USED Jeep Wrangler 4x4 (97 - 07)

My car

Car was great. It was tough and good fun to drive.

My car

This is my second wrangler since 1999, having exchanged the first for a '60th Anniversary' special edition. For: It is a super runabout, easy to park and great fun, particularly with the roof down. The soft top is fiddly to remove but you can selectively remove windows and leave the canopy up as a sunshade. According to my daughters' schoolpals it is 'cool' , and it seems more resistant than our other cars to dents in supermarket car parks. It is peppy and great fun to drive. The engine is quiet and the ride smoother than published road tests imply

Against: It is thirsty (20mpg), and has a surprisingly low top speed despite its 4 litre engine and small body (I struggle beyond 80 mph). Roadholding in the wet is not the best and sudden braking in 2WD mode can provoke a slide, but you learn to treat it with respect

Summary You must want the car for what it is - a fun vehicle that looks as though it has emerged from a war zone - rather than compare it to more refined modern counterparts. Whilst its main claim to fame is as an off roader, I have never used it off tarmac. Despite several warranty issues it has proven pretty durable and timeless and I plan to keep for many years - so residuals are not very relevant. It lacks equipment and refinement (particularly compared to our latest series Jaguar XJ and Volvo XC70) but in an occasional fun runabout such frills are not important.