Reworked LMTV
Expedition Campers Limited, LLC
- 1,528
- 1,192
- 113
- Location
- TN
When I see a Jeep on the road lately I have often wonderd how they drive these days, given so many changes to designs and numerous owners. Well the A/C went out on my Audi company car and I needed a quick replacement. Only vehicle available that fit was a new Jeep Sahara Hybrid. I reluctantly took it, but thought maybe driving a Jeep would give my ideas for the M1088. True, these are completely different vehicles and a Hummer would be much closer, but what the heck...
My journey began by shutting the rear gate. The rear hatch semi-imploded from the weight of the Fancy black rim and wide spare tire. Never having driven a hybrid, I struggled to figure out whether it was running or not. The drivetrain was erratic at times and same-day acceleration would some it up. My MTV pulls strongly from a stop and this instills confidence. This Jeep only has 37k on it and wobbles all over the road. There were a couple of "white knuckle" moments keeping this thing on the road. Is this the Death wobble I had heard about? loI
Road noise. I thought my M1088 had road noise, but this thing was almost painful to ride in at highway speeds. It also hunts and darts all over the place like a dog chasing a rabbit on any un-eveness in road. When I got to Indiana people started waving at me. I thought "crap something must be wrong with this wobbling goblin thing.." Nope. It was the Jeep people ("It's a Jeep thing!!) waving at a fellow owner LOL Now I have to remember to wave at every freaking Jeep I see lol The dashboard is just sad. The automatic trans shifter is large and clunky. Our FMTV Allison touch pad is simple. Our plain jane dashes are utilitarian, but I can quickly figure our what is going on without having to surf through a bunch of screens. The dash has more cheap plastic than a case of Barbie Dolls and some sewn in fabric, remenisent of the Levi Jean jeep of the 1970's. Things have changed.... Back then Pabst Blue Ribbon was garbage beer, now it is trendy with a lime? LOL When I moved one of the vents a plastic chrome piece fell off. Hiring Gig engineers off of Fivver is pobably not the most prudent HR approach.
Wow, this Jeep thing is a LONG way from the 304 V-8 Jeep CJ5 that I remembered. Those earlier Jeeps could really take a beating. Our only concern was spinning a hub or twisting a driveshaft. True. 38.5 tires probably were not recommended by the factory, but who cared? The AMC Jeep was truly the best vehicle that AMC made. The rest of AMC products looked like something out of a freak show. Jeeps back then were very spartan, but at least you did not have to worry about the dash falling off. Everything was metal. The EPA and safety regulations changed all of that. At a stop along the way, I looked up the price this thing. $50k. This thing wreaks of Stellantis greed. Little lasting value. Why can't they make a decent 4x4 here? It ls simple. Planned absolesence. Accountants and share holder value rule the Roost now.
High hopes and empty pockets. "It's a Jeep thing..."
SCORES
Overall:
FMTV 8.5/10
New Jeep 4/10
Old Jeep 8/10
Value:
FMTV 8.5
New Jeep 3
Old Jeep 9.5/10
Waves given:
FMTV 8.5/10
New Jeep 10/10
Old Jeep 10/10
My journey began by shutting the rear gate. The rear hatch semi-imploded from the weight of the Fancy black rim and wide spare tire. Never having driven a hybrid, I struggled to figure out whether it was running or not. The drivetrain was erratic at times and same-day acceleration would some it up. My MTV pulls strongly from a stop and this instills confidence. This Jeep only has 37k on it and wobbles all over the road. There were a couple of "white knuckle" moments keeping this thing on the road. Is this the Death wobble I had heard about? loI
Road noise. I thought my M1088 had road noise, but this thing was almost painful to ride in at highway speeds. It also hunts and darts all over the place like a dog chasing a rabbit on any un-eveness in road. When I got to Indiana people started waving at me. I thought "crap something must be wrong with this wobbling goblin thing.." Nope. It was the Jeep people ("It's a Jeep thing!!) waving at a fellow owner LOL Now I have to remember to wave at every freaking Jeep I see lol The dashboard is just sad. The automatic trans shifter is large and clunky. Our FMTV Allison touch pad is simple. Our plain jane dashes are utilitarian, but I can quickly figure our what is going on without having to surf through a bunch of screens. The dash has more cheap plastic than a case of Barbie Dolls and some sewn in fabric, remenisent of the Levi Jean jeep of the 1970's. Things have changed.... Back then Pabst Blue Ribbon was garbage beer, now it is trendy with a lime? LOL When I moved one of the vents a plastic chrome piece fell off. Hiring Gig engineers off of Fivver is pobably not the most prudent HR approach.
Wow, this Jeep thing is a LONG way from the 304 V-8 Jeep CJ5 that I remembered. Those earlier Jeeps could really take a beating. Our only concern was spinning a hub or twisting a driveshaft. True. 38.5 tires probably were not recommended by the factory, but who cared? The AMC Jeep was truly the best vehicle that AMC made. The rest of AMC products looked like something out of a freak show. Jeeps back then were very spartan, but at least you did not have to worry about the dash falling off. Everything was metal. The EPA and safety regulations changed all of that. At a stop along the way, I looked up the price this thing. $50k. This thing wreaks of Stellantis greed. Little lasting value. Why can't they make a decent 4x4 here? It ls simple. Planned absolesence. Accountants and share holder value rule the Roost now.
High hopes and empty pockets. "It's a Jeep thing..."
SCORES
Overall:
FMTV 8.5/10
New Jeep 4/10
Old Jeep 8/10
Value:
FMTV 8.5
New Jeep 3
Old Jeep 9.5/10
Waves given:
FMTV 8.5/10
New Jeep 10/10
Old Jeep 10/10
