My wife purchased a 2007 Jeep Wrangler a bit over two years ago. The Jeep was purchased brand new and she uses it daily to commute to work and run errands in the city. The majority of the travel this Jeep sees is urban driving with some highway time. We have yet to go off road with the Jeep, although we do use it in New England winters which can be quite treacherous. The Jeep is the “X” trim level, manual transmission, 4 wheel drive, two door model, with the “freedom top” (hard top) option.

Prior to this we also had a 2002 Wrangler with a similar trim level.

Engine Performance and Drive

The 2007 Jeep Wrangler’s were the first to use the new 3.8L V6 engine with 205 horsepower. Prior years offered a 4.0L inline six engine with less horsepower. The new engine is much more capable than the prior generation. It is faster “off the line” and more confident at speed. The engine offers plenty of power for the average driver. The manual transmission allows you to chose the appropriate gear for quick takeoffs and getting out of traffic. The automatic version (4-speed) may be sluggish in these situations. The 2007 transmission is a 6 speed manual unlike prior years that had 5 speeds. This can help improve gas mileage.

Prospective buyers should remember the Wrangler is a truck and not one of the other small SUV on the market that are based on car bodies. One of the more truck like features of this car is the “long” clutch. Most cars have short clutches, whereas the Jeep’s clutch seems to have 5 or 6 inches of play.

The gas mileage on this Jeep is very poor. During the winter with four wheel drive we have seen as low as 13 MPG. The best mileage we get out of the Jeep is about 17 MPG. These numbers are a mix of city and highway driving with average acceleration and usage. My wife does not drive like a grandma, but also not like a jerk jumping off at traffic lights and around traffic.

Our Jeep is equipped with four wheel drive, Read More…