Help me understand the different trim levels

[WestCoastDan]

Like with most other vehicle lineups, there are the entry level and the top of the line. I understand that the Rubicon is the top level, but I see a ton of differences between vehicles that carry the Rubicon sticker on the hood and ours.
The primary difference that I notice are painted top & fenders vs black.

I also see Sahara's with both top & fender options, so it warps my simple mind a bit when comparing models.

Was this simply an adder/option rather than part of the Rubicon/Sahara package?

 

[Cobriscus]

The best way to probably understand would be to go to the Jeep site and 'build' a few Jeeps. Granted, we have JK's and the option have changed a bit over the years, but it is basically the same logic. You have the option to pay extra for painted fenders and a color matching hard top at most levels. Most dealers order both or order neither, but there are some out there that have one or the other. Adding a hard top to your build is $1,695 (unpainted) and $2,695 (painted). The painted fenders are another $895.

So, if you want all the standard goodies that a Rubicon comes with, but have a set budget, you can get a soft top, manual, with the 3.6L and save $$$. It is all a matter of preference. Even your JK Rubicon and mine are optioned differently. I have the Recon package which added a bunch of optional equipment, the power hood (which is purely esthetic), painted grill, and unique Rubicon graphics...among other things.

 

[JKFreedom]

Then you can throw in the oddball packages like mine has - the Oscar Mike Freedom Edition. It's essentially a sport but has color matched fenders (like most Saharas) and accent colored bumpers and grill (which I have now replaced with all black), leather trimmed seats with special stitching, a gas cap cover, star decals on the hood and passenger side rear, and Oscar Mike badges on the sides (which I just pasti-dipped in gloss black this past weekend). Underneath all that, it's a JK Sport (no real off-road performance upgrades). Not sure if it's optional or part of the package but mine came with a hard top but the previous owner traded it out for a soft top, which I prefer anyway.

 

[Danarch]

I think there are just too many options out there, plus the mods people do. For instance my wife’s Sahara had black bumpers with the silver trim / accent in the middle. She didn’t like that plus wanted some ”real“ bumpers. So the original bumpers have been sitting around. My daughter just bought a 2017 JK with all black bumpers. We will be removing those and installing the bumpers from my wife‘s JK with the silver accent which will match her JK. These things happen all the time.