Jeep Wrangler

tsjay · July 2005

Think that's Landon just coming up out of the creek on the far side. The Jeep right in front of me was Joanie's (Yamamama's).

Tomster
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

erickpl · July 2005

Glad you got back okay. How did Thelma Jane fare? Any major carnage to the group?

-Paul

tsjay · July 2005

No damage. MrFarmdog had a little problem with his YJ. Same thing that happened at Turkey Bay. A bolt sheared and let his leaf spring pack on one side up front fall apart. They did a two hour trail repair and got him in good enough shape to get back to his campground.

That happened after I had left for home, but I heard about it later. I skipped the last day of wheelin' in order to have time to make a trip up to my hometown while I have the time off from work.

Tomster
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

keats · July 2005

Cool pics, Tom! Welcome back.

wpowell · July 2005

After doing a search on rocker protection and poking around online, I am confused about which way to go. I have a new Unlimited and I am looking for bumpers and rocker guards. I really like the looks of the Smittybilt stuff, but the rocker guards appear to just bolt to the frame in two places. Doesn't look very substantial when compared to something like the Shrockworks guards that have a dozen or so bolts through the rocker panel sheetmetal and skid plates below. My wife is 5'1" on a tall day, so the pipe/step on these does have some appeal. Any opinions on the Smitty guards or Smittbilt products in general? Thanks!

erickpl · July 2005

but there are other designs that are pretty stout. I myself use the Toys by Troy ultimate sliders. Jeeperman, Shrockworks, 4X Doctor A to Z Fabrications all make versions with side steps. These all have the benefit of protecting the sheet metal and either bolt to the frame itself or as is more common to the underside of the tub, around the body mounts. My wife is 5'2" and can get into my lifted (3") TJ with the Toys by Troy. I keep the grab handles above the doors so she can pull herself in.

Regardless of which type of rocker/bar you pick, they can be slick to women's shoes, so the handle is a good safety thing for them anyway.

Here are mine (prior to my lift).

-Paul

jeff62301 · July 2005

the doors are off my jeep, I was taught to open car doors when on a date. what should I do?

jeff

wheelsdown · July 2005

Jeff,

Just toss her in.

Terry

embeeduece · July 2005

Open the glove box.

-Mike

mtngal · July 2005

Quickly get out of the vehicle, run around to her side of the vehicle and throw yourself down on the ground so she can walk all over you as she gets out of the vehicle and won't soil her feet.

mac24 · July 2005

Never mind the doors............. just figure how to explain to your wife you've been out on a date!

stever · July 2005

Be a real gentleman and let her drive.

Steve, Host

redrocker15 · July 2005

Mtngal - I think you're getting ahead of yourself here. He said it was a date, NOT his wife!

redrocker15 · July 2005

Tom-

While you were away, I don't think we were ever one of the most active forums

Nice pics as usual - looks like a ton of fun! So Hammond is way up near Gary, isn't it? That's a long haul from KY - but was it in Thelma Jane as well?

Just wanted to let you know I plan to post on the "Wave" forum this weekend, once I get a decent Jeep picture to include. Haven't forgotten, just delinquent with a good picture. Has everyone already posted there?

G

tsjay · July 2005

Gary:

No, I didn't drive Thelma Jane up to Hammond. I drove the family 04 Impala, and that crazy thing got an avearge over two tanks of gas of 28.9 MPG! Yes!

It is about a 7 hour drive for me from here to Hammond. I go right up 41 from Evansville. Yep, Hammond is a neighbor to Gary and Chicago, right in between the two.

I saw a high school buddy that I had not seen in 37 or 38 years! We had it arranged to get together while I was up there. We had a real good visit.

Tomster
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

koolbreeze2 · July 2005

Date a woman with money and use her vehicle. KB2

jeff62301 · July 2005

she did not want any help getting in / out, not because she didn't need it, but because she was wearing a skirt.

Jeff

wriver82 · July 2005

Hi everyone, me and my son went to a jeep jamboree in June in Blakeslee, PA., well after having a great time in my stock 2005 unlimited, I decided a little lift would be great. Long story short I am now going with a Tereflex 4in. suspension lift with 33-12.50-15 tires and 15x10 rims. Boy a small idea sure turned into an expensive proposition. Anyway my question is should I go with 35 tires instead of 33 s, I don't mind doing a 1 in. lift to do this, but will I run into more problems like needing bigger brakes, needing to regear my 3.73 to a 4.11 or 4.56 now instead of later, etc. I have an automatic.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated,

Thanks Bill

ravager · July 2005

Congrats on the Unlimited!
Your decision will depend on how much you'll be off road. Any jeep is already very good off road with a minimum of mods but....

You can put up to 31s on your stock jeep and not have rub. I think up to 33's will work with just a budget boost and no other additions. After 33's tho you start getting into making those major mods you're speaking of.
Anyway, you came to the right place...the experts will be along shortly..

welcome to the boards!

tsjay · July 2005

Bill:

Aside from the highway issues of 35" tires and 3.73 gearing, which most likely would not make you a happy camper as far as acceleration or with repsect to maintaining speeds going up long hills, there is the crawl speed factor to consider for your off roading.

The crawl speed issue is exacerbated by the fact that you have an auto tranny. On very steep descents, you want engine braking going for you, so that you don't have to stay on your brakes. The larger tires will make your crawl speed faster than you would want it to be.

Is there some reason that you are going with 10" rims? If you air down for off roading, the 8" rim with a 12.50" tire will be less likely to lose the bead. It's perfectly OK to run 12.50" tires on 8" rims.

Tomster
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

mac24 · July 2005

Following from Tom's post, you additionally need to consider the problems of driveshaft angles and hence vibration issues, plus the effects of the increased rotational forces affecting your braking performance on the highway.

Running 35's safely and efficiently can take a considerable amount of money, time, and effort.................though I'm not saying you shouldn't attempt it.

jeff62301 · July 2005

I've got an 2004 unlimited with 3.5 Rubicon Express lift, driveline angles are OK, I didn't have any problems with vibrations, 33's are all the bigger I want to go with the 3.73 gears. acceration is ok, but less than it was stock, it has a tendency to drop out of overdrive on most hills. I'd be concerned that 35's would make it a real pooch on the streets, where I spend 99% of my time. Engine braking with 33's and an auto. --- plan on riding your brakes,, engine braking doesn't slow me down enough.

tsjay · July 2005

To clarify a bit what Mac was saying about driveline angles, it's not the tire size itself that messes up the driveline angle. It's the lift that is required to run the larger tires that will change the driveline angle. A suspension lift is raising the transfer case (and everything else suspended by the springs, like the engine and the body) higher relative to the axles, so the driveshaft angle is changed.

So, the higher the suspension lift, the more you change the driveline angle from the stock angle. You will get your U-joints working outside of their designed angle range.

Tomster
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

wriver82 · July 2005

Thanks for the advise all. Tom the experts over at JD'S Offroad highly recommended going with the 10 in. rims instead of the 8s. He actually went over it in detail but to tell you the honest truth I was trying to take in so much so fast I just said go ahead. I know they weren't doing it for the money. This place was recommended very,very highly by many dealers and people alike. They are located in Brewster N.Y.

Bill

tsjay · July 2005

Bill:

I'm always eager to learn stuff, so if you could get them to explain again the advantage of 10" rims with the 12.50 tires, I would be interested in hearing the details.

Maybe they are just telling you that you cannot keep your factory wheels with the 12.50" tires. That would be true. The insides of your tires would rub the spring perches in the back and the control arms up front. There is 5.5" of backspacing on the factory wheels, which is too much for the wide tires. You can BARELY run 11.50" tires on the factory wheels.

You can get 8" wheels with more backspacing, though. I have 15" x 8" AR767's with 4" of backspacing. I'm just running 31 x 10.50 tires, but I would be able to go to a 12.50" wide tire with those wheels.

Please find out if all it was was a backspacing issue.

If they say a 12.50" tire on an 8" rim would tend to make the tire wear in the middle, then I would counter that you would simply reduce the air pressure to make the tire have the proper "footprint." Jeeps weight very little, so it is not necessary or desirable to run a lot of pressure in the tires. I run 28 psi in mine. I could run less, if I chose to.

Bill, go with what they tell you, but believe me, LOTS of Jeeps out there run 12.50" tires on 8" rims with no problems at all. And, LOTS of people with experience will tell you that 8" rims are preferable to 10" rims for 12.50" tires.

Tomster

Have you hugged your Jeep today?

phil_feinman · July 2005

Hi guys...

I was installing a new radio in my 2000 wrangler (amazingly one of my teen daughters took the car to the mall didn't pull the front panel and someone unzipped and helped themselves). I guess I was rushing and when I was installing I must have grounded out the hot lead (pink and white) now I get no dome light or courtesy lights not to mention hot power to the new radio install which is not working. I checked fuse 4 no joy! Any ideas? Thanks for any help!!!!!!

barnz_69 · July 2005

Hi everyone...

Well, finally got a CB radio for my Jeep...it's a Cobra 38 wxst handheld version, simple and sufficient for my needs so far.

Well, problem is, though it comes with an antenna already, it is obviously not very clear while in my vehicle. I cannot get anything other than the weather channel clearly. The purchase of another mounted antenna was necessary (and advised), so I went and got a high quality (as advised by all of you) magnetic mount cobra HGA 1500. Now I must set/tune it--now, as I've said plenty of times before, I am electronically retarded and do not own a meter to check this...any tips/suggestions? I really can't wait for this to work well, as I can then finally venture my jeep into nature where she belongs!!

Again, much thanks and appreciation.

lsujeep · July 2005

I was driving my jeep the other night with my family. While stopped at a stoplight a Suburban hit us from behind. I don't think he even tried to stop. It shattered the back glass. My wife and 7 year old had to be taken to the hospital. Mainly for cuts and bumps. We are all okay, but the jeep is messed up. It's a 2004 Solar Yellow Jeep Wrangler X with @12,000 miles. The impact was so bad, the Suburban was not drivable. I had the jeep towed even though it is probably drivable. I had to get to the hospital. My question is this. If the frame is bent, would it be totaled? Even the passenger door was jammed a little. However, there is no damage to the engine or anything up front. Anybody know of any safety concerns due to the tire on the back? I think that is what caused the glass to shatter. Anyway, were okay. But I miss my jeep.

keats · July 2005

So sorry to hear about your horrible experience. Thank goodness everyone is OK. To answer your question, it depends. It is possible to straighten the frame, but you are probably going to need a new tub as well. Without picks it's hard to say.

normis · July 2005

All -

Heading down to the outer banks next week, and am going to be taking my baby ('05 unlimited, stock

) onto the beaches north of Corolla. I've neevr driven on sand before (or dona any off roading for that matter), so I've got a few questions:

1. Any general tips you guys can give (what tire pressure to air down to, speed to maintain, 4 lo vs. 4 hi etc..)
2. What "emergency gear" should I take?

Thanks to all - Norm

jeff62301 · July 2005

I've never done it before either,,, but check out this forum. SUVs for Beach Sand

sbcooke, "SUVs for Beach Sand" #350, 22 Jul 2005 8:30 am

I'm anxious to try it some day,,, (some day after I finally get to TB)
jeff

mac24 · July 2005

1: When on sand you need to spread the load as widely as possible, and make sure the tires don't break traction. So about 12psi to enlarge the footprint, 4 high to lessen the torque at the wheels, maintain momentum, and drive as smoothly as possible. If you do get stuck, stop, and don't let the tires spin and sink further. Use a shovel to dig a shallow ramp for the sunken tires to climb out, and lay some mats or carpet to spread the load if available.

2: Take all the stuff mentioned on the recent thread about emergency stuff to carry, plus a narrow roll or two of carpet if you have it. A friend in another suitable vehicle would be a good idea too.

mac24 · July 2005

Anybody know of any safety concerns due to the tire on the back?

Just the opposite I would have thought. It's effectively a big inflated rubber bumper that will absorb part of any impact.

The rear glass, like the sides, is safety glass that shatters into blunt granules which rarely causes injury.

Your vehicle sounds as though it should be physically repairable without any problem. However, whether the insurance company deems it to be a financially viable repair is something only they can make the initial decision on.

Glad to hear you're all ok.

drewmeister · July 2005

Wow, scary. Glad you're ok.

Were they on the phone? Is your jeep painted in urban camo? Drunk? Any explanation at all as to why they didn't stop? Just curious. Our traffic has been horrible here lately, and I have found myself often stuck for a minute at the end of a line. I sometimes flash my brake lights as I see folks barreling down on me.

If you heard about that terrible school bus crash in the news recently, that was in my town. I drove by within an hour or so and saw the aftermath. Being stopped at a light seems to be a really dangerous place to be.

wpowell · July 2005

Isujeep, Very sorry to hear about your accident. I had posted recently asking about real world rear end collision experience when trying to decide between short wheel base and Unlimited. Unfortunately, you just got some. Would it be possible for you to post photos of the damage? I think they would be of general interest. My wife recently had a '94 Ranger splattered on the back of her Volvo XC90 SUV (well, Volvo and my wife think its an SUV) and with two small children I am particularly concerned about safety. Thanks!

embeeduece · July 2005

The worst is when you see it coming in the rear view and know there's nothing you can do but take the hit. Happened to me once at a stop light, stuck in traffic. Just enough time to say "Oh, shoot." (Except I didn't say 'shoot').

Sounds like the Jeep did what it, and every other vehicle ideally, is supposed to do. Absorb the impact as best it can, and minimize injury. Glad to hear everyone's okay.

I recall (I think) we had an airbag discussion on this board recently. Would you mind offering if you and yours were wearing belts, and if the bags deplolyed?

Thanks,
Mike

mtngal · July 2005

Glad to hear that everyone is OK, and I know what you mean about missing the Jeep. We were involved in an accident in the '98 Sport when it was about 6 months old, and it took M2 about 6 weeks to get it fixed. It didn't take them that long to do the work - it took them that long to find the same rims that were on it (the Grizzly rims). I found out at Camp Jeep that they had been made by Goodyear, and they were on strike that year. It explains the fact that the off-set is different from the OEM rims (something I didn't figure out for a couple of years). Hope it takes much less time to get yours fixed.

I was amazed at how much body damage it had, and was concerned about the frame, because another car illegally tried to move into the carpool lane right in front of us without looking and we had nowhere to go. We grazed him and climbed the cement freeway divider. I was worried that we might have twisted the frame, but the Wrangler is one tough vehicle. It turned out to be over $4,000 of body damage mostly (the air bags didn't deploy - not enough of a front end collision). The neat thing about it was that we drove away while the at-fault Toyota pickup had to wait for a tow truck.

Here's hoping your Wrangler is back in your driveway soon!

wpowell · July 2005

Took the hard top off of my new dual top-equipped Unlimited on Sunday. I did it alone by necessity with the help of four ratchet type tie down straps and four heavy eye bolts that I screwed into the trusses above my garage ceiling. I am not endorsing this method of top removal, especially with the larger Unlimited top. It is not for the faint of heart, but it worked. Drove to work topless which was nice, then watched the video from DCJ about hard/soft top removal/installation. This video features a magician and wonderful special effects that would make it appear that my 4 year old could operate the top. He simply skips over the difficult steps, many of which are only necessary when deploying the soft top for the first time on a dual top model. I think I will offer a "reality TV" style video of what it is like to install the soft top by yourself in a parking garage in 100 degree heat. It will be a DVD mini series and will be rated R for language and violent content. With that said, I don't think the soft top will be very difficult at all to operate now that it is assembled. Also, I was pleasantly suprised at how tight and quiet it was at highway speeds; far more quiet than my test drive. I think the pockets around the bows were not closed because it flapped like heck at 60 mph. Still very pleased overall with my Wrangler!!

keats · July 2005

The Jeep used on the Jeeperman/Raingler website looks very familiar to me:
Jeeperman Bumper

Hmm, I wonder whose it could be?

erickpl · July 2005

Yep, that's mine.

It's about to change again.

I'm going with 32's pretty soon (I hope) and I'm adding a Warn winch to the front in a couple of weeks. HOPEFULLY, I'll be adding some PRP, Mastercraft, or Corbeau seats to make the wife feel safer in a bucket seat that holds her in better with the doors off. And maybe, just maybe, I'll be getting it Line-X'd inside.

-Paul

karlw90 · July 2005

... I posted a message a while back about my first Unlimited soft top experience. Let me tell you, 3 weeks later, and I can get the soft top down in less than 5 mins, and back up in less than 10. Once the fabric stretches it's alot easier.

I drove my Unlimited to Michigan via the Indiana Tollroad this past weekend with the soft top on. It was fairly noisy, but no worse than I expected. The engine doesn't like it too much when you're doing 75mph with the A/C, however. It was 100+ so I had to have the air on, and I noticed my side windows were "bubbling" out, and I couldn't figure out why. Eventually, I realized I had the A/C on with "fresh" air, causing the soft top to balloon out. When I switched it to recycled air, the sides actually sucked in. Pretty funny.

keats · July 2005

Do you have any up close picks of your bumper? I'm thinking I'll order one after we get the kids back in school...

erickpl · July 2005

but they are 14 MB TIFF files.

I've scaled it down a bit...

I'll attach em in another post for ya...

-Paul

erickpl · July 2005

Sorry the resolution is kinda whacked. When I resized em down, they got a bit grainier than I'd like. If you make your email public, I'll send you larger jpgs.

If you end up ordering them and like how they look on my rig, let Eddie at Raingler know. These were originally done for him (hence the 14 MB TIFF's). I hope they end up using them in some of their ads soon.

-Paul

keats · July 2005

Sweeeet. Thanks. I think I've just about settled on that bumper. Did it already have tabs or holes for your fogs?

erickpl · July 2005

sure did.

-Paul

div2 · July 2005

I cured my brake warning light problem(thanks, Mac!!!) by cleaning the pressure sender connections and crimping the female plug terminals for a tighter fit. Of course, another minor problem crops up... My clutch pedal was making a horrendous squeaking noise whenever I depressed it, so I finally stuck my head under the dash to find the culprit. It turned out to be the clip that attaches the pedal to the master cylinder piston. The clip was broken and simply fell apart when I attempted to remove it. I reconnected the pedal to the cylinder minus the clip and so far the connection has held-and it is mercifully silent. I still thought that I should replace the clip so I went to my local dealer to get a new one-only we couldn't find any part in the on-line system. Anybody know where I might find one? Or should I let sleeping(and quiet) dogs lie?

mac24 · July 2005

............we couldn't find any part in the on-line system. Anybody know where I might find one? Or should I let sleeping(and quiet) dogs lie?

It's not available separately from the master cylinder as far as I know, and no, I wouldn't leave it unsecured......it's bound to fail when you need it most! :sick:

Try to find a circlip or 'e'clip that works, or as a final resort you could use wire or a zip-tie.

krispykeith · July 2005

First of all I hope your family is doing well, that sounds very scary. Add me to the list of people who would be very interested to hear any additional details on how the jeep handled the collision. Given the size of a suburban and the fact that it wasnt driveable I would be curious how the tub and rear compartment handled the impact as I too am in between an unlimited and SWB.

Again, I hope everyone is well on the way to recovery.

div2 · July 2005

Well, I figured as much. I'll cobble something up. I learned a lot about jury-rigs by helping a friend keep his Spitfire 1500 running... :P
Thanks anyway!

Jeep Wrangler

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