Ha yeah man I don't hate V8s. I just don't trust that Jeep would ever provide an affordable or awesomely fun and powerful V8 option. A $100k Mojave/Rubicon V8 is not appealing at all.
That's a different ball of wax.
As a "base engine" that means it's the stock standard engine, then sure, I'd take a V8 in a JT. If that's what it comes with then sure, okay. What I personally am not interested in is paying a bunch more on an already very expensive vehicle for an engine option...
Except you people on a forum are a tiny miniscule micro fraction of the actual buying public, so don't start to feel too self-important. They got your money already.
Ha yeah a simple cheap power mod the weekend warrior Jeep enthusiast can knock out in his garage on a saturday with some simple harbor freight tools.. 😃
In my experience, going 3.5" is a bit much if you're trying to stay on a budget and retain a bunch of stock parts and geometry. 3.5" will reveal the limitations of the stock parts and adjustability.
If you want cheaper and easier, and still look cool, give up an inch of ego and go with a 2" or...
It's not "gatekeeping". No one is trying to keep JTs pure to authenticity. It's more just.....why? Mopar doesn't even really make a good V8 option. Just cuz it has the word "Hemi" attached to it doesn't mean anything. Toyota Corollas have Hemi heads too. So what.
I'm curious as to how many people really need the inefficient and marginal power of a V8 just to drive to Bass Pro and back.
Jeeps have been climbing and slogging through shit since day one with mediocre engines.
What they're gonna do is have your vehicle sit there just to appease you because there's nothing actually wrong with it and there's zero reason to send in oil samples with every oil change.
I ran a set of cylinder heads and the corresponding valvetrain parts through the dishwasher once. It did not end well for me. The wife was not pleased.