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I've wanted a jeep since I was 8 years old, but my family was a practical bunch and I was constantly reminded of how impractical a jeep would be for me. I guess I grew up in a time and place where men didn't really have hobbies or leisure activities.
30 years later I found myself driving the most practical car in America, a 1991 Honda Accord. The car just wouldn't stop. It was the first car that my wife and I owned that outlasted its' car payments by a significant amount of time. 10 years after the last payment, it still did everything that you would want a car that size to do, and it had COLD a/c. I thought that I would be a fool to trade that car in at a dealership where it would probably fetch only a few hundred dollars, but I had enough of living a life where I did what everyone else said was practical, I needed something that was practical for me and my family.
So I did it. I gave the Honda away to a friend who was in need of good transportation, and I went out and bought a brand new Jeep Wrangler. As it turned out, I discovered that this was probably the most practical thing I could do.
From the drive home from the dealership I knew that things were different. I had a 4x4 truck pull up beside me at a red light and rev his engine because he wanted to race. (I declined.)
I realized that I was instantly part of a new "club" of jeep owners as other jeep owners would casually wave and smile when passing, as if to say, "Yeah, we understand." This is not to say that jeep owners look down on those who don't drive a jeep. I think one thing that jeep owners have in common is the understanding that there is more to life than keeping a schedule. Sometimes life is about the ride.
Remember what it was like right after you first got your driver's license and you volunteered to go to the store for your mom because you just couldn't wait to drive again? My wife and I have experienced that all over again!
It really is true that you look at the World differently if you own a jeep. You start to see the World like there are two kinds of people: those who own a jeep, and those who don't. Sometimes I look at the other drivers on the road and wonder if they actually choose to own the car they are driving, or if someone else choose it for them. They sure don't look like they are enjoying the ride. Again, I'm not looking down on those who don't drive a jeep. I just hope it was their choice.
Before buying the jeep, I read somewhere that if you don't consider life an adventure, you probably wouldn't want a Wrangler. I think that is pretty accurate. My Wrangler has become my hobby, the first hobby I ever had because it was just something I enjoyed. And I receive a steady flow of Acme jeep Parts and Quadratec catalogs with options and accessories in case I ever get bored! I've got a friend who "gets it" and she tells me that my jeep is like a big Lego truck for me. She's right! I don't mind at all the fact that when I need to put the windows up, it takes me 5 minutes of latching/hooking/zipping instead of simply pushing a button.
We have 3 boys, and they love the jeep too. The first accessory that I had to buy for the jeep is a 3rd seat belt for the rear seat so that our entire family can ride safely. Now I offer to drive the mini-van if we need to go somewhere which requires highway travel or a ride in the hot sun, but they always decline. My oldest is currently learning to drive. We've offered to get him his own vehicle to reduce the cost of insurance, but he says only if it's a jeep!
We traded our jeep for a friends' SUV one week when we had out-of-town visitors which required more passenger seating when we traveled. When we swapped vehicles I explained to our friends that they shouldn't consider the jeep a regular car or they would be disappointed. Instead they should consider it a luxury go-cart and that would help them keep it in proper perspective. This analogy seemed to work well for them but this brought up another thought: I occasionally take my boys down to the local Mountasia where we can play video games, mini-golf, and ride go-carts. At Mountasia they charge $7.50 for 8 minutes of driving their little go-carts around the track, which is nearly $50 per hour. I get the same thrill, but I get to drive (legally) on the roads and highways any time of day or night that I want, for a lot less than $50 an hour!
I also wonder how in the world SUV's came to be called SUV's? I mean, sure they can be Sporty, and they are Vehicles but what about them deserves the word "Utility"? I think that if the floor boards don't have drainage holes so that you can hose out the interior when it gets muddy, it's not really a utility vehicle.
If I haven't convinced you by now that you need to buy a jeep yourself, that's ok. Not everyone can drive a jeep, there needs to be someone left to pull out of the ditch at the end of the day.... (just kidding). As it turns out, a Jeep Wrangler has been the most practical vehicle for me and my family and if you don't understand that, then it really is a Jeep Thing, you wouldn't understand....
My jeep can be seen at http://GeekWithAJeep.com |
