2014 Jeep Rubicon Review

[Desert Dog]

The management at Bakersfield Chrysler-Jeep has taken a keen interest in forming an alliance with the local off-road community. The owner has personally committed to supporting Infectious Off-Road and is serious about renewing their local image (which has been poor in the past). We can expect lots of Jeep swag at our June M&G and future event participation.

Jeep was also kind enough to loan me a brand new Rubicon (20 miles on the odometer) to test and review in the upcoming issue of B-Tuff magazine. I promised not to beat it up "too bad", but you know, its the spotters fault

We went up to the Kern Plateau to do a photo shoot, some wheeling in different terrains, and to catch a mess of those beautiful little Golden Trout.


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[Dirty LJ]

Nice! What is your first impression of the new model?

Sent from the beach with a beer in hand!

[Uncle Cracker]

ah man! you already scuffed the bumper


what is different about it? how much "fiat" influence has been stuffed in?
when are they gonna destroy it, like what they did to the cherokee?

sorry,, i'm sure the cherokee is a fine vehicle, it's just BUTT UGLY

[Desert Dog]

[quote="Dirty LJ"]Nice! What is your first impression of the new model?

Sent from the beach with a beer in hand![/quote]

ENGINE: Even though it is nowhere near the power that any V8 will give, the new Pentestar Engine does have more "umph" than the 3.8, 4.0, and 4.2 of past Jeeps. It lags a little going up long steep grades, just like every wrangler that has ever been made (except for the foreign diesel models). All of the bugs with the 1st generation Pentastars have been worked out for the 2014 models.

TRANS: Huge improvement over the TJs and 07-11 JKs. Shifts smooth and doesn't constantly search for the right gear. Also, doesn't get hot like the 07-11 Wranglers. I do NOT like that they eliminated the OD/Power button; IMO, the Wrangler with an auto trans still needs this.

LOCKERS / SWAY BAR DISCO: Lockers on the new Rubicon engauge much quicker than the first generation e-lockers did. E-disco worked as advertised, but I honestly couldn't feel the difference between being disco-ed and connected.

SUSPENSION / HANDLING: I have owned every model Wrangler and an XJ. The new Rubicon with the upgraded springs and shocks rides WAY better than any production Wrangler of the past. It corners amazingly for what it is, as I felt comfortable doing 60mph down most of the Kern Canyon in it. I'm sure that the 116" wheelbase of the Unlimited helps with that as well. So the ride is firm enough to corner decent, but soft enough to feel like a passenger car. Driving across many miles of HUGE washboard on the Kern Plateau was quite enjoyable compared to most vehicles.

INTERIOR / TRIM: More "Escalade" than Wrangler IMO, as everything was power, with heated leather seats, lots of chrome accents, and full touch controls on the steering wheel. Definitely comfortable and roomy compared to past Jeeps. Lots of leg room in the back seats and plenty of cargo space. The new touch-screen Radio / nav unit is awesome and state-of-the art.

[b][u]What I loved the most:[/u][/b] comfortable ride and awesome street handling compared to past Wranglers. Good control layout and plenty of room in the cockpit. Fuel mileage is noticeably better than the 3.8 and 4.0 engines. This is truly something you could daily drive and not feel like you are making compromises. Off-road, well you are not going to drive ANYTHING from a new-car lot that will beat a Rubicon off the pavement.

[b][u]What I didn't like:[/u][/b] with the hard top, the cab seals TOO GOOD. With the windows up, you have to literally slam the doors as hard as you can to get them to shut all the way. 90% of the time people got in this Jeep, we got the "door open" warning light and had to pull over to slam the doors. Of the dozen or so people who rode in this Jeep while I was testing it, EVERY SINGLE person complained about this. This happens because the hard-top cab does not vent air coupled with the fact that jeep doors are very lightweight and don't have the inertia to overcome the air pressure in the cab. The soft-top Wranglers may not have this issue. This was very annoying and I have no idea if it gets better with time or not as this Jeep only had 20 miles on it.

[Uncle Cracker]

hmmmm.

sounds like a good vehicle for water crossings.
tell them that you'd like to do some testing at "foredyce creek"

[robnoxious1]

The door seals on mine got better with time but you still have to put some ass into it to get the doors to shut all the way.

[munepit]

That is awesome! But I like that trout a lot more!

[garbageman]

the jeep looks cool but that guy standing in front looks like a real homo

[Desert Dog]

[quote="garbageman"]the jeep looks cool but that guy standing in front looks like a real homo [/quote]
He is a total fucking lesbian!

[confirmer]

Very comprehensive review... And awesome pics!

[JoanneKing]

I have bought Rubicon, After owning my bright white for the last 10 months and 14,000 miles there is only one color I would be interested in and that is bright white.