Test Drove a Rubicon and a Sport S Back-to-back

[futzin']

Drove a Rubicon, then a non-max-tow Sport S back to back. Fairly short trips, 55-60 mph max.

To me, the Sport S had a smoother ride over bumps. It seemed the Rubicon needed more pedal to maintain speeds, which could just be the gear ratio difference. Was more pedal than I expected though.

Need to test drive a max tow Sport S. And another Rubi, of course, with the Mrs.

Does this jibe with those who've been able to drive them back to back?

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[bgenlvtex]

Drove a Rubicon, then a non-max-tow Sport S back to back. Fairly short trips, 55-60 mph max.

To me, the Sport S had a smoother ride over bumps. It seemed the Rubicon needed more pedal to maintain speeds, which could just be the gear ratio difference. Was more pedal than I expected though.

Need to test drive a max tow Sport S. And another Rubi, of course, with the Mrs.

Does this jibe with those who've been able to drive them back to back?

Sport S wasn't even a consideration to me, but I will say my JT Rubicon rolls down the road with much less effort than my '17 JKR did, despite the JT being 4.10 and the JK being 3.73.

I swear if you got off the gas the JK would come to a complete stop in a half mile (some hyperbole yes).

 

[Choj]

Sport S wasn't even a consideration to me, but I will say my JT Rubicon rolls down the road with much less effort than my '17 JKR did, despite the JT being 4.10 and the JK being 3.73.

I swear if you got off the gas the JK would come to a complete stop in a half mile (some hyperbole yes).

Not sure I've had to use my brakes on my '17 JKUR...

 

[XJ2JTChris]

I did the same thing before i ordered my max tow sport S. To me, for street driving, the rubicon felt too soft....too much body roll/slop. Obviously these are the traits that make the rubicon king when it comes to trails, but I'm on trails maybe once a month if that, otherwise daily driving on the road and towing/hauling. The sport s seemed more responsive and easier to keep tracking around corners with bumps in the road. As for the acceleration and maintaining of speed....they are both underpowered and slow as sh*t in my opinion, the sport s with max tow however, should maintain speed and accelerate SLIGHTLY better because the rubicon has 33" tires as opposed to the sport s coming with what....a 31.5 or 32? Less rolling resistance, less weight etc etc.

 

[WXman]

I drove an Overland, then Sport S Max Tow (the one I ended up with) on the same loop. 4-lane highways, 2-lane roads, and city traffic. To me, the ride was very similar. Almost hard to tell a difference, but the Overland was a little softer.

My frame of reference was the JLU. Imagine the JT Gladiator with 500 lbs. less weight and 3.45 axle gears. That's what I had been in for over a year. So when I went to the Gladiator Max Tow it was a major difference. Felt like it was sluggish. Felt like I really had to apply lots of throttle to accelerate. It's not nearly as nimble as the Wrangler. For me that was really odd. I realized going in that the JT had more weight, but I expected the 4.10s to compensate for a lot of that. They don't.

My Tazer has a 0-60 timer on it. The JLU would run 7 second passes. I did one at 6.92 seconds. This is with 35" mud tires. Quite impressive. The JT feels considerably slower. I need to do a few runs now that the engine is broken in for accurate comparison.

 

[futzin']

An area dealer has two Sport S, one with max tow and one without. Gonna try to get there to drive them. Another has a Rubicon with the brown leather. I've been wanting to lay eyes on that interior.

 

[Renegade]

I drove my Rubicon home yesterday and it was AWESOME! There's WAY too much thought going on here...

 

[futzin']

I drove my Rubicon home yesterday and it was AWESOME! There's WAY too much thought going on here...

Then pace yourself . . .

 

[Renegade]

Then pace yourself . . .

Realistically, we don’t buy Jeeps for logical reasons. If we were logical, we would buy minivans. You’re the only person who can make the decision of which one you want to drive. If you are getting into it that in depth, it might be worth your time to consider checking the air pressure in the tires before you drive each one. Mine had 46 psi in them. This will make a difference in how they drive/handle. Make sure you’re comparing apples to bananas.

 

[Hawkeyes3312]

Realistically, we don’t buy Jeeps for logical reasons. If we were logical, we would buy minivans. You’re the only person who can make the decision of which one you want to drive. If you are getting into it that in depth, it might be worth your time to consider checking the air pressure in the tires before you drive each one. Mine had 46 psi in them. This will make a difference in how they drive/handle. Make sure you’re comparing apples to bananas.

I waited a few minutes to consider whether a reply was worth my time, but my gut totally agrees with your point of view here. This is right in line with the thread regarding mpg where you're getting 16.1 mpg and I'm getting 15.9 mpg and now it warrants a conversation. Probably should not be purchasing a Jeep!

 

[futzin']

I'm buying this thing to both tow with it, AND do some off-roading. If you guys are more into the JEEP culture than I am, that's fine. I'm looking at it as a TRUCK, not a Wrangler.

If you don't feel you have anything to contribute to this 'trivial' thread, then simply don't!

Thanks.

 

[Hawkeyes3312]

I'm buying this thing to both tow with it, AND do some off-roading. If you guys are more into the JEEP culture than I am, that's fine. I'm looking at it as a TRUCK, not a Wrangler.

If you don't feel you have anything to contribute to this 'trivial' thread, then simply don't!

Thanks.

 

[Hawkeyes3312]

I'm buying this thing to both tow with it, AND do some off-roading. If you guys are more into the JEEP culture than I am, that's fine. I'm looking at it as a TRUCK, not a Wrangler.

If you don't feel you have anything to contribute to this 'trivial' thread, then simply don't!

Thanks.

Also, apologies from @Renegade and myself. We were confused. We were 'anchored' on your use of jibe (you used it correctly, but our mistake) as we thought you meant: (jibe ho)

Too many tabs open on my laptop. [closing 'kick ass John Candy sailing forums' now] All good.

 

[futzin']

Love a good Summer Rental reference. RIP, John and Rip.

I'm still a bit miffed about being labeled a troll for asking about towing improvements in another thread. Apparently you can discuss off-roading mods to no end, but not towing ones. I did make the mistake of using phrases like Tow Rating, instead of 'enhancements/mods'.

All good, I'm just not the type to drop 50 large without some research . . . and the dealers won't let you hook up a trailer and go on a test drive. So I'm trying to get info on the JT models that can tow my rig, and decide which one I want.

 

[bgenlvtex]

I'm buying this thing to both tow with it, AND do some off-roading. If you guys are more into the JEEP culture than I am, that's fine. I'm looking at it as a TRUCK, not a Wrangler.

If you don't feel you have anything to contribute to this 'trivial' thread, then simply don't!

Thanks.

From that perspective, and with the understanding that all multi-use vehicles are a compromise, the JT compromises FAR more on the "truck" side than it does on the Jeep side.

So much so in fact, that I would suggest that if you are focused on the "truck" aspect, you would be better served with a truck than a JT.

A half ton, V8 4x4 pick up will handle light off road work easily and will be worlds better at "truck" stuff.

Realistically, if your needs/desires are not weighted to the off road mobility aspect, I think a JT is a poor choice in "trucks"

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