I will be purchasing a JK soon and I was wondering what y'all have. I will be doing some moderate off roaring, but mostly city driving.

 

I have a Rubicon. No regrets.

 

What anyone else has is meaningless. What matter is your expectations and budget and plans.

Out of the box offroading with minimal money into upgrades, go for a rubicon.

Build to suit your needs? Planning on 37+ inch tires, stronger axles, atlas, etc? Then get a cheap X/Sport and go nuts.

 

The most basic Jeep Wrangler JK is a very capable off-road vehicle. The Rubi is the best off-the-shelf vehicle ever made for hard-core off-roading. It's easy to say you'll do moderate off-road, then to get hooked on it and find yourself tackling tougher trails. Sometimes I wish I had bought a Rubi from the get-go, but that hasn't stopped me from following Rubi's all over this country (I have an X, now called a Sport). Even if you buy an X/Sport, you will have plenty of options to upgrade it for better performance off road if that's where your interests take you. The primary thing I have against a Sahara is the painted fenders--if you off-road in forested areas they will get quickly trashed. The secondary thing I have against the Sahara is power this and that--that's just stuff waiting to break where manual would be just fine. This is especially notable if, like many of us, you plan to keep your Jeep so your family can bury you in it.

 

Then that answers your question; Sahara. All the extra stuff you get on the Rubi is purely to increase the Wrangler's already awesome offroad performance and also (with regards to the low diff gearing) to enable you to go up a few inches of tire size without having to re-gear. I've managed to easily get my stock 2-door Sport over obstacles that lifted, modified, disconnected, locker-equipped non-Wranglers struggle to clear; stock X/Sport/Saharas are very capable offroad.

From what you've said, you aren't planning to do a lot of extreme offroading where you need to disconnect your front swaybar, lock both axles and require extremely low crawl ratios in 4-low, nor do you intend to lift your rig and add a load of extra weight in the form of armor, winches, steel bumpers, etc and go bigger tires; so if you're just after a DD and hit the occasional trail then the stiffer ride, greater weight, lower gearing and lower gas mileage that go with the Rubi will just annoy you onroad.

 

I still wish I bought the Rubi, but the deal I got on my Sahara 4dr was too hard to pass up. Every option except the Rubi stuff. Now I'm looking for a hit Rubi to 'trade' front axles with (and edisco and lockers...) and I should be good to go. I can't believe how great the ride is already for my DD. I'm sure you'll like either one. But the Sahara is a touch more plush than the beefy Rubi. The sponsoring vendors help you make it what you want in the end if you aren't staying stock...

Enjoy it either way. I'm sure you'll have a blast no matter what. I'm hooked. It has to be a jeep thing.

 

I never considered anything but my Rubi. Of course, I knew I would be going offroad and how addicting it can be and how I knew my addiction would grow from day 1! I love the beefier everything! I plan on doing a few upgrades, nothing like some 40's and a 6" lift but upgrades are in the works! If you can, go all the way. You just might regret it later! Good luck and have fun Jeepin'!

 

I was in your spot for a long time. I wanted the rubicon to have it all. But the more I read here the more I was convinced I don't need lockers and digger axcel. My jk will be on the road more than off road.
Also I wanted to stay in the low 30s with the final price and there are only 2 ways to do that. Get a rubi with one or two options or a nicely loaded Sahara with navi and all.

As you can see in my Sig I went for the Sahara

 

I had to make the same decision recently and finally decided to get the Rubicon. I would have to say if your budget allows for the Rubicon I can promise you that you will never regret the decision. The ride is stiffer only by a little bit and if you get a Sport and modify you will have the same or stiffer ride.
That being said, the Sport, X, Sahara are ALL very capable offroad vehicles. Make your decision based on how much you will NEED to have the extras. If money is not so free flowing in today's economy you can always get the very capable base model and upgrade when the cash is available and still have a great time until that happens.

 

This is my opinion and it does not reflect the majority here, just my 2 cents for me.

I got a Rubicon with the optional dual roof package.

Also got some additional "plush" stuff, like remote start, Navigation, 7 speaker Stereo System (amp and bass speaker in the rear, 30 gig HD and Video System.

Kinda the best of both worlds between the Sahara and Rubicon for me. This may not be the best of both worlds for somebody else. I love it and don't regret it.

I pay for it now, so I don't have to stare at ads for aftermarket stuff later and say maybe I should buy that and add it (such as 4.10 gears, axle lockers, swy bar disconnects, Dana 44 up front and the list goes on).

I go out alone sometimes, so Idon't want to get stuck or damage a front axle and reflect back and say I should've bought the Rubicon and got the beefier 4x4 goodies that come with it.

If all else fails, just buy the standard Jeep and go have fun. It can be a good Daily Driver and a reliable light to medium offroad vehicle for occasional use.

peace