What is the Jeep Wave?

The Jeep Wave has only ever meant one thing to me – waving at a fellow Jeep owner, but after I googled the subject, I realized that it is turning into branding for a Jeep product – but we will get to that later.

Since the dawn of Jeeps (and especially Wranglers), Jeep owners have acknowledged their fellow brothers and sisters with a friendly wave, good finger, or nod of the head when passing on the road or trail. We are celebrating the fact that another human has chosen the best vehicle in the world, as long as best doesn’t mean MPG, comfort, or speed. Unfortunately, I am afraid the Jeep Wave is dead. Many people blame the 4-door Wrangler scene for killing it off. Others blame the advanced suspension that rides car-like and has pulled more car people into the Jeep world. Then you throw in the fact that Jeep has become a very popular brand and if you waved at every single Jeep model driving down the road you would look like an absolute lunatic.

But some of us just can’t help it. We are old school purists who think it’s terrible not to wave to a fellow Jeep owner and it is embarrassing and painful when they don’t wave back and yet we can’t stop. I would say I wave on average to 30 Jeeps a week and I am getting zero waves in return.

Here’s what I have learned on the streets of Salt Lake City, Utah.

1. Only people who return a wave are Wrangler/CJ Owners
2. No one initiates a wave to my stock TJ
3. Women don’t wave back (can’t blame them, they probably think I am hitting on them)
4. I’ve rarely have a JK owner wave back

Now, I am not trying to pass blame or point out a certain group, it’s just that I am a long-time Jeep owner and this is a sad trend to see. I’m curious of your thoughts. Should I stop waving? Should I stop being so sensitive and keep waving like an idiot even if I get nothing in return? Should the Jeep Wave hurry up and die already? How is the Jeep Wave doing in your town?

The Other Jeep Wave

Now, The other Jeep Wave I alluded to above is a new VIP service program for late model Jeep owners.. You can read more about that here.

The Jeep Wave program rewards owners of certain Jeep vehicles with a variety of benefits including 24/7 owner support, oil changes and tire rotations, first-day rental allowance & exclusive member discounts. To qualify for the Jeep Wave program you must own one of the following vehicles:

2016 Model-Year Vehicles with Jeep® Wave:

• Jeep Cherokee Overland and Cherokee Trailhawk
• Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland, Grand Cherokee Summit and SRT®
• Jeep Renegade Trailhawk
• Jeep Wrangler (All)

2017 Model-Year Vehicles with Jeep® Wave:

• Jeep Cherokee Overland and Cherokee Trailhawk
• Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland, Grand Cherokee Trailhawk, Grand Cherokee Summit and SRT®
• Jeep Renegade Trailhawk
• Jeep Wrangler (All)
• Jeep Compass Trailhawk

How much does Jeep Wave cost?

Auto-enroll Jeep Wave memberships last 24 months and buy-in memberships are valid for 12 months. All memberships can be renewed for $150 per year. If you sell your Jeep while you still have Jeep Wave your remaining benefits will transfer to the new owner including things like oil changes.

How do I contact Jeep Wave Support?

You can call 24/7 at (844) 533-7928 or Jeep.com/wave

Is Jeep Wave worth it?

According to dealership documents, it seems like Jeep Wave would pay for itself in oil changes and tire rotations. For instance, the 2.0 EcoDiesel V6 Grand Cherokee gets billed to the dealership at $110 per oil change. The 6.4 SRT HEMI V8 gets billed at $65 per oil change. You can find the full chart of dealership reimbursements here.