Tell me if I'm crazy

[dave123]

Ok, I'm blessed with a rust free V-8 1975 CJ5 that runs great and is a ton of fun. I also have a "pretty cool" 2011 Scion TC that is paid off.

So why am I seriously considering selling both of them, then adding several thousand dollars to buy a brand new Wrangler????

Curious to for opinions on whether or not I should pull the trigger on this. Here are my pros and cons, I would appreciate yours as well.

Current situation:
Good: 2 vehicles. If one is in service, I can drive the other. My CJ is pretty much the way I want it, and in excellent shape, and I love it. My new TC is practical, has a killer stereo and sunroof, good room in the back for the kids. It handles good and is reasonably quick (which I like). They are both paid off. The TC has a comfortable rear seat for the kids.

Bad: It rains a lot where I live. I refuse to get a top for the CJ. So, lots of times, I leave the CJ home because I don't want to get caught in the rain. Other times I risk it and end up soaked (sometimes with the now pissed wife). Wife and kids don't like the CJ unless they are in the right mood (it messes up their hair, no a/c, no place to put stuff like coolers when we travel or whatever they buy, etc.) Since there is nowhere around to legally wheel, my CJ is mostly drive to work on nice days and tool around town. I basically want a convertable with the option of covering up and turning on the a/c if the weather changes, and the ability to treat my vehicle a little rough. As it is now, I have to pick one or the other. Also, I insist on putting it under the car port, which my wife wants for herself...

Wrangler option.

Good: The new Wrangler would solve the rain issues, and with the a/c and closable top, be more agreeable for the wife and kids. Trips they don't want to make now would probably be back on the list. Wife could have the car port. So it would be good for family stuff. I would always have the convertible option and I would always have the off road option all in one.

Bad: Well, I'm trading 2 vehicles for one, and I will have to toss in some money. I'm a little worried about Chrysler reliability - I won't have a backup vehicle. Getting into the back seat is for acrobats, the kids (teenagers) won't like that. I lose my lockable storage the TC gives me. The soft top is a pain to open and close for the 15 minutes of bliss going to and from work, or other places that I would want it up upon arrival. I really wasn't that impressed with my test drive and would miss the nimble TC when I'm in a hurry (not to mention gas mileage). The pain of selling 2 cars and buying one.

So what do you guys think? Should I just stick with what I have, or should I try on the new Wrangler???

 

[Incommando]

Only you can answer whether it is worth it to you or not.

Don't worry about reliability. The average vehicle today, including Wranglers, probably have no more problems per thousand then the best from 10-15 years . The Pentastar V6 in the Wrangler took care of the main complaint on the JK: lack of power.

The Wrangler will be a solid DD but without the MPG of the TC. It will also be better off-road out of the box if your CJ is at or near stock. As for space: I have been in a TC and if the kids are small enough to not complain about it than the JK will not be a problem.

If it was me I would spring for a 4dr Wrangler and not look back...

 

[mtnwhlr]

If it were me I would just get a top for the CJ. I really don't like the new Wrangler. Or get a TJ I think that was the best Jeep right out of the box it will have more room they came with air and the tops are easy toput on or off. And for the price you won't have to give up your car.

 

[danc9]

I would ask myself, "how many guys here had a CJ and sold it for what ever reason, and wished they hadn't?"

INHO

 

[dunebuggy18]

We have both a CJ5 and a 2 door JK in the family, and our son has the 4 door JK. I agree that only you can decide what is right for you and your family, but if you decide on the new JK, get the 4 door! It can work as a family vehicle, and even stock it will go most places you want to go. Like all jeeps though, you KNOW you won't be able to leave it stock, and every time you add something, it will lead to another addition, and another, and another....

Me personally? If you have a solid CJ, with no payments, I'd get the top for it!

Broke, happy and wheelin: It's the credo any Jeep owner lives by!

 

[GatorBate]

Since there is nowhere around to legally wheel, my CJ is mostly drive to work on nice days and tool around town.

MOVE!!!

Oh, that's not an option.

 

[dave123]

Good advice, all.

The top is out of the question. You see, old CJ tops, as you know, can't be stored in the vehicle while driving, so I gain nothing by getting a top as I would just drive the TC when the weather required a top anyway. South Florida needs either top down or a/c! I drove an unlimited, but it felt big and fat - like a hummer or something. If I got a new one, I would go for the sport for sure.

As it turns out, they can't find one the way I like (half doors, 3.73 axel, black) so I have a little time to decide as the 2013's aren't being made yet and it is too late to special order a 12.

@danc9 You make a great point. I don't think I would ever be lucky enough to find a CJ as nice as mine that I could afford again. It would probably be "no looking back" as Incommando says. Something to think about. I have had CJ's since highschool. Would be sad not to have one again...

 

[dave123]

Curious if anyone here has a 12 wrangler? How do you like it?

Still trying to make up my mind...

 

[PaRenegade]

"So why am I seriously considering selling both of them, then adding several thousand dollars to buy a brand new Wrangler????"

Because you've been sniffing exhaust fumes? Your drunk? you fell out of your Jeep onto your head? The possibilities are endless.

Seriously though, why a wrangler and not a more roomy, efficient car? You don't wheel, your kids and wife don't like to be closer to the elements when driving, you have no winter weather... so why even consider a wrangler?

It doesn't sound like your heart is into Jeeps or you wouldn't be considering selling it, nor would you be so opposed to simply buying a top. But many folks are. So please sell it to a deserving individual who will realize they have an iconic piece of history that are becoming fewer and fewer everyday.

 

[dave123]

"So why am I seriously considering selling both of them, then adding several thousand dollars to buy a brand new Wrangler????"

Because you've been sniffing exhaust fumes? Your drunk? you fell out of your Jeep onto your head? The possibilities are endless.

Seriously though, why a wrangler and not a more roomy, efficient car? You don't wheel, your kids and wife don't like to be closer to the elements when driving, you have no winter weather... so why even consider a wrangler?

It doesn't sound like your heart is into Jeeps or you wouldn't be considering selling it, nor would you be so opposed to simply buying a top. But many folks are. So please sell it to a deserving individual who will realize they have an iconic piece of history that are becoming fewer and fewer everyday.

OUCH. I guess it is hard to explain. I've had v8 CJ's all my life, and I wheeled them all time when I lived in the midwest. Events have taken me to Florida where there really is nowhere to wheel. Doesn't mean I don't love the Jeeps anymore.

I need a convertible, or I go crazy. But I also like to be able to treat the vehicle a little rough, not wheeling as much as back roads after the rain, puddle jumping, ect. Can't do that in a car. Problem with the wife and kids are the weather here changes quick. Bright and sunny when we leave, but often thunderstorms in the afternoon, so they don't like to take the chance. The new wrangler would have the option of top up.

Getting a CJ with a top - where would I put the top?? They don't fold up, so we either take the whole ride top up (then why take the Jeep), or we are right back where we start with the top sitting at home. Hope this makes sense...

And I do love CJ's, but with nowhere to ride, just thinking maybe a new one would give me best of both worlds.

 

[Tin Medic]

I dont think you are going to find a good answer. In the end you will be compromising yourself when you get rid of 2 vehicles that you really like to get something you hope you will like as much, which listening to you doesnt seem likely (hey, you love your CJ). And yes, you will definately regret losing your CJ.

 

[CJ007]

If the wife is not working...thats a good solution, she is probably the one that really wants the 4 door .

It worked for me, except the part where she got a job!

 

[dave123]

Sold the CJ yesterday.

I put it on Craiglist at 9am, had 4 calls by noon, the first person to see it took it home for very close to what I was asking. I had thought with the economy that I might have problems, but I guess there will always be people willing to pay for a nice CJ.

I miss it already and there is some second guessing. As the day went by, I got 3 more calls. Something tells me that even though I think I got a fair price, maybe I should have asked more.

Good thing, I really like the guy that bought it and I know he loves Jeeps and will take care of it.

Ordering the 2013 Wrangler this week. Although CJ's will always be my first love, the family had just out grown it. When the Kids move out and I am retired, I may well get another....