Miscellany: 2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon review - Bucking the Bronco

My Tesla Model 3 is in the shop after getting rear-ended last week, and the insurance company gods decided to troll me with a rental vehicle that is the polar opposite of a compact, self-driving EV: a four-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car classifies the Wrangler as a "compact SUV," but this ain't a RAV4 or CRV.  First, the good: the Wrangler is probably the most durable, capable off-road vehicle available to the average consumer, with part-time four-wheel drive, body on frame construction, and a solid front axle.  With the right tires and a little preparation, you can traverse terrain straight out of, well, a Jeep commercial.

The bad? For everything but off-roading, the Wrangler is a compromise, sometimes a severe one.  As a commuter car, my example guzzled gas (around 18 mpg combined) and delivered a bumpy, noisy ride on the highway.  The engine is decent (FCA's Pentastar 3.6L V6, good for 285 hp), but the rest of the Wrangler's mechanical design, like big knobby tires and removable doors, are counterproductive in morning traffic.

As for the interior, the layout of the dashboard is clear and sensible, and the car is pretty easy to drive. 2024 was a refresh year for the Wrangler, with the biggest change being a new center infotainment touchscreen. The screen is actually well-integrated into the dash, and thankfully, doesn't displace physical controls for climate and audio.

Most of the rest of the vehicle is unchanged.  There's a fair amount of space for rear passengers and a sizable cargo area, but neither are best in class.

The primary competitor to the Wrangler is the sixth-gen Ford Bronco, first released in 2021.  The new Bronco was and is a big seller (both my uncle and my managing partner had one), since the Bronco arguably strikes a better balance between everyday driving and off-road capability. I assume the Wrangler's 2024 refresh was an attempt to add more creature comforts to what had previously been a spartan experience. I consider it mostly successful, though my car's infotainment system crashed multiple times and had to be reset in just a week's worth of driving.

All in all, I think the Wrangler was an interesting car to drive, though I'm happy I'll be getting my car back - eventually.