My soft top tore after 6 months. It developed a small tear right above a support bar for the top. When you look online this is a common problem, and yet Jeep denies its a defect and is trying to blame this damage from the consumer. The brand new jeep had less than 2,000 summer miami miles on it. Their customer service is absolutely atrocious
This review is for my brand new Jeep Wrangler JL 2-door hard top in ocean blue metallic color. This vehicle was built in April 2019. It is stock, with no mods or consumer-added equipment. I’m writing this review with 250 miles on the odometer. I’ve been driving Wranglers since 2002, and this is my third one after owning a Wrangler Sport X and a Wrangler Sahara, both 2-door configurations. The JL model was introduced in 2018 and replaces the JK model which has been discontinued. Taken as a whole, the JL is a more refined vehicle with a better ride and numerous improvements described on this and other websites. If it were not for one glaring fault, I would wholeheartedly recommend the 2019 Wrangler JL to anyone interested in owning one of these vehicles which are uniquely qualified for off-road use. They are over-priced, but you will not find many competitors that have the appearance of the Wrangler and its off-road capabilities. Unfortunately, however, the current manufacturer of Jeep vehicles, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, has somehow managed to devise a steering system in the JL Wrangler which takes lots of the joy out of owning and driving it. From the first drive out of the dealer’s parking lot, I noticed that the steering of the new Wrangler had a vague and wandering feel totally different than my previous Jeeps or any other vehicle I have owned. On the interstate, the steering is downright frightening and requires two-handed control to keep it from wandering into adjacent lanes. I cannot relax and rely on my driving instincts while driving this vehicle; to do so will result in loss of control. I immediately began to investigate as to whether this was unique to my particular vehicle, or to a larger group. The salesman and service manager where I bought it professed ignorance about any such problem. However, a brief search on the internet revealed a plethora of complaints about the steering in the 2018 and 2019 Wrangler JL’s. The NHTSA has received over 500 complaints specifically addressing this issue with the JL’s. Internet forums specializing in Jeep Wranglers are awash with complaints and lengthy discussions about the terrible steering characteristics in the new Wrangler. And yet, there are some owners who have not experienced the flaw or have adapted to it, according to what I read on line. Even media-based reviewers have given this phenomenon scant notice. Of course, the manufacturer, as far as I can see, is somewhat mute about this issue and probably will not make it right until someone is killed or reviews such as this have a slowing effect on sales. My advice to anyone considering purchasing a new Wranger JL in any of its configurations would be to carefully test drive the exact one you may buy, both on a narrow two-lane road and on a highway where you can attain speeds over 55 mph. If your prospective new vehicle steers normally for you, go for it. However, if it feels strange, seems to want to wander, or feels like you’re driving in a wind storm, you may want to reconsider, because it will probably be a long time before FCA acknowledges the problem and fixes it.
Update: After putting over 2000 miles on the JL which I reviewed several months ago (see above) I am updating my review. This may only apply to my vehicle and is not intended to negate the thousands of other JL owners' steering complaints. My new 2019 Wrangler JL Sport, when brand new, had terrible steering as I described above; however that situation has greatly improved without any intervention on my part. Now the Jeep's steering is almost what I would call normal, not quite as good as my 2016 Trailhawk, but so much improved that I now drive the vehicle without finding it necessary to concentrate on keeping the vehicle on track. The jeep is now actually fun to drive, as any Wrangler owner would hope to be the case. I must emphasize that this is not a case of my getting used to bad steering or developing new driving instincts to accommodate the original condition of the steering. Rather, it is a mechanical change brought about by use of the steering system. A couple things worth noting were that the steering on my Jeep was never loose with play, as noted by others. It always was responsive and would stay on track when I released the steering wheel. The problem was that it would not return to center track when the wheel was nudged and then released, as if there was no caster in the alignment. This required constant counter-correction for each correction made on the highway. It is likely that the joints in the steering system, being new and tight, were not allowing the inadequate caster and toe-in specs to overcome this tightness, thus requiring the constant driving adjustments. Now, with some limbering up, it almost steers normally. I hope others have experienced the same improvement.
'Check engine' light coming on. After investigating, discovered is caused by overheating of #2 cylinder valve seats causing cylinder head failure caused by design flaw in production. Chrysler issued a service bulletin for covering the fix which entails an almost complete tear down of the engine to replace the cylinder head which requires the vehicle to be in the shop for three days or more. No doubt the jeep will never run the same after a cylinder head replacement. Beware.
I purchased my 2019 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon about one week ago. As I write this review, my Rubicon has about 300 miles on it. I'd love to give the Jeep a 5-star review, because it's a fantastic machine. But the vehicle has a problem with the steering that keeps me from recommending the JL - a problem that, in my opinion, is a significant safety issue. I had a long drive home from the dealership where I purchased my new Rubicon, but it didn't take long to realize how hard it was to keep the vehicle in my lane. When driving at highway speed, particularly, it constantly wanders from one side of the lane to the other, to the point where I have to keep both hands on the wheel and make constant adjustments to stay in my lane. It's as if there's excessive play in the wheel. At first I thought maybe it's just a "Jeep thing." But this is my second Rubicon - my first being a 2013 2-Door JK - and it never behaved this way. In researching Jeep Wrangler JLs prior to my purchase, I somehow missed all the complaints and reports of steering issues with the new JLs. Had I seen this, I would at least have been a more informed buyer. It wasn't until I began looking into whether there is some sort of adjustment or fix for the problem that I became aware that many other JL owners have encountered this steering problem. To date, the NHTSA has logged 138 complaints for the 2019 Wrangler JL. 121 of these complaints are related to steering issues. That's 88%! For 2018 models, there are 654 steering complaints. That's 76% of the total 858 complaints. I bought this Jeep, in part, so that my wife and I would have a better vehicle for taking trips - to see parts of our great Nation that we haven't seen, and to get to places that you need a Jeep to get to. As it stands, I'm not sure if we'll use the Jeep for this purpose. Driving the JL on the highway - having to constantly keep both hands on the wheel and make frequent adjustments - is tiring. I do hope Jeep comes up with a fix for this so that we - and others - can fully enjoy what the new Jeep JLs have to offer.
I’ve always wanted a Sahara but spend a lot of time on expressways and take a bunch of calls from my car. The reviews I’ve read have held true...the new Sahara is really quiet on the expressway. The Bluetooth is fantastic. I opted For the 4 cylinder turbo engine and couldn’t be happier. The materials seem top notch. Switching from a Chrysler 300C has been an adjustment, but if you’re looking for a sweet daily driver SUV, the new Jeep is hard to beat.
Don't expect any support when purchasing a 50k+ car. We ordered our perfect Jeep. Yes I said special ordered and waited and waited and finally it arrived. With a leaking Sky1 roof, pieces actually protruding thru the roof, paint damage down to bare metal, a Steering wheel that was already defective, and more scratches than I have seen on cars with 100k miles.
So no way was I taking delivery of this. Dealer said no you should not we will order another one for you. Hmm - next day sorry we can't order a Mojito Sky1. Why - no idea system won't let us call Customer Cares. Jeep customer cares should be renamed a black hole of wasted time. They don't respond for two weeks - then tell us they ran out of Mojito paint really cause I can still order a regular Jeep in that color just not a Sky1? Oh we will check another 2 weeks and nothing to finally be told oh your dealer can order it and we are closing your complaint. Dealer still can't order it. Jeep cares well it might have only been available for an hour or maybe not at all we really don't know but nothing we can do.
The biggest reason we ordered this was we wanted a Mojito Sky1 that was not available on any dealers lot near us. They send out a junk car and then tell us it is just our problem take it or leave it. Well we left it and now I am wondering if Jeep is even worth the effort.
Just bought a 2019 JL and the steering is dangerous. I have never drove a vehicle with so much lane drift. You actually have to fight to keep it in your lane.
Spoke with the salesman at the dealer and was told “it’s a Jeep thing” I call BS
We are waiting on more answers from the service department.
If I had it to do over I would have never bought it.
I have a 2019 four door Rubicon Jeep JL. Fully loaded with upgraded wheels and tires by the dealer. The car was $62k in total. After 6 or so weeks I have had no issues. I had the wheels rebalance by the dealer due to a vibration and one the reverse camera failed to display the image. Apart from that the car has put a smile on my face everyday. It’s a dream to drive around town, on the highway and in the mud. It performs in the snow of Vermont with ease. The interior is a major upgrade from previous model. UConnect is excellent, remote start right for your phone or your Apple Watch. The acceleration is unbelievable compared with my 2016 JK. My experience with the JL has been excellent and I couldn’t be happier with everything about the car.
This is the 3rd Jeep in my immediate family. A renegade, compass and now 2 door, firecracker red automatic. And while the renegade turned out to be unreliable, I opted to trade it in for a wrangler. Assuming it would be a completely different animal. And I was right. Everything about a wrangler is different from any other automobile in the world. And this is a good thing. Luckily I have not reached a point in my life where being coddled while driving is necessary. My jeep offers just the right amount of creature comforts, like heated seats and steering wheel and a more then adequate entertainment system with Bluetooth connectivity. Adding to the fun of the vehicle has a plethora of choices in customization. Due to the years of mass popularity it has so many choices of products to make it your own that you just can't stop enjoying it. And while a jeep is very expensive in 2020 you can modify it for very little money. I'm running my jeep with the rear seat removed so it's feels like a trucklet of sorts when driving. This allows for a great amount of space for storage for day to day activity. And yes this is my daily driver, going 30 miles one way m-f for work thru rural hilly roads. Roads being what they are in NE PA, this vehicle is perfect. And when weather is poor, you feel more the confident getting where you need to go. That said, I was quite surprised finding how cheap alot of the plastic parts are. Plastics are commonly used on vehicles today, but as I discovered Jeep is sourcing some of its components that are so inferior, they literally crumple if you touch them just the wrong way. It's not everything, so only time will tell what else fails prematurely because of this. I have not experienced any other failure. The v6 while quite potent and smooth, is very noisy at idle. There are plenty of stories about bad rocker arms causing the same thing, but again, time will tell. Now to the steering which seems to be the hot topic since it's debut. I've done enough research to understand the history and causes of this suspension and steering and why it feels the way it feels. It definitely feels strange. Almost dangerous. I've not heard of accidents or deaths caused by this, it just feels so foreign when driving that it makes me wonder why FCA would choose to leave it that way. There are more than one type of truck or 4x4 in this world and none feel this way. That's because they were engineered not to. In my research of this issue, I decided to have my wheel alignment checked, which revealed all 4 wheels being out of spec with only 1800 miles on it. The tech was also very concerned about the the amount of play in they steering wheel. I didn't bother with trying to get the dealership or FCA to take responsibility for this because in my experience it would cause me to loose more of my precious time. I did however report to both, my findings and alignment data. I am used to the steering now and have not found it in any way a cause of alarm. Still it would not shock me to see a major recall from FCA any day now. MPG is better than I expected. The renegade got around 30mpg with a 4cyl Turbo and 6spd manual. The jeep gets me a consistent 23 on winter fuel. It will go up on summer fuel. So really surprised given the power and weight of the vehicle. I heard others with much worse numbers. But I think that is because of extreme mods and driving habits. All in all I'm very happy with it. If it remains reliable, it will be an excellent long term keeper.
My new 2018 Jeep JL is disappointing at best. As others have said; bad welds, dangerous steering (just Google it) and many other problems. One nice improvement is the 8 speed transmission! FCA does not care about making a quality vehicle because people keep buying them the way they are. I get it... love the Wranglers, but are problematic. Fiat has the highest warranty issues out of all vehicle mfg's. That should tell you something.
They are overpriced, build with the cheapest non tested parts a mfg can buy and many dealers just give you lip service when you have a real problem. And here is the most irritating comment you hear from the hard core Jeepers... "It's just a Jeep thing" .....Really. How irresponsible.
UPDATE: December 2019 - Steering stabilizer recall: Went to dealer and I had the recall paperwork from FCA which clearly stated the new stabilizer must be installed with the BIG arrow pointing forward. Advised the service writer of this and he said oh ya we do this all the time and disregarded me after that. So I waited and when it was time to pick it up, I looked and sure enough they installed the new stabilizer upside down with the BIG arrow that say "forward" pointing to the rear. Unbelievable! Many FCA dealers are arrogant, condescending and just don't care about the customer.
I was also instructed by FCA help desk to replace the track bar and that it might help the steering issues so common to the JL. I did so but used an aftermarket solid bar rather than the FCA tubular one that flexes. Also had to make changes to change the caster from 5.1 to 7 which really helped the Jeep steer better, but not like it should. The problem that is still there is the slop in the steering gearbox which is Chinese made. Some are good and some are not, simple as that. Mine has play but I don't want to take a chance and get a replacement that is worse. And yes that has happened already to others.
