2022 Willys Sport M/T thoughts

[Medical_Bartender]

Well it's official! I picked up my 2022 willys sport a few days ago and drove it ~1200 miles back home. I had plenty of time to think and compare during the drive, so here goes.

Manual tranny: Definitely much different than the JK and ram 2500 m/t I've been driving over the past years. It's extremely light and the bite point seems very narrow before the engine bogs down and dies. It reminds me of a buddy's VW Golf R - very sporty and light feeling. I have an appointment with a local exhaust shop next week to get some work done that will at least let me hear what the engine is doing. When I hopped back into my JK after driving the JT 1200 miles home I was surprised at how heavy it's clutch felt. Overall, I don't mind the manual in the JT, however it will take some getting used to when I flip flop between the two jeeps.

Comfort: I'm no stranger to long distance driving in the jeep and ram 2500. The JT was moderately comfortable for the 7 hour and 12 hour drives I did on both days. I noticed some slight back pain the day after I returned the went away after a workout, stretch, and good nights sleep in my own bed. The seats are much more firm than any other vehicle I've been in. I think this is tolerable, but anything more than 8 hours straight i'd shy away from. The suspension on the other hand is AMAZING. It soaks up all of the bumps on the road and is smooooooooth. Granted i'm coming from a short wheelbase jeep and a 3/4 diesel, but the ride is very comfortable.

Tech: I ordered the willys sport. I wanted manual everything because I have a KISS mindset and don't mind the extra effort in exchange for greater (in my opinion) reliability. The windows are perfect, the locks are a pain to get to in the rear as expected. However I thought one could simply use the rear door handle to open/unlock the door simultaneously, but this isn't the case. The lock must be unlocked manually first, then the door handle can be used to open the door. I don't know why they wouldn't make the mechanism the same as the front where the inside handle will unlock and open the door with one pull...but oh well. The 7in screen is sharp and snappy. Also, I was worried that with the 7inch screen in a "sport" model that I would only be able to control the volume with the buttons behind the steering wheel. I'm happy to say that this is NOT the case. I have the same controls as the sport S with/tech package that has the blue/red arrows to control the temperature, along with a volume, fan, and tune knob. It has the perfect amount of tech and not tech in my opinion.

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask or DM me. I know there's not a ton of info on the sport models around here so I'd be happy to help in any way if i can.

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[NachoRuby]

I believe the reason the clutch feels similar to the golf r is that they both have dual mass flywheels. Since my last car was a mk7 VW, I was already used to it. But my wife has a JK as well, and it is weird driving that after driving the JT. My wife is better at switching to my JT than I am with her JKU though.

Oh, and the rear doors are that way because of kids. They pull on the latch while it's locked, and bad things happen.

 

[Medical_Bartender]

I believe the reason the clutch feels similar to the golf r is that they both have dual mass flywheels. Since my last car was a mk7 VW, I was already used to it. But my wife has a JK as well, and it is weird driving that after driving the JT. My wife is better at switching to my JT than I am with her JKU though.

Oh, and the rest doors are that way because of kids. They pull on the latch while it's locked, and bad things happen.

This is true. I'm also used to the direct linkage on both my JK and Dodge rather than the cable linkage in these new rigs. It's very jarring for the first few shifts going from the JK to the JT - i'll get it down though.

And I get the kiddo safety factor. It would just be much easier to reach back and flip the latch rather than hunt for the smaller door lock to flip open.

 

[BA33]

You'll find the clutch to be just fine after a while. I know I killed my 2020 JL a few times early on, but it gets better after you get some miles on it.

 

[bd100]

The engine and transmission get much better after break in. More at:

Engine and manual transmission break in

 

[Rahkmalla]

Another vote on the manual getting smoother on break in. Mine only has 2600 miles but it feels nicer today than it did on day 1. Less bite, more range for a smooth transition for thing like hill starts (I turned off hill start assist).

As for the trim, if I hadn't wanted 4.10s, I think I would have gone willys sport. I already took off my hinge retention pins and pushed in my front door stops, with a willys sport I would disconnect the door ajar sensors and make taking my doors off even easier.

 

[Medical_Bartender]

Another vote on the manual getting smoother on break in. Mine only has 2600 miles but it feels nicer today than it did on day 1. Less bite, more range for a smooth transition for thing like hill starts (I turned off hill start assist).

As for the trim, if I hadn't wanted 4.10s, I think I would have gone willys sport. I already took off my hinge retention pins and pushed in my front door stops, with a willys sport I would disconnect the door ajar sensors and make taking my doors off even easier.

Good to know about the transition smoothing after it gets some miles. Learning this transmission has me almost feeling like I did just learning to drive stick..just a smidge of anxiety at stops in traffic because I don't want to be that guy stalling with a load of cars behind me haha. Thankfully it hasn't happened yet and I'm sure it won't as long as I'm careful.

 

[Rahkmalla]

Good to know about the transition smoothing after it gets some miles. Learning this transmission has me almost feeling like I did just learning to drive stick..just a smidge of anxiety at stops in traffic because I don't want to be that guy stalling with a load of cars behind me haha. Thankfully it hasn't happened yet and I'm sure it won't as long as I'm careful.

I turned off hill assist because sometimes it felt like it was assisting a little too long, especially in reverse. The only time I stalled my gladiator was in reverse and it felt like it didn't want to move. No proof it was hill start messing with me, but it's felt different and better since i've turned it off so who knows. YMMV

 

[redriderjf87]

I don't understand the reasoning to change to the dual mass flywheel/clutch. That being said, in my experience you'll get used to it and it won't be a big deal. Just have to slip it a hair longer from a stop.

What color you get? Manual stuff rocks

 

[Ryan...]

I've test driven a couple Gladiators, all with the auto transmission which I thought was perfectly fine.

Test drove a Willy's with the manual a couple days ago. I was pretty shocked at how light the clutch was, it was almost impossible to tell where the bite point was. I was glad for the hill assist because I felt like I was guessing where the clutch would grab each time I started in 1st.

Shifter felt great, was also surprised at how much that engine likes to be revved.

Unfortunately, I'm even more on the fence now regarding manual vs auto when it comes time for me to pull the trigger!

 

[Medical_Bartender]

I don't understand the reasoning to change to the dual mass flywheel/clutch. That being said, in my experience you'll get used to it and it won't be a big deal. Just have to slip it a hair longer from a stop.

What color you get? Manual stuff rocks

I agree with you, getting used to it doesn't take too long. The flip flopping between 3 different manual trannys keeps things interesting haha.

I went with Gobi. Really REALLY wanted snazberry but that wasn't an option when I ordered unfortunately.

 

[Medical_Bartender]

I've test driven a couple Gladiators, all with the auto transmission which I thought was perfectly fine.

Test drove a Willy's with the manual a couple days ago. I was pretty shocked at how light the clutch was, it was almost impossible to tell where the bite point was. I was glad for the hill assist because I felt like I was guessing where the clutch would grab each time I started in 1st.

Shifter felt great, was also surprised at how much that engine likes to be revved.

Unfortunately, I'm even more on the fence now regarding manual vs auto when it comes time for me to pull the trigger!

I test drove a couple automatic gladiators as well before I placed my order but I'm still 100% glad I went with the manual. It is still a bit of guessing game regarding the bite point but I'm finding that It doesn't take too long to get a feel for the clutch travel required for a smooth start even though I can't really feel it.

The 3.6 definitely is rev happy. My only complaint, oddly enough, is how quiet it is. I have an appointment tomorrow to get some exhaust work done. It's so quiet that today I was cruising along the interstate at 3500 rpms for 5-10 seconds or so because I just couldn't hear any engine noise. Not hearing the engine while driving stick is almost like watching a concert on mute. Just missing a whole piece of the puzzle.

Good luck in your decision!

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