If mileage is a concern, get the stick. It gets much better mileage than the auto. I wish I got the stick.

 

My wife just laughed her friggin arse off on that one 'cuz I've got the Auto and she's got the manual.

I don't know if I necessarily agree with this. Mileage is such a crap shoot honestly. I think if you're cruising around town you "may" be able eek a little better mileage out of the manual than the auto. If you're cruising any sort of distance the auto really shines as the overdrive gear is better (lower?/higher? ) than the manual. On long haul trips (150miles one way) to the a local off-road park I have managed to get 2-3mpg better than my wife. I've got a 4dr rubi with an auto and she's got a 2dr rubi with a manual, both are bone stock.

 

I've hypermiled a stick and gotten 26mpgs...


I baby my auto like you wouldn't believe, driving like 150 year old lady, and I get 18.5...

Huge difference.

 

mine is a do it yourself tranny, love it and couldn't imagine a jeep any other way.

 

Automatic for me...Love it...

 

Well, I ended up trading in my 2008 X manual for a 2010 sport unlimited automatic. I wanted a manual, but the one they had on the lot had everything else I wanted other than that, so I pulled the trigger.

Happy owner of a 4 door unlimited!

 

On my last serious trail rig, I started with a 5 speed and swapped in an auto after a few years.

I was able to drive and wheel all the same places and get a direct comparison.

The auto was better for the kind of wheeling I was doing. Mostly narrow technical tree lined trails. Nothing like Lions back or anything where engine braking was supremely important.

Being able to nudge the Jeep through the rough stuff was way easier with the auto. It was easier on the Jeep, on me, and I could get through things without having to get a run at them. It was easier to crawl.

Back then, we only had 3 spd autos, so the drawback was no overdrive, but we don't have that limitation anymore.

My JK has an auto for the reasons listed above, and its a DD with heavy traffic.

 

Ya know those times on the trail when somehow you've stalled the engine, so ya' push in the clutch to restart and get that Ka-BANG sound from rolling into a rock. I sure miss that in my automatic

 

I have a 2009 Unlimited X with 6 spd. After 16 years of Auto's . I had forgot
How much fun shifting gear's was. And it does not bother my 53 year old
creaky knee's . 6spd for me.

 

ive only had my used 2007 sahara for a few weeks. im already finding myself wishing i had got an automatic instead. such a pain in the ass shifting all the time. i'd prefer a better spaced out 5 speed than this crappy 6 speed where 6th gear is useless.. (3.21 gears, stock 32" tires..)