My daughter wants a Jeep_® Wrangler as her first vehicle – here’s why

I wish I could remember what age I was when I started thinking about driving and getting my first car. I’m pretty sure I was older than 11.

My daughter, on the other hand, at the ripe old age of 11, has decided that a Jeep_® Wrangler is not only the vehicle that she wants, it’s also the vehicle she needs. So, I sat her down the other day to ask her why. Below is the rather lengthy list of reasons she provided.

• It can get places in winter.

This one is tough to argue. And being able to get to where you want and need to go, even when there is a foot of snow is necessary where we live. It can also get places in the spring, summer and fall.

• It’s four-wheel drive, right?

I didn’t have the heart to tell her that not all Jeep brand vehicles are four-wheel drive. But I loved her logic. At her age, she doesn’t really know what four-wheel drive is or why it’s important, but she hears us talk about it enough to know she’ll likely need it.

• It seems like a high-quality car.

Who am I to argue with 11-year-old logic?

• It’s bigger, so in an accident I wouldn’t get hurt as bad as in a small car.

I hope we’ll never find out.

• It’s just something I like.

This one I found particularly funny since three short years ago she was scared of “those cars with no doors.” But I’m glad, in her advanced age, she has come around to my way of thinking.

• I think it looks pretty.

I wouldn’t necessarily describe a Jeep Wrangler as “pretty,” but beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right?

• I think it looks tough.

Now we’re talkin’.

• It gets 285 horsepower – so it’s fast, but not too fast.

Again, she doesn’t really know what “horsepower” is, but she’s heard us talk about it and she understands the importance of having adequate power to accelerate to the speed of traffic. At the same time, she is not a fan of fast driving overall. (Thank goodness – let’s hope she stays that way.)

• It’s spacious – I could fit four friends (besides me) in there.

This might be a highlight for her. We’ll talk about this as the day of getting her driver’s license draws closer.

• I like how it’s heavy duty – I could carry stuff in the back with no problem.

What kind of “heavy duty” equipment she thinks she’s going to carry is beyond me, but I guess she’ll be all set for everything but the kitchen sink when she moves to college.

• I like the colors they come in.

Especially purple. These days everything is purple.

• You can get it in a manual transmission.

I’m pretty sure this was meant specifically for her dad and me, since we insist that she learn how to drive a standard transmission.

• It has seat heaters (most likely) for the winter time, of course.

I’m not sure what kind of Wrangler she thinks she’s going to get, but something that has heated seats in it is probably not going to be her first vehicle. I’m just sayin’.

• It has a plug in for your phone and gets good gas mileage.

How these two items are related is beyond me, but combining the things that are important when you’re 11 with trying to provide a list of reasons to justify the vehicle you want to drive in five years is probably not easy.

• So my dog’s ears can fly in the wind.

I really don’t think there is a better reason than this one.