I visited my local dealer about 2 months ago, drove the new 2012 JK 4-door. Ironically I drove the same color as our 2008 JK / 4-door. 3 hours later, I was driving home with our new 2012 JK 4-door white. Many great things on the 2012. The engine feels way better, blue tooth satellite radio, amazing interior and many great features have changed as well. We just added a brand new set of Dick Cepek DC-2 18x9 wheels with 35's and saving some money for a nice 2 inch lift kit from Rancho.

 

theres what a 3-4 second difference in 0-60 mph between the two. that is a huge difference. i had an 07 with 4.10 and a manual and 2012 with 3.73's and its apples to oranges.

youre right its not meant to be a fast car....it just so happens to be pretty damn quick for a jeep. i too am not in a hurry but im also not one of those people that like to take 6 miles to reach highway speeds. its pretty irritating getting behind people like that plus its very dangerous.

also what is "i can ass"......that doesnt sound very good, you might want to have that checked out by your doctor.

 

 

I'd say to the OP that it's up to you. Test drive one and see. It's ultimately up to you based on your own wants and needs.

Personally speaking, though, I traded my 2011 JKU Sport w/10,000 miles on it for a 2012 JKU Rubicon (at least I came away with a small profit). Both are autos with a 3.73 rear, so I'd opine that it's a good apples-to-apples comparison.

In my opinion, the 2012 w/the 3.6 and 5-speed auto wins hands-down.

Shifting is much crisper and faster and it doesn't hunt around to find the right gear going uphill. The extra power of the 3.6 is very noticeable (at least with my 3.73s). When I get down on the go-pedal, it feels a lot like my Grand Cherokee V8. The best part is that I don't have to plan my interstate on-ramps basing my acceleration on the traffic 1/2 mile down the road. The 3.8 was a "punch and pray" merge, the 3.6 gets you into the gap that you want to be in. Essentially, you're no longer confined to the right lane on the interstate, esp. on hills (which we have a lot of around my neck of the woods).

Sure, I agree to a point with some of the other commenters that are saying, essentially, that it's a Jeep and it's not built to be a drag racer. I do, however, use it as my daily driver, meaning that I drive on pavement in traffic during the week, and I don't like to be embarrassed by Priuses when the light goes green. So IMO, the 3.6/5-speed auto is an all-around improvement.