The story
Jeep unveiled the JL at the Los Angeles Auto Show on November 29, 2017, and the short two-door, the purest Wrangler, followed the four-door into production at Toledo in early 2018. On paper it changed little: still body-on-frame, still solid axles front and rear, still doors and a windshield that come off. In practice it was a thorough rethink. Wikipedia puts it about 90 kg (198 lb) lighter than the JK, with a lower beltline, bigger windows and a grille whose seven slots lean back like the TJ's.
WHAT CHANGED UNDERNEATH
The 3.6 Pentastar carried over at 285 hp and 260 lb-ft, now with an optional eTorque mild-hybrid system. It drove through either a six-speed manual or the 850RE eight-speed automatic. A 2.0-liter turbo four with 270 hp and 295 lb-ft arrived later as an eight-speed-only option. Steering stayed recirculating-ball, now with electric pump assistance, and three 4WD systems were offered: part-time Command-Trac, full-time Selec-Trac and the Rubicon's Rock-Trac with 4:1 low range.
The axles were new Dana designs. Way of Life's breakdown lists an M186 front and M200 rear (the familiar 'Dana 30 and Dana 35' sizes) on the Sport and Sahara, an optional M220 rear bundled with the limited slip, and wider M210/M220 Dana 44s with electric lockers on the Rubicon. Quadratec's 2020 specs give the two-door Rubicon 10.8 inches of ground clearance on a 96.8-inch wheelbase, and a 1,000-lb payload.
A ROUGH START
Early JLs had real problems. Over 18,000 2018–2019 Wranglers were recalled for a poorly welded track-bar bracket, and NHTSA then opened an investigation covering about 270,000 JLs over frame-weld and steering complaints. In August 2019 FCA started fitting a stronger steering damper free of charge, after finding that the original could take in air in the cold and lose damping. Manual trucks were recalled because the clutch pressure plate could overheat, and Jeep later switched the early aluminum steering boxes to cast iron.
None of that stopped the JL from winning the 2019 Four Wheeler SUV of the Year as a Rubicon, along with Motor Trend's SUV of the Year. It even starred in a Super Bowl LII ad, with Jeff Goldblum recreating his Jurassic Park chase in a silver two-door Rubicon.
THE 2024 REFRESH
For 2024 Jeep gave the JL a mid-cycle update rather than a replacement. Every Wrangler got a 12.3-inch Uconnect 5 screen, side-curtain airbags for both rows, a slimmer grille with blacked-out slot frames, and an antenna built into the windshield frame so it stops catching branches. Hagerty lists the rest: a factory 8,000-lb Warn winch option, power seats sealed for fording, a full-floating Dana 44 HD rear axle for the Rubicon, 33-inch tires and a rear locker for the Willys, and a new Rubicon X with 35s.
The refreshed two-door still faces the same rivals as before, and more of them: the Ford Bronco, and further up the price list the Defender 90 and the G-Class. None of them has removable doors, a fold-down windshield and solid axles at both ends.
SIDEBAR · THE BLM'S RUBICONS
Government-issue two-doors
The photos on this page show a white two-door JL Rubicon wearing Bureau of Land Management door logos in California's Johnson Valley OHV Area. The BLM published the pictures into the public domain, which is why we can show them.
It's a fitting job for the short JL. Its short wheelbase suits tight desert washes, and like every Rubicon it has lockers front and rear and a disconnecting sway bar.
