Jeep Wrangler Rubicon JL One Year Review of the 2018 

James Torres this is a frequent discussion in our household since the Gladiator is about to be on lots. If we traded one in, which one would we trade in? Sadly, I haven’t a good answer yet. We did post a side by side comparison video of the tire noise and we have a review of each vehicle separately. Right now Jeep is discounting which is not always the case. If you like automatics, and you want it loaded, Moab is great. Love mine. But you can get a Rubicon loaded the same way for about $4k more if you want the disconnecting sway bar and lockers. So far, I haven’t hit an obstacle the Moab got stuck on, but I’m also a beginner on the trails and just getting started. Moab is a slightly smoother ride, the Rubicon is a little bouncer. Rubicon sits about 2 inches higher in the front. For me today, the decision would be made by what I got the best deal on. I don’t think I would go for a sport or base Sahara though. Beefier axles was worth steeping up to Moab or rubicon in my opinion.

@@QuickShifts Do you plan to stay with the stock size or change to the 285/75r17, 35×11.5r17(a nitto size) or 285/75r18 size or something else ?

C7 GT1 when the time comes we plan to go bigger. Haven’t decided what tire yet but it won’t be the KO2 again. Maybe a KM2. 👍🏻😉

C7 GT1 ,.,., Gbb

look, beautiful

ThE AsD its freaking horrible isn’t it! Wow!! I need to download some better options and put a little more effort into post production. To be fair, I hammered out this video super fast not having much to say since it’s been a good uneventful ownership thus far.

I couldn't finish the video with that music.

I can’t hold that against you. It’s awful. Shame on me. 🤢🤯

@@QuickShifts better option would be no background music at all when you are talking

Id agree the music is unnecessary but not disturbing. Typical internet over reaction.

There are passenger hvac vents in the rear now, yes. That’s some serious Jeep time you’ve accumulated over the years. Would be great to hear your opinion of the JL compared to all the others you’ve got to experience. We’ve had 4 Jeeps now. 2 JKs (Sahara and Recon) and now the 2 JLs.

@@QuickShifts Yes but it would cost me 30 to 50 grand. We will see, thanks have fun!

The only water leak I have had has been the center of the rear window on very very heavy rains with the vehicle sitting parked. It’s been only a couple drips and I usually clean the window and seal and it goes away for awhile. It’s kind of a wrangler thing. Every one I’ve had has done this.

Good to know. Thank you.

Quick Shifts How did you seal the rear window?

Joe Giz a quick cleaning of the window and a wipe down of the seal usually resolves it until it needs cleaned again. 👍🏻

Jose Colorado it’s a Jeep, they make noises. LOL! I’ve never noticed anything abnormal on either of our Jeeps when it comes to windshield noise. Sorry I’m not much help for you. If you’re concerned, take it into service and they can ease your mind.

Chris Biggers some mystery’s are not meant to be solved. Like Oak Island. 😂🤣😂🤣

The video has a lot of good information and I appreciate you taking the time to make it, but the music is really distracting.

Chris Biggers appreciate the feedback, thank you. Sorry about the music. It was a poor, rushed choice.

I’d like a free Jeep also please! haha! Thanks for watching!

Fernando J. Sulsona Anziani appreciate the feedback. Thanks for watching!

MarkPharaoh thanks for watching and giving the feedback. Working on another video right now from Jeep Jam with both Jeeps running the course. I’ll leave the music out altogether for this one. Still working on my production skills. I’ll get better (I hope!).

ggolds5 wow! That’s some serious Jeep history you have! Thanks for watching and for sharing your story. Seems the rear defroster/window is the only thing to keep an eye on in these JL.

Michael Rusinko appreciate you watching and commenting. Jeeps truly are the do it all vehicle. Like driving a Swiss Army knife of the car world. We love them and we always come back to them. Jeep has been stepping up and painting grills on the yellowing I’ve heard. The Moab has been great, only issues with the rear window on the hard top. Would buy again for sure. Thanks again!

I agree with you. need 100k miles. but I don’t keep them long enough to accomplish that. with todays level of manufacturing, if it’s going to fail, generally it happens sooner and if it’s that bad, there will be recalls to address it.

Glad it’s fixed now!

How's your truck holding up? I want a manual JL as well. How many miles/km's do you have on yours?

Jamie Hastings appreciate that info on yellowing! Thank you. We’ll check it out with our dealer. They’ve been very helpful thus far.

Yes, it drives better than a JK but it still drives like a Jeep (or a vehicle with straight axles). If you want better on road feel, go with a Bronco.

Thanks for watching and commenting. Hope it’s still going strong!

Whoever Whoever I talk about my Moab a good bit. Check out my Moab videos. More coming soon. Just need to edit the footage.

Carl Balliet wax that front grill well and see if it keeps from turning yellow. Let me know if it helps! Thanks for the kind words!

Glad you found it useful! Hope you’re enjoying the JL.

Thanks for watching. Music is annoying. LOL!

AV Rides it was the factory tint on the back. We just had the local tint guy match the front to the back. I believe it’s a 3M tint.

Hello fellow South Carolinian! Thanks for the watch and comment!

No, not yet. Sorry about your luck also. If you do, let me know the response you get. I will do the same for you when I do bring it in.

That’s hard times for sure. Best of luck in finding your next opportunity! It’s out there, don’t stop looking. 👍

Sara Sahara Thank you for watching and for the feedback! 😉👍🏻

Jason Barnwell way better on a hard top. Toss in a headliner kit and it gets even better yet. The Moab edition I had had the headliner. It was worth the extra pennies. If you want to see the difference yourself, I recommend going and test driving a hard top at a dealership. 👍😉

Bruce Kendall can’t say I’d blame you! If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. 👍🏻 diesel Jeeps aren’t something you see everyday either.

Al Ryan I definitely will. Thanks for watching and for the feedback! I hope you enjoy your Moab as much as I enjoy mine!

👍🏼Ryan on your Moab! Love driving my Moab everyday.

Robby heck ya it’s the funnest car I ever driven and owned absolutely love it! Can’t wait to take the top off in the summer

Nothing thought about it before we traded it in. Hear that Jeep has been repainting them under warranty. Sport or Rubicon, the paint is the same. Rich? I wish. LOL!

Sorry. Thanks for commenting!

It did well while we had it. This is already two vehicles ago now. 😉👍🏻 Only issue was the rear window leaking a tiny bit when you had a heavy rain and it sat still in it. The front grill started to yellow a little.

Nena Xtina well, we just traded in the Rubicon and I still have the Moab...so, that should give you a hint. 😉👍🏻 Really, for how I use my Jeep, the Moab hands down is a better option for me. Maybe I’ll put a short video together on this. 🤔

Quick Shifts yes. I can’t wait. I want the black and white look. I hate all the red. Also I wud lift the Sahara and get diff rims and tires. But was considering the rubicon simply bc of the name and that it is off-road ready. But I wud change the rims and tires on the rubicon anyway. But hated the red. What color Sahara did u jus buy? And is it for ur wife? I can’t believe u switched. I thought u loved the rubicon.

Nena Xtina she traded in the Rubicon for a 2019 Ram Laramie 1500 Sport. I did a video on it. You should check it out. She wanted more options like the Moab but also wanted to get in a truck for awhile. We are always switching up our vehicles.

Appreciate the feedback. Thank you for watching.

The new JL is a lot of fun for sure! Thanks for watching!

@@QuickShifts yes if you got the money, for sure.

Same thing just happened on the Moab also. I guess it can’t be repaired and have to replace the glass. It looks like it could be soldered by someone who knew what they are doing. But since it’s covered under warranty, I’ll let them replace it.

@@QuickShifts yeah warranty is all well n good but that warranty isn't going to last forever and it looks like they've got an issue that needs a recall.

ANGLIN ARMY I totally agree. It’s way too expensive to “just live with it”.

You should get one if you haven’t yet!

Kcordelia Starr glad you found it useful. Thank you for watching and commenting!

Pat E do the door sill guards count? LOL Generally, I prefer to push parts to their limits before replacing them. Kind of an old racers mentality. One way to look at it is I’m not yet good enough to optimize the Jeep as it sits to validate buying even better parts just yet. That and I don’t currently have the play money to do it either. 😉👍

Quick Shifts totally understand

Jonathan Garrett South Carolina.

I wish you could buy a wrangler today for what we paid for it back in 2018. They are way more expensive now!

I’m afraid not. We traded this car in a little ways back. I think it was 2 or 3 vehicles ago. We have a Gladiator and a RAV4 Hybrid now.

MrCamel2humps no thoughts on it right now. That’s news to me.

J. Westlake Cool! Maybe we’ll cross paths. We’ll be doing the beach crawl and also trying out the obstacles. Going to head out there Friday thru Sunday. Should be a good time for sure.

drumtwo4seven sorry for the inconvenience of the music.

Appreciate the kind words. Thank you!

ASUMirage15 I use Adams products on my vehicles. Every wash I finish with H2O Guard. I’m a little OCD.

Sal Arrigo really appreciate you watching the video and leaving a comment! It’s unfortunate that you too have a problem with the grill beginning to yellow! 😳 I strongly suggest you take it in to the dealership and ask them about it. Hopefully they will take care of it for you. Best of luck!

Sorry I let you down. 😢

Quick Shifts heard a lot of JL owners getting cracked windshields, any issues?

Larry Bria we have heard the same. I was watching the windshield during Jeep Jam on both our Jeeps expecting them to crack and had no issue. They got banged around on the skid plates a good bit if you watch that video. So far all is good. I’m waiting for it though. 😬

shift intohigh a Jeep will never be a precise handling machine. The steering is what it is. The bigger tires and all terrain tires add to the wondering feel. It’s designed for some off road use. The steering for off road needs a less aggressive manor where as a race car needs more aggressive. If you test drove new Jeeps and didn’t like how it steers, you most likely aren’t going to fix it and maybe should look to a different vehicle. After some miles it loosens up a touch more, but you also get used to it. It makes my GTO feel crazy nimble LOL!

Quick Shifts Thank you for your thoughts! My cousin has a 16 Ruby on 35s, he says it does tend to drift around. He said what you said. Humm. Might try a Gr Cherokee with all weather trails pkg which is Trail Rated. Or Trailhawk. I think too much rack and pinion has crept into my life to reverse course. Still may drive a Sahara at proper or pressure. I understand the steering box not jerking the wheel out of your hand. Many thanks for your reply👍👍👍🇺🇸

shift intohigh glad to help. It’s just the personality of a Jeep. No point in hiding it. This is my fourth one, and obviously I’ve grown to love them. 👍🏻

I could use Marvel money! LOL

Thanks for commenting!

so sorry! 😢😢😢

I miss my Moab now. it was great! LOL!

LOL! Modding is contagious!

roger ballard when they transport vehicles they sometimes run higher air pressure in them to prevent any flat spots on the wheel. But a small variance like that could be from a hot tire. Big tires like those on our Jeeps tend to gain a few lbs when they heat up from a long drive or even just back in the hot southern sun. Nothing to worry about. I ran mine at 36lbs cold. They would go 40-41 on longer trips/hotter days. Thanks again for watching and commenting!

soctnights there is a great deal of engineering that goes into the suspension and steering design on any vehicle. A large amount of testing is also done to make sure the vehicle will last x amount of time. All that being said, I have had zero death wobble issues with either of the JL’s I have owned. If you don’t intend to modify your suspension or essentially the geometry of the drivetrain/suspension/steering you will likely not have a problem until you are enough miles in that you start having bushing and components fail from use/age (talking 100k miles and or 10 years of age).

They are adding a steering damper for no charge.They are aware of that problem.

stupidgenius15 i’m pretty sure he meant mechanical issues wise.

precisely. Turns out Jeep windows just leak. You get over it instantly. LOL