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The classic 1950's look of the jeep against the most modern design on the
market. Which do you like?
2004 Jeep Wrangler Sport
The Jeep is probably the
first car I ever played with when I was a yeee little toddler. Since those
young nurturing days, I have always liked the unique style of the Wrangler.
Its military heritage evident in its exterior looks, and its go anywhere
ability Trail Rated. The image portrayed of young kids driving in a fully
open Wrangler as seen in movies and around my summer home was impregnated
into my brain. After finally having the opportunity to spend some time
living with a Jeep Wrangler, I have learned that these folks have had to
give up a lot in order to have a unique off road vehicle.
The Jeep's styling remains
true to it's military heritage. Perhaps this is the reason it has remained
an icon among both young and old buyers. Not since 1997 has the Wrangler
gotten a makeover, and still today it remains a popular vehicle. We decided
to test our Yellow Wrangler Sport model in various environments to better
understand its versatile capabilities. Our journey took us through small
rural towns, long highway commutes, stop and go city traffic, numerous
thunderstorms, and the obligatory off-road course.
If we could sum it up in one
statement, we would say that this Wrangler is best suited for travel at
speeds less than 40 mph. In fact, the slower you travel, the more you enjoy
the Wrangler. The lack of insulation makes for a very unpleasant ride on
freeways. Combine this with a stiff suspension and awkward steering
response, and the ride becomes even worse. Don't even think about traveling
at high speeds with the roof fully opened. Wind noise is so high that
you'll need a pair of headset devices to communicate with the person sitting
next to you. All of this goes away once you're on local roads traveling at
a slow pace.
The
Wrangler is powered by a 4.0L Power Tech I-6 engine that produces 190
horsepower at 4,600 rpm and 235 pounds-feet of torque at 3200 rpm.
Acceleration is slow and the engine noise is noticeable in the cabin. The
sense of power is there, especially in the four-wheel drive mode. The
Command-Trac 4wd transfer case is easy to use and located left of the gear
shifter. Our model had the automatic transmission that performed well in
all conditions. The Jeep performed flawlessly in our off-road course. However the small length and width takes some getting used to. The
feeling that you are going to tip over on steep hills is there. We wished
that this model was made about 12 inches wider. The large P225/75R15
Wrangler all-terrain tires never lost grip even during steep hill climbing
in soft mud. Being Trail Rated is no joke coming from Jeep.
The Wrangler is most fun when
the roof is down and everything is wide open. With all the covers off, the
feeling of total openness is a joy. Driving around in an open vehicle with
the scent of fresh air and the warmth of the overhead sun just makes one
forget about all the problems of daily life. The Jeep somehow forces you to
enjoy the simple things in life. It makes you want to get out and enjoy
nature, take the back roads, and occasionally even go off-road. Its
simplicity is refreshing compared to all the technology and gizmos found in
most cars today. The picture of the Jeep next to the Audi TT highlights the
differences. The TT has a new dual clutch transmission with paddle shifters
that make for super fast shifts, measured in milli-seconds. A host of
computers control other functions throughout the car. The Jeep on the other
hand, goes back to the basic roots of automotive engineering. No gizmos, no
fancy paddles, just a simple vehicle that takes you wherever you want, even
if that ride is going to shake everything out of your pockets along the way.
The
four wheel drive system on the Wrangler is not automatic as in other Sport
Utility Vehicles. The system must be engaged for the type of terrain you
are on. So if you are driving along on roads in winter and happen to hit an
icy patch the Jeep will not automatically grip with the wheels that have
grip, it will remain in two wheel drive and you will likely go sliding
across the street if you are not careful. Therefore it is a bit harder to
drive the Wrangler than most of its competition. The grip that you will
have is going to be mainly from the tires, until you engage the four wheel
drivetrain which can only be used at lower than highway speeds.
Click here for a view of how to use the Jeep four wheel drive system.
Going from a top up and
windows on Jeep to a fully open Jeep is quite a bit of work. All of the
plastic windows are lined with zippers and Velcro. To lessen wind
buffeting, the edges have plastic liners that bend into metal notches on the
vehicles. Taking everything off is much simpler then putting things back
together which can be very time consuming. Zipping up the windows required
a lot of force and getting those plastic edges into the metal body was very
hard and tiresome. We think the best thing Jeep can do for the Wrangler is
to make a power soft-top mechanism. There were times we had to close the
roof and put on all the plastic windows when it started raining. By the
time we finished, we were drenched and had spent more than 20 minutes
properly closing everything.
Some
other quirks we found while living with the Jeep were the lack of power door
locks, and the lack of height adjustment in the driver's seat. The low
amount of luggage space with the seat in its normal position is also a
fault. The rear seat can be tumbled forward for more luggage space. But
the recently introduced longer Wrangler should take care of this problem.
We also found that getting in and out of the Wrangler is best suited for
limber people; the lack of side steps in our model was a fault. If you have
pets we do not suggest the cloth seats as they will grab hair like sticky
tape. Also the width of the vehicle leaves little elbow room for large
people. It is a tight fit and driving with the door pushed next to your arm
is very difficult. Perhaps with Diamler now in the mix a German version of
the Wrangler could be available soon with a smooth ride and stable feeling
at autobahn speeds.
 Download
Apple QuickTime viewer here.
Watch the Wrangler Climb a Hill.
Click
Here
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