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Classic, Sturdy Jeep Wrangler Shines Both On, Off Road
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| TOP-OF-THE-LINE. The 2009 Chrysler Jeep Wrangler Sahara is outfitted with modern, off-road technology while maintaining the model’s retro style. —Gazette photo by Anne Proffit |
By Anne Proffit
Gazette Auto Writer
Let’s be thankful for Chrysler’s Jeep Wrangler, still the most durable, value-laden off-roader available on the U.S. marketplace. The basic Wrangler has gained some creature comforts, sure, but it’s still the off-road benchmark.
The 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 arrives with a Sunburst Orange pearl paint job mated to a slate gray fabric interior (that repels all number of stains). It has full carpeting on the four-door hardtop platform and plenty of power. The running gear includes a new 3.8 liter, SMPI (sequential multi-port injection) V6 engine that has 202 horsepower at 5,200 rpm (close to the 5,500 rpm redline) and 237 lb-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm.
This very usable power gets stirred by a 4-speed automatic transmission, with good enough gearing to get the ’09 Wrangler running 2,400 rpm at a solid 80 mph.
Of course, Jeep equips the 2009 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 with its top-line off-road equipment, using its Command-Trac‚ shift-on-the-fly transfer case (with skid plate shield) and heavy-duty suspension with gas shocks all around. There is hill start assist, all-wheel antilock brakes, together with an electronic stability program and traction control. Air bags at the front are all you get for passive safety, folks, if you don’t count the tire pressure monitoring light.
The Wrangler Unlimited Sahara is a bigger vehicle than the standard Wrangler, 20 inches longer, wider, taller and sporting a 20.6-inch bigger wheelbase. The Unlimited Sahara seats three friendly folk in the back, rather than two. There is a $2,275 premium for the Unlimited Sahara 4X4 that weighs in at 4,297 pounds, 346 more than Wrangler.
Purists will be aghast at the standard equipment on the ’09 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4: air conditioning, power windows, keyless remote, AM/FM radio with 12V jacks and iPod capability, reclining front seats with height adjustment for the driver, tilt steering column and a security alarm. On the other hand, purists might like the fact that the exterior mirror adjustments are all manual.
The door handles on this Jeep hearken back to the days when pushbutton openings were the standard of the industry. Arthritic thumbs need not apply. Other items about this Wrangler that are “so Jeep” include: exposed and corded door hinges, exposed hood snaps, step-in running boards — necessary with 10.2-inch ground clearance – an unshrouded engine with its heavy and posted hood. There are removable roof partitions with the standard soft tops stowed at the rear, side swinging hatch door with separate glass window opening and full-size spare tire mounted on that hatch door.
It’s all so retro, the tow hooks front and rear, the 4WD shifter at the far end base of the central stack of instruments and the basic Jeep ride, which isn’t all that bad on freeway surfaces, a pleasant surprise. The Wrangler Unlimited Sahara rides on Bridgestone Dueler P255/70R 18-inch tires on five-spoke polished rims; they give a good ride with less noise than expected.
The ’09 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 has a modern price tag: it starts at $29,020 with destination and rises steadily to a crescendo of $32,975. Included in the uptick are the Dual Top Group, which adds the three-piece modular hard-top, a rear window wiper/washer and defroster for $1,800, the Trailer Tow Group of hitch receiver, trailer sway damping and trailer tow with a four-pin wired connection ($270), a fee of $825 for the automatic transmission and one final option.
Don’t cry: this Wrangler has a navigation system and it works great! The Uconnect grouping bands GPS-based multimedia navi with touch-screen monitor and hard disc drive, together with a Sirius‚ satellite audio system with a year’s service thrown in. That costs a realistic $1,275.
Fuel mileage for a Jeep usually isn’t talked about in mixed company. The 22.5-gallon that tank burns regular fuel at a rate of 15/19 mpg, or so the Feds say. My watch, one that encompassed time off-road, around town and on wind-blown freeways saw mileage creep from a low of 14 to a high of nearly 20 on my last load. I find that acceptable for such a utilitarian beast.
This orange Jeep is so likeable, in so many surprising ways. The manual fabric seats are terrific and offer plenty of support for a few hours of driving, the headlight washers get rid of accumulated dirt and dust to allow good vision, particularly with the fog lamps engaged. The speedometer goes to a realistic 100 mph and gauges are black with white numbers and red pointers that are very easy to see. Even better, people everywhere ask if I like the Jeep, and they’re all smiling.
Space utilization is exceptional on this Jeep. Behind the rear seats there’s 46.4 cubic feet of carrying space and, with the 60/40 fold utilized, that increases to 87 cubes. It’s easy, thanks to the dual opening rear door, to get items in and to remove them. Despite its long wheelbase and added weight, the Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 rotates on an acceptable 41.3-foot circle.
While the acceleration isn’t brisk with the 3.8-liter engine, it’s acceptable and certainly not scary.
Off-road is where this Jeep really shines, as it should. Steering feels tight and responsive on this very young machine (less than 1,000 miles at pickup) and it brakes exceptionally well. The add-ons are all useful and well intentioned.
Jeep has a lifetime powertrain warranty for its products and has basic limited coverage of three years of 36,000 miles, together with equal time towing assistance. More likely, the 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 owner will be doing the towing and rescue duties, not parent company Chrysler.
Jeep vehicles have always been the standard of the industry for their supreme off-road capabilities. This newest addition to the Jeep lineup is no different, but it is so civil and friendly that anyone needing both a capable off-roader and daily transportation should look no farther.
The 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 arrives with a Sunburst Orange pearl paint job mated to a slate gray fabric interior (that repels all number of stains). It has full carpeting on the four-door hardtop platform and plenty of power. The running gear includes a new 3.8 liter, SMPI (sequential multi-port injection) V6 engine that has 202 horsepower at 5,200 rpm (close to the 5,500 rpm redline) and 237 lb-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm.
This very usable power gets stirred by a 4-speed automatic transmission, with good enough gearing to get the ’09 Wrangler running 2,400 rpm at a solid 80 mph.
Of course, Jeep equips the 2009 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 with its top-line off-road equipment, using its Command-Trac‚ shift-on-the-fly transfer case (with skid plate shield) and heavy-duty suspension with gas shocks all around. There is hill start assist, all-wheel antilock brakes, together with an electronic stability program and traction control. Air bags at the front are all you get for passive safety, folks, if you don’t count the tire pressure monitoring light.
The Wrangler Unlimited Sahara is a bigger vehicle than the standard Wrangler, 20 inches longer, wider, taller and sporting a 20.6-inch bigger wheelbase. The Unlimited Sahara seats three friendly folk in the back, rather than two. There is a $2,275 premium for the Unlimited Sahara 4X4 that weighs in at 4,297 pounds, 346 more than Wrangler.
Purists will be aghast at the standard equipment on the ’09 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4: air conditioning, power windows, keyless remote, AM/FM radio with 12V jacks and iPod capability, reclining front seats with height adjustment for the driver, tilt steering column and a security alarm. On the other hand, purists might like the fact that the exterior mirror adjustments are all manual.
The door handles on this Jeep hearken back to the days when pushbutton openings were the standard of the industry. Arthritic thumbs need not apply. Other items about this Wrangler that are “so Jeep” include: exposed and corded door hinges, exposed hood snaps, step-in running boards — necessary with 10.2-inch ground clearance – an unshrouded engine with its heavy and posted hood. There are removable roof partitions with the standard soft tops stowed at the rear, side swinging hatch door with separate glass window opening and full-size spare tire mounted on that hatch door.
It’s all so retro, the tow hooks front and rear, the 4WD shifter at the far end base of the central stack of instruments and the basic Jeep ride, which isn’t all that bad on freeway surfaces, a pleasant surprise. The Wrangler Unlimited Sahara rides on Bridgestone Dueler P255/70R 18-inch tires on five-spoke polished rims; they give a good ride with less noise than expected.
The ’09 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 has a modern price tag: it starts at $29,020 with destination and rises steadily to a crescendo of $32,975. Included in the uptick are the Dual Top Group, which adds the three-piece modular hard-top, a rear window wiper/washer and defroster for $1,800, the Trailer Tow Group of hitch receiver, trailer sway damping and trailer tow with a four-pin wired connection ($270), a fee of $825 for the automatic transmission and one final option.
Don’t cry: this Wrangler has a navigation system and it works great! The Uconnect grouping bands GPS-based multimedia navi with touch-screen monitor and hard disc drive, together with a Sirius‚ satellite audio system with a year’s service thrown in. That costs a realistic $1,275.
Fuel mileage for a Jeep usually isn’t talked about in mixed company. The 22.5-gallon that tank burns regular fuel at a rate of 15/19 mpg, or so the Feds say. My watch, one that encompassed time off-road, around town and on wind-blown freeways saw mileage creep from a low of 14 to a high of nearly 20 on my last load. I find that acceptable for such a utilitarian beast.
This orange Jeep is so likeable, in so many surprising ways. The manual fabric seats are terrific and offer plenty of support for a few hours of driving, the headlight washers get rid of accumulated dirt and dust to allow good vision, particularly with the fog lamps engaged. The speedometer goes to a realistic 100 mph and gauges are black with white numbers and red pointers that are very easy to see. Even better, people everywhere ask if I like the Jeep, and they’re all smiling.
Space utilization is exceptional on this Jeep. Behind the rear seats there’s 46.4 cubic feet of carrying space and, with the 60/40 fold utilized, that increases to 87 cubes. It’s easy, thanks to the dual opening rear door, to get items in and to remove them. Despite its long wheelbase and added weight, the Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 rotates on an acceptable 41.3-foot circle.
While the acceleration isn’t brisk with the 3.8-liter engine, it’s acceptable and certainly not scary.
Off-road is where this Jeep really shines, as it should. Steering feels tight and responsive on this very young machine (less than 1,000 miles at pickup) and it brakes exceptionally well. The add-ons are all useful and well intentioned.
Jeep has a lifetime powertrain warranty for its products and has basic limited coverage of three years of 36,000 miles, together with equal time towing assistance. More likely, the 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 4X4 owner will be doing the towing and rescue duties, not parent company Chrysler.
Jeep vehicles have always been the standard of the industry for their supreme off-road capabilities. This newest addition to the Jeep lineup is no different, but it is so civil and friendly that anyone needing both a capable off-roader and daily transportation should look no farther.
