110k

[Ronzuki]

WOW, Jeep must have really stuck it to you at some point LOL.
But their are not enough complaints from real renegade owners to sway me away yet.

In reality, not too many people out there willing to publicly admit they efed up on a major purchase decision. They'll just fade away from those forums after dumping their mistake.

Yeah Jeep (Daimler Chrylser) stuck it to me for 6years and 70+thousand miles. They built me a really nice POS 2004 Rubicon TJ. Was to become my expedition vehicle and Samurai replacement after the 70k warranty ran out. Instead, that thing had so many problems with simple daily driving I would NEVER have trusted it making a trek to MOAB or Ouray to wheel anything let alone hit the kind of trails I'd want to make it worth my while for the trip(s) and I traded it in on the Kizashi. Now I have a strippo 2014 JK Unlimited Willys (replaced the suburban as the Samurai's tow vehicle and all around throw crap in the back hauler) which is earning some reliability creds after 2+ years and 15,000 miles of street only driving. I may start building it soon to make those trips out west as I'd planned on doing with the TJ Rubicon.

Still not crazy about the non-reversible TCM flash a dealer did at an annual inspection w/o my consent and the never ending puddles of water on the front, thankfully rubber matted, floor pans. That and the Freedom top's (removable hardtop) near constant water leak dripping all over the dash which then runs down (and in to) the stereo. Getting tired of taking it back for that crap...just living with it. Towel on top of dash keeps it outta the stereo. I will say the A/C valve repair seems to be holding, except, there's more of a growl it seems now from the compressor. Have to remember to take it back, again, and fight with them about that before the warranty expires next year. Mechanically (drivetrain), though, I'm pretty pleased thus far. The Pentastar V6 is a great engine...far better than the Rubicon's I6. It has better power/pull for towing than the tired old suburban's 350 V8.
In a nutshell, it's a Jeep and I understand this fact, and this is a biggie...it's not my primary daily driver. I am more than thrilled after winter's slop is done to be back driving my Kizashi on a regular basis. If the JKU didn't work out, again, like the Rubicon, there are enough fools out there that would give me perfectly good money for the Wrangler. The Jeep Renegade is not, and will never possess the Jeep Wrangler stigma should you need to unload it.

ye be warned....

[NiteRider]

Still don't understand how these station wagons made a comeback.

[FrankoLaMoya]

I need to put my 2 cents in.... sorry buddy, but JEEP is a terrible company in regards to reliability in general. I did not hear anything bad in regards to the Renegade yet, but I am mean they are fairly new. I heard a lot of consumers had issues with their Jeep Cherokee (newer models), Jeep Compass and Patriot as well (newer models). Personally, I always hated JEEP as the only good thing going for them is the wrangler...and I mean it is not very reliable. People like them because they can remove the doors and roof and things like that...

What about the Mazda CX-3? I don't think there is a big difference in terms of size.

[KuroNekko]

Yeah, the choices are very limited for an American trying to find a CUV with a manual transmission and AWD around 20K. I really think the only two are the XV Crosstrek and the Renegade. All the other ones are either manual with FWD or AWD with Automatic only. The Mazda CX-3 does not even offer a manual transmission which I find rather odd. There are other vehicles that offer both but are considerably more expensive such as the WRX, Evo, Focus RS, Golf R, etc and they aren't even CUVs. They are sport compacts and hot hatches.

Personally, I'd go with the Subaru XV given these are very reliable and rather tough. The XV is quite slow given the only engine is a 2.0 making less than 150 HP, but with a manual trans, you can probably wring out some fun from it. However, I think the Renegade will be more fun to drive given the turbo engine. Reviews I've read praised it as more fun to drive than expected. However, the fuel economy is better with the Subaru and long term reliability can't even be compared. While some Subarus are known burn oil, but I think that's with the 2.5 liters, not the 2.0.

It's funny that the forum post Golftango posted about the Renegade starts with the OP talking about how he traded in his problem-free but extremely boring Subaru XV for a Renegade. While I didn't read through it, sounds like the Renegade was an utter piece of shit. Maybe this OP's experience is likely what you can expect from these cars?

[golftango]

It's funny that the forum post Golftango posted about the Renegade starts with the OP talking about how he traded in his problem-free but extremely boring Subaru XV for a Renegade. While I didn't read through it, sounds like the Renegade was an utter piece of shit. Maybe this OP's experience is likely what you can expect from these cars?

Not to mention he sold his newer Mazda6 to get the wife a Volvo XC70.



The main issue , besides the electronic issues, is the complete incompetence of the dealer, techs and corporate offices of FCA. It's downright scary.

[Woodie]

WOW, Jeep must have really stuck it to you at some point LOL.

That point could have been the last thirty years, there's nothing new about this. The two most frightening words in the automobile business are JEEP and FIAT, now they've combined. You may be able to get that car for $20K, but if you want to depend on it to get you where you need to go, you're going to need two.

[KuroNekko]

I don't think cheap cars costing under $20K are problematic or necessarily low quality. Most are decent mechanically but are obviously made on a budget. For example, the Toyota Yaris is one of the most reliable cars on the planet and you can easily get one for under $20K. This car is simple, boring to drive, and really offers nothing too special other than basic transportation but is more reliable than anything from BMW, Benz, or Audi at any price.
The Japanese have been making cheap small cars since their start in automotive manufacturing so they have a lot of experience making cheap small cars that are reliable and long-lasting. It doesn't mean that they are very desirable, but they certainly aren't crap if you need to rely on it for no-fuss transportation. As lame as Scions were to drive, their reliability record was astonishing.

The problem here isn't the budget but the fact that one is specifically trying to find a manual transmission and AWD around a 20K budget in a new or near-new vehicle. While not too hard in other markets, the US has an aversion to manual transmissions and most automakers delegate the 3 pedals for base models without options like AWD. Hence, you literally only have 2 choices for a CUV costing around 20K that offer both a manual and AWD in the US. However, if one didn't need AWD, then there are pretty decent choices for an economy manual car. The Scion/Toyota iA (a rebadged Mazda2) comes into mind as a desirable manual econobox. For CUVs with AWD, the Mazda CX-3, Honda HR-V, and a few others look decent too for around that price range but they are exclusively automatic with AWD.

Between the Renegade and XV, I'd get the XV but I'd want to really test drive the Renegade to see how much better it drives over the XV. If the difference is considerable, then it's a decision to actually ponder. If they are actually closer than expected, there is no doubt the Subaru XV would be the better vehicle for long term ownership.

[nytq]

Another model loses manual transmission

http://www.torquenews.com/1084/subaru-q ... r-decision

[Ronzuki]

...to a CVT no less....

[KuroNekko]

The XV will likely follow suit in the next iteration as they use the same 5MT from the Impreza. Much like most other companies, you'll need to step up to a significantly more expensive sports compact or hot hatch to get 3 pedals and AWD. I know for certain that Subaru will continue to offer a MT for the WRX given the MT makes up a significant percentage of WRX sales in the US. Oddly, even the WRX is only with a CVT in Japan. To get a manual, you need to get a STI over there; a vehicle that's exclusively MT.

Manual transmissions are certainly on the extinction list, but I think that there's a good argument for them as long as vehicles have internal combustion engines. The only time I think they really deserve to be written off to the annals of history is when powertrains become electrified; no longer necessitating a transmission with gears.