2018 Jeep Wrangler Review

Drawer: The 2018 Jeep Wrangler is available in a pair of body styles: the two-door and four-door Unlimited. The two-door is available in Sport, Sport S and Rubicon trims, while the four-door is available in Sport, Sport S, Sahara and Rubicon trims. Both are available with a soft-top convertible or a hardtop. The Sport has a basic set of features, and the midlevel Sport S and Sahara add some convenience features. The Rubicon is the most capable off-road thanks to its special features, including shorter axle gearing and an electronically disconnecting roll bar.

A 3.6-liter V6 (285 horsepower, 260 pound-feet of torque) is standard across the board. By default, it's paired to a six-speed manual transmission, though an eight-speed automatic is optional. A turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder (270 hp, 295 lb-ft) with the mild hybrid eTorque system is available on any trim, and it's mated exclusively to an eight-speed automatic. A 3.0-liter diesel engine is on the horizon for 2019.

The Sport trim level, while somewhat basic, has much more equipment than previous Wranglers. Standard equipment includes 17-inch steel wheels, a full-size spare tire, skid plates and tow hooks. It also has foglights, keyless entry, removable full metal doors with crank windows, a fold-down windshield, manual mirrors and locks, cruise control, air conditioning (optional on the two-door Sport), a height-adjustable driver's seat (with two-way lumbar adjustment), cloth upholstery, a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, and a one-piece folding rear seat.

Also included on the Sport are a 5-inch Uconnect touchscreen display, Bluetooth, a rearview camera, an eight-speaker sound system with a USB port and an auxiliary audio jack. Besides its two extra doors, the Unlimited version also has a bigger gas tank, air conditioning, and a 60/40-split folding rear seat.

On top of the base Sport equipment, the Sport S adds 17-inch alloy wheels, air conditioning, automatic headlights, keyless entry, heated power mirrors, power windows and locks, an alarm, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and sun visors with vanity mirrors.

The midlevel Sahara is only available in the four-door configuration and adds to the Sport S with 18-inch alloy wheels, painted exterior body panels and trim, automatic headlights, automatic climate control and a 115-volt outlet. It also comes with a bigger driver information display, an additional USB port, and an upgraded version of Uconnect with a 7-inch touchscreen, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone integration, and satellite radio.

The most off-road capable of the Wranglers is the Rubicon. It gets the basic Sport equipment plus 17-inch alloy wheels, special off-road tires, a heavy-duty Dana M210 front axle and a M220 rear axle, shorter 4.10 axle gearing (the Sport and Sahara come with a 3.45 ratio), 4.0-to-1 low-range gearing, electronic front and rear locking differentials, an electronically disconnecting front roll bar, rock rails and an additional USB port.

Much of the upper-level equipment is available in groups or as stand-alone options for lower trim levels. Other options include remote start, LED exterior lighting (headlights, foglights and taillights), heated seats, a heated steering wheel, leather upholstery, an 8.4-inch Uconnect system with navigation, blind-spot monitoring, and a nine-speaker Alpine sound system. All trims are also available with a higher-quality soft top as well as a black or a body-colored hardtop.