Jeep Wrangler Sahara 2019: This shook my world

Tell the truth. The summer is fast approaching and the idea of ​​putting on a swimsuit and going in public is enough to create nightmares.

One solution: Lie on your stomach and lift your feet and knees off the floor, as if you were swimming in a freestyle pool.

Another path to serenity: take the keys to the 2019 Jeep Wrangler, climb up, drop the windows, or drop from the top and head straight for sunset.

Jeep Wrangler is sexy, delicious and just cool.

This is the abs of washboard vehicles.

Forget your age, your height or your weight. You seem to be driving the thing well. You feel well. Life is coming The worries are disappearing. And people envy you.

Now, if you are antisocial, this may not be the right choice. Strangers talk about the driving of the popular vehicle. And you will have questions. Because the Wrangler is made to crawl, people will ask you if you are a rock robot or a mall robot. What they ask, in reality, is if you plan to use the vehicle for this purpose.

Although I am a little crawled in the rock, people of my world love it. But this Jeep Wrangler, for me, was primarily a road and urban vehicle in the week I drove it. It is easy to park and pack. The kids would go, no problem.

It is an ideal vehicle for the winter or summer.

By 22 degrees, the heat rises as fast or faster than any vehicle, big or small, that I have ever driven. One day, I jumped out to realize the freezing cold without wearing gloves and the heated steering wheel thawed my fingers immediately.

Filled with surprises

It is a convertible that provides warmth, safety and comfort in winter. An unusual combo, really.

I am the last person who should have liked this ride. At the end of the day, deep inside me, after so many years, I'm a Mercedes sedan. But Wrangler shook my world.

Which is not at all what I expected, frankly.

The last time I drove a Jeep Wrangler, the Berlin Wall collapsed.

Three decades ago, after driving a Wrangler once, I swore never to do it again. The drive to Ixtapa, Mexico, was rough and miserable and I was so nauseous. This ruined a day that should have been spent sipping margaritas on a beach on the Pacific coast.

But all the buzz about the new Wrangler and its pivotal role in the Fiat Chrysler business plan to conquer the world has made me curious.

No doubt, the Wrangler drives like a dream. Yes, it's robust. Yes, I stained my clothes every time I went up and out. But I just did not care.

Going up on the running board, it's like riding in a stirrup when riding a horse.

Potholes? They feel like pebbles. Bring them.

Simple tech

Power, maneuverability, versatility.

The eight-speed automatic four-wheel drive makes it easy to work. If I tell the whole truth, I prefer a gear lever. But maybe what I like best is the solid suspension with gas shock absorbers. That's why the ride feels good.

Because the Wrangler is designed to be used in any weather, the levers on the dashboard have hoods that protect everything. Tiny but important details. The technology is simple and simple.

The nine-speaker sound system, however, is designed to play very, very loud music.

"Personally, I'm in love with the design of the headlights – I could not think of a vehicle that is harder to design, given its heritage and its owners," said Maeva Ribas, head of design analysis. at The Carlab, a Southern California automotive consulting group.

Yes, we could list all the data points on the car and its engine, but it's just not necessary.

"Pure", timeless design

And if you decide to drive the Firecracker Red Sahara version and feel what it is – well, let's just say that of all the cars I drove, it's the only car that all the members of my family agreed to buy. It has captured the hearts of Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, Volkswagen and Jeep Grand Cherokee loyalists.

"The Wrangler is the original SUV that has incorporated the idea that a vehicle designed for off-road vehicles could also function as an elegant and everyday driver," said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of the Analysis of the sector at Edmunds.com. "Wrangler's design is the purest example of the original purpose of a SUV, and it's smart that Jeep has kept it virtually unchanged since its inception.The Wrangler is one of the few truly timeless vehicles on the road today. "

In 2018, Jeep sold 240,000 Wranglers, up from 191,000 a year ago.

While the two-door Wrangler gets a lot of attention, I prefer the four-door. The carved look is unlike any other. I've packed five adults in the Wrangler to go to a work meeting. Everyone seemed to have plenty of room for the legs and elbows.

No drama

When a car in front of me braked suddenly in front of a yellow light on Michigan Avenue in Dearborn, I tested Wrangler's response time. No drama.

At one point, I noticed the tiny Jeep logos strategically placed around the vehicle, called "Easter Eggs". This is an "Where's Waldo?" Exercise created by designers who understand Wrangler's playful atmosphere, which can start at $ 28,045 and easily reach $ 52,015.

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It is likely that many Wrangler fans will rotate the all-new Jeep Gladiator pickup truck. But the Wrangler will only strengthen his profile and recruit more drivers into the family.

The Jeep Wrangler recently made the best Edmunds 2019 resale list for mid-size SUVs, whose projected value is the highest after five years..

"Every new owner of Wrangler is quickly learning the Jeep Wave, a subtle nod that Wrangler drivers have been sharing for decades," said Jeep Brand Manager Scott Tallon. "Wrangler owners share a vehicle and an adventure-based lifestyle, and no one else can say that."

For the record, I never really saw myself as an adventure girl. I've always talked about books, museums and movies. But after all these years, I discovered the 5km races, the Great Lakes sailing races and the paddleboard competitions on the Detroit River.

The adventure, I learned, is an essential part of a healthy life.

Many people want a ride that can handle large rocky mountains, steep hills and dangerous roads. As a person who lived in a seismic zone, I consider reassuring the ability of a vehicle to crawl.

Jeep Wrangler is infinitely more than fun. It can handle just about anything, including Armageddon.

Contact Phoebe Wall Howard at age 313-222-6512or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @phoebesaid. She writes periodically about people's relationships with their vehicles. Read more by subscribing to our Car Newsletter.

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