Petrol or Diesel

[Canoe]

Hey guys, names Nik.

if all goes well with the bank manager i shall be purchasing a new 2dr sport renegade kitted in auto.

plan to see a decent bit of 4wding (mainly sand)
wondering waht you guys suggest the v6 or the diesel?

is the diesel worth the extra 4k, which one is the better on and offroad?

cheers

Nik

[wranglertj]

with some of the hassles the diesel boys have had i say go the petrol!
petrol rubi with its low gearing is fantastic, literally crawls and if you drive it alright you get good economy.
I personally dont reckon the diesel is worth the 4k once you take into account the petrol price difference and the much higher servicing costs IMHO.
spend the extra 4k and get the rubi, i reckon a heaps better package especially if you want to do some serious offroading

[Auscruiser]

Like wranglertj said - use the extra $4k to buy the Rubicon instead of the diesel - you won't be sorry.

[Canoe]

thanks guys, tried to do a search without much luck, what issues do the diesels have?

[SIM79]

The petrols are having issues with clutches.

Originally Posted by Secret Steve 625

I recently upgraded again to the 2008 JK petrol 2 door model. At first I was extremely happy with this vehicle. Its economy, performance, and off road capability was all top grade. However, a noise started coming from the transmission on a trip to Tassie, and by the time I got home to Adelaide there was a really bad noise coming from the transmission. It was diagnosed as a clutch bearing, and a new one was ordered. I waited 6 weeks for this part to come from Singapore. While waiting for this another loud knocking noise started coming from the Engine. It was diagnosed as a loose piston, and the car was off the road for 3 months while they replaced the whole engine, rebuilding it from several parts. Now, only a few months later, I can hear the bearing noise once again.

Originally Posted by JK07

I had my entire clutch replaced casue was exactly the same as you described. After few 600 Ks the noise is back again.

I have done extensive research and there is a fault on the clutch plate parts and the throw out bearing.

Originally Posted by robbo1959

Just had the clutch fan replaced yesterday because it had worn out just on 21 months and now been told the power steering pump needs to be replaced because it's stuffed......hmmmmm is this another lemon or just bad luck?

[glend]

The torque of the diesel, and the extended range, make it a much better choice. The petrol is an old motor and not cutting edge at all. The VM Diesel has been used in the KJ series for at least five years and has clocked up in excess of 250,000kms in some of the older models (with nothing done other than a timing belt chain at appropriate intervals). My son has a JK Unlimited CRD and is delighted with it, he has used it to pull Prados out of bogs. I have had a KJ CRD for two years and would simply not go back to petrol. Drive both models if you can, the choice will be obvious after the test drive.

[McLovin]

300 million people in the USA and they dont bother making the diesel jk available......Look up threads from people like green jk to see how many problems they are having with their diesels.
I have owned many turbo and non turbo diesels and find that now i cant justify the extra cost of fuel and servicing...an extra 20cents per litre is ridiculous.
I dont drive a lot of kms so i went the 4 door rubicon option for the fact that for $45 000 drive away with all you get..lockers, gearing etc its excellent bang for your buck.
I would think think that you could find clutch problems with both models..
either way it would be a good time to buy as i think the dealers are hurting at the moment ....4000 extra for the diesel ??
If they bought out a diesel rubicon...... mmmmmmm.. maybe a different story!!