I have a daughter who will be turning 16 soon and I am starting to look at cars for her. She likes the Jeep Wranglers, and I know nothing about them (aside from knowing that kids and off-roaders like them).

I stumbled upon one locally that is a 1995 Wrangler S with the 4 cylinder motor in an automatic. It only has 66000 miles on it, 4WD, auto, air, new tires, hard top, excellent condition in/out.

Are these good? Problematic? Any concerns? Thoughts? He is asking $6k.

if taken care of that 4 cylinder is good for 300k.....hard to kill them if you do regular maintenance......it doesnt have enough power to get a kid in trouble but it is a short wheel base, high center of gravity vehicle so your daughter does need to understand what that means and how to drive it....

oh and dont think you can just put the 4.0L engine in it if you decide you want more power....its an absolute pain in the arse to do and much eisier to just find one that already has the 4.0....

I don't think Jeep Wranglers are a good first vehicle. They are somewhat lite and don't stop as well as most cars. That four banger doesn't have enough power to get out of it' own way.
On the other hand,the asking price isn't that bad and your daughter will probably love it.
Another thing is... When she gets tired of it,you have a cool hunting rig.

Sounds like a fun vehicle with low miles at a good price.

She'll love it.

Tell her to buckle up and not do anything stupid. She should do fine.

Tell her not to use 4 low until she is absolutely, positively stuck for her bail out plan.

The jeep has a high center of gravity and short wheel base. Its not the safest car for a young driver. See if you can score a used CRV in good condition. We've found two real clean ones the past couple years (1999 and 2001) and gave one to our daughter.

My .02 worth.

Jordan

I agree with the above. A Cherokee with the straight 6 would be a better choice, IMHO.

Funny Bart, you have precisely re-listed all of my exact thoughts/concern on one of these. I took it for a good spin, including the highway, and it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be, but was still plenty bumpy, noisy, and top heavy.

though they are small, they do not drive like a car and you cant drive them like one.....but if your daughter is the more mature type and you know she will listen to instruction than IMHO wouldnt be a huge deal for a first vehicle.....especially with the 4 cyl.........

Ditto
Jeeps are not sports cars they're not meant to corner like one, that's why they no longer make the CJ's, and now produce the Wranglers with a much wider stance.
Take that Wrangler out for a drive yourself before you show it to your daughter, I think you'll like it.
By sitting up a little higher than the low slung ground hugging cars of today you will have a good view of what's going in traffic ahead, not just the car directly in front of you.

I've owned three of them. The first was a '77 CJ7 with a factory 304 V8 with Quadratrack. The second was an '84 CJ7 Renegade with an in-line 6 and the third was a '97 TJ Wrangler with a 4-banger.
The one thing that I would caution about is the steering. With the short wheelbase, the steering is very responsive. I found that I had to pay more attention to where I was pointed than any other vehicles I've owned. Looking for wildlife (either the four-legged or two-legged variety) could get you in trouble if you took your eyes off the road for more than a quick glance.
They had a reputation for being tippy, but I put well over a quarter of a million miles on the three of them and never came close to rolling any of 'em. I did spin one out on a corner (on a paved highway), when I wasn't paying as much attention as I should have, and the shiny side stayed up.
They are a fun vehicle to drive and they will go a lot of places where other 4X4s won't.

Absolutely agree with all of the above. Not a safe car for a new driver.

That said, I love Jeeps to death and grew up in Toledo, not that far from the old Willys Overland plant. I've owned and driven several Jeeps over the past five decades. I peraonally very much like the recent Wranglers.

When my own kids were in their teens, they had two choices in cars that they both hated. One was my '87 turbo Buick Grand National, whose informal motto was "We brake for Corvettes." The fastest production cars at the time other than a limited production Porsche. Any little acceleration and the wheels would chirp and the back end would twist. Scared the hell out of them. The other was a big old Jeep Wagoneer. I figured they would survive any crash in that one.

I owned a jeep for 10 years, first a 95 black 4 banger and I absolutely regret ever trading it in. I moved to a 4 door wrangler and drove that for 4 years and then got a big boy vehicle and bought a silverado. I drove the hell out of that 95 wrangler and wish I was still driving it. I think it depends on your daughter ability to learn and how smart she is. If she is a cautious young woman then I think she will learn to drive it just as safely as any other vehicle, if she is reckless then no I don't think its a good choice. I never had an issue with mine being top heavy or tippy, but I didn't jack it up either. Hell if I didn't have 3 kids I'd probably still have one or be thinking about getting another one now.

P.S. If ever you think about leasing a wrangler DONT. I had my last jeep for 4 years and sold it for exactly 4 grand less than I paid for it new, not traded in sold it.

MM

I had an early wrangler with the 6 cylinder in it, It had good points Like good in a foot of snow or less, and topless summer evening rides. It was by far the cheapest made vehicle i've ever owned. I would not put my 16 yr old in one.

I bought a 91 for my daughters. For several reasons (my daughter has a medical condition and injures very easily - I decided a recently made vehicle with all the airbags), I ended up with the Jeep. I did lots of upgrades - it is now my go to hunting vessel. It is my favorite vehicle. It now goes about anywhere a UTV will go.

Being short wheel base, they are can be wicked on ice. Things happen fast. I have the 4 cylinder. Not fast at freeway speeds. But still, not very fuel efficient. Easy to find parts for. Easy to work on. Not a lot of interior room. Good in deep snow. Inexpensive to operate. Not very complex. Higher center of gravity than a sedan. I would say not the safest vehicle for a teenager as they are beginners at driving and can get in trouble and therefore get in accidents.

My best friend and I both had Jeep CJ5's in high school..

I like to think we were both the 'mature type,' though our parents would probably dispute that fact, and neither of us ever had any problems.

The CJ5 didn't have a much longer wheelbase than today's side-by-side UTV's. Additionally, both of them were lifted up four inches or so, and stood on 33" tires; his ran a AMC 304 V8, and mine had the 258 inline 6. Both were ridiculously OVERpowered. We ran those things off road more than we did on the road, and neither of us had any issues. Since then, I have owned three more.. a YJ, similar to the one you are considering, and two TJ's [round headlamps,] one with the 2.5L four and the other with the 4.0L, all with handshakers. By far, the best engine put into a Jeep was the 4.0L. The 2.5L, which is what you are looking at I believe, is probably a little underpowered, but good on gas, and it lacks the torque to get her into trouble on slippery roads. The 2.5L, and those older automatics are relatively trouble-free.

Remfak, I don't think your daughter will have any problems with that Wrangler.

The biggest issues to keep an eye out for, at least on the Jeeps here in the rust belt, is body and frame rust. Some are rotted to the gunnels, some still have a black frame.. it seems hit or miss. They like to rust under the doors, the front fenders start rusting up under the flares, and around the rear corners of the cab, and on the body seams under the rear door. On the frame, check the rails above the rear wheels, and the leaf spring shackles.

If you are the type of guy who performs his own maintenance and repairs, you wont find an easier vehicle to work on. Parts are cheap and available through 4wd Hardware and a few other 'Jeep' specialty catalogs. There are several good online forums to ask questions and gain knowledge.

If you end up getting her a Jeep, and have any questions, give me a hollar, I have been working on them for years.

This can definitely be a BIG problem for an inexperienced driver; I'd not get it for a kid of mine as there are many better choices.

I've had several Jeeps & have a 4dr Wrangler now; the short ones can be treacherous on slippery conditions, period.

Jeeps are fantastic for certain things but can be tricky to learn how to handle on the road.

MM

During the hiatus from '95 to '97, Jeep re-engineered the Wranglers. Besides going back to round headlights, the biggest changes were in the suspension. 1997 and newer Wranglers are much more controllable, especially on washboard and other sub-par road surfaces. My wife had a '97 with the four-banger and she absolutely loved it.

We were living on a very large ranch and spent a lot of time in it during our leisure hours. She finally traded it, primarily because she couldn't run the A/C at highway speeds in the summertime on the . If there were hills involved, the engine would overheat and she had to turn off the A/C. This made trips to Tucson and El Paso pretty uncomfortable.

That might not be a problem in Montana, though. FWIW, comparing notes with other Wrangler owners, we found that the four and the six got about the same gas mileage in real life useage.

Any idea what they did to the suspension to improve the ride/handling? As I understand it, Wranglers are still beam/solid axles front and rear, but I'm not sure if they are coil or leaf sprung?

Coil spring four link in front like the Dodge Ram.

I drove a two-door JK recently and I thought it was twitchy compared to my CJ7 that has stock height springs and 32x11.50 BFG KM2's.

They went to what they called the Quadra-coil suspension which allowed an additional seven inches of articulation over the old leaf spring set-up. In addition to improving handling, it resulted in increased approach and departure angles. It also benefited from improved factory shocks and tires, which really did improve on-road driving. There was certainly nothing "twitchy" about the way ours handled, on or off-road.

Leaves were replaced with coils the same year that the headlights changed back from square to round, IE, YJ to TJ. I don't remember the year. This is US of course, might be different overseas. You can still buy an XJ "square-box" Cherokee overseas, but not in the US.

Wow, it's about 50/50 on being good for a kid and 100% for being a good off-road/hunting vehicle.

Specifically, how's the four-banger automatic on-road, and off?

Thanks for all the comments guys. It's a tough decision.

Can't help you there--ours had a five speed manual transmission which was very good.

Get her the Wrangler, the safety concerns are outdated and overstated. The older CJ's were bad about roll overs. Jeep correced that problem in the 1980's with the Wrangler which has a much lower center of gravity and a much wider stance. They are among the safest vehicles on the road unless lifted and highly modified.

I grew up around CJ's and every friend I had that owned one had at least 1 slow roll over. I lost 3 friends in Jeep accidents in the 1970's and was concerned when we were considering one years ago. My insurance agent told me they wouldn't insure a CJ, but the Wrangler had one of the best safety records of anything on the road. What else are you going to buy her with a full roll cage?

Hmmm, is it wise/worth it to look for a 97 or newer to get the design "upgrades"?

If it were I, and I suppose it will be in about ten more years, I wouldn't hesitate to buy my daughter a TJ, which is the "round headlight," coil sprung machine. If my daughter is coordinated enough to learn how to operate a handshaker, I would find her a 2.5L four-cylinder, five-speed. Not bad on fuel, as far as Jeeps go, and reliable, easy to work on.

That being said, if a YJ, the square headlight model you are looking at, fell in my lap for a song, I wouldn't hesitate to put her into it, assuming it was in fine shape.

I have never owned an automatic Jeep, and I know from experience, that the little 2.5L isn't exactly a powerhouse, but it will get her from point A to point B as fast as she needs to go.

That's my challenge now. The one I looked at yesterday is a 95', in immaculate condition inside and out (new tires too), and turned 66k miles during my test drive. I can probably get if for $5000 - $5500.

For whatever it is worth, the Jeep deal you are describing is a good buy. The hard top and low mileage, it is a good value for $6K unless it is rusted out, has a salvage title or something.

Agreed. I know the price seems high, but Jeeps hold onto a solid value, almost to the point of being ridiculous. ..and I may be way off, but from my understanding, Colorado, assuming the YJ spent it's life there, is a no salt state? My friend bought a Dodge Ram 2500 V10 a few years back on Ebay, flew out to Colorado and drove her home, in part because the Ram was completely rust free, and was nine or ten years old. In comparison, a Dodge Ram here, nine or ten years old, would be rotted to the point of being dangerous.

No rust, tears, dings, salvage title, 2nd owner, etc.

Correct, no salt! Makes buying vehicles here nice as you don't have to worry about that.

Colorado uses salt. But obviously most of the usage is in where they get the majority of the snow, along the Rocky Mountain range. The eastern side gets less.

Here in Arizona, the Jeep deal he is describing would be bought in 2.2 seconds after advertising it.

The only thing I have found to be bad about Jeeps are they are an addiction. They are so easy to customize and modify. I am sure you have heard the saying: Jeep - Just Empty Every Pocket. They are reliable, but there is always something you want to upgrade to so you spend your money on those upgrades.

Jeeps for guys are like shoes and clothes for the women folk!!!!! Always something to accessorize!!!!!!

I am told you can't get financing for salvage title vehicles. And you can only insure them for liability coverage, not comprehensive coverage. Just a thought. Still sounds like a heck of a hunting vessel if you want to head that direction with things.

I drove a Jeep a lot as a teenager. You're only young once, get her the Jeep.

Something else to consider for a new driver.....Get her a vehicle that she'll want to drive an all her friends will want to be in. That way, she's in charge of how it's driven and where they go, and she's never the passenger who's just along for the ride.

I'd rather my kids be the driver of a Jeep than a passenger of a super safe car.

I just sold a 1997 TJ Wrangler and have 2 sons that both have CJ 7's. I wouldn't get a jeep for a Child of mine to use as a daily driver unless it was at least a "97" or later. A good one just isn't that hard to find and if it needs a little fixing up that is easy to do with a Jeep. I think that they are much safer than the older ones. The ride and handling is much better than earlier Jeeps and the wheelbase is a little wider. I'd find one with a 6 cylinder engine. The resale value will be better and at times the extra power can help. It still isn't going to be fast or a hot rod. The transmission won't make any difference. She will figure it out if you get a manual one and it might be good for her down the road. She will be able to drive anything.

Around here the problems kids get into with a Jeep usually involves deep mud or trying to climb a sand hill. The deep mud can tear up a Jeep and the sand hill can kill you. Outlaw the sand hills if you got any around! Check to make sure all the seat belts are working! Don't let anyone ride in it that isn't behind a seat belt!

In SE Georgia a jeep with square head lights just doesn't retain its value. A friend that runs a Jeep Salvage business in town and rebuilds Jeeps for a living, told me to stay away from the square headlights. They evidently have some problems that can be avoided by buying a Jeep made after 1996. It isn't the headlights, but they are good indicators according to him.

Gas milage on a Jeep just stinks. Best I've gotten with my 6 cylinder was around 15mpg.

The best thing to me about a Jeep is that they are noisy and rough riding. You feel the speed! It is a lot easier for a kid (or an Adult) to go slow in a Jeep than it is in a vehicle that is smooth and quiet.

My daughter got full coverage on her theft recovery salvage title. It;s true no dealer will touch it but she'll be driving it till it dies.

I would take a TJ hands down over a YJ any day, nicer interior, much better suspension and the injected 4.0 would most likely get better fuel economy than the 4.2.

As far as putting your daughter behind a TJ, I am not sure how anyone above me can say it's right for your daughter, nobody knows her like you.

I might have put my oldest (almost 19) in a TJ at 16 because she was, or at least at that age, very cautious. My youngest (18) on the other hand, is a bonofide nut behind the wheel. She is always on the throttle getting up to the speed limit in 3-6 seconds or less and corners like she is driving for NASCAR.

the Jeep he is talking about should have the fuel injected 2.5L by his description....solid engine, just without alot of power known for having long lives....know alot of Jeep guys with over 300,000 on them, its even more durable than the 4.0L and thats also a darn nice engine that lasts for a fair amount of miles especially given its usually in vehicles that arent babied......

i wouuld take a TJ over a YJ too, as will anyone which is why they go for a premium.....

Lucky dogs.

A good friend of mine has a 97 or 98 2.5 5spd and he loves it, totally stock except for 31" tires. He never has any problems, said it only gets about 17 mpg city/hwy but starts every time. He takes it to CO quite often on his Mulie hunt.

The doors on Wranglers provide zero protection from a side impact crash.

been to more then a few wrecks where kids were killed in new vehicles with all the safety features.......when your time is up its up.....least thats how i feel.....ive walked away from stuff i shouldnt have and had friends and family killed in types of wrecks most people survive.....

Really low on power. Gotta get a pretty good run at any sort of hill. Let's just say you won't be setting any land speed records.

The 2.5 Liter timing chain has a cheap, crappy tensioner design that may need replacement before too long. Poor design.

I helped the 2.5 liter in my Cherokee with a 4.0 liter throttle body.
With a 5 speed, and 4.10s, it almost keeps up with traffic. Who am I kidding... no it doesn't.

Off road, it's ok. Doesn't lug down very well. After owning Jeeps with a 4 cylinder and a 6, I would hold out for a 6 cylinder.

Went back and took a good thorough look today, this time with much better light than the last. All looked real good until I took a look underneath. First, there appeared to be a lot of old thick oil type build-up at the end of the front axle and inside of the wheel. Then I noticed four separate fluid leaks - One just forward of the oil drain pan, one behind the pan, one about midway back (trans), and one at the back/center of the rear axle. Popped the hood and their was some old oil build-up on top of the head.

At its age and lack of miles I'm assuming all but one are related to bad seals/gaskets. I am definitely not a mechanic so I have no idea what all that crap is. What I do know now is that it needs to be looked at by a mechanic.

After all the reading, I'm thinking about trying to find a TJ with a V6. If for no other reason, I think I will be much happier when driving it myself.

a jeep leaking, even in that mid 90's era isnt odd and is usually easily dealt with and fixed right but it sounds like this one has gone a fair bit without it being addressed and that could be an issue if they didnt keep the oil level up.....ild pass and this one and find another jeep or other vehicle.....

Be leery of a Jeep that does not leak oil, the owner may have run it completely dry

There is a *huge* Jeep crowd and they will help you out, sign up to Jeepforum and start reading the threads in the TJ section.

Ya, Jeeps are notorious for leaks. Oil pan gasket or either the rear main seal are often the culprits. Where the OP describes, that is what it sounds like it might be. He said it only had 66K miles - that Jeep has a LOT of life left in it. TJ's are nice and with the coil spring suspension have a smoother ride, but if you modify the suspension to allow for bigger tires, it costs more to modify. Leaf suspensions like on a YJ are simpler by design.

My rear main is leaking. I lose about a quart about every 4K miles When I pull my transmission to get the syncros fixed, I will fix it then. Until then, I figure my Jeep is just marking its territory.

Well, that one didn't work out. If anyone knows of a nice V6 automatic TJ that can be had for $7k or less, +/- a little let me know. I think my daughter will dig it if I can find a decent unmolested one.....

TJ's are easy to lift. Ever heard of a puck lift? Can fit 33 with easy simple puck lift.

Your looking for a straight 6, not a V-6.

My sons first vehicle was a Rodeo 2door-short wheelbase like the Jeep. It took me one time driving it on the interstate to be rid of it before he ever received his license. You swerve once at speed and they keep swerving.

(quick reply, not directed to you Raeford)

want some real advise? dont wait till your kid is 15 or 16 or whatever before they get behind the wheel.....we started our girls out as soon as they could reach everything....they must had well over 15,000 miles under their belt before they stepped foot in drivers ed.....granted most of it was Jeep trails and backcounty roads.....

been to a few accidents, including a fatal one involving a good friend of my brothers with in a short time of the kid getting their license and they think it means they can drive like everyone else does even though they have no experience....my brothers friend had less than 300 miles under his belt when he flipped his car on a gravel road cause he had no clue how to drive on gravel.....

I agree 100% with rattler, I started driving around 8 but really put in some miles starting around 10, on city streets and the highway.

I had the option of parent taught drivers ed for my daughters and it was worth it even with some nuclear meltdowns with two you female drivers.

However, there were a few minor collisions in the first year that I expected.

Remfak, I bought my daughter a wrangler for her first vehicle when we lived in Conifer bsck in 1999. She had plenty of wheel experience as rattler refferences beforehand and living at 8500' it was a great vehicle for her. No issues.

yeah the minor happens, infact the oldest girl had an accident within an hour of getting her license though i will admit it wasnt her fault....an older lady pulled into her lane without looking and she couldnt get out of the way fast enough.....but it should go a long way in helping prevent the major stuff thats a result of inexperience....

I love Jeeps... but wouldn't give a Wrangler to a young driver. My kids all learned on a Cherokee (not that it's the most stable vehicle in the world, but it's better than a Wrangler).

Two of my kids have had classmates die in rollovers so far. Scary.

I would agree, Wranglers are not starter vehicles due to the short wheelbase and lack of occupant safety. I built a wrangler and used to wheel in a club, they all suck on slick pavement. Jeep Wrangler is going to be at the bottom of the list for safety.

At 16 odds are she will be in a accident in her first year. I started my son in a explorer with the advance track auto 4wheel drive and airbags for a reason . I told my son he had to make it a year accident free before we talked about getting something "cool". We ended up putting a mild lift on a 1/2 ton 4x4 for him, I was glad he didn't want a Wrangler.

Same here, son was driving comfortably by ten as we live on a private dirt road. Taught him the manual on the tractor by 8.
Things are different out on the roads than they were 35 years ago....

Not to hijack the thread, but what do you guys think about getting a young driver a manual transmission in their first vehicle, assuming adequate practice time to become used to the operation? My wife has her first manual vehicle now, a Mustang GT we bought this summer. After getting the hang of everything, she loves it and is amazed at how much more she has to focus on driving and on the flow of traffic. There's much less freedom to talk on the phone, text, or do other things like eat or interact with passengers. I agree with her, but I also just enjoy driving a manual transmission because I like the driver involvement. She mentioned the other day that she thinks teenagers would be much better drivers with stick shifts, due to the level of actual focus needed versus an automatic. Thoughts?

my oldests first vehicle was a 95 Jeep Cherokee with a 5 speed....she was fine with it, drove it for about a year.....

Have a friend hat does stunt work, including driving, and he told me he can tip any jeep at 7 miles an hour.

The vast majority of folks over here pass their tests in a car with a manual gear change; in fact anyone with an automatic only restriction on their license is looked down on as a second class driver! The exception to that would be people who drive auto's because of a disability of some sort..

Licenses here in the US are for manual or automatic transmissions, no restrictions once you get the license.

My oldest got a manual as a 2nd vehicle, hated it at first but now he likes it. Should never have given it to him permanently, should have kept it for the 2 younger sons to learn on. I think everybody should learn to drive one before they are 20.