The fastest and largest growing segment of Jeep owners has rated the beloved Jeep Cherokee XJ as the most ideal off road vehicle in it’s class. The market segment of Jeep owners described as “I can’t afford a Wrangler” has become the fastest growing segment and is growing steadily each quarter.

Underland.com dived deep into the topic to find out what the scoop is with the uptick in XJ popularity. A new XJ owner recently shared their story.

Carl – Recent XJ owner. 1992, 4 door, Auto, 4.0L 213K miles, Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Underland Journal (UJ) – What led you to purchasing an XJ?

Carl – “Well for me it was the numbers. I test drove a new 4 door Rubicon and fell in love. Electronic locking axles, low gearing for crawling, 35’s from the lot. What’s not to love?! I went to my local credit union and filled out my application to go and pick that bad boy up the following week from the dealer. The loan officer assisting me asked me some pretty annoying questions like, who are you, what are you doing asking to borrow money when you don’t have a job. Not very professional to treat a long term customer like myself. After a few minutes of listening to his jargon I showed him a picture of the Rubicon. I said, this is the Jeep I want. The officer reaffirming, “that’s the Jeep you want”, turning to his computer he typed away at the keyboard. After a few moments he turned his screen to me. It was a picture of a bright red XJ on Marketplace for $750. He said this is the Jeep you can afford. I don’t do social media so I asked him to message the guy with the Jeep for sale. He asked me to get out of his office. After a bit of time he caved and we even got a reply. I got my cousin to give me a ride down to there and after a bit of haggling I drove that Jeep home for $600!”

UJ – How would you describe the feeling of entering the fraternal order of Jeep ownership?

Carl – “It’s fantastic! I feel that wind blow through my hair and the freedom of knowing no obstacle can keep me from enjoying my drive. The wind blowing is more on account of the windows don’t roll up anymore on the passenger side, but the guy gave me a door off of one of his old XJ’s that should bolt right on. When my cousin followed me home he said I was swerving back and forth like something was wrong with my steering. I was like, “no man, it’s just that Jeep floatin’ down the road with these big off road tires. Sure there’s a bit of slop in the steering, but you show me one vehicle with 33’s that ain’t got a little bit of soul driving down the road.”

We wish Carl happy trails and that he gets practicing his two finger wave.