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Comments
But I do have a stick shift-related question. Laurel Canyon is one of the main non-freeway routes to get from greater Los Angeles to the San Fernando Valley (of Valley Girl and Fast Times at Ridgemont High fame, for those of you who remember the 80s) and vice versa - It's essentially a rode that goes up and over the Hollywood Hills, maybe about 6 miles long - at times, you get angles of about 45 degrees going up and back down the other side. When I was coming down the LA side, I found I could just keep the clutch depressed and "roll" down the hill, braking occasionally when needed. Is this a bad thing to do? It seems like it would be good for the engine, since you give it a rest. But I wonder if it damages the clutch in some way. Any advice?
Also, on the way up I noticed very low RPM's in third gear, so I tried engaging the 4-wheel drive high. Is this a good idea in such situations?
p.s. - tsjay, I knew the name issue would arise at some point. I'm gonna think about that one for awhile...I want to see what my license plate says when it comes, maybe it will spell something that I can base a name on...
I'd also suggest that 4HI wasn't needed either. The system in the Jeep is a part time system meaning that you need to be on a surface that allows the wheels to slip a bit. I'm sure you didn't do any damage, but unless you get a lot of snow in LA, you'll probably need to head to the mountains or the beach to use the 4wd safely. 4wd isn't a solution to low rpms, it just applies the traction to a front wheel as well as the rear one normally driven. When you feel the revs dropping to a point that you don't feel like you're making much headway, just drop a gear with a downshift and keep on going. Don't think that your SE is the only one that has to drop a gear when climbing a hill. I have a Sport and on long hills at 60mph, I often need to drop to 4th to maintain my speed or accelerate.
Great picture!!! It looks like Photopoint is going to a pay service, so when my photo goes dead, I'll repost one in the proper top-down mode. Maybe I'll even have a real shot of it off road for spyrodragon. Keep having a blast with that new Jeep!
-twylie
http://www.visi.com/~tam/tjfaq.html
I haven't found anything similar for the YJ ('95 and older Wranglers). Good luck and go get one!
-twylie
Your questions:
1. Coasting down hills with the clutch in is NOT a good idea. You should let your engine compression help keep the Jeep from going too fast. With the clutch in, you are going to wear out the throw out bearing, as twyle mentioned; put too much load on your brakes, possibly over-heating them; and you could even lose control of the Jeep! NOT GOOD!
2. Four Wheel Drive should NOT be engaged on dry pavement. Like twylie said, Jeeps have only a part time four wheel drive system, not a full time system like many SUV's have. Your owners manual will tell you that you should only use four wheel drive when you are on unpaved roads or in conditions where the traction is not good (snow, for example). There needs to be some slippage when four wheel drive is enagaged. You will wear out your front tires and, even worse, wear out your front drive train by engaging four wheel drive on dry pavement. Find somewhere off road to play with the four wheel drive.
I strongly suggest that you read your owners manual and that you continue to ask advice in this group. I know you don't want to do anything to harm that beautiful new Jeep.
You probably already know this, but just in case... do not hold the Jeep on a hill with the clutch partially out. The clutch will definitely weat out pre-maturely if you do that. (Some people will stop at a light and in order to keep the vehicle from rolling backwards will let the clutch out until it begins to grab, thus keeping the vehicle from rolling back.) That is a big No No!
Use the hand brake techique in a situation like that, not the clutch. I think you know that trick, right? Put your hand brake on when you get stopped and then you can move your right foot off the brake and over to the gas. When the light changes, you give it a little gas and let out the clutch until you feel the vehicle trying to move, then let off the hand brake, and away you go with no rolling back.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
take care guys..
great jeep there yellowman..
snut
I don't want to do anything bad to my new beauty, so your suggestions are invaluable. I definitely will be reading the owners manual at length - as I mentioned, I watched the video and have read bits and pieces, but so far, I'll read a little bit and get so excited about some new little bit of info that I'll have to go drive it some more! I'll definitely mix in a few more extended reading sessions.
So when going down the hill at a controlled speed, I guess it would be best to use a low gear like 2nd or 3rd and use the brake just to complement the engine's slowing the Jeep down. I still get a little gunshy about going too slow while in gear for fear of stalling, but in my head I know I'd have to go ridiculously slow, like 3 or 4 miles an hour or slower, for this to happen. Just something I have to get over mentally.
Oh, and twylie, I do use your neutral/foot-off-clutch method at red lights, unless I see it's going to change in a couple seconds. I actually like this better, because it lets me rest that clutch foot. The first day it was getting exhausted, especially with all the restarting I had to do with the stalls.
Thanks again for the valuable advice. Just an hour to go before I get to take it out again!
Mike
You don't want to hold up traffic behind you, so just try fourth gear to start with, and you will be able to tell pretty quickly if you are going to get enough engine braking or not. If not, then drop down to third gear. Maybe you really do need second gear, but I have never been on a public road where that was necessary.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
P.S. Are you talking about a switch back, maybe? You know, where there are sharp curves as you go up or down a mountain and you zig zag back and forth as you climb or go down? In that case, you might really need second gear.
About 500 miles on the Jeep now, and aside from the annoying flapping of the rear seat belts (note to self: velcro straps next trip to WalMart), everything seems pretty tight. The idle seems a bit lumpy for a new engine, but no issues in how it pulls. I don't know why I was suprised, but the windhield collects bugs like CRAZY. It's still a blast to drive and I don't think the top is EVER going back up, even next winter...
-twylie
I washed Thelma today to get the Illinois return trip bugs off of her, and the whole time I was working on her, I was thinking what a great day to go topless! I decided that it was too close to the end of the weekend, though. I don't want to drive all the way to work (27 miles) and be caught without a top in case it rains.
Thelma got 18.8 MPG going up to Illinois and 17.5 coming home. I was heading into a strong wind all the way home, and I didn't expect to get even as much as the 17.5 MPG. I am talking about 30 to 40 MPH winds! A warm front was moving in, and the wind was out of the south.
I couldn't find the wrench that's supposed to come with the Jeep for taking the top off. I tought it was supposed to be in the glove box, but it wasn't, nor was it in the center console.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Laurel Canyon is definitely a curvy street, but not as curvy as a mountain road, so third might be the most appropriate. I'll let you know when I try it again.
One other stick question. Sometimes I'll be riding along in, let's say, third gear when I'll see a stop ahead. Rather than braking, I'll shift down into second to get the Jeep starting to slow down, then when it's time to stop I brake, depress the clutch, move into neutral, and take my foot off the clutch while I'm waiting for the light (i.e., the twylie method). My question is, is downshifting to slow the car down bad for the engine, since when I first get into the lower gear I hear the higher RPM's? Or should I just pump the brake to slow down and then finally depress the clutch when I'm almost slowed to a stop? On the one hand, it seems I'm saving the brakes by downshifting, but on the other hand, I wonder if I'm overshifting by using the downshift slowdown method?
p.s. - ok, ok, I think I finally got the hint.....I'll post my info in meet the members now tsjay.....
As long as you are not downshifting too soon and getting your RPM's too high, it won't hurt anything. It will mean extra use of the clutch, and clutches wear out over time, so while you are saving your brakes, you are also using up some of your clutch life. Usually, brake jobs are cheaper than clutch repairs.
What you DON'T want to do is maintain your speed right up to the last second and then jam on your brakes, like some people do. That is one of my pet peeves, and it irks me to no end to be riding with someone who does that. It makes no sense whatsoever to do that, and it puts extra wear on your brakes and hurts your gas mileage as well.
Catch you later.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
You should buy a Jeep at or just above invoice BEFORE the rebate. I would get the 3.73 axle ratio if you are going to run 30s or 31s.
The add a trunk seems weak. I would get something else if you want it to be real secure.
http://www.tuffyproducts.com
The dana 44 is a good axle. I don't think you can get the dana 44 with ABS though.
I would get cruise control if you do any highway driving.
I noticed you talking about axles. I have no idea what axle I have. I didn't request anything special when I ordered mine. Can I check just by looking at or under my Jeep? Thanks for the info.
-twylie
-twylie
What are the best prices you guys have gotten, and from what dealers? I live in Northern VA and I've only talked to Heritage. Thanks
Once you get the VON, wait a week or so, then start calling DC to get status reports. That's when it REALLY starts getting fun! Soon thereafter you'll be able to get the VIN, which you can use to set up insurance, etc. Keep us informed of the progress!
I noticed wranglerwanted posting about price and good/bad deals. I feel like I got a good deal, so I thought I'd post the breakdown I negotiated, maybe it'll help someone who's looking for an SE...If everyone does this, it could be a really helpful negotiating tool for those who are about to buy. Anyway, here's mine (the codes in parentheses are the official order codes):
Wrangler SE (TJJL77): $14,175
Package 23N: $1,114
Convenience Group 1 (AAC): $160
Black Hard Top (VKX): $780
Air Conditioning (HAA): $761
Convenience Group (ADC): $140
Body Sidesteps (MRJ): $64
Radio/CD Player (RBR): $106
Add-a-Trunk (JKC): $106
Full Face Tire & Wheel (ACF): $264
Sentry Key (GXX): $64
Cloth Seats (L5/AZ): $128
Destination & "Advertising": $805
"Dealer Profit": $400
SUBTOTAL: $19,071
I then negotiated $100 off because I had deleted the subwoofer and engine block heater, so the final total was:
$18,971 before the rebate. According to webcarbook.com, the invoice for this was $19,022.
Now, if you are paying $100 over invoice and then getting the rebate to bring the total down to $400 under invoice, that would be about as good as you could hope for.
Some people are getting Jeeps at invoice now, and then still getting the rebate to effectively buy the Jeep at $500 under invoice.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
As I told you I would, I paid attention to the tach today as I shifted gears. I found that my normal shift point is 2000 RPM's. I watched it several times, and I was very consistent.
If I want to take off a little faster, I will wind out the gears a little further, but just my normal take off and acceleration has me shifting at 2000 RPM's.
Thanks for the Meet the Members post!
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I also switched to the soft top. It really does get alot easier to put up with a little practice. I am down to about 10 minutes now.
I just switched tops tonight as well. Oh I love it with the top down! Such a beautiful night! My Spyro looks a little different without the roof rack and daylighters, looks alittle like it got a short hair cut or something, maybe I'm just not used to it yet because I've been running with the rack all winter long. I guess I can sacrafice for the ease of putting the top up and down heck yea I can!
Happy Jeepin'
heard that one before. Hope I can stick around here with all you. Tsjay..now you gotta hug Thelma eben harder for me..
keep posting!
SaharaNut
(terry)
Drive It
Getting ready to clean the ol' Jeep this weekend by hand. Anyone have any suggestions as to car wash soaps to use, or do you just use water to hose it down initially? I think I have factory clear coat on the paint, so I don't want to do anything to damage that. Thanks for any advice!
Just thought I'd share this - when I initially got the Jeep, I looked under the hood and the pink coolant seemed to be a little low. It was down near the "add" line. I asked the salesman about this, and he said it only looks low because the car is cold (hasn't been running). Well, I've looked at it hot and it still seems low. I went to a closer dealership to see if they could add a little for me, but they recommended taking it back to the dealer who sold me the car, since they'd do it for free. The closeby dealership said he'd have to check the car in and charge me $38 to look it over. I couldn't believe he wasn't willing to just go back, get a little coolant, and pour it in. I'll try one other dealership that is more convenient for me, hopefully their service department will be a little more cooperative. It's a disappointment, because the one that was going to charge is literally around the corner from my apartment.
Anyone know where I can get a decent cargo net for my Jeep? I haul boxes to the post office a lot, and I want something that will form a barrier so the high-piled boxes in the rear don't fall on me when I stop. I've checked Quadratec and the only thing they seem to have is a net that goes over a seat to keep cargo sitting in the bucket. I need something that goes from the Sport Bar to the floor behind the front seats.
Incidentally, did my first cargo run last night with the rear seat removed (VERY easy to take out, BTW). I was a little worried I wouldn't have enough room, but as it turned out I was able to haul just as many boxes as I could before in my Saturn. I used to argue with my business partner over who would have to make the post office run each day, and now I don't put up nearly as much resistance ;-)
Mike
Thanks eveyone
Not sure on the windows. When they yellow, I wonder if vinegar will work (it does on nylon clothes!).
Since you probably haven't waxed that baby yet, it really wouldn't matter now, but those car wash solutions are designed so as to not remove your wax. Dish washing liquids or laundry soap WILL remove wax.
I would advise you to get that baby waxed as soon as possible too.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Thanks for the car washing suggestions, I'll pick up some of that Armor All car wash solution you recommend. This may sound stupid, but how long does a wax job typically last? With my previous cars, I would just take them into the machine wash place and have them give it a Rainbow Wax treatment, then maybe once a year have the thing detailed. But I will NOT be messing with machine washes with the new baby Jeep. Also, what's reasonable to pay for a hand wax job? I don't mind washing it on my own, but I tried hand waxing one of my old cars once and my arm almost fell off. Not to mention the risk you take in getting some of the wax on the black trim - that stuff will leave a PERMANENT mark!!!
You are definitely right about not getting wax on the fender flares or the hard top! It is impossible to get it off.
Ask around for recommendations for a good detail shop. I enjoy washing a vehicle and don't really even mind waxing one, but the weather is so often against you here, that it is hard to get a good wax job done when it isn't too cold, too hot, or raining. You aren't supposed to wax a vehicle in the hot sun, and I don't have a shade tree anywhere on my property.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Oh, yeah, BUG GUTS! GET THEM OFF AS SOON AS YOU GET WHERE YOU'RE GOING! They will definitely stain the paint if they are allowed to stay on there very long at all. People laugh at me, but I actually take a wet paper towel and get the bugs off the grill and front fenders when I get to work and again when I get home. (What a fanatic, huh?)
Momma will get over it. There's just some things that a man has to do, whether momma understands or not!
Mrs. Saharanut, Terry needs a Jeep. If he doesn't get one, he will just be a shell of a man. Empty and void of all emotion. A zombie! He will wither up and die. Do you want that to happen?
So, just be understanding when he drives up in that new Jeep.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
We ALL know that there is only ONE cure for Wrangler fever!!!!!!!!
Let's go people! A man is in trouble!
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Well, I'll share my story with you. I knew I needed to get a new car, so I started thinking about what I might want. I knew whatever I got I wanted it in yellow - I just always liked the unique look of yellow cars. You just don't see them that often. Blue, black, green, white...even red you see rather often. But yellow! They kinda stick out in a glut of traffic. So I looked at some mini SUVs like the Ford Escape and the Nissan Exterra, and a sports car like the Toyota Camry Solara, and even even a couple "sensible" cars (read: good gas mileage, long-lasting, good resale value) that DIDN'T come in yellow like the Honda Accord DX, Toyota Corolla, and Saturn SC with the third door. And then I looked at that Jeep. Somehow it just jumped off the screen at me. And when I saw that the newer ones had the old round lights, I was sold. Just too cool. And affordable too - this thing was actually in my budget!!
Well, although I'm 29 I still run big decisions like this by my parents to see what they think. First I went to my dad...Fortunately, he was in favor from Day 1. "Oh, I think you should get a Jeep." Even before I mentioned I was considering it! He just said, "yeah, I think they look so cool. What a great looking car - very rugged, very manly." Yellow wasn't his first color choice, but he gave a big thumbs up. So then I ran it by my mom, and she was at the opposite end of the spectrum. "Oh, no, absolutely not! Those things roll over...You'll go crazy trying to use that stick shift in traffic - believe me, I drove a manual VW Bug for 30 years and I got so sick of having to row my way around town! One of my coworkers got one for the same reason you want one - 'it's cool' - and he got rid of it after taking it on a long trip up to Canada. No, you should get a Honda. Dad likes the idea? Well your father doesn't know what he's talking about." and on and on and on...Well, I finally ordered the thing, and as I was updating both of them on the progress, my mom started coming around - "You know, I've noticed those Jeeps out on the street - they're cute! When is yours coming in?" And when it came she really liked it - no more fears of it rolling over or anything. But she's still anti-stick. My dad mentioned wanting to get one in a couple years and said he'd get it manual and she was okay with that, but she said she'd make him get it automatic. So who knows, this could be the start of a Jeep family!
Good luck with going forward with it. Here's a suggestion - maybe go for a Sport or an SE instead of the Sahara so you can use the cheaper price to convince her? You can always soup it up later to make it just like - or better than - a Sahara.
I'm dying to see some pics, Doc. That sienna and black combo sounds beautiful.
How's the gas mileage? How many miles on Maxx now?
Write up a nice long post about your first couple weeks experience with Maxx, or start him a web page or something. I truly love to read posts about the fun people are having with their Jeeps.
Tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Still hoping you get that Jeep.
tsjay
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I also understand that you get to come home every day to Mrs. Nut, and you need to keep the peace on the homefront. You could see if she is serious about the "next year" comment... get a calendar and start numbering the days from her comment... 365, 364, 363, and start crossing them off as they pass. Eventually, she'll ask you what the calendar is for and what the heck you are doing. When she sees you committment, she'll know you're serious and will give in straight away.
Let me know if you ever head across into GA on I-20. We're about half way between the state line and ATL; we'll go out for a ride. We can even let Mrs. Nut drive!
I second tsjay's comment. Stick around, even if the Jeep doesn't happen soon. Every couple hundred posts, we may even say something useful. In best Godfather accent... "you're paht of da famley noww".
-twylie
I use lemon pledge and it works good. There are other products made for cleaning plastic windows.
yellowman
You can remover the add-a-trunk if you want the extra space. Try www.quadreatec.com or www.jcwhitney.com for a cargo net.
tsjay
I have heard bug guts actually eat the paint off, not just stain it.
Also, my friend said that 31's are easier to come by then '30s. I thought I read on previous posts that you can't go with anything larger then 30s with the stock suspension. What about my ABS, with such large tires and wheels should I not get it? Thanks again.
Mike