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eTorque V6 vs I4 Turbo

7868 Views 107 Replies 18 Participants Last post by  eastexsteve
There are numerous threads about this and many opinions. The only thing which is conclusive is the Six costs more. I own a '23 Rubicon with the eTorque V6 and am driving around in a rented Sahara, probably '21 with the I4 Turbo so now I have little bit of experience on which to base an opinion.

Some say NVH is worse with the I4. I see no difference. Although the start stop with eTorque is seamless, I found the conventional start stop of the I4 to be competent. It was far less annoying than a rented BMW X3 I drove for 2 weeks last January. The six drives with a lot more gusto. It feels like a high horsepower car when starting out because the electric motor pushes it forward for half a turn of the tire. You can't miss it. The eTorque system also provides the fastest downshifts I have ever seen on an automatic and I used to own a BMW with a dual clutch automatic. The system is so good again, you can't miss it. The turbo does have a slight lag when mashing on the accelerator to get a downshift. It isn't bad, but it's not instantaneous. I would say it works better than the X3 rental. I can only comment with respect to suburban style driving. I would expect the extra starting torque of the eTorque would be nice off road if traction is good and perhaps useless if traction is minimal.

The Saraha is getting about 21 MPG in suburban driving. Similar driving at home in the Rubicon I estimate would yield about 16 mpg. Factoring in 3 mpg for the 33" off road tires on the Rubicon that leaves a 2 mpg improvement due to the smaller engine. That is consistent with the EPA sticker. Note that my Rubicon only has 1,000 miles on it and could improve a bit with break in. The Sahara about 44,000 and is in great shape for a rental. I have no doubt the tank is full of regular.

This year there is a new wrinkle as the eTorque V6 appears to be available only in the Rubicon series. The I4 now costs $2500 and the eTorque V6 is up to $4500, which narrows the difference to $2000. This is obviously a product of the government's crackdown on fuel economy. Maybe the V6 is on the way out and maybe the eTorque I4 could return. This does simplify things as now only those ordering a Rubicon have the choice to make. Remember also, the I4 will run better at high altitude for those of you lucky enough to live in the high desert or mountains. For anyone in the market for other than the Rubicon trim I would not be concerned about buying the I4. It's a competent drivetrain. I would describe the eTorque V6 has having a bit of an extra fun factor.
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This year there is a new wrinkle as the eTorque V6 appears to be available only in the Rubicon series. The I4 now costs $2500 and the eTorque V6 is up to $4500, which narrows the difference to $2000. This is obviously a product of the government's crackdown on fuel economy. Maybe the V6 is on the way out and maybe the eTorque I4 could return. This does simplify things as now only those ordering a Rubicon have the choice to make. Remember also, the I4 will run better at high altitude for those of you lucky enough to live in the high desert or mountains. For anyone in the market for other than the Rubicon trim I would not be concerned about buying the I4. It's a competent drivetrain. I would describe the eTorque V6 has having a bit of an extra fun factor.
This is a very good comparison considering many of us have only driven one or the other. However I was just on the Jeep website and the V6 is still available on models other than the Rubicon. Both the Willys and Sahara show it as an option, I didn't check others, unless I misread/misunderstood something you posted, which is certainly possible.
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The V6 has greater horsepower and quicker 0-to-60 than the I4, so I can see the marketing logic in assigning eTorque to the engine with greater HP.


They advertise the "benefit," if you can call it that, of eTorque, is low-end torque-fill, so I can see the logic of only offering that configuration in Rubicon, which has other electronic doodads, such as electronic swaybars, which will not appeal to those who are looking for longevity combined with low-cost maintenance.


By the way, from a maintenance perspective, I've seen threads about eTorque being on nationwide backorder for months, so I can see the logic in minimizing the numbers of new jeeps sold with eTorque. Most of the people who lose the use of their vehicle for several months because eTorque failed and is on backorder are not going to think highly of the company.
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This is a very good comparison considering many of us have only driven one or the other. However I was just on the Jeep website and the V6 is still available on models other than the Rubicon. Both the Willys and Sahara show it as an option, I didn't check others, unless I misread/misunderstood something you posted, which is certainly possible.
I could be wrong, but I got my information off the latest order guide. It could change mid year.
The V6 has greater horsepower and quicker 0-to-60 than the I4, so I can see the marketing logic in assigning eTorque to the engine with greater HP.


They advertise the "benefit," if you can call it that, of eTorque, is low-end torque-fill, so I can see the logic of only offering that configuration in Rubicon, which has other electronic doodads, such as electronic swaybars, which will not appeal to those who are looking for longevity combined with low-cost maintenance.


By the way, from a maintenance perspective, I've seen threads about eTorque being on nationwide backorder for months, so I can see the logic in minimizing the numbers of new jeeps sold with eTorque. Most of the people who lose the use of their vehicle for several months because eTorque failed and is on backorder are not going to think highly of the company.
I might have missed it, but I have not seen reliability complaints about eTorque around here. However, complaints about the dual battery system for the I4 are numerous. Where is your information coming from?
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From what I recall, the 2.0T sounded a bit like a blender when you stepped on it. It was quite an unflattering sound.
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As I posted in a head-to-head video earlier in another thread featuring a Bronco, a V6 JL and a 2.0T eTorque JL, the 2.0T JL came out on top in a 1/4 mile runoff. Plus, it has more torque than the V6. All that and better fuel economy, too.

I'm not surprised that Jeep would start adding eTorque to the V6 to try and even the score.
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Pentastar with the eTorque. It is a more mature engine. It is like Toyota's 3.5, they built like a gazillion of them. It is even in the Ram 1500 pulling and hauling. Go with the Pentastar. Bigger displacement engines are nice.
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From what I recall, the 2.0T sounded a bit like a blender when you stepped on it. It was quite an unflattering sound.
I don't recall it sounding like a blender. Tomorrow I will listen for that. Then again, some wonderful food can come out of a blender.
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And when you go with Pentastar, use this oil from day 1. First oil change at 1000 miles, second at 3000 miles, and then every 5000 miles(Or less if you wheel a lot). Stay away from the Jeep Dealer's Bulk Made in Bananan Republic oil. Use this oil and your Penta will purr happily for a good 300,000 miles trouble-free. Many Pentastars made it to 500k+ miles. Sesrch on Youtube. Plenty of taxis have the Pentastar and they beat the heck out of them. I personally met one such taxi driver who had a Dodge minivan. Pentastar is SOLID.

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Oh, also, if you really want longevity and less headache, ignore the eTorque and get the basic Pentastar. Good luck and enjoy!
Oh, also, if you really want longevity and less headache, ignore the eTorque and get the basic Pentastar. Good luck and enjoy!
That's fine if you like driving a manual transmission.
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While I have owned 6 Wranglers with the V6, (still have the '21 V6 manual non Etorque) my new JLU has the Etorque system with the Extreme Recon package. I'm sure the 4.56 gears make somewhat of a difference, although the 35" tires will eat up a lot of that, but the Etorque makes a real difference in the performance. The stop start is so good with the electric assist, I never turn it off anymore. As much as I hate complicated systems on Jeeps, I'm sold on this one.
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While I have owned 5 Wranglers with the V6, my new one has the Etorque system (23 JLU Beach edition). I'm sure the 4.56 gears make somewhat of a difference, although the 35" tires will eat up a lot of that, but the Etorque makes a real difference in the performance. The stop start is so good with the electric assist, I never turn it off anymore. As much as I hate complicated systems on Jeeps, I'm sold on this one.
eTorque is awesome no arguing in that. It even handles 35 inch tires very well with the 4.10, but the complexity makes you nervous. I know it comes with 80k mile warranty, but 80k mile is not a lot.
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Can you still get the 3.6 without the eTorque? If so, that'd be my choice. Simpler is better.
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I have a co-worker who bought a Toyota Rav4 non hybrid. He said he just didn't want to deal with that complexity despite the fact that Toyota hybrids are second to none. If you don't drive a Toyota hybrid a lot, there have been cases where the batteries died prematurely. Don't listen to people who say that, oh a Prius lasted 400,000 miles. That Prius must have been a taxi or an Uber car that was driven a ton. 400,000 miles in 5 or 7 years is different than 400,000 miles in 15 or 20 years. Somebody should tell this to the Tesla fanboys too. You still see TJs and 3rd gen 4Runners rocking, while today's brand new Tesla will be in the junkyard in 2030.
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Can you still get the 3.6 without the eTorque? If so, that'd be my choice. Simpler is better.
Only with a manual transmission,
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Get the basic Pentastar before they kill it and replace it with some funny Turbo/hybrid nonsense
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Only with a manual transmission,
No surprise. Jeep thinks those people who are old school like a V6, so they will automatically also like a manual transmission, so let's put them together.
I don't know how long you have been on this forum, but we have a term called PITA Edition, Pain In The Ass Edition, the most Jeepy Jeep. It is awesome for the owner, but a pain in the ass for the Jeep engineers. It is like someone coming to me and asking to write an application for them in Cobol or Fortran 😄 @Chugiakguy owns one such Jeep
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Only with a manual transmission,
Even better!
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