By Ewan Kennedy
Today’s Jeep Wrangler can trace its ancestry directly back to the famed World War II Jeep. Obviously there have been improvements and refinements over the years, but these have been done with an eye on the heritage.
Wrangler is a real off-road vehicle, a vanishing commodity in these days of people movers dressed up with big wheels and macho bodies. Just pull off the Jeep’s soft-top and be prepared to get down and dirty and you can tackle rocky bush areas and have the time of your life.
Ride comfort could be better, though compared to the original WWII units later Wranglers feel like Cadillacs to ride in. Handling is OK, but this isn’t the sort of car you toss at bends to experience the joys of power oversteer.
The soft-top is pretty slow and fiddly to operate and flaps a lot at highway speeds on older models. On the other hand its water sealing is surprisingly good.
Post-96 models are probably the ones to aim for if you are an everyday driver. Leave the others for the full-on enthusiasts or become an enthusiast yourself. We suggest starting from the Jeep JK-7 from February 2007 if you’re looking for reasonable comfort.
In its latest form the Jeep Wrangler is more aerodynamic, quieter and more stable than its old-fashioned predecessors. Thankfully, it’s still a bit raw around the edges.
Until the arrival of the JK Series in 2007 all Wranglers had two doors. A somewhat awkward four-door, the Wrangler Unlimited, was then introduced and gives reasonable access to the rear seats.
For many years power came from an old-style 4.0-litre straight-six with an overhead-valve layout and two valves per cylinder. The engine gets harsh in the upper reaches, but doesn’t have to be revved as it has plenty of grunt low down. A modern 3.8-litre V6 replaced the old stager in the JK series in 2007. A big capacity four-cylinder 2.8-litre turbo-diesel was introduced at the same time.
Wranglers used a five-speed manual gearbox until a new design six-speed arrived at the start of 2005. The automatic transmission was a three-speed unit before a much better four-speeder arrived in 2005. Diesel autos get five forward speeds.
The 2012 Wranglers were upgraded by the use of a modern 3.6-litre V6 petrol and a five-speed automatic transmission.
Working on the Wrangler is a dream, there’s plenty of under-bonnet space and a simple layout in the old fashioned manner.
