panthermark

While I think you got a good deal, there are a couple of quick items to point out.
#1 You would have still gotten $500 off of a 2012 with your military rebate.
#2 You could have purchased a 2012 off the lot (as you did with the 2011) and not waited until November.
#3 Many people are getting below 1% invoice. Pat here in Chicago is doing a no haggle flat 2% under invoice for TL/Affiliate programs.

But as I stated, you still managed to do well. Before rebates, it looks like that 2011 was being sold WELL below invoice to begin with if it was being sold at $22,900 while inovice on a 2012 with the same options was roughly $24,600.

WCDAVE

[QUOTE=panthermark;2529698#3 - Everyone talks about HP....but most of that HP comes in over 4000 RPM's. No one spends a lot of time there. The BIG boost in the torque. The new engine reaches over 95% of its peak (250 out of 260 lb-ft) torque at roughly 2000 RPM's. It is at or above 250 lb-ft from 2000 RPM's alway the way to roughly 5500 RPM's. The old engine never reaches 250 lb-ft....the peak is 237 lb-ft at 4000 RPM's.[/QUOTE]

The main reason no one spends any time there in a 3.8 is because at that RPM the vehicle sounds like it's going to explode. The 3.6 is so much smoother into the rev range making it a lot more comfortable to drive at higher RPMs. Contrary to what many on this forum say, rock crawling is not most Jeeps' full time avocation; higher revs are part and parcel of daily driving. If you are content with your pre-Pentastar JK though, be happy. There is always a new "New". In a couple of years, maybe sooner, there will be a Jeep that eclipses the current one. I won't waste time trying to argue that mine is somehow better, or just as good. It just is what it is; the predecessor to the current (future) model that Jeep in their R&D has made better.

tncruiser

i would think that if you find the 3'8 to puny and not up to the task then a 3.6 will only be marginally better
what happens next year when they increase power another 30% do you trade again
the next model is always perceived better by some,i ve never had a straight 6 but im sure i would like it
but govt regs and marketing determine what we can get and if you have ti have the newest and best vehicle
every year you will be wasting a lot of your future wealth,and dont ask how i know. but i hvae spent a lot of my
life pursuing pretty woman,nice cars and good times i just wasted the rest
if youre set on doing it just put a v8 in then ya got sumthin
brianj

jbry311

My buddy just traded in his '08 for a '12 and it's definitely a noticeable power increase. If you're mainly on trails and the jeep isn't your daily driver then the upgrade doesn't make too much sense, but if you're like me and the jeep is a daily driver, then I think the new engine is the way to go. I'll be trading in my '07 for a '12 in 6 months or so. I thought about adding a supercharger to my '07, but putting another $5k in a 5 year old jeep with 53k miles doesn't make a lot of sense to me anymore.

WCDAVE

WINNER! of the common sense award. I love the guys that go "Well, I'm saving $5grand by getting an '11 vs. a '12 or keeping my '08 and I'll put a supercharger in it." Well Ok, but #1, if you put the $5grand you saved into your vehicle, you didn't "save" anything. And #2, have you checked out the issues guys that have SC'd their rigs are experiencing? Granted some have had great success with SC-ing their ride, but others have had interminable nightmares with it. It's not for the casual weekend wrench. The performance gain from an SC is a lot over the stock 3.8, but I think most guys would be "satisfied" with the power from a 3.6 stock, that retains at least some measure of warranty. In my mind the 3.6 clears the way to focus on mods other than engine performance mods. Those, to me anyway, are the fun ones.

EarlyJk

I dont trust alum block for off-roading purpose, for me iron block is much more durable. I think the 12 went the way of cardom(which i know they needed to do to keep the brand alive). Nothing about the upgrades get me excited in the least.

XBlacky08X

I feel the same way. I want to at least wait a few yrs and enjoy my current rig while seeing how these new pentastars hold up both on road and off. Maybe in 2015 or so when my rig is paid off I will buy a new one while still keeping my current one!

WCDAVE

Why? Aluminum blocks have been employed in high heat applications, even subject to immersion in marine applications, for a long time. In fact, I haven't had a non-aluminum block engine in 10 years. An aluminum block is not exactly "new-fangled". Certainly it is up to you what affords you a measure of cofidence in a material though.

jhol111964

So which is it?

A) Buy the 2012! Its 40% more powerful/faster/etc! Its worth the 4K extra over the discounted 2011!
b) Buy the 2012! It only costs a 1k more than a 2011, and its 40% more powerful/faster/etc!
3) Buy the 2012! The 2011's are dogs, and are discounted 4k because no one wants them!

I've heard all three.

WranglerJoe

No doubt. Serously we are not building drag racing engines here... Aluminum block can take some serious abuse. I'm pretty sure if a honda can take a massive turbo pushing 20-30 psi and 5 and 600 HP to the wheels that this 3.6L can take simple bolt on's and even a SC.