The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

[redriderjf87]

Isn't first considered in granny gear territory at 5.13, it's the deepest jeep has offered since T-98/T-18 optional 4 speeds (6.32, teamed up to the 72 horse power Fhead 134) and reverse gear (4.49) is only beat by this transmission as well. The 6 speed in the JK/TJ was first gear 4.46 and reverse 4.06. I think you feel the torque/HP curves, the 3.6L isn't peaking torque until 4400 rpm, HP at 6400 rpm, in comparison Jeep liked to state the 4.0L made 90% of its torque by like 2000 rpm (peaked 3200), HP peaked by 4600 rpm. I personally like 2 overdrives, always find myself looking for 7th in the NSG370 6th's a little short at .84, .78 in the NVG 3550 always felt better with that engine. Anyways this means revving it to use 1st/R to get any use out of them but precludes crawling slow easily/stalling issues, you can start in 6th on flat with the 4.0L, try that with the 3.6L.

Agreed, I personally like how the ratios are spread out - I think the only real issue is the diff ratio is mismatched for the 3.6 torque curve like you mentioned.

I'll take 1st and reverse as short as I can get them. Make it easy on the clutch, especially if towing or hauling.

Sponsored

 

[Cripton805]

Agreed, I personally like how the ratios are spread out - I think the only real issue is the diff ratio is mismatched for the 3.6 torque curve like you mentioned.

I'll take 1st and reverse as short as I can get them. Make it easy on the clutch, especially if towing or hauling.

I had a Wrangler Sport and I 100% agree with you. The manual trans has terrible ratios. I regretted my purchase and traded it in for an Auto JT the same week I test drove an auto Rubi JL.

 

[NachoRuby]

Agreed, I personally like how the ratios are spread out - I think the only real issue is the diff ratio is mismatched for the 3.6 torque curve like you mentioned.

I'll take 1st and reverse as short as I can get them. Make it easy on the clutch, especially if towing or hauling.

Gearing makes a big difference. All the manuals should come with a 4.1 final drive, not just Rubicons and Mojaves. I think they geared the transmission around the 4.1 final drive, and then decided later to use 3.73s. No issues in the forward gears with 4.1s, but reverse is still a little tall if backing up a steep hill in 2hi (no problems in low range).

 

[AstroZombie]

Gearing makes a big difference. All the manuals should come with a 4.1 final drive, not just Rubicons and Mojaves. I think they geared the transmission around the 4.1 final drive, and then decided later to use 3.73s. No issues in the forward gears with 4.1s, but reverse is still a little tall if backing up a steep hill in 2hi (no problems in low range).

Who knows why they chose what they chose. 3.73 will promote better fuel economy. that's why they used 3:07 of whatever it was. That's the first thing i look at when scoping out jeeps. Even if you had 3:73 and swapped in 4:10 they are so close It's unlikely you'd notice any significant difference. 4:10 is nice because the teeth never hit the same place 2 times in a row. THis could increase the life of the ring/pinion. I think 4:88 might be perfect for it but i have no real world experience with that ratio.

 

[dcmdon]

I've had my Jeep for 3 weeks now and some of the things I love and hate are:

1) No variable intermitent and/or rain sensing wipers?? Come on my 04 Subaru had variable intermittent wipers. That's ridiculous in a 60k truck. Its like the wiper stalk is from the lowest end Fiat you can buy.

2) Wind noise. I knew it would be this way going in. But I still don't like it.
3) Fuel economy. I wasn't expecting much. But I was expecting better than 14 mpg.
4) Apple car play sucks. This is my first experience with this, and the issues I have aren't specific to jeep. But it does suck. Very disappointing. I was hoping to be able to stow my phone in the center console.
5) you must do a very specific dance to lock the rear axle. Its a pain in the butt. You should be able to just push the button and it happens (Fixed with the Tazer)
6) Passenger seat heater should come on with remote start (fixed with Tazer)


Things that I are better than expected.
1) totally surprised at this but the seats are very good despite not having a lot of adjustment.
2) Ride is much better than I expected. it seems to have gotten better over the last 2k miles.
3) power is better than I expected based on test drives.
4) Falken AT's performance in the snow.
5) Fob based remote start. My wife's Volvo has internet/app based remote start and its great when you are at the ski area and want to start the car when you are half mile away. But when its in your driveway its a bit of a pain in the ass. The ability to just push the button twice while its still in your pocket is super convenient.

 

[AstroZombie]

I've had my Jeep for 3 weeks now and some of the things I love and hate are:

1) No variable intermitent and/or rain sensing wipers?? Come on my 04 Subaru had variable intermittent wipers. That's ridiculous in a 60k truck. Its like the wiper stalk is from the lowest end Fiat you can buy.

2) Wind noise. I knew it would be this way going in. But I still don't like it.
3) Fuel economy. I wasn't expecting much. But I was expecting better than 14 mpg.
4) Apple car play sucks. This is my first experience with this, and the issues I have aren't specific to jeep. But it does suck. Very disappointing. I was hoping to be able to stow my phone in the center console.
5) you must do a very specific dance to lock the rear axle. Its a pain in the butt. You should be able to just push the button and it happens (Fixed with the Tazer)
6) Passenger seat heater should come on with remote start (fixed with Tazer)


Things that I are better than expected.
1) totally surprised at this but the seats are very good despite not having a lot of adjustment.
2) Ride is much better than I expected. it seems to have gotten better over the last 2k miles.
3) power is better than I expected based on test drives.
4) Falken AT's performance in the snow.
5) Fob based remote start. My wife's Volvo has internet/app based remote start and its great when you are at the ski area and want to start the car when you are half mile away. But when its in your driveway its a bit of a pain in the ass. The ability to just push the button twice while its still in your pocket is super convenient.

i have my heated seats set to come on when i remote start but they never do. I too was disappointed that ther ewas not a wireless Apple car play. I hate the wiper stalk but have acclimated. Locking the axle is a pain in the ass. It unlocks if you turn it off too. so if you're on the trail and stop for lunch of it turns off when you stop for relief you have to do the dance all over again or maybe i am thinking about the sway bar. You should be able to lock the axle in 2wd, and 4 high also.
YES MPG! i have never gotten better than 16

 

[redriderjf87]

3.73 will promote better fuel economy.

I disagree with that, at least with the manual.

It is worse for city mpg, highway mpg below 65 mph, and above 65 mph hitting a slope or headwind and have to step on the gas.

 

[Gvsukids]

I've had my Jeep for 3 weeks now and some of the things I love and hate are:

1) No variable intermitent and/or rain sensing wipers?? Come on my 04 Subaru had variable intermittent wipers. That's ridiculous in a 60k truck. Its like the wiper stalk is from the lowest end Fiat you can buy.

2) Wind noise. I knew it would be this way going in. But I still don't like it.
3) Fuel economy. I wasn't expecting much. But I was expecting better than 14 mpg.

5) Fob based remote start. My wife's Volvo has internet/app based remote start and its great when you are at the ski area and want to start the car when you are half mile away. But when its in your driveway its a bit of a pain in the ass. The ability to just push the button twice while its still in your pocket is super convenient.

1-do you have the base sport? Otherwise intermittent wipers are on the future gladiator, twist the end of the stalk.

2-headliners reduce cabin noise.

3-a Jeep is a brick, very common complaint on here.

5-UConnect app allows for web-based remote start.

i have my heated seats set to come on when i remote start but they never do.

Temperature outside has to be less than 40°on the Jeep thermometer. The outside temperature reading won't always be accurate with the current temperature.

 

[AstroZombie]

1-do you have the base sport? Otherwise intermittent wipers are on the future gladiator, twist the end of the stalk.

2-headliners reduce cabin noise.

3-a Jeep is a brick, very common complaint on here.

5-UConnect app allows for web-based remote start.


Temperature outside has to be less than 40°on the Jeep thermometer. The outside temperature reading won't always be accurate with the current temperature.

Makes sense. I just never really cared to figure it out. The heater is too hot anyways. Yup, my heater gets too hot. Always has in every jeep I have owned. Way to flipping hot. I cruise at about 73 all the time. And that gets too hot sometimes.

 

[chaosjake]

Good:

1. Weight distribution front to rear makes it handle snow surprisingly well in 2WD.
2. Falken ATs are a lot better than I expected, and the stock tire size feels better than I expected. I initially planned to immediately replace them with a set of KO2s in 315/70R17, but now I might run these until they wear out... or at least until I get some money back in my pocket.
3. Great forward visibility over the hood.
4. Better power than the Tacoma.
5. For a pickup, shockingly smooth and cushy on-road ride... I'm coming from a WRX and a Tacoma with a broken frame, so maybe I'm not the best judge of this?
6. The level of tech in the Rubicon is impressive, from Android Auto to the trail cam to the ability to choose whether the heated seats and wheel come on with a remote start.
7. Adaptive cruise control. I didn't know whether I would like it. I like it. I hope the collision avoidance works as well as the ACC.
8. Edit: The truck looks phenomenal. Every time I walk by it, I'm like "dang, that's a good looking truck."

Bad:

1. Why is the windshield so small? I usually drive in a very upright seating position, but I have my seat tilted back as far as I think is safe to get my head low enough to see out the windshield... and I'm not that tall.
2. Gas mileage isn't great, but that isn't a surprise.
3. Why isn't there a place to put my left foot? My Tacoma was also an auto, and it had a nice molded-in dead pedal. My WRX has a nice footrest for when I'm not on the clutch. I have a cheap Amazon dead pedal to install when it's not freezing out, but this was a real disappointment.

Ugly:
The seats suck ass. I cannot for the life of me get comfortable in the driver's seat. I'm constantly sliding forward off the seat and pushing myself back with my left foot (which doesn't have a footrest to push back against). The lumbar support adjusts from bad to worse. The entire seat sits 6 inches too high. The headrest doesn't tilt. After about 15 minutes, I start getting sore. I'm questioning whether I need to invest big bucks in aftermarket seats to make it worth keeping the truck, or if I should just sell it. I can't imagine going on a road trip in this thing.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

4:10 is nice because the teeth never hit the same place 2 times in a row. THis could increase the life of the ring/pinion.

3.73 doesn't, either..... (41/11) but it doesn't really matter... they eventually do line up.
I've never seen any differential gears wear sooner or later than others because of the ratio. Too many other factors out there to kill 'em.

The seats suck ass. I cannot for the life of me get comfortable in the driver's seat. I'm constantly sliding forward off the seat and pushing myself back with my left foot (which doesn't have a footrest to push back against). The lumbar support adjusts from bad to worse. The entire seat sits 6 inches too high. The headrest doesn't tilt. After about 15 minutes, I start getting sore. I'm questioning whether I need to invest big bucks in aftermarket seats to make it worth keeping the truck, or if I should just sell it. I can't imagine going on a road trip in this thing.

And yet my family, and many others, find these seats crazy comfortable. Every "body" is a different size and shape. These seats tend to cradle me, they are the few seats that don't hurt my back or butt after hours of driving, I can take tight corners at speed and I don't slip and slide. In fact I even told Jeep when they contacted me about my initial questionnaire - LOVE the seats, the best Jeep seats I've ever had (and I'm about 30 pounds too heavy for my size)

The lack of dead pedal is likely because the manual transmission is an option in these and it's cost cutting to use the same stampings for all versions. My WJ had a build in left foot rest and it was the most perfect of any I've ever had. The Silverado I was constantly trying to figure out where to put my feet when in cruise mode.

You buy a truck - gotta expect less than great mpg, especially when you buy a Rubicon. That shouldn't even be mentioned because that level, the worst for mpg, was a choice.
Frankly, I'm happy with how the mpg on my truck has been (until I started making changes that killed it, of course - but that was MY choice, my fault, not the truck's fault)
My truck blows my prior truck - Silverado 4x4 extended cab) away in fuel economy and especially when towing. I get 13.9 mpg towing with my Jeep and almost never saw even 13 with my Chevy.

 

[chaosjake]

And yet my family, and many others, find these seats crazy comfortable.

If there's a secret to it, you've got to teach me. It's killing my back.

 

[Gvsukids]

Good:

1. Weight distribution front to rear makes it handle snow surprisingly well in 2WD.
2. Falken ATs are a lot better than I expected, and the stock tire size feels better than I expected. I initially planned to immediately replace them with a set of KO2s in 315/70R17, but now I might run these until they wear out... or at least until I get some money back in my pocket.
3. Great forward visibility over the hood.
4. Better power than the Tacoma.
5. For a pickup, shockingly smooth and cushy on-road ride... I'm coming from a WRX and a Tacoma with a broken frame, so maybe I'm not the best judge of this?
6. The level of tech in the Rubicon is impressive, from Android Auto to the trail cam to the ability to choose whether the heated seats and wheel come on with a remote start.
7. Adaptive cruise control. I didn't know whether I would like it. I like it. I hope the collision avoidance works as well as the ACC.

Bad:

1. Why is the windshield so small? I usually drive in a very upright seating position, but I have my seat tilted back as far as I think is safe to get my head low enough to see out the windshield... and I'm not that tall.
2. Gas mileage isn't great, but that isn't a surprise.
3. Why isn't there a place to put my left foot? My Tacoma was also an auto, and it had a nice molded-in dead pedal. My WRX has a nice footrest for when I'm not on the clutch. I have a cheap Amazon dead pedal to install when it's not freezing out, but this was a real disappointment.

Ugly:
The seats suck ass. I cannot for the life of me get comfortable in the driver's seat. I'm constantly sliding forward off the seat and pushing myself back with my left foot (which doesn't have a footrest to push back against). The lumbar support adjusts from bad to worse. The entire seat sits 6 inches too high. The headrest doesn't tilt. After about 15 minutes, I start getting sore. I'm questioning whether I need to invest big bucks in aftermarket seats to make it worth keeping the truck, or if I should just sell it. I can't imagine going on a road trip in this thing.

The seat raises from the rear, so if you lower your seat, then you won't slide off. Adaptive cruise control places a large black box on the windshield that those of us without this system don't have the box in the way of our vision.

 

[Gvsukids]

The lack of dead pedal is likely because the manual transmission is an option in these and it's cost cutting to use the same stampings for all versions. My WJ had a build in left foot rest and it was the most perfect of any I've ever had.

The auto doesn't have a dead pedal either.

 

[chaosjake]

The seat raises from the rear, so if you lower your seat, then you won't slide off. Adaptive cruise control places a large black box on the windshield that those of us without this system don't have the box in the way of our vision.

I've got the back of the seat as low as it will go. Believe me, I'm doing everything I can to make it lower. I'm 6 feet even, so I can't imagine how someone who's actually tall drives this thing.

Sponsored