thinkxingu
New member
There was something spiritual sparked in my soul's core the first time I drove my Wrangler Islander with the top down and doors off. The moment is still burned into my retinas: "Hypnotize" emanated from the sound bar as I turned out of my driveway and completed a series of errands, effortlessly exiting and entering without grabbing handles or pressing buttons. The wind in my hair, along with driving a vehicle that would take me to more places than any other, was pure joy.
A few days later, we threw the kids in back (with the doors on) and began the first of many adventures with our Wrangler. The ocean, the lake, the mountains, backcountry roads, and forgotten trails wandering through the New England countryside were all exponentially more interesting in a Jeep.
But after 70k miles, something happened. I like to tell myself that it wasn't me aging, but the drawbacks of owning a Jeep began to weigh on me: the wind noise requiring speaking or playing music loudly; twitchy steering; vibrations; failed heater core, rattles, and nervousness over Death Wobble; burning a quart of oil every 1K; and a series of subpar dealers in my area led to me trading it in for a Mustang convertible and Escape.
The day after I drove away, I found out the fuel tank and radiator needed to be replaced.
The Mustang was for top-down-with-ease drives, but I quickly discovered it didn't fit my lifestyle. The kids loved it, but we couldn't take it on long trips or to the woods backpacking, biking, or boating. It spent most of its three years with us parked in our garage.
The Escape was too much of a car, and I would get disappointed every time I wanted a truck: when coming along someone stuck in snowbanks or mud holes, needing to tow a trailer full of wood, going off-road looking for places to drive radio-controlled trucks with my L'il Buddy.
So I started looking at options for another body-on-frame SUV and came to the 4Runner, new Wrangler, or future Jeep truck. I ended up with an SR5P because we wanted a third row--life has changed for us--but, and herein lies the rub: I still think of the Wrangler. I still see the variation, the culture, the rugged history of a vehicle that can just...go where it wants and have fun doing it.
The thing is, though, I love getting into my Runner. I love that I can roll the windows up and listen to talk radio or hiking podcasts at a volume that doesn't give me a headache. I love that it will bring me everywhere I'll ever need to go and be prepared to do whatever I'll ever need to do. I still love the windows down, sunroof open, rear window open free-air driving with Biggie remembering that it was all a dream.
I know my soul is torn between logic--the reliability, function, and comfort of the 4Runner--and emotion--the feeling of driving an open air vehicle with history and an unparalleled culture, but that doesn't make the conversion easier.
I'm not sure where this road will take me, but this weekend will be my first in peek foliage New Hampshire and I'm hoping to travel an old notch road with the fam. Maybe the Runner and I will become old friends on the way.
Sent from my Moto G (5S) Plus using Tapatalk
A few days later, we threw the kids in back (with the doors on) and began the first of many adventures with our Wrangler. The ocean, the lake, the mountains, backcountry roads, and forgotten trails wandering through the New England countryside were all exponentially more interesting in a Jeep.
But after 70k miles, something happened. I like to tell myself that it wasn't me aging, but the drawbacks of owning a Jeep began to weigh on me: the wind noise requiring speaking or playing music loudly; twitchy steering; vibrations; failed heater core, rattles, and nervousness over Death Wobble; burning a quart of oil every 1K; and a series of subpar dealers in my area led to me trading it in for a Mustang convertible and Escape.
The day after I drove away, I found out the fuel tank and radiator needed to be replaced.
The Mustang was for top-down-with-ease drives, but I quickly discovered it didn't fit my lifestyle. The kids loved it, but we couldn't take it on long trips or to the woods backpacking, biking, or boating. It spent most of its three years with us parked in our garage.
The Escape was too much of a car, and I would get disappointed every time I wanted a truck: when coming along someone stuck in snowbanks or mud holes, needing to tow a trailer full of wood, going off-road looking for places to drive radio-controlled trucks with my L'il Buddy.
So I started looking at options for another body-on-frame SUV and came to the 4Runner, new Wrangler, or future Jeep truck. I ended up with an SR5P because we wanted a third row--life has changed for us--but, and herein lies the rub: I still think of the Wrangler. I still see the variation, the culture, the rugged history of a vehicle that can just...go where it wants and have fun doing it.
The thing is, though, I love getting into my Runner. I love that I can roll the windows up and listen to talk radio or hiking podcasts at a volume that doesn't give me a headache. I love that it will bring me everywhere I'll ever need to go and be prepared to do whatever I'll ever need to do. I still love the windows down, sunroof open, rear window open free-air driving with Biggie remembering that it was all a dream.
I know my soul is torn between logic--the reliability, function, and comfort of the 4Runner--and emotion--the feeling of driving an open air vehicle with history and an unparalleled culture, but that doesn't make the conversion easier.
I'm not sure where this road will take me, but this weekend will be my first in peek foliage New Hampshire and I'm hoping to travel an old notch road with the fam. Maybe the Runner and I will become old friends on the way.
Sent from my Moto G (5S) Plus using Tapatalk
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ray: -flag the passing 4Runner and ask for a lift-get your 4Runner rescue and tow your Jeep from the trail to Jeep repair facility (should be a lost of those) -sell the Jeep -conversion now is complete.:frog: