The Car Pro Test Drives the 2021 Jeep Rubicon 4Xe

Thursday on KFYO Mornings with Dave King and Matt Martin, The Car Pro Jerry Reynolds joined Dave and Matt to talk about his test drive of the week, what could be improved on electric cars, the 100 deadly days of Summer for teen drivers, as well as other auto industry news.

This week The Car Pro was test driving the 2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4Xe, pronounced "4 by e", Jeeps new plug-in hybrid car. "Never in my wildest dreams could I imagine plugging in electricity to a Jeep, but here I am," Reynolds started. This model has a 4 cylinder inline turbocharged gas engine under the hood, and then a 17 kilowatt battery that powers 2 electrical motors. Jerry says that it can be a bit strange to be in a Jeep with no engine sound, but he imagines if you were to take it off-road in the mountains or something similar, it could be interesting to hear all of the sounds. The 4Xe has a limited range of 21 miles on the battery, meaning it would work best if you had a short commute, however, since it is a hybrid, the gas engine will kick in once you run out of electricity, and then you charge it overnight when you get home. Reynolds also said that this is a well-loaded Rubicon, and is very off-road capable, as all Rubicons are. However, he also said that it can take a bit of time to get used to, the drive can be pretty rough, and when it rains, a bit of water can get inside, leading him to say that this would not be a daily driver for him. The 2021 Rubicon 4Xe has a window sticker price of $61,000.

Reynolds also talked about some stories on his website carprousa.com. One story is about the new 2022 Ford Maverick, Ford's new compact truck that even comes in a hybrid, but with a caveat on the price. Another story is the unveiling of Toyota's New Models for 2022, assuming that they can get the chips they need for them. And finally, a story on the 100 Deadly Days of Summer for teenagers, where Jerry talks about how the driving fatality numbers for teens jumps way up as they get out of school. He also provides a contract in the article that you can make between parents and teens, which he thinks can be pretty useful and effective, and encourages everyone to check out.

Read more stories at carprousa.com and watch the full interview in the video above.

KFYO Mornings with Dave King & Matt Martin airs weekday mornings live, from 6:00 AM to 8:30 AM on News/Talk 95.1 FM and 790 AM KFYO, online at KFYO.com, & on the free KFYO app.