It was 4:30 in the afternoon on a dreary February day earlier this year when I saddled up with a Jeep Wrangler Sahara 4xe at Denver International Airport. I’d spent the whole day watching flights get repeatedly canceled, and with a work event scheduled for 8 a.m. in Aspen the next morning there was just no choice but to wheel it the rest of the way. At that time of year, it’s a 220-mile drive at elevations of up to 11,000 feet. Snow began falling 20 miles from Denver.
Needless to say, I was glad to have the Wrangler’s unflinching Selec-trac full-time four-wheel drive (4WD) setup and all-terrain tires on this white-knuckled trip, even if they were being used to avoid off-road excursions. Of course, while the Wrangler is as reassuring an off-roader as you could wish for and the 4xe plug-in hybrid is probably the most sophisticated machine ever to roll out of Toledo, it’s a noisy, fidgety highway companion and one with relatively few creature comforts. It’s great on the trail, but getting there isn’t always half the fun.
That Sahara was a 2023 model. It got me to Aspen—loudly—but just a couple of months later the company rolled out the 2024 Jeep Wrangler. Things are a little different now.
After watching the huge success of the model’s first proper direct rival in decades, the still-new Ford Bronco, Jeep has engineered a mid-cycle refresh that brings a host of refinements to the Wrangler. There are style changes (mostly up front) and mechanical upgrades, but some of the best improvements include a quieter cabin, major in-car tech upgrades, newly optional power seats and expanded availability of the 4xe powertrain.
To sample these upgrades, I recently got some seat time in the fanciest of 2024 Wranglers, a $71,520 High Altitude (including destination). That’s a big price, but this version is aimed just as much at standing out among Aspen’s Bentaygas and G-Wagens as it is hitting the nearby trails of Mount Baldy. It was a good showcase, however, for the 2024 Wrangler’s upgrades, many of which are shared with the lesser trims.
2024 Jeep Wrangler: New Tech, More PHEVs
On the outside, the changes to the 2024 Wrangler are light. Jeep’s trademark seven slots remain, but they are slimmer and the grille extends around the lights. This puts a fresh face on familiar bodywork while freeing up room for the 8,000-pound, factory-in stalled optional Warn winch on Rubicons, which also get up to 100:1 crawl ratio and a new Dana 44 HD full float solid rear axle. There are also ten new wheel designs, including the High Altitude’s pretty 20-inchers, but it’s what’s inside that counts in this update.
Returning Wrangler fans will notice a heavily altered dashboard with that 12.3-inch infotainment screen as its centerpiece and soft-touch materials and custom stitching even on the low-end trims. Thankfully all of the hard controls are still there, including the centrally-mounted window switches, but the big screen adds lots of functionality and looks a whole lot better than the old set of 7.0 of 8.4-inch screens.
The big screen runs the latest version of Stellantis’ UConnect 5 system. It’s highly customizable, allows for five individual user profiles, and it’s easy to learn and use. With over-the-air update capability, it should stay current for a long time, too. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are included, as is Alexa virtual assistant integration, navigation with predictive search, and a Wi-Fi hotspot. Jeep also bundles in its “Trails Offroad” guide, a digital catalog of more than 3,000 adventure trails, though only 62 (Jeep’s “Badge of Honor” trails) are included without a subscription.
There are also new trims and more 4xes. The most important one is the $51,890 Sport S 4xe. This entry-level version is $7,000 cheaper than last year’s entry point for the country’s most popular plug-in, but there are also new Willys ($56,630) and Rubicon X ($71,590) 4xes. 4xe models now also offer a “Power Box,” a 30-amp accessory power supply for running things like coffeemakers and other camping gear.
Comfier & Quieter
Beyond all the added tech, the Wrangler just offers more comfort and what feels like a higher level of refinement. there are now 8-way power front seats on higher trims, a first for the Wrangler. Since this is a vehicle with removable doors and a 34-inch fording depth that drivers actually use, it took a long time for Jeep’s engineers to make sure that all of the power components in the seats were properly waterproofed.
Those seats are a little more comfortable than before, and best of all when you’re riding around in them on the highway things are quieter.
Higher-trim Wranglers now get acoustic glass, more sound-deadening foam and thicker carpets, which helps keep out the wind and road noise. It’s not a whisper-quiet Genesis G90, but the Wrangler feels calmer than before, and you can hear better. In February, as in many previous Wrangler highway drives, Bluetooth phone calls were a shout-fest. No longer, as the Wrangler now has seven microphones (up from two), better speakers and an active noise cancellation system when calls are active.
Jeep has also provided more safety gear. In all but the base-model Wrangler S, first- and second-row side-curtain airbags are standard. Forward collision warnings and adaptive cruise control with stop (but curiously, not “go”) are also standard now. That’s still a very modest list of ADAS features but it’s better than before.
Wrangler 4xe High Altitude
Added as a package for Sahara models in 2021, the High Altitude is part of a proliferation of specialized Wranglers over the last few years including the 4xe and Rubicon 392, but it goes in a different direction than most of its siblings. The High Altitude’s monochrome paint job (bathing many of the Wrangler’s black accents in paint) and 20-inch wheels telegraph urban style, just like big-wheeled G-Wagens and Land Rover Defenders, the latter of whose price territory the High Altitude tiptoes into.
Inside, its power seats are wrapped in Nappa Leather, and a one-touch, full-length Sky one-touch power top sits above. With it retracted you can more clearly see some of the speakers of the High Altitude’s premium stereo, an Alpine system of which Kool Moe Dee would be proud. Every available driver assist feature is thrown in, as are all the available off-road camera views and the Power Box. There’s still painted metal all over the place, so don’t expect a Grand Cherokee, but the cabin does feel fancier than the other Wranglers.
High Altitudes are only available with the 4xe powertrain, which pairs a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with an electric motor for a combined 375 horsepower, 470 pound-feet of torque and 21 miles of electric range. Like the other 4xe trims, it comes only with an eight-speed automatic, and only as a four-door.
The wheels and tires don’t alter the High Altitude’s road manners, and this still isn’t a vehicle that’s about on-road handling. Push it hard on twisty paved roads and you’ll end up grappling with understeer or hanging the tail out, and it just isn’t as compliant or precise as the Bronco. As indicated above though, it’s a whole lot less noisy.
Jeep says it’s up to 5 decibels quieter than before but it feels like more, especially considering the knobbly tires and fabric top. There’s less thrumming at highway speeds, and it’s especially serene around town in electric mode. Floor it and the engine will still make its presence known, but this should make it a better distance companion than before.
Despite its luxury pretense, the High Altitude still packs all of the Sahara’s 4WD gear and a Trac-Lok anti-spin rear differential. (If you want the most extreme gear and the lowest axle ratios, the Rubicon beckons.) Those 20-inch dubs are also still shod in all-terrain tires, and if you wanted more capability off-road all you’d need is a second set of wheels and tires.
This is still a Wrangler, after all, just a more pleasant one, and all the better for those long winter drives.
Editor’s note: Our 2024 Wrangler 4xe High Altitude drive was part of the recent “Drive Revolution” event, an electrified vehicle competition held by the Northwest Automotive Press Association (NWAPA).