Just something about a TJ...

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Mike Z

TJ Enthusiast
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I have a 2002 Jeep Wrangler TJ, manual, 4.0. I bought it about 6 months ago and have been bringing her back to proper working condition. I also have a 2021 Rubicon Unlimited manual.

While the Rubicon is very nice and dependable, there is just something about the old TJ that I love. I am more excited to drive it than the Rubicon. It feels rugged and part of the road. The clutch is stiff, the ride is bouncy, the exhaust is a little loud and the interior smells like a mix of old vinyl, oil and carpet.

The Rubicon is smooth, the clutch is soft like butter and the ride is a little underwhelming. It feels like a Cadillac and the TJ feels like a Jeep.

Anybody else have a similar experience?
 
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I like the new Jeeps, I would never have one, but they definitely lost something when the went to the JK's.
Something very visceral about driving an older Jeep.
 
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When they first came out the TJ seemed too far removed from the CJ5 I still had back then. Somehow I was lucky enough to accept buying my 2006 TJ Rubicon in 2018, it's pretty much better in every way than that CJ5. At least they both had the straight six.

Last year we bought a 2 door 2017 JK for the wife. To me, driving that isn't much different than driving her 2014 Forester. For some reason she says it's more like my TJ than her Forester but she hasn't driven my TJ in at least a year.

I can only imagine that the JL is another step or two beyond how the JK feels on the street. I'm sure it's still a decent vehicle for off road, it's just not something I'm planning on owning. If those plans change like my prior TJ plans did I'll probably be too old and weak to get into a Jeep anyway.
 
The last of the Jeeps that were made mostly of metal, contained minimal electrical, and rides like a Jeep.
The newer Jeeps are mostly plastic of varying types, contain overwhelming amounts of electrical components and rides like a luxury car.
 
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I know i know. People always do this stuff the older was better blah blah. But i feel like they are slowly doing what happen to the Hummer. H1 to h3 isnt even close. just shared by name.
 
And yea a v8 wrangler is cool but not in a fancy vehicle like that. A TJ v8 option would have beeeeeeen killer even if it is a dumbed down version off the hemi ram.
 
I always looked at the military Hummer when it was redesigned for civilians use; as the civilian Hummer, the Hummer Lite, and Hummer Ultra Lite. They are for GM to make money and are in name only....
 
yea. it was really bad when they put the 5 cylinder engine in the hummer. EWWWWW. Wish i could have been at that pitch meeting. HEY lets have less MPG than a 4 cylinder and less power than a 6 Cylinder!!!!!!!
 
We've had our, my daughter's, '01 TJ Sport for all of a week and I have to say.....I'm considering seeing what I can do to find a reason to buy one for myself! I have missed my 78 CJ5 with 304 since I sold it about 13yrs ago. I have been telling myself I'd buy another CJ5, but the more I play around and look at this TJ, the more I like it! Everyone keeps asking if I bought it for myself, but she LOVES IT and won't let me drive it and she's not even 16 until next week!!

The problem is I live in the city, have 5 cars, 3 drivers and 2 boats and I'm out of room to park stuff!
 
Jeffseven777 said:
what are you other cars?
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I drive a 2012 Yukon XL Denali with the 6.2L. My wife drives a 95 Yukon 2 Door K1500. The 01 TJ Sport we just bought for daughter. Then I have an 03 Suburban 2 wheel drive, in shop for new Transmission as we speak and then I have a 1960 Chevy Suburban with a SBC 350.

My wife loves her 95 Yukon, my brother was 2nd owner and I told him for years I wanted it if he ever sold it, well he did and I bought it. She mentions she'd like something else maybe at some point, but she doesn't go look and not sure I want to sell it if she did! I don't want to drive it daily, but it would make a great tow rig for the TJ's if we went to the mountains or something! Did I mention I need more room???
 
I have a tj, jk, and an Audi. The tj gets driven more than the other two combined. Top stays off from early spring to late fall and is the most fun. Damn the rainy days!
 
The simplicity is nice. Its easy to narrow down a problem and fix it. My newer vehicle has an audio control module, sync module, body control module, digital audio module, steering wheel module, door modules, steering module, and about 30 other modules. All separate computerized pieces that adds a ton of complexity
 
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grabeb said:
I drive a 2012 Yukon XL Denali with the 6.2L. My wife drives a 95 Yukon 2 Door K1500. The 01 TJ Sport we just bought for daughter. Then I have an 03 Suburban 2 wheel drive, in shop for new Transmission as we speak and then I have a 1960 Chevy Suburban with a SBC 350.

My wife loves her 95 Yukon, my brother was 2nd owner and I told him for years I wanted it if he ever sold it, well he did and I bought it. She mentions she'd like something else maybe at some point, but she doesn't go look and not sure I want to sell it if she did! I don't want to drive it daily, but it would make a great tow rig for the TJ's if we went to the mountains or something! Did I mention I need more room???
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Unless that 2 wheel drive 03 Suburban is some sort of family heirloom AND gets 2X the MPG of the others, the new transmission sounds like a great selling point. Succeed at that and you would have enough room for a TJ or LJ and a half a Jeep sized area for parts.
 
JEEPCJTJ said:
Unless that 2 wheel drive 03 Suburban is some sort of family heirloom AND gets 2X the MPG of the others, the new transmission sounds like a great selling point. Succeed at that and you would have enough room for a TJ or LJ and a half a Jeep sized area for parts.
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You are 100% correct and prices are high, so I might list on the high side and see if she moves! There are two cons to this, the first is I have 95 Yukon on stated value policy, it requires a 2nd car really to get the rate I get. My wife drives her Yukon to work, but the burb for other errands a lot of the time. If I buy a TJ and mod it too much, I'd want same type of policy. 2nd is I can hull 4x8 plywood and 10-12' 2x's inside the burb. I get rid of that and I'll need a trailer as it seems I do that too often.

That said, anyone want to buy a 2003 Suburban LT with a fresh transmission??? ;)
 
I love the way they drive while being more practical than the old CJs. Also, for me, there's a sense of nostalgia, because I owned three TJs when they were brand new starting in '97. Reminds me of good times with my kids.
 
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Hokahay said:
I like my coffee strong and black!

Like my ......

Jeep.
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