Official EPA fuel economy and range numbers are out for the 2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe. Jeep estimated that it could go 25 miles under electric power late last year, but the EPA-estimated range came in lower at just 21 miles of range on a full charge.
That’s disappointing to see that Jeep missed the mark by 4 miles, but 21 miles could still be plenty for the needs of many owners. The average American drives less than 21 miles to work each day, so it could very well be sufficient to do part (or all) of your regular driving under electric power.
In addition to range, we also know that the combined fuel economy rating is 20 mpg — this is what you’ll be getting once the battery is totally depleted. The Wrangler 4xe suffers as most PHEVs do in this area, as the added weight from the battery pack and electric motor drag down fuel economy. A standard Wrangler four-door with the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder is rated at 22 mpg combined, for comparison. Even the V6 four-door gets 1 mpg better in combined fuel economy than the 4xe. The story here is that you’ll need to take full advantage of the electric range to make the Wrangler 4xe work in your favor.
For some additional comparisons, the super-efficient Wrangler EcoDiesel will return the model’s best EPA combined figure at 25 mpg. The least efficient Wrangler is the new 392, which is rated at a paltry 14 mpg.
Even with the less-than-stellar fuel economy post battery-drain, the EPA posits that 4xe owners will pay less in fuel per year ($1,750) than any other Wrangler drivers. The gas engine-only equivalent will cost $200 more on average, and the EcoDiesel will be $150 more. In case the 6 mpg combined difference between the 4xe and 392 was looking temptingly narrow, note that the annual fuel cost for the 392 is estimated at $3,750, a full $2,000 more per year than the 4xe. At the lower end of fuel economy figures, small differences in mpg make for big variances in fuel cost.
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