So, bite the bullet and decided to retire the XJ and get a newer Jeep. It was a tough decision as the 14 year old XJ is a beast and has served us well but it was time to move on and get something more modern. We originally thought a 4 door JK was what we needed but as a family we mostly head off in our other new car, a turbo diesel station wagon, so we decided to go for a 2 door fun machine and will get a roof rack for longer trips or take the tear drop camper along (which now needs a colour change)
Anyway, we looked at one JK, and bought it, a 2 door 2009 Rubicon. Not what you would normally do but the price was good, the mileage fairly low (39k) and it is a Rubicon (so retiring the XJ wasn't quite so painful).
Apart from the stock Rubicon JK stuff it has a few other things as the original owner optioned it up a bit.
Mopar front bar, rear bar and rock rails. Safari snorkel, projecta dual battery management system with dual battery monitor, tow bar, spotlights, Mygig Nav and bluetooth.
First impressions is the interior is made out of the same stuff as some of my daughters plastic toys, sturdy, that's for sure but welcoming, not exactlyThe XJ interior does not look 10 years older
The boot, if you can call it that, is very very small, but it will fit a 25lt fridge for day trips and there are numerous other place to store stuff, under the front seats is pretty roomy. I hate the way the passenger seat does not lock forward when it is slide to allow access to the back, a simple oversight by Jeep but a pain already on any slope. I hear this was fixed in 2011 updates.
On the plus side it is quiet on the road (for a Jeep), and feels pretty peppy (I wont say fast but off the line it's decent). The seating feels like my XJ on 35's, tall with a good view, must feel like a monster riding in any JK on 35's. I'm looking forward to summer and putting the soft top on.
And some pics. It'll stay like this for a few months at least and will then get 2" of lift and 285/70 on the 17's. Other plans include the usual like a UHF, tablet mount and swapping a couple of bits from the XJ like the LED light bar. There are already some Mopar front recovery hooks on the way and a mount for the light bar
Cheers
Steve
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