I decided on the '12 model. The Pentastar and 5-speed auto made the most sense for my chosen application. Went down and ordered one too!
After reading tons of threads here and elsewhere, nobody seemed to regret making the switch from their existing ride to the new model. Some wished they could or had waited until the 2012 came out, and many planned on trading up.
I ordered every option I could think of, but the lowest gearing they offer is 4:10. This may be ok with an automatic, I don't drive fast anyway.
I had gotten TOTALLY frustrated with some of the dealerships I investigated, well, just one in particular (Dave Smith), who couldn't "spare the time" to help me place an order, while promising "5 star service". Supposedly the top seller in the nation no less. Yet nothing transpired.
I did get an email that said "I found your Jeep", but that was it. No description, no build sheet, no price, no color, no options, nothing. I had absolutely NO IDEA if this was a 1966 mail delivery Jeep or one of the models I'd been looking for. My emails went unanswered, so I sent this:
You still have not sent me anything. I'm totally frustrated with you and will not work with you any further. Please put me in contact with a responsible, responsive sales person who is actually interested in selling me a Rubicon.
I guess your not supposed to challenge the Jeep elite. I was told that "this kind of rudeness will not be tolerated from anyone".
Good grief. My reply:
Rudeness? I have stated the facts as they actually are. The written email history demonstrates this quite adequately.
The only "rudeness" here is your response, which speaks volumes about your integrity and character. I will be notifying your manager shortly with all details of our correspondence.
You did not call me at 10 pm. You and I spoke only once, much earlier in the day a week ago during normal business hours (11:15 am), you promised me exactly what you did not provide, responsible service, five star support, and a available list of Rubicons. You strongly emphasized that I pick a responsible dealer. To this day, I have received absolutely NONE of these things from you, nada, nothing, except the unfulfilled promise that they would all be forthcoming, apparently whenever you got around to it.
You also missed your own advice, the "great deals" are to be had in the month of December, but apparently for a 'selected few' who can somehow fit into your busy schedule. It's now December 20th and I've seen nothing from you.
The fact remains that you apparently have done nothing at all, therefore this is your problem, and it was in your power to fix, but I will not let it rest there. I will now post this entire email exchange online for all to see, because you have now earmarked yourself and your dealership as being highly unprofessional. Dave Smith Motors is not to be considered a responsible, courteous or representative dealer for Jeep in this area. You made great and sweeping claims on how wonderful your dealership is. So far, I've seen nothing whatsoever that represents this, certainly not your professionalism.
I will be around for a very long time in this area. What do you suppose I am going to say when people ask me about my new Jeep? It's staggering that you can be so utterly ignorant of how long these idiotic responses of yours is going to last.
I then went down an ordered my Jeep from another dealer who had actually tried to assist me. Imagine that! Someone who really wanted to take my money!
I can only hope that this is a 'unique experience' and not common among Jeep dealerships.
Ordering the Jeep turned out to be almost painless then trying to actually buy a vehicle off the lot. Took about twenty minutes and that was that.
Being VERY loathe to deal with auto salesmen (many experiences, but I haven't set foot on a lot in over ten years) I was not looking forward to running their well-understood gauntlet again. But it turned out to be unbelievably easy to just order what I want and walk away. I gave the build specs to the manager, he punched them in and then I told him what I'd pay. He agreed and that was the end of it.
So now I move on to all the things while I wait for the rig. Roof rack, tire carrier, bumpers, winch, a few doodads inside and out, and hopefully a new season of exploring. These guys seem to have most of the stuff I'm looking for:
http://www.shrockworks.com/
Not going to do anything with the engine until I understand how well it works with the added weight and intended use. Not interested in going fast, just very, very reliably.
I did give up on the ideas of upgrading a non-Rubicon model, or upgrading an older model. It takes a lot of searching and reading, but I learned that the cost and time is a big factor, plus in the end, you might still dealing with a few things you'd wished you could have swapped out (like the engine for example). It was cheaper to buy the 'foundation' you wanted to 'build on', and also saving a lot of time.
I don't mean to make it such a long post, but this is my first Jeep and probably my last (I only need one), and the experience of 'what to buy', 'where to buy', 'why not upgrade' and the pro's and cons of new .vs. older, and all the decision making and weighing one perceived advantage over another, is probably pretty common to other would-be Jeep owners.
One other thing. My online 'search' encompassed many hours of looking for the right model. I never did find the combination I was looking for (color, options), nor was I entirely comfortable dealing with an unknown dealership or person many miles away. But I did learn quite a lot through the effort, most particularly where all the great Jeep forums are found!
Also, there are some very cool modifications and bolt-on upgrades available to make the 'personalization' as big as your budget will allow. I had also looked at Toyota (old and new, especially the Land Cruiser / Land Rover), Mitsubishi and Nissan options. None seemed to be the off-road expedition ready (or nearly so) as the Jeep.
Many people were very happy with their chosen rides however, so it all came down to simply this: drive whatever you want.
I want a Jeep.