Jeep Wrangler 2021 review: Rubicon Recon off-road test

Price as tested on our two-door, four-seater, short-wheelbase Jeep Wrangler Rubicon Recon is $66,950 (excluding on-road costs) – that’s $7500 more than a standard two-door Overland (no JL series SWB Rubicons have been offered here). As mentioned, there were only 40 of the two-door variants made available and, at time of writing, only one of them was left – so, just a bit popular to say the least. The four-door versions are $71,450 (excluding on-road costs) a pop – that’s $6000 more than a standard Rubicon.

Price as tested on our two-door, four-seater, short-wheelbase Jeep Wrangler Rubicon Recon is $66,950 (excluding on-road costs).

All Recons are only available with the 3.6-litre petrol V6 and automatic transmission.

Before we launch into the Recon-specific additions, standard Rubicon features include 8.4-inch touch-screen multimedia system with sat nav and off-road mapping, AM/FM/DAB+ radio, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, a nine-speaker sound system, LED lights, 230V inverter, and 17-inch alloys.

Off-road-suited equipment includes 32-inch BF Goodrich Mud Terrain tyres, 77:1 low-range crawl ratio, Dana heavy-duty live axles front and rear, front and rear locking differentials, a front swaybar disconnect system, steel skid plates and rock sliders.

Off-road-suited equipment includes 32-inch BF Goodrich Mud Terrain tyres.

The Rubicon has a three-star ANCAP safety rating but driver-assist tech includes AEB, blind-spot monitoring, forward collision warning, active cruise control, tyre-pressure-monitoring system, hill-start assist, hill descent control and more.

On top of all that, the Recon spec exterior additions include, from front to back, gloss-black grille, Recon badges, steel front bumper with a Jeep Performance front bumper hoop (nudge bar), 17-inch wheels, and the Jeep Performance tailgate reinforcement system (so your rear door can carry a larger tyre).

The Recon’s flashy interior changes include leather seat trim, heated front seats and steering wheel, a ‘premium wrapped’ instrument panel with red stitching, and red seat belts.

Standard Rubicon features include 8.4-inch touch-screen multimedia system with sat nav and off-road mapping.

Interior leather trim can be black leather (as in our tester, pictured) or dark saddle.

Recon options include the $3000 Premium Package (with three-piece hard-top roof and body-coloured fender flares), as well as six choices of premium paint – Firecracker Red, Ocean Blue, Granite Crystal, Sting Gray, Sarge Green, and Hella Yella – all $745 each. Black or Bright White exterior paint is free.

The Recon is only available with the 3.6-litre naturally aspirated petrol V6 – producing 209kW at 6400rpm and 347Nm at 4100rpm – and is matched to an eight-speed torque-converter auto.

It has a part-time 4WD system and you use a stubby stick-shift, to the left of the auto shifter, to select 2H (two-wheel-drive), 4H Auto (4WD high range auto, which works as an all-wheel drive so automatically engages if the front wheels are slipping), 4H part-time (4WD high range), and 4L (4WD low range).

The Recon is only available with the 3.6-litre naturally aspirated petrol V6 engine.

Jeep makes a big song and dance about their vehicle designers being outdoors people and – you know what? – they should, because whoever’s sorting out the Rubicon’s interior is right on the money. 

The interior is comfortable and durable.

It’s a snug space inside, that is at once comfortable and durable. Everything that should feel solid does (like grab handles), and all operational mechanisms (dials, knobs and switches) are easy to quickly locate with your eyes and, more importantly, swiftly operate while traversing all types of terrain.

Upfront there are USB ports, directional air vents, and cup holders in the centre console.

Clever ideas, such as tensioned net pockets on the doors and in the seat-backs, and deep small-storage spaces with textured, grippy bases, abound.

Upfront there are, of course, USB ports, a 230V power outlet, directional air vents, and cup holders in the centre console.

Rear cargo space is rather shallow.

With all seats in use, rear cargo space is rather shallow and really limited to only copping a few bags.

It’s actually pretty good; a lot better than many people would expect. Many of its past on-road ride and handling sins have been, well, not sorted out, but at least considerably toned down. 

The Wrangler line-up has been renowned for plenty of play in the steering, lots of on-road floatiness and body roll, and the two-door Rubicon Recon – tipping the scales at 1917kg kerb weight and measuring 4334mm long (with a 2459mm wheelbase), 1894mm wide and 1839mm high – is not a behemoth so during normal driving it can be a skippy, unpredictable unit. 

At times, it feels like you’re driving a go-kart, but that means it’s a lot of fun.

If you’re steering it, this short-wheelbase Recon commands, nay demands, your constant attention. But I really enjoy that and it shares that characteristic with a few select vehicles that are fun to drive, like the Suzuki Jimny and Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series. 

At times, it feels like you’re driving a go-kart, but that means it’s a lot of fun.

However, as fun as it is, this kind of fully engaged driving experience – requiring laser-focus concentration to keep a vehicle on target, on track and safe – can become tiring.

Beyond that though, the Recon, with a turning circle of 10.5m, is a nicely manoeuvrable vehicle around town (for smooth parking and swift turnarounds) in the suburbs and even along tight bush tracks.

The petrol engine is capable of delivering a solid punch of acceleration when required, but it does become noisy when a lot is asked of it. Otherwise it is nicely matched to the eight-speed auto.

The suspension – including coil springs at every corner – soaks up many bumps in the road, making for rather decent levels of driver and passenger comfort.

It should come as no surprise that there is a bit of noise from this little beast with a boxy body, big wing mirrors and chunky mud-terrain tyres, but it’s nothing terrible, especially if you’ve driven a Rubicon before.

But, as always, a Rubicon only really comes into its own when it’s taken off the bitumen and into hard-core off-road territory.

Fuel consumption is a claimed 9.6L/100km (combined).

The trip computer was showing an average of 13L/100km after more than 300km of driving, and our actual fuel consumption on this test, from pump to pump, was pretty close to that: 13.6L/100km, and that included plenty of low-range 4WDing.

The short-wheelbase Recon has a 66-litre fuel tank.

The Rubicon Recon is covered by Jeep’s five year/100,000km warranty.

Service intervals are every 12 months/12,000km, whichever comes first and capped price servicing makes the first five services $399 a pop.

Roadside assist is included if you service your Jeep at a Jeep dealer.