For Those with a Manual... Care to Comment?

[RavensEyeOffroad]

I want 37s mainly to help with the wheelbase and the resulting breakover and departure angles. Around here the wheeling is mainly big trees, big rocks and mud. 37s on up to 40s are pretty common on the trails here.

As for towing, I would do either 37s or towing, not both. Big tires just make towing more complicated than it needs to be. Big off road tires are basically the opposite of what you want for towing Naturally some will want to do both, but the larger flexy sidewalls are not the best for stability and the larger diameter is going to hurt the overall gearing. If I get a Gladiator Rubicon and end up going to 37s I will probably drop down to 4.88s or so. I have 4.10s in my D60s on my Ramcharger and with the granny gear 4 speed it is tolerable, but it definitely needs more gear to crawl. The Rubi's low range will help off road, but the lack of V8 torque is going to hurt it with tall tires and mediocre gearing for both towing or off road.

I think the towing would be pretty far off and maybe more of a pipe dream. Just have to see what life throws at us in the next year or two really.

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[Dr Kel]

Is your Gladiator a Rubicon? (i.e. Does it have the 4.10 or 3.73 gear ratio?)

It’s an Overland, so 3.73.

 

[HTXGladiator]

The gears are weirdly spaced I agree. In normal driving 30 or so in 2nd would be over 3k rpm so you go to 3rd and it drops to like 1800 lugging the engine. I can set the cruise at 37 in 3rd and be fine though. I can use 4th at anything above 45 hills or flat ground. If they had a gear between 2-3 giving up one OD it would have been a smoother experience. I still like it though my Charger had the 3.6/8speed which was a great powertrain but if there's a manual option I will take it everytime.

Yeah, I think 2nd should be a little closer to first, then third a little lower as well. Even out the spacing some. I still love it anyway.

 

[Bruticus]

I've had my manual for a couple months. Stalled it twice within the first week until I got used to it, now it's great. Seriously though, all manuals are different... even great ones. If you don't spend enough time with it, then you'll think it's garbage. But I've owned everything from Miatas to Porsches to trucks and Jeeps--all with manuals. And this one is better than all of them except the Miata.

 

[meon4wheels]

I just received my Gladiator Rubicon with 37s and 2 in lift. Coming from a 2011 Rubicon JK Unlimited with 35’s I’m much happier with the JT. At some point I may go to 4:88s or 5:13s but not right away. I wanted the diesel for torque but wanted a stick even more. Happy with my choice Jim.

 

[wannajeep]

I ordered the Rubi with manual and I tow a 3,300 lb trailer twice a year (plus occasional other trips), plus a 2,000+ load every weekend in the summer.

Test drove the auto, not the manual, but for a Jeep/truck I definitely want a manual. It's a lifestyle thing. My JK manual 2-door was okay, not great, at towing the 3,300+ load. I think it's more about the 3.6L Pentastar. It's just not meant for towing 3K+ no matter how it's geared (my opinion). How Jeep can claim the JT will tow 7K+ lb is beyond me.

That said, I know the tradeoffs, and having a manual transmission jeep pickup is exciting enough that I'll live with some expected tradeoffs. Two overdrive gears will be, umm, interesting. I will say the unloaded auto drove very well and seemed quite responsive (for a 3.6L).

 

[MotoBrad]

I picked up my custom ordered JTR manual just 3 days ago, and I'm less than 100 miles deep so far, but I am very pleased with the transmission. I never got a chance to test drive a JL or JT manual before I ordered, so I really had no idea what to expect other than "truck like". My summer car is an E39 M5, and the winter car I traded in for this Jeep was a Subaru STi, so I sort of come from the performance car world. To me, it feels fairly slow, but I knew that going in, and is honestly exactly what I was looking for to keep me out of speeding tickets. I find the clutch to feel predictable and responsive, and the throws are not nearly as "Trucky" as I was expecting. But the fun factor sure is there, not just 6 gears, but 12 to play with! It's very satisfying. But it is screaming to me for a regear, I think this rev happy engine would excell with 5.38 or something. Especially when I go to bigger tires. In these parts, we have more hills than highways.

 

[Jim_n_Tx]

Going from an '06 TJ Rubicon (I6 and 6 speed manual) to the JT with a 6 speed manual is a real trip. The lack of low end torque with the v6 and the choices of ratios for the transmission cause me to question the choice of the manual trans in the JT. I love to drive the TJ and so far, am struggling with getting used to the JT - hopefully more experience with it will result in a more enjoyable ride.

 

[WildJD]

I just received my Gladiator Rubicon with 37s and 2 in lift. Coming from a 2011 Rubicon JK Unlimited with 35’s I’m much happier with the JT. At some point I may go to 4:88s or 5:13s but not right away. I wanted the diesel for torque but wanted a stick even more. Happy with my choice Jim.

So, you still running 37s with 4:10? Any issues? Did you recalibrate Speedo? Does the 3.6L have enough power? ;{

 

[Rafael's Jive]

To me, it feels fairly slow, but I knew that going in, and is honestly exactly what I was looking for to keep me out of speeding tickets.

When I bought my WRX 10 years ago, my brother told me, "That car will attract teenage boys, and state troopers". He is mostly right. The state troopers walk up next to me and ask me why I am driving my kid's car.

Rob

 

[WildJD]

When I bought my WRX 10 years ago, my brother told me, "That car will attract teenage boys, and state troopers". He is mostly right. The state troopers walk up next to me and ask me why I am driving my kid's car.

Rob

I’ve already been pulled over... asked about my tint... said they couldn’t see my temp plate!;{

 

[augustwest]

Seems I never get to 6th with this thing. I'm doing 80-85 in 5th, if I go to 6th I immediately start dropping speed. I'm on lots of up and down hills so maybe thats the issue but not sure I'll ever use 6th. Think I also need to just get used to a manual trans again, been driving an automatic for 12 years but I really dont remember ever down shifting once I got to top speed. I find myself even going down to 4th on the highway when I get down to 70.

 

[WXman]

Well, you have to admit, it IS odd that they made 2nd thru 6th taller in this new trans. Why on earth would you do that on a Jeep? That was a stupid move on their part. And it only exacerbates the already low torque of the engine.

This trans has been in Jeeps for two years now and I've always thought they pushed it toward fuel economy more than driveability.

 

[Toycrusher2]

Well, you have to admit, it IS odd that they made 2nd thru 6th taller in this new trans. Why on earth would you do that on a Jeep? That was a stupid move on their part. And it only exacerbates the already low torque of the engine.

This trans has been in Jeeps for two years now and I've always thought they pushed it toward fuel economy more than driveability.

It would definitely be more useful to have five gears between 1st and OD. Current setup is more like a 3 speed with granny low considering 5th and 6th are pretty useless except on flat ground

 

[augustwest]

Knowing nothing about cars, is staying in the lower gears crushing my gas mileage? Seen people on here getting 18-19 mpg. I’m at 14.2. Only had the thing a week so that might not be accurate. I’m on 35s and not much highway driving, still figured it would be better then that.

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