected the sway bar a few times.

The bottom line is that the Rubicon is DONE. No need for lockers, no need to upgrade the stereo, it already has all the toys and luxury you could want. And contrary to popular belief, the GPS has a good number of trails on it- to the degree that when we crossed over into CA from NV, it was on a trail on the GPS.

We drove in every condition from close to triple digits, to through snow. I set the cruise at 75 mph with the AC on, and used the heated seats in CO a couple times. I did low speed crawling and some rather irresponsible drifting on sand and dirt roads at close to 70 mph quite a bit. I was simply stupefied at the performance. This was with a few hundred pounds of gear and a 100 lb dog as well. All in, the average on the trip was over 18 mpg. My only complaint was that the tire squirm at speed in high cross winds makes it a rather engaging drive as opposed to relaxing.

This was my experience and it is coming from a pretty heavily modified YJ I purchased new in '95.

Now to where I look at numbers. Frankly, the $7k won't get you very far in terms of what you might want to modify to. Lockers, lift, and tires, just ate that savings and you still won't be to the level of the Rubicon for comfort or capability (low range mainly and no D44 up front). The Rubicon COMES with all that. Are they the best lockers? No. Is it the best sway bar disconnect system? No. Does it have 37" tires an a massive lift? No. But it will go a good number of places that the ones that have all that, while still retaining stock driving and fuel economy characteristics.

So for me, it was worth the extra money to get the Rubicon as I just got to concentrate on enjoying the drive as opposed to wishing, waiting, and hoping for the next greatest "mod" to put on it. As far as I'm concerned, I'm putting some armor underneath, a winch on the front, a high lift, and a few other doo dads and the Jeep will be on its namesake before the end of the year. In the mean time, it is still a comfy family car for us getting just over 20 mpg in "normal" use.