JLUR. 2.0 Turbo vs 3.6

[TJDave]

What do you think? I know and have the 3.6. Anybody have an opinion on the 2.0L turbo?
Thinking about a change.

[tobyw]

I have mixed feelings on this, which I'll try to explain, but to make is short I would not own a 2.0L Turbo drivetrain... The two separate times I have driven them the turbo lag was absolutely horrendous and I just didn't enjoy the overall driving experience. I would wager that some tuning could tweak that out of it, but off the lot I wasn't real keen on either of them.

Now for my mixed feelings... I love the whole feel when a turbo kicks in, how it keeps you in a higher gear on a hill at speed because it just pulls, and the idea of an increase in operating efficiency. However, in my personal experience with several (gasoline) turbo vehicles, there was absolutely no increase in efficiency and in fact the opposite effect seemed to be consistent with all of them, wherein driving similar vehicles with naturally aspirated drivetrains resulted in better fuel economy (for example, my F-150's equipped with the 3.5L EcoBoost vs. the 5.0L Coyote). Further, the turbo is another system that provides a path for failure, requires maintenance/replacement, etc. and I am just a sucker for the KISS principle.

Just my $0.02, and trust me it's not worth a fraction of that

[TJDave]

Thank you for your reply Toby. I was hoping you'd chime in! I would rather stick with the V6, if I find something that peaks my interest. I'm just seeing alot of Turbos for sale. That should tell me something right there!

[TJDave]

Change is here. Traveled to Enumscratch to look at one with the 3.6 auto, very low miles, flat tow equipped, decent lift, and oversize tire carrier. It came home with me wearing the Gladiator's wheels and 37s.

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[tobyw]

Congratulations! Let's get it dirty

If it doesn't have one, and you're interested, I've got an OEM steel lower skid plate that mounts below the front bumper. I believe most of the earlier model years equipped with plastic bumpers also came with plastic lower air dams, but later in the run they started mixing plastic bumpers with steel skid plates... Anyhow, I've got one if you want it.

[Gregandlina]

Change is here. Traveled to Enumscratch to look at one with the 3.6 auto, very low miles, flat tow equipped, decent lift, and oversize tire carrier. It came home with me wearing the Gladiator's wheels and 37s.

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Welcome back!

[TJDave]

Congratulations! Let's get it dirty

If it doesn't have one, and you're interested, I've got an OEM steel lower skid plate that mounts below the front bumper. I believe most of the earlier model years equipped with plastic bumpers also came with plastic lower air dams, but later in the run they started mixing plastic bumpers with steel skid plates... Anyhow, I've got one if you want it.

Oh yes please! It does have the fantastic plastic skid!

[TJDave]

JLUR tow test weekend. The motorhome is a little happier pulling hills. The fancy Stay-in-Play supplemental brake system that came installed on the Jeep works awesome. Hook and go. No more box in front of the brake pedal.
But now I have a complete RVI3 brake system sitting in the garage.

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[tobyw]

I should have picked your brain a little bit on auxiliary braking systems when I grabbed those seats the other day... I've got an old Brake Buddy setup, have no idea which generation off the top of my head, but I don't know if it'll work with the Gladiator? I believe it's just a 12v port connection that uses a pendulum to sense braking and then pushes a pneumatic cylinder to actuate the brake pedal, but it obviously has to be stuffed in front of the seat. Any idea if this contraption compatible with the Gladiator, or does it require something more sophisticated like your RVI3 setup?

[TJDave]

Toby, I have no idea if a brake buddy would work, but it probably will.
The RVI3 brake has a tablet that monitors the brake and you can manually activate it for big downhills. The unit itself is way smaller than the brake buddy and is air operated for instant braking. It worked great on the JK and the JT.