When most people talk about a Jeep Wrangler, you either hear “OMG I love Jeeps” or “No they are very plain and basic”. 

As an owner of a 1997 Jeep Wrangler Sport, I get where both sides come from. They are desirable in a sense of reliability and capabilities considering  we live in an area that can reach temperatures of over 100 degrees or -20 degrees Fahrenheit with several feet of snow. Since They are 4x4, they are  somewhat reliable, have lots of clearance, and a boxy look that lots of people die for. After having a Wrangler for around 5 years, it has always been great for plowing in the winter and taking a cruise with the top off in the summer. 

These vehicles are one of the most common vehicles to be customized, nearly every Jeep you see will have some sort of customization done to it; whether it’s just a small brake light that goes in the spare tire, or it looks like a full monster truck. Over the years of owning ours, we have added a few customizations ourselves. We put a 2 inch lift on it, 33 inch tires, large steel front and rear bumpers, a lightbar, new front seats, an exhaust, and new frame supports. 

Before I could drive, I always sat in the back seat  which was still pretty tight with very little leg room even though I was a pretty small kid. Now that I’m driving it I can make a lot more observations about its capabilities. It handles well in snow and mud, even with a plow, and rarely slides around with the new 33 inch tires, it can go over lots of things that most average vehicles can’t, although; it has very loose steering (likes to wander the road), and has no power to the motor at all. It struggles getting up to speed even on a downhill on ramp. With the loud exhaust, it sounds like a sports car flying down the road when in reality, it’s just a Jeep wrangler struggling to accelerate.

 As far as the interior, the seats were pretty uncomfortable, speakers didn’t sound good, and the dash layout is very basic and doesn’t have any special features to it.. During the period where the temperatures are consistently over 50 degrees, we leave the top off and if it is above 70 we take the doors off. Driving with all of this off gets pretty noisy from the wind piling up against the brick shaped vehicle, being probably one of the least aerodynamic vehicles ever made. I used to use a soft top for the past few years and recently we decided to buy a hardtop to help insulate and keep in heat, decrease noise, and make for an easy install. After getting the new hard top and taking it for a drive it definitely was more quiet, kept in heat better, and was more comfortable, but that still didn’t get rid of the horrible wind noise. 

As for a daily driver it’s not always the most reasonable, although it is short and fits in tight spaces pretty easily, it is still somewhat wide and I’m sure the newer 4 door Jeeps are much longer. I daily drive a car instead of the wrangler because I get better gas mileage being lower to the ground and being more aerodynamic, I don’t have any wind noise and I don't have to worry about getting cold and I actually have more storage for my things such as bikes. I can have a normal conversation in my car where as if I were in the Jeep I would have to raise my voice quite a bit to be heard. I’m sure that

All in all from my experience, I think these are good for something to hop in and expect to be able to go almost anywhere offroad/out in the country, but for the daily commuting aspect towards the cities with hauling things, it isn’t a great option.