That's some awesome pictures especially the last one

 

I used my jk for a few years as my primary vehicle, i have an 8 and a 5yr old and they loved it too.

 

Awesome pictures, it looks like everyone is having a good time.

 

I'll give you my experience in case it helps. Hope it isn't too long winded.

I bought my first jeep (87 YJ) in my twenties. Rag top, half doors, no hardtop. I drove the hell out of that Jeep and it never let me down. Sometimes in the summer I would just drop the top, take off the doors, find a mountain road and see where it would take me.

I had a cousin who owned a huge amount of land in the Appalachian foothills, and would let me go anywhere on his property. There were no trails just forest to navigate. In fact, after one such outing, it got dark, and I had to pitch my tent using my headlights. That night I proposed to the woman with me, and we've been happily married ever since. Funny thing was the tent was on an incline and I didn't stake it. The next morning we woke up with the tent upside down, we had rolled down the hill. I figured if she still wanted to marry me after that, she would put up with a little crazy.

We had our first kid, and the first time I put her in a baby seat in the back, I realized I had to lose the Jeep. Bought a new Cherokee, we had two more kids, and then were faced with me taking a new job and driving across the country with three kids and a dog (kids were 4, 3, and 1). I traded in the Cherokee on a Eurovan, which worked well enough that I later traded it in on a second one with the pop top camper. We cross the country several times more to visit grandparents and enjoy this beautiful country of ours, taking a different route every time.

When the kids got older, we went several cars before buying a Volvo XC-70 with a third rear seat, because there was always a friend coming along on outings.

By this time, I had lost every bit of the joy of driving. It had become something I hated. Which is bad, because my kids were reaching their early tweens, and dad becomes the chauffeur for basketball games, library runs, etc.

My wife and I started talking about the JK 4 door, and pulled the trigger a month or two ago on a 2011 Rubi.

I am in heaven. My wife loves it. My kids love it. Our two dogs love it. And I can't wait for our next cross-country trip.

There are probably more aftermarket parts for the Jeep than any other vehicle, so you can build it into whatever works for your family. Not as much room as a Eurovan, but close to the same gas mileage. As much room as a Volvo station wagon, and ten million times more fun to drive.

Had the 4 door been available back when we did out first cross country, I would have been a continuous Jeep owner all these years. I'm pretty sure my kids will grow up to be Jeep owners.

In fact, I think my first child might have been conceived in an upside down tent, next to a Jeep.

Go for a Rubi with leather seats. Easier to clean up the half-eaten cheerios (trust me, some day you will understand this).

 

I very much understand this.
As much of a sacrilege as the creature comforts are to the "Jeep thing," being able to quickly clean seats is a plus for a family vehicle. (because vinyl, the other easy clean, sucks on so many levels)
Our Outback had leather seats. We owned it when the first two kids were in car seats.

 

Here is my JKU family story. There are 4 of us and two dogs in our family. We bought our JKU last year NOT as a family vehicle. We have a 2010 Rubicon with factory leather, NAV, Bluetooth, tow package, hardtop, etc. Pretty much as luxury as a JKU can get. I lifted it 4" and put on 35's. Again, this was not going to be our "family" car.

Problem is.....everyone loved the Jeep. We never drove our Honda Accord anymore, we would always take the Jeep. We would go on trails, to Jeep events, to Jeep meetings and just everyday errands.

So just last month my wife traded her Accord in for a 350Z. How do you ask is this relevant....well a 350Z sure can not be a family car.

Now the Jeep is the ONLY family car we have.


And we just put 37's on last week!!!!

Do it, you wont regret. If you are that worried about reliabilty, get extended warranty ours is covered to 100K.


With the 35's




With the 37's

 

Totally agree!

However I had no choice but to get leather. Well I had a choice, but the dealer did not have any without leather and Im not patient LOL

In retrospec.....I love having the leather!! Super easy to clean after a trail run. Here in Nevada lots and lots of dust and my seats always come super clean. Plus spilled drinks by the kiddos while on the trail clean up real nice to. We just keep some wipes in the Jeep and walla....mess gone!!

 

37s for a family JK An I am being a pu$$y about small 35s :palmface:

 

HAHA...Maybe so!!!

My family just cant get enough "Jeepin" Both my sons want Jeeps for their first cars.

 

My GF loves our jeep, she wants a black JKU for her next rig. She thinks it's an awesome family vehicle for kids.... No kids yet!