Rental - 4 door Jeep Wrangler vs 1/2 ton vs 3/4 ton pickup

[Scrubbuck]

If you were flying, renting and solo which would you pick? 2nd season OTC SW Colorado. Its just me so I think a wrangler will have plenty of room and I should even be able to sleep in it. (5'11" 180 lbs) The pickups will have more room for gear but again I am flying so I won't have the kitchen sink. All options will have all season tires and be 4x4. Which would be the most capable on sketchy gravel roads?

 

[MuleyFever]

Not the 3/4 ton

 

[gbflyer]

Those 4 door Jeeps are sweet.

 

[FlyGuy]

I rented a 4dr wrangler last year and loved it. If solo there I plenty room for you and gear. Would be tight with two guys and gear. Made it really easy to get around quickly on those crappy, bumpy mtn roads. Super tight turning radius too.

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[Beendare]

A heads up, if you are flying into Denver airpot....the rentals there are as much as 2x just about any other airport...or at least they were a few years ago. They are the only game in town out east there and you pay for it. It might be worth Ubering into town and using a rental co there.

SW Co...you might be flying into Durango....I dunno how it is there.

 

[wisco_archer]

A heads up, if you are flying into Denver airpot....the rentals there are as much as 2x just about any other airport...or at least they were a few years ago. They are the only game in town out east there and you pay for it. It might be worth Ubering into town and using a rental co there.

SW Co...you might be flying into Durango....I dunno how it is there.

It's still really high, flew into Denver in January and rented a car to run up to steamboat for 4 days and it was over $350. The extra money was worth the convenience for me with a 6 am departing flight.

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[sodaksooner]

My 4 door wrangler is my hunting vehicle in CO. I fill it up but am not flying. You can sleep relatively comfortably in them. I am your height.

 

[TheHardWay]

I live near Durango, but can't say for any certainty that the airport companies (hertz, enterprise, etc.) rent trucks or jeeps? Seems like I always see compact and mid-sized cars there. There are some Jeep rental places in the area that you might check (if you haven't already) that might have better price rates, FWIW.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I went with a compact car last year.

 

[TheHardWay]

To the OP...
Not exactly sure where in SW Colorado you are planning on being, but if you are coming to the Durango area, give Southwest Jeep and Raft a call. I was talking with the guy who runs the place yesterday. His name is Chewy. He was telling me they have Jeeps available for hunting season, but you need to call them ASAP because starting very soon because their season is winding down, and the take their rentals off insurance for the remainder of the year. They will keep a vehicle on insurance if they know they can rent it, and offer a discount on 5 days or more. I believe the 4 door was around $175/day for 3-4 days or $166/day for 5+
Durango Rafting & Jeep Rentals | Southwest Raft & Jeep

 

[Scrubbuck]

Thanks to all. I did rent the Jeep from rugged rental in Utah which came as a recommendation on another thread. I did decide to fly into Salt Lake City instead of Denver and my distance to planned hunt location is about the same.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Last time out, we flew and rented our camping gear and vehicle from a company in Denver. We rented a Jeep Cherokee, popup camper, generator, and one cooler. We were able to mail one 45 quart tupperware tote to the company before hand, checked our bows and carried on a back pack. The Cherokee did great. It was tight with 5 guys but, for one it would be the dang bomb man. Get on Amazon and order one of those $30 Polyester hammock tarps to tie up a cooking shelter at camp and you will have one nice, mobile camp man.

 

[wind gypsy]

Jeeps work awesome as long as you don't have more than 2 people.

I get rental cars 15x a year or so and don't think I've seen higher prices for 4wd vehicles than they get in Salt Lake.. For 5 days it usually ends up at least $150 more than anywhere else I fly into. I've gotten nicely equipped Tahoes/F150's/Rams for 9 days in Kalispell at the same price SLC charges for 5 days in a POS jeep or hyundai crossover.

 

[lyle_destroys]

I guess its all personal preference but I could not live without a pickup. There have only been 2 since since I started driving tgat I havent owned one and I had a lifted grand cherokee with the 5.9 in it. Absolute beast. I have an F150 now that I plan on putting a cap on for hunting season to store gear while in the woods. Good tires/chains/and a little skill can make them just as capable as a jeep. Rear end traction is always bad, in Pa I usually add 200 pounds of sand by the tailgate for better snowy road traction. If you go jeep, definitely go with the 4 door. 2 doors just dont have any room. Super cramped especially once you start packing gear or more people in them.

I used to have an F250 that I took in the mountains west of Colorado Springs often. Even with big wheels and tires the sheer weight of the truck hurt it offroad.

 

[Scrubbuck]

10 Days...rugged rental in SLC is charging me $800+ for a 4 door Jeep where enterprise in Denver was charging $869 for a Ford Expedition. F150 is a little less. Enterprise has a strict no off road or even no gravel road policy. Rugged rental in SLC does not care where you go. So no voiding contract by going somewhere you shouldn’t. Jeep rentals in SW CO we’re all around $200/day. Insane... you can do a drop camp for that kind of money. My little Tacoma will be in NJ and I bet I’ll wish I had my own rig, but I don’t want to drive NJ to CO by myself.

 

[ArrowForester]

Scrubbuck - you should do just fine. I got a 4-door Jeep from Rugged in SLC in late June. My experience with them was great. Friendly, great service and the vehicle had no problems at all. It seems like they are familiar with the outdoor crowd that plans to take a vehicle off the interstate. Just be sensible, don't abuse it and clean it up a little before returning it. I think my 5 day rental was approx. $580 with 1400 mile allowance. Have a great trip!

 

[Southforkguy]

Just returning from OTC Arizona deer. Rented a 4 door jeep wrangler camped in the back, put a couple thousand miles on it. Plenty of room for gear, kinda tight for sleep athough with driver seat folded down etc i fit and slept comfortably. 6'1" 195

 

[mtmuley]

The 4 door jeep Rubicon is the new soccer mom rig. mtmuley

 

[Scrubbuck]

mtmuley- I rub toes with a soccer mom every night... maybe I’ll ask her what she thinks. Thanks to all!