JT Feature Summary & Diesel Thoughts

[Armycop]

For me the gas version makes the most sense. I don't do heavy towing and it's more of a daily commuter. The initial cost of the diesel version plus the fact that diesel costs more than unleaded here negates any mileage benefits. Plus I prefer the 6 speed anyway. I still have bad memories of my father's old VW Rabbit diesel sputtering and smoking along.

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[RAM]

Keep researching and decide for yourself what works for you. Either way we will both have the most capable off road truck out there, we will have an open air top options, and there will be more bolt on mods to customize then you can shake a stick at. Bottom line both powertrains will be awesome trucks!

Thanks for the link... interesting discussion. I'll definitely keep doing research to decide if the diesel is right for me.

But I agree with you... will be an awesome truck either way. Can't wait for the final details to be released and for the darn thing to get here! Just wish I could find the fast forward button!

 

[Vegas_Sirk]

As someone that just drove about 20 hours in their JK with the V6 through the Sierra mountains I can tell you I cant wait to get out of this V6. Diesel or nothing going forward.

 

[RAM]

As someone that just drove about 20 hours in their JK with the V6 through the Sierra mountains I can tell you I cant wait to get out of this V6. Diesel or nothing going forward.

I'd love for you to provide some details explaining why. I have a 2005 LJ that had the I6 when I bought it. I later converted to a Chevy LS 6.0L with a Chevy 4L60E auto tranny. The I6 was fine off-road, but on the highway with larger tires and heavier bumpers it just didn't have any guts.

What transmission do you have in your JKU? I've got a friend that has a 2016 JK with manual transmission, and he really likes how it drives. But I don't know that he's spent any time driving through mountains. I believe the 3.6L in the 2016 was the same as the one in the 2013, right?

I'm hoping that matching that engine with the 8-speed auto tranny will make a big difference...

 

[Vegas_Sirk]

Its just gutless. I have the auto and going on mountain passes it also hunts for gears a lot. I don't understand why they can't just put motors with power in these vehicles. Why dose it always have to be "good enough"? I feel like everyone says its due to emissions and fuel econ standards but I think thats horse crap, as the driver has to put their foot into the gas more to get the vehicle to move.

 

[homerun]

RAM

Here is another link to a 3.0 and 3.6 thread. I didn’t read it so I don’t know how interesting the conversation was but thought you miight want to take a look.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...-cited-by-ram-drivers.3303/page-5#post-293513

 

[RAM]

RAM Here is another link to a 3.0 and 3.6 thread. I didn’t read it so I don’t know how interesting the conversation was but thought you miight want to take a look. https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...-cited-by-ram-drivers.3303/page-5#post-293513

Thanks for the link. A lot of good discussion and information about diesels in general...

As much as I'm attracted to the torque with the diesel I'm beginning to wonder if I'd just be better off with the 3.6. Then 6-8 years down the road do a Hemi conversion if I am not satisfied with the 3.6 performance.

I haven't looked into tuning the 3.6, so I need to check into that. Is there much that can be accomplished tuning the 3.6 to improve performance without killing gas mileage too much? The 6.0L LS in my LJ gets 12 mpg regardless of how I drive it. While I love the hp and torque I'd want to keep the gas mileage much higher with the truck.

 

[RAM]

With the 3.6L having been around a while it looks like there are some pretty decent and proven superchargers out there that claim 80-100 hp and 60-70 lb-ft increase at the wheels with around 6 psi boost. They are bolt-on and plug-n-play and in the mid $5K range from some pretty decent names. So down the road if the 3.6L didn't have enough guts this could be a pretty good alternative to a Hemi conversion.

https://www.magnusonsuperchargers.com/product-p/01-13-36-005-bl.htm
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/edl-1527

Hmmmm... I might be leaning toward the 3.6L with that 8-speed auto tranny...

 

[homerun]

Why that auto? is that just a preference or do you believe these superchargers you are looking at will be to much for the m/t to handle?

 

[RAM]

Why that auto? is that just a preference or do you believe these superchargers you are looking at will be to much for the m/t to handle?

More than anything it's just a preference as I think either tranny would handle the supercharger just fine (at least the way I would set up and use the supercharger).

This would be a daily driver that would be somewhat equally driven between myself and my wife and replacing our current 2015 Chevy Z71 pickup with auto tranny. I enjoy driving m/t on occasion (especially the more sporty the vehicle is), but for a daily driver I really prefer an auto.

 

[smlobx]

I have a '14 GC EcoDiesel and when you upgrade to that engine you also get the upgraded transmission and larger brakes so for me it was a no brainer.
I currently have about 50 k on her and have averaged over 26mpg over that time and can get over 30 on the highway if I don't go toooo fast! That's significantly better than the 3.6 gasser....plus the torque is amazing!

 

[RAM]

I have a '14 GC EcoDiesel and when you upgrade to that engine you also get the upgraded transmission and larger brakes so for me it was a no brainer.
I currently have about 50 k on her and have averaged over 26mpg over that time and can get over 30 on the highway if I don't go toooo fast! That's significantly better than the 3.6 gasser....plus the torque is amazing!

Do you have any thoughts about the EcoDiesel and primarily short trips? We run into town almost daily which is only about 15 miles to shop/eat/etc. then return home. On the weekends we make longer trips where we would travel at highway speeds for at least 30 minutes or longer.

Having never owned a diesel I'm concerned about the majority of our use being 15 - 20 mile trips into town...

 

[Karnaj]

Do you have any thoughts about the EcoDiesel and primarily short trips? We run into town almost daily which is only about 15 miles to shop/eat/etc. then return home. On the weekends we make longer trips where we would travel at highway speeds for at least 30 minutes or longer.

Having never owned a diesel I'm concerned about the majority of our use being 15 - 20 mile trips into town...

My opinion, as long as you do one weekly highway trip you should be fine. your situation sounds ok.

 

[smlobx]

^^^^
I agree.

 

[Wraith]

I go back and forth on the 3.6 vs 3.0 regularly. Part of me says I've never needed a diesel before but then I think the figures alone might sway me to purchasing one. It really comes down to cost versus perceived value for me and whether or not I feel it's worth it longterm. If it comes down to either purchasing the JT Rubicon variant or a lower tier with a diesel I'm still not sure which direction I'll go. I do intend to keep the JT indefinitely so resale value isn't something I'm too concerned about.

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