Cjbotham, I probably also "drive too much like an old man", but I hadn't felt any instability with my Jeep until my recent road trip, where I think the times that I did feel that were due to a combination of (relatively) sharp cornering at fair speeds (30-50 mph), uneven pavement, and gusty winds. On the mostly straight-ish roads and highway that I had been driving it on until this last trip, I can't really say that I ever felt it to be noticeably unstable.

 

It depends what you are used to driving.

If you are used to driving cars, ALL SUVs feel unstable.

If you are used to driving other trucks with IFS, Wrangler might feel a bit unstable.

If you are used to driving Wranglers, they feel perfectly stable.

 

I’ve only truly believed the Jeep felt pretty unstable once before, I was on highway 5 in California, being hit by extremely huge gusts of wind hitting the side of the Jeep, I don’t know how fast the wind was but every gust pushed the Jeep pretty hard. It was a white knuckle experience just to keep it on the road for sure. I haven’t felt wind like that ever since, hopefully never again. Probably because I’m in a lifted 2 door brick shaped vehicle. But 99 percent of the time the Jeep feels stable.

my dads 4 door bronco was following behind, he claims the wind wasn’t a big deal, he felt it pushing the bronco but could keep it on the road easier than I could keep my Jeep straight. I think this is due to the longer wheel base and IFS probably makes it easier to keep the steering wheel straight with high wind gusts. A 4 door Jeep would have done probably just as good as the bronco in that wind though.

 

Back in the 90's our work vans would switch lanes in weather like that.

 

been driving a jeep since the 70s i would never say its stable. Try the moose test/ emergency maneuver see how that goes. Better off just plowing through the moose or impact really.... Its a jeep not a Porsche. Might be the most unsafe unstable vehicle on the road today, since 1942, that is one tough record to be on top of that long....I never owned a jeep for its safety or its cat like handling. heck i dont even drive it unless it going wheeling even then its on a trailer. no way i drive on 3k worth of rubber to wear off on street...

heck our JK is on Bias ply tires just to make it corner better . no way i drive on 3k worth of rubber to wear off on street unless it a must like a few trails each year where street is a must for miles.

 

Driving my ZL1 then the wrangler, yes it feels a bit wonky. But it just takes getting used to, I have zero issues in my Willys.

 

I have never felt unstable with my Wrangler, but I drive the Wrangler different than I drive my Civic or my RV.

 

Only time I feel unstable in it is when I'm off camber teetering on three wheels because I don't have enough flex to keep all 4 wheels on the ground.

But that's a different scenario of driving.

 

All of mine have been very stable!

 

Are a lot of people here really saying that?

Mine have felt stable, even at high highway speeds, but I stay within the limits of maneuverability for the vehicle.

I felt pretty bouncy with my first one for the short while I owned some sort of KO tires which didn't seem to get along well with "challenging" pavement - the Nokian Outpost AT's I now have are the best snow/ice tires I've ever had and super comfy on the road. Just thought I'd throw a plug in there - they sure make me feel "stable".

 

Are a lot of people here really saying that?

It's not super common, no. I've definitely noticed it a few times in the last couple months though, so I wanted to see what everyone's experiences have been.

Seems like @aldo90731 hit the nail on the head; it depends on what you're used to.

 

Unstable is exactly what mine drove like, death trap!!!
When we 1st got our 2019 Wrangler off the lot I thought it drove like a death trap. All over the lane wouldn't go straight down the road for crap. It was a scary ride white knuckle all the way. So I parked it under a shade tree and told myself I'd fix it when i retired in a year or so. Yes it was new off the lot. Fast forward to March 2020 I retired! Then I ordered a full Teraflex 4" Alpine lift with adjustable control arms, adjustable track bars, Teraflex Falcon Fast adjust piggy back shocks, threw the aluminum steering box in the barn and installed a steel steering box, put a Teraflex Falcon fast adjust steering stabilizer on it along with Steersmarts Yeti Tie Rods and Drag Link , put Rockjock Antirock swaybars in the front and rear, dialed in the suspension and used my alignment tool set it to 1/16" toe in and set caster to 6 degrees. Installed a set of BFG KM3 MT tires and she drives like a dream on all trails and pavement now. I put all that on in my yard took my time doing it and dialing the new suspension in.
Now I haven't driven my 2018 Challenger since I retired I do drive my dually here and there but the Jeep Wrangler JL is my DD now and I love it. It's just to bad FCA can't make one drive properly like my Jeep does now with my Teraflex suspension and Yeti components.
Since the suspension mods we have Jeeped across 20 plus states overlanding. We have 38,000 miles on it now.

New Jeep Wrangler JLs off the assembly line driving unstable is a understatement!!! After removing the factory suspension I can see why they drive like they do off the assembly line. FCA suspension components are cheap light weight junk!!!

If anyone wants a new JL full suspension front to back complete I have one in my barn in a box you can have including the steering box. There is about 2000 miles on it. Let me know its free for the taking.

 

I just purchase a very nice 2004 TJ Sahara with pretty much worn out B F Goodrich K02's and driving it home after purchase I noticed how well it drove, better that my 2017 Willy's with stock factory tires and O miles from new. I replaced the tires on the 2004 with Goodyear Wranglers and it was hard to tell the new tires over the old BFG's, I was really surprised on how well it drove with the new tires vs. the old ones. I never (so far) feel the Jeep drives unstable, in fact I'm totally surprised on how well it drives at highway speed (60-65 mph). The TJ has 85,000 miles on it, so this could be that the steering is still in good shape and not totally worn out at this stage in its life. All Wranglers do steer quick, but the recovery is what you are looking for, if your Jeep does not recover after a quick steering correction you probably have a problem in your steering linkage, or suspension that needs looking at. If you have larger tires (32's or bigger) you may just need and suspension/steering upgrade to correct this problem.

 

My 2021 JLUR gets pushed around a bit in high wind situations, but considering the lack of aerodynamics, that's expected. I adjust my speed if necessary but other than that, it has never felt all that unstable to me. Certainly not a "white knuckle" drive at all. I think the people who call it unstable are just accustomed to driving lower, more aerodynamic vehicles and feel a "difference". That is then interpreted as "unstable ". If you drive it like a sports car, it's going to feel (and be) unstable. By the same token, if you tried to take a sports car where Wranglers shine, they would feel pretty unstable too!

 

Yes
I went from driving my Dodge Challenger everyday along with driving my Ram 3500 dually to driving our Jeep Wrangler JL. Probably the reason it felt like a death trap to me. After the Teraflex suspension mods now the Jeep is all i drive. It's a sweet ride now.

 

They feel as unstable as any box would trying to cut through air at high speeds.

I've never felt they are unstable when compared to what the vehicle actually is.

 

There is a difference between just being a Jeep and one that drives out of control, just let a Jeep guy drive your Jeep and he can most likely tell you if it's right, or not.

 

Define a Jeep Guy???
2nd my wife doesn't even drive my Jeep and it is her Jeep.

 

My wife is a "Jeep guy".

Easy, lads. I highly doubt he was suggesting that only men drive jeeps.

 

My wife is a "Jeep guy". She bought a lifted ZJ on 35s with worn bushings and no sway bars. She was hitting 90mph on the drive home from buying it. We have made it better now. She also drives my 2-door JK on 38s with no rear sway bar and PSC ram assist but doesn't like the light steering. We have been driving various Jeeps for many years. She had a stock WJ when we were stationed in Germany and she would regularly hit 100mph.