I’m thinking this thread is really focused on the specific popularity of the Jeep Wrangler, rather than the other Jeep offerings, because when some says “Jeep” the reflexive thought is to picture a Wrangler, rather than their other sort of typical-SUV looking offerings.

With that in mind, Wranglers have always been fascinating in the way they cut across all sorts of cultural and SES lines. They’re popular with people from groups that literally have nothing else in common with each other but an affection for the Wrangler. JFK Jr drove a Wrangler, as did Bill Clinton and George W Bush and Ronald Reagan, who all owned various CJ-series Jeeps, which were the forerunner of the Wrangler. Also, lots of celebs and athletes and entertainers. And lots of ordinary people, from college professors and stock brokers to coal miners and military personnel. They’re a universal, ubiquitous vehicle that is attainable by almost anyone. And regardless of whether they’re owned by someone wealthy or someone poor, the experience of owning one, driving one and being in one is the exact same. It may in fact be the ONLY shared experience between an otherwise totally different lifestyle.

All these different types of people all seem to like the Wrangler. Even if you don’t understand that popularity, it’s foolish to dismiss it just because you don’t.

There’s a there, there. And you should devote some time into wondering about why.

I lease a Compass because a relative works at Stellanis so I get the employee discount. I don't expect it to be a Porsche, but it gets me where I need and is great in snow. Mileage is pretty good.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They're so ugly. I can't believe Mercedes made a Jeep lookalike.

Mercedes G-wagon is very old and was a utility vehicle in other countries. For some reason, someone/Mercedes?? got it in their head to turn it into a high end vehicle. (For all I know, the Jeep was a copy of the G-wagon.)

But regardless of what the Jeep Haters are saying here, there is a huge number of people who love the look of the traditional Jeep, that you can now see in the Jeep Wrangler. And it's an affordable "cool" vehicle.

The Jeep began in 1941, the G Wagon in 1979. Perhaps Mercedes recalled the ass-kicking that Jeeps delivered their parents' generation in WWII.

Anonymous wrote:They're constantly given low reliability, resale and safety ratings from Consumer Reports and countless other automobile reviewers. While some may argue the tough American image they portray, they're currently owned by Stellantis, which is headquartered in the Netherlands. Everyone I know who owns one has had some major repair come up prior to hitting 100K, and many of them are extremely overpriced for the quality you get. (Grand Wagoneer)

Why on earth do some many people buy Jeep brand vehicles?

The obvious response I'm sure I'll get is "They're fun cars", but I'll counter with my previous comments and ask if a fun vehicle is worth all the above listed aggravations and warnings from so many reputable industry experts.

They're fun. Removable top and doors. Serious off road capability. Manual transmission available. Reliability issues completely overblown (I've had 3 of them stretching back to 1996 and each (other than my 2019, which is my daily) has lasted more than 10 years with minimal unexpected maintenance. Even if they weren't overblown (and the "experts" actually understood what Jeeps are about), the answer to your counter is "yes -- every bit and then some". If you are adverse to Jeeps, it is very easy not to buy one. If you are curious as to why people like them, drive one for a bit on a nice sunny day, with the top off, preferably on a trail or beach and then report back.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s an acceptable lower priced vehicle for UMC just like Subaru.

They can be quite expensive

Yup. Jeeps are $$$$$$ for what you get.

You'd have to try really hard to spend over $40K on a Subaru. And, frankly, my Subaru has driven fine on the beach and ORV trails alongside Jeeps. And I've blown past spun out Jeeps in heavy winter conditions.

98% of people driving Jeeps will never rock crawl or go muddin'. They really should just be driving Subarus.

Why should they be driving a Subaru rather than a Jeep? Lol.

I’ve owned both Subarus AND Jeeps. I can say with 100% certainty the Jeeps were not only more reliable but also cheaper to fix when they needed repairs.

The ONLY advantage the Subarus ever had over the Jeeps was on-pavement gas mileage. But they were inferior in every other metric that I cared about.

Reliability issues? I'm on my third Grand Cherokee. The first two were totaled (not my fault) with 87k and 173k miles. They were rarely in the shop, about every four years for minor maintenance.

My 1976 Jeep CJ7 I sold in 1993 was bought by a landscaping company to pull a trailor full of lawnmowers and equipment.

304 engine, lift kit, winch, trailor hitch with 67K miles. The owner said he planned on keeping it for at least 20 years. .

I doubt any Japanese vehicle at 17 years of age would be put into commercial service.

My Jeep was so bare bones, no floor mats, no radio, no heat, no defroster basically and engine and a frame. Great work truck

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s an acceptable lower priced vehicle for UMC just like Subaru.

They can be quite expensive

Yup. Jeeps are $$$$$$ for what you get.

You'd have to try really hard to spend over $40K on a Subaru. And, frankly, my Subaru has driven fine on the beach and ORV trails alongside Jeeps. And I've blown past spun out Jeeps in heavy winter conditions.

98% of people driving Jeeps will never rock crawl or go muddin'. They really should just be driving Subarus.

Why should they be driving a Subaru rather than a Jeep? Lol.

Because they are pavement princesses using it exclusively for carpooling or driving to the office & golf course. Why deal with the sh#tty mileage of a Jeep and high cost of purchase & ownership if you don't even really use it in fun situations (ie, off roading)? If your reason for buying it is to drive on the beach in Corolla or drive to your ski cabin, then the Subaru is actually a better vehicle both on and off the pavement.

Owning a Jeep for the 90% of people who never take it on an ORV trail or use AllTrails is pointless.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They're constantly given low reliability, resale and safety ratings from Consumer Reports and countless other automobile reviewers. While some may argue the tough American image they portray, they're currently owned by Stellantis, which is headquartered in the Netherlands. Everyone I know who owns one has had some major repair come up prior to hitting 100K, and many of them are extremely overpriced for the quality you get. (Grand Wagoneer)

Why on earth do some many people buy Jeep brand vehicles?

The obvious response I'm sure I'll get is "They're fun cars", but I'll counter with my previous comments and ask if a fun vehicle is worth all the above listed aggravations and warnings from so many reputable industry experts.

I’d suggest you stop trying to understand. You’re not equipped for it, and you never will. Just accept that there’s a community of people out there that you’ll never have an insight into, and get on with your life.

Some people get excited easily be it about a car, jewelry, tattoo or what have you. Jeep is not too bad if it is experience. I wouldn't buy German cars either.

Anonymous wrote:I have a Grand Cherokee, and I love it. I don’t understand Consumer Reports, my car is a 2016 with 90K miles and has never been in the shop. It’s a lot of fun to drive and the size is perfect. To each their own.

Are people on here mad at Jeep Cherokee drivers, too, or just Wrangler drivers?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s an acceptable lower priced vehicle for UMC just like Subaru.

They can be quite expensive

Yup. Jeeps are $$$$$$ for what you get.

You'd have to try really hard to spend over $40K on a Subaru. And, frankly, my Subaru has driven fine on the beach and ORV trails alongside Jeeps. And I've blown past spun out Jeeps in heavy winter conditions.

98% of people driving Jeeps will never rock crawl or go muddin'. They really should just be driving Subarus.

Why should they be driving a Subaru rather than a Jeep? Lol.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s an acceptable lower priced vehicle for UMC just like Subaru.

They can be quite expensive

Yup. Jeeps are $$$$$$ for what you get.

You'd have to try really hard to spend over $40K on a Subaru. And, frankly, my Subaru has driven fine on the beach and ORV trails alongside Jeeps. And I've blown past spun out Jeeps in heavy winter conditions.

98% of people driving Jeeps will never rock crawl or go muddin'. They really should just be driving Subarus.

All the SUV's I looked at were at least in the 50's - ford, hyundai, etc... nothing fancy.

Not all jeeps are 4 wheel or awd. The basic sport model is very no thrills.

What exactly are you looking for? A Honda CRV AWD is $30k.

Anonymous wrote:They're constantly given low reliability, resale and safety ratings from Consumer Reports and countless other automobile reviewers. While some may argue the tough American image they portray, they're currently owned by Stellantis, which is headquartered in the Netherlands. Everyone I know who owns one has had some major repair come up prior to hitting 100K, and many of them are extremely overpriced for the quality you get. (Grand Wagoneer)

Why on earth do some many people buy Jeep brand vehicles?

The obvious response I'm sure I'll get is "They're fun cars", but I'll counter with my previous comments and ask if a fun vehicle is worth all the above listed aggravations and warnings from so many reputable industry experts.

I’d suggest you stop trying to understand. You’re not equipped for it, and you never will. Just accept that there’s a community of people out there that you’ll never have an insight into, and get on with your life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reliability has not been a problem for us. I have a 2001 and a 2016. My son has a 2005. My SIL has a 2018. My other SIL has two around 2010.

They’re fun cars. We off-road. We go to drive on beaches. They’re easy to clean.

It is unfortunate, at least to me, that more Jeep owners never experience the fun of driving their Jeep off-road. I won't pretend to be a rock crawler but have driven our jeep with friends on trails where cars can't go enough times to understand its capabilities and limitations. It is a lot of fun to do with a club, friends that can teach you how to use trecovery gear properly and avoid damaging the jeep or yourself.

It's like buying a Ferrari and never driving over 80mph

This, 100%

I’ve owned 7 Jeeps. All either had more than 100,000 miles when I bought them (CJ-7, YJ, and XJ) or I put 100,000+ miles on them after buying them. I’ve used all seven of them off-road, some of them almost exclusively off-road.

Not one of them ever failed to get me home from a trip - even after being damaged and in one case, flopped on it’s side, then pushed back onto the wheels again. Never broke down, never stranded me. In my experience, they’re the MOST reliable brand of vehicle I’ve ever owned.

But there’s a caveat to that reliability…. Preventive maintenance. If you don’t do it, if you don’t know to do basic maintenance to prevent problems or fix small issues before they cause a problem - then Jeeps aren’t for you.

But to own one and not use it off road, you’re missing THE best part of the vehicle. Why put up with the harshness and crudeness of a Jeep Wrangler and never experience what it’s designed to do best?

Makes no sense at all

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s an acceptable lower priced vehicle for UMC just like Subaru.

They can be quite expensive

Yup. Jeeps are $$$$$$ for what you get.

You'd have to try really hard to spend over $40K on a Subaru. And, frankly, my Subaru has driven fine on the beach and ORV trails alongside Jeeps. And I've blown past spun out Jeeps in heavy winter conditions.

98% of people driving Jeeps will never rock crawl or go muddin'. They really should just be driving Subarus.

All the SUV's I looked at were at least in the 50's - ford, hyundai, etc... nothing fancy.

Not all jeeps are 4 wheel or awd. The basic sport model is very no thrills.