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Comments
However, if you go with the Cobra 75WXST, you really wouldn't need this.
-Paul
I drive a lot, a real lot. Right now I've got an '03 Mazda Tribute with almost 33K on it, I've had it for exactly a year at the end of July. With proper maintenance, could a high-mileage Jeep last me a while? What are your miles on your Jeep Wranglers? I'm pretty sure this one is a Sport, oh and it's got the premium wheels too. Thanks a million.
Now, given the miles you drive per year, the gas mileage may not be exactly what you are looking for.
Driven conservatively, which is how a Jeep should be driven anyway, you can get around 17 or 18 MPG on the highway.
That price sounds awful high to me without my having looked at the Edmunds pricing on it. Jeeps do hold their value, but still, that Jeep is soon to be six years old. The 05's will be out in a month or so.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
As far as lasting - I'm in no rush to get rid of my Noble Black Steed - he has been an excellent "ride." The only thing wrong with him at the moment is the rubber around the tailgate. I live in an extremely dry climate (humidity often less than 30 percent) and the rubber has dried out some and shrunk (not cracked), so it leaks in the rain. I'm not in the biggest rush to get it fixed, since it hardly ever rains! The only reason I'm thinking about trading him in is that I'd like the extra room in the Unlimited.
Thought I'd check in to let you know that Sara the Jeep has undergone an extreme jeep makeover since our Turkey Bay trip. I have removed the Olympic Dave's rack, installed 2"lift,gas tank skid,front steering box skid,Warn 9.5ti winch, Dana 44 with locker and disc's and regeared to 3.73(at least for now).I have been wheelin out at the Cliffs, which is about an hour from me and having a ball.Next on the to do list is front ARB for the Dana 30,PS rocker guards(Michael thinks the Spyder cut out is cool looking) and possibly a Currie front bumper.
David
You gonna post some pictures somewhere?
Refresh us on your Sara - TJ/YJ, year, etc...
-Paul
At first I was concerned about the mileage but then I learned that my other prospective vehicle, a Frontier with the back seat (Quad-Cab?) and a V-6 gets only slightly better mileage so I think I'm over it.
I have lots of questions but I'll start with what I think is the strangest one.
My unusual vehicle requirement is that it has to be able to carry my hang glider. To do this on my Frontier I built a rack for the front bumper, one for the rear bumper and have a single Thule rack over the cab. This has worked well for quite a while. I figure that building something to work on the Jeep should be much easier because the bumpers look like they're flat, steel and already seem to have holes drilled in them that I could use. If that doesn't work out, I figure I could always install a front and rear receiver hitch and build something to work from them.
But that still doesn't take care of a third support in the middle. I've looked into aftermarket roof racks and there seem to be lots of options and most of them are probably more than I need.
What advice can anyone give me? It would be great to hear from another hang glider pilot but I think anyone who carries a kayak, canoe or even a ladder has had to solve the same problems.
Thanks in Advance,
Dave
There is a lot of storage space in an unlimited, but I'm not sure if the Dave's rack work with them yet (since they are longer).
Regardless, there are a lot of racks you can get (or fab yourself) that would suit your needs just fine, top up, on, or off.
-Paul
CONGRATULATIONS on all that you have done to that puppy!
You just GOTTA come back down to Turkey Bay and wheel with me again, now that you have that Jeep fixed up so well. I would absolutely LOVE to see Sara now. Think you can make it back down before long?
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I don't have any advice for you on the hang glider rack, but I just wanted to welcome you.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
My current daily driver is a 2000 Taco, 4 banger, Xtra cab, 2WD, that gets 28 plus MPG. I'm thinking of getting an Unlimited, so I figured that if I (normally) put 35,000 miles a year on the vehicle, and if gas averages $2.00 per gallon, that I would probably spend an additional $1500 per year on gas by replacing the Taco with any V6 SUV, including the Unlimited. When looked at monthly ($125) - is the added capability, power, and especially my comfort worth a hundred dollars a month?
i'm looking for quick impressions from current wrangler owners - like a ** TOP 5 ** (or more if you want) things you *LIKE* or *HATE* about your wrangler or things new owners should look out for.
also for "comparable" $$'s why not a liberty? though a wrangler seems waaaay more fun.
thanks in advance!
Do you have an extra $100 a month? If not then go no further.
What's your quality of life worth? Will you look back in twenty years and wish you'd saved the $100 and given up the additional capability, power, and comfort?
Personally, the older I get the less I worry about the future, and I find myself concentrating on making life better now.
;--)
FUN
FUN
FUN
Go anywhere, and hangs tough
It turns on a dime and leaves you change.
Comfortable seats.
Easily customized in so many unique ways.
Did I mention how much fun it is?
Things I don't like:
gas mileage (it isn't the worst, but it sure is thirsty)
driving in the wind (it has the aerodynamics of a brick wall)
Fairly noisy (though that isn't that big of a deal for me)
A Wrangler isn't for everyone. While it is much more comfortable on-road than the previous versions, it has a short, choppy ride with a stiff suspension. It is (more or less) a truck and feels like one.
A Liberty is more car-like, has more cargo space and is far more "civilized." I prefer rough-n-ready. The stock Wrangler is better off-road than the stock Liberty. While I'd be happy to have a Liberty instead of my (hated) Taco, but don't even think that a Liberty could replace my Wrangler!
So I'm still on the fence as to whether to replace the Taco or the Wrangler. I'm looking forward to (hopefully) driving an Unlimited on the Jeep 101 course and perhaps I'll walk away from that experience with an overwhelming desire for one, and I'll just get one...
Take the top off (hard top), or put the top down (soft top), take the doors off, and go for a ride in the country on a nice day, and you will know what I am talking about. Ain't nothin' like it!
Don't know if you live near any good places to go off road with a Jeep, but if you ever get a chance to go "wheelin'" in a Wrangler, you are going to be just plain AMAZED by where it will go.
I didn't get up the nerve to take my Thelma Jane (2001 Wrangler Sport) off road for the first 14 months after picking her up at the dealership, and I said even back then, before ever going off road, that she was the most fun vehicle that I had ever owned. Going off road just added to the fun (BIG TIME!).
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
P.S. Please check out my website, and this should give you an idea of how much fun a Wrangler is.
http://home.earthlink.net/~tsjay49/
I saw something on my 3-week old Wrangler today.
You know how you can get nail pops on the walls in a brand new house, as the house settles? Well, I am seeing some of that on the outside surfaces of my Wrangler!
I see a few on the driver's side, below the door, along the bottom edge of the car. I also see a few in the back, between the license plate and the bumper. Like I said, they look like nail pops - little circles sticking out a little bit under the paint.
Has anyone else seen this on their Wrangler? I definitely didn't see them on my 2001.
Thanks.
Ray
Blue book, at the time, listed it closer to 12,800.
What BB doesn't understand is how cool it looked and how much I liked the chili pepper red color and....lol....in other words I liked it enough to pay more than what bb listed it at.
As with all used vehicles, just be careful what you buy and who you buy from.
The pictures aren't real great for the CB mount, but $45 is pretty cheap.
Check Quadratec out, they have a couple overhead consoles that hold CB's. They are $189 and $224.
Just plug "overhead consoles" into the search and they'll pop right up.
Glen
http://www.cliffordperformance.com
who are Jeep engine performance specialists.
http://www.4wd.com/shop/productdetail.asp?model=tj&productsku- - =639494
When I put my turn signal on (either direction) my high beams flicker or the headlights turn off all together. If I play with the switch they come back on. Definitely something flaky going on inside.
They were a pig to put on and heavy to horse around and hard to store, weren't very rigid, and the welds broke in three years.
This was back in the mid-70's on a CJ-5 - surely someone has figured out a better roof rack system by now!
Steve, Host
The turn signals just quit working all together, and it took one trip to the dealer to let them diagnose the problem, and one more to put the new part in. It was apparently a very common problem, and they had a hard time tracking down the part. The parts warehouses were out, and they called individual dealers to find one.
Like I said, that was the only problem I have had out of Thelma Jane, except a water leak in the firewall where the heater box goes through. That was a simple fix, corrected under warranty also.
Thelma Jane has 48K miles on her now. I would say that is a very good record for a vehicle to have no more problems than that for the first 48K miles!
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
There are people who do much more radical stuff with their Jeeps than I do, but those rigs are far from "stock condition."
Thelma Jane isn't exactly stock, but she isn't far from it. She hasn't had any mods to "beef her up." The factory parts are still what makes her go. I have added a few mods to increase her CAPABILITY, but have added nothing to increase her RELIABILITY.
I'll bet you wouldn't be able to subject any other vehicle to what Thelma Jane has been through without having some repairs!
These pics were taken during Thelma Jane's first successful run of Buttpucker Gulch. I had tried and failed three times previously. I have run it three more times successfully since the day that these pics were taken, March 27, 2004.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I have finished getting Buffy ready for the trip, but the wish list is still absolutely huge. Over the weekend I installed a Warn engine skid which will protect her oil pan (and since I don't plan on running disco'd, there shouldn't be any issues with rubbing at flex). While I'd love to go with a belly-up, it will have to wait. For now about the only thing I am considering to beef up her reliability is to replace the tie rod with TbT Alumni-flex one, although I'd like to hear how that's working out for people first.
Andrew
I PROMISE not to get you into anything like the pictures above show. You can just do some stuff that's fun without being too risky. I know plenty of places like that.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
-Paul
I'm interested in this mount, but wanted to see how the performance was.
-Paul
Don't you worry, when I come up there, I'll be happy to watch you do the tough stuff. I'm sure there are many obsticles I'll be taking the turn out on. *g*
36" is just enough to get it above the roof line using the ARR mount.
I'm pretty much a novice when it comes to CB radios. I only use it when I make the long trip back to Ohio. (good way to keep an ear on where the smokeys are. Helps pass the 8 hr drive also)
As far as I can guess, I was getting about 3-5 miles of reception. This was while driving through the Mountains in PA.
I did not tune or ground. I've read that grounding depends on the year of your Jeep?
I think the newer models need a grounding strap.
My CB is a REALLY old (20+ years) hand-me-down,
so I wasn't too worried about tuning.
I'm really interested in the Cobra model that was mentioned. If I get it, I'll definitely tune it with an SWR.
I'll probably go with the quick disconnect as well so my firestik doesn't grow legs.
-Paul
I also plan to put a 2m ham radio in my future Wrangler. Does anyone have any antenna or installation advice?
Thanks,
Dave
-Paul
The fella that runs that site is really nice to work with and his product is excellent.
The advantage to the CB Rack is that you can mount much more to it than just a CB and it is super strong. I highly recommend it.
David
I would not rule out 31s because of that, if I were you. They sure look better, and they smooth out the ride just a little.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I have a slight rubbing problem with the Canyons with the 5.5 backspacing. Do you have Canyons? The rub is minor as it only happens when I have the wheel cranked all the way right or left. I just haven't put washers on to adjust the steering stop yet as it doesn't happen very often.
As for the odo, I don't worry about it. I'm not worried about resale and do the maintenance based on time (usually).
-Paul