I just bought a jeep wrangler with the 4 cylinder and I have to say that it is an awesome fit for just about everything but the interstate. It will do 75 easy, but it's mpg starts to drop off at about 60 mph because it is about as un-aerodynamic as it gets. I also put a couple upgrades on it, electric fan conversion, air intake and swapped the throttle body for a slightly larger one and now it has more power, runs smoother and is getting close to 30 mpg. That figure will drop a little when I get through my current tank of gas though, because I am running premium gas with fuel system cleaner to clean everything out. I have less than 4k into it. If you keep them close to stock and drive sensibly the older jeeps will last for 300k miles or more, and they are great for beating around in the hills and great in the snow. I went through exactly what you are doing now about 2 months ago and this is what I came up with for the best all around reliable, efficient yet capable vehicle for living in Colorado.