catahoula

Diesel is still more at the pump though.

jk_sea

I think Jeep needs to be careful not to dilute the purpose of the Wrangler. Even though most Wranglers sold are road-going family haulers, its primary purpose and design is to go off road, and that's why people like it (even if they drive it ON roads). If FCA is going to start selling hybrid Wranglers, the hope is that they still cater to our crowd and that the hybrid tech is just a carry over to help manage FCA's CAFE requirements. I am unaware of hybrid tech for offroad use--maybe it's viable, and maybe not. But it sounds like something that's more at home in the Grand Cherokee, or those little car-based things that FCA insists on calling Jeeps.

Its-a-JK

I don't think FCA would be looking at this tech if the volume of Wranglers wasn't as large as it is but because the Wrangler is selling the way it is and the unfettered access to the global market now that will sell more copies they don't have much choice but use this tech do to regulations. I think there will come a time when the Wrangler loses it off roadability at least to the level it has now but it will be due to our over reaching government that forces the hand. FCA knows why the vehicle sells the way it does.
Hybrid tech has to make its way into more markets although I would much prefer pure diesel or pure electric over the hybrid platform for simplicity. VW has just announced the new Tiguan hybrid that is specifically designed for more off road use on a slightly beefed up platform so the time is coming and we will have to adapt whether we like it or not it's the times we are in especially with the global warming alarmism flooding the media today. Not to say there isn't some climate change taking place but lets face it it is money driven........
For the Wrangler enthusiast the next generation platform maybe the generation that is held on too and rebuilt, rebuilt and rebuilt again because there will be no other options for a true off roader. Just hope its not the case.

shabbernigdo

Old diesels yes. new ones no. the new ones have too much epa crap choking the life out of them and all the delightfull sensors that come along with it.

crawldad

true. the EPA prefers to have lithium ion nickel cadmium -who-knows-what-else batteries in our landfills in 10-20 years. the recycle rate for most lithium ion and other misc batteries is only 25%. notable exception the average lead-acid automotive batteries are recycled at 95%. hybrid cars use the high tech pollution batteries.

mr72

As hard as it is to think with the tin foil hat on, I still believe the problem is not the environment. That's just the excuse. The problem the government is trying to solve is control. It's worth it to fill the landfills with heavy metals and toxic chemicals if that means more control.

Anyway, I think the reason lead acid batteries are recycled so much more frequently is because of their size, typically. You just can't toss one in the trash at home and it gets carried off by the municipal garbage collection with the potato peels and dryer lint. But with little NiMH/NiCd and Li-Ion, they easily get chunked in the trash and nobody notices.

This won't be the case with the giant Lithium-based batteries in electric cars. They will be recycled, or just left to rot in the car they were in.

jedg

True enough, but if the diesel gets even 50% better fuel economy, then you've beat the price gap.

ricky-2012jku

Man diesel is not longer worth the extra cost. In the truck market. They are not lasting any longer than gas motors. And unless your a constantly towing you're not even saving money on gas. Head over to powerstrokehelp.com and just read and watch all the information. I will never buy another diesel until CAFE standards change.

jedg

You bring up a good point. The sweet spot for diesel (in trucks) is if you tow often. Example, our 1997 PSD gets 22 mpg pretty much all the time. Towing or not. My Dad has an F150 with the ecoboost engine. He gets 27-28 when not towing. He gets 14 when towing.

Not sure I'll buy the longevity argument yet. Our PSD has 311,000 on it and still runs strong. I've yet to see a gasoline truck match that.

EDIT - in the Jeep world, there's a pretty clear advantage to the diesel engines. They have more torque and WAY better gas mileage than the gasoline Jeeps.

sixt7gt350

XM1124...
Electric motors are even better than diesel for low-speed torque.
Weatherproofing electric systems isn't rocket science, either.