Blog Posts
June 1994: Check out this in-depth performance review of the Jeep Wrangler YJ
Everything you want to know about the first Wrangler
July 30, 2018
By the time we did this comprehensive Jeep Wrangler YJ performance review for the June 27, 1994 issue of Autoweek, the first Jeep to wear the Wrangler name was just about done with its run. And an important run it was: It bridged Jeep's AMC and Chrysler eras and brought the classic CJ spirit into the modern era. The YJ was undoubtedly a more comfortable, more usable vehicle than the CJ7 that preceded it, and yet it managed to be even more capable.
There was controversy, too, and we're not just talking about those rectangular headlights: As always, a bigger, cushier Jeep didn't necessarily sit well with the purists, while at the same time the Wrangler was still too crude to appeal to a mainstream audience (to which we say, so what?). Read all about the YJ below, including thoughts from Autoweek readers who actually owned the trucks. We're not sure how useful it will be as a buyer's guide, but we could see a well-preserved YJ having a certain appeal as a collector's item...
