"Toy" vehicle comparison - Jeep or SxS

[orange01z28]

First, keep in mind that I live in Arizona so SxSs can be registered as street legal and driven on the street. That being said, I'd still probably need to tow it to most places I would go wheeling

I will be looking for something to do trail rides and rock crawling more than any fast desert stuff. I'd buy a SxS new, but I'd be looking at a TJ or before for a Jeep

This is all theoretical, I just would like to see your guys' thoughts

 

[John Brereton]

How mechanical are you? Have you thought about building an old Jeep into a trail queen? If you're aren't worrying about getting it tagged then you have a lot of options.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[JJRamTX]

I had this same quandry and decided on the S X S. The jeep would be cheaper intially to buy but the work and upgrades needed to even come close to compete would make it more expensive to do what I do with my Razor 4 XP.

 

[orange01z28]

I like to think I'm more mechanical than I actually am so my first thought is to lean towards the Jeep and build it, but with everything I'm going to do in the next year just buying an RZR or one of it's competitors would probably end up getting more fun per dollar and hour spent ha

But like @John Brereton brought up, I'd be more apt to smash an old Jeep up on the trails and rocks than a $25k SxS

 

[JJRamTX]

I like to think I'm more mechanical than I actually am so my first thought is to lean towards the Jeep and build it, but with everything I'm going to do in the next year just buying an RZR or one of it's competitors would probably end up getting more fun per dollar and hour spent ha

But like @John Brereton brought up, I'd be more apt to smash an old Jeep up on the trails and rocks than a $25k SxS

I saved all of the labor and did the roof, bumpers, rock sliders rear view mirror, Lighted LED whip antenna, Red wheel well glows, spare tire carrier, fire extinguisher mount, etc.... myself. All and all I am in about $24,800 so the $25K number is pretty accurate for a 2020 brand new unit. On a side note my wife flipped it on it's side and besides the spilled beer from the cooler strapped in the back the only damage was to the stickers/decals. During some rock crawls I scratched the wheels but they are matte black and I just used a spray paint flat black and they are good to go.

 

[Rebel20]

I vote jeep! I kept my build street legal and tow it to trails but still cruise it on the streets. And was much cheaper than a SxS. Plus there is just something cool about jeeps. Not sure what the smog laws in Arizona are but in California finding a pre smog jeep was a must for me.

1968 Jeep CJ5 with a Chevy 350.

 

[LaxDfns15]

You live in AZ... You want AC while you off road? You want sand/dust in your face/sinuses? If you're ok with that I'd just say a good SxS and be done with it, but if you want to tinker and have some "creature comforts" (even a 90's jeep will have a bit of AC) then I'd say Jeep.

You can find some pretty clean jeeps for under $7k. That gives you a budget of $15k+ to mod to equal cost of a SxS. Granted, it's going to be a lot more work.

 

[Coopers_Dad]

I vote Jeep, I've got a 16 JKU it's a summer toy for me. Never had a roof or door on other then when it's in winter storage. Even after the JL arrived the JK's still continue to hold their value.
I've had a SXS and found myself willing to do dumb things more often than I ever did in the jeep.

Either choice you're going to have fun. Enjoy the ride!