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Comments
Terry
I know it's a pain. Some browsers and helper programs will remember your password and enter it into the sign on forms for you automatically.
tidester, host
Steve - thanks for letting us know what is going on.
Terry - I think there's a way to change your password to something easier to remember. I don't remember how I did it, but I know that mine is one that I set, rather than one they assigned.
I dropped off my coupon this afternoon and the dealership had a 2005 Grand Cherokee in their showroom. I still think it is one nice vehicle, but I'm not so keen about the exterior styling as I was before. I do think it's wonderful inside. Also noticed that the Hemi engine is rated at 19 for highway - I thought it was 20 (not that 1 mpg means much). Of course, the dealership had a huge mark-up on the window and I wonder if it will sell at that price - too much competition.
I wonder what kind of gift I should get for GiGi if they do honor the coupon - maybe put in an XM radio head and tuner? The 7 speaker package is fine for me, so I'm not planning on upgrading the speakers (I'm not an audiophile). Definitely some type of car washing kit - I'm so used to using car washes and it has been years since I actually washed one myself.
I think you should get a winch. Even though you don't do more than "mild" wheelin', you never know when a winch might come in handy, either for yourself or to help someone else.
And... a nice looking winch really looks natural on the front of a Jeep. A winch makes a Jeep look "Jeepier." I see pics of Thelma Jane before she got her winch, and I think, "Whoa! What's wrong with this picture?"
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
P.S. Oh, you will need at least double that $500 for a good winch, mounting plate, and accessory kit. I got mine from Bob Supplee Enterprises for $1150 delivered. That was a Warn 9.5 Ti, Warn mounting plate, and a Warn accessory kit.
By the way, when I mentioned that you had suggested a winch, he asked me why he needed one - he already had one. Is this a case of "Great minds think alike?"
man there have been a lot of new jeeps bought by people on this message board in the last month. I'm still not so sure that Tom isn't on the payroll with Jeep, he's more convincing than any of the sales people I talked with.
jts
have fun!!
CONGRATULATIONS!
Yeeeeeeeeeeehawwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!
We need pics!
Hey, we want to hear all about your first impressions of that Jeep, so post, post, post.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I don't think I actually broke it in there, but my CB antenna fell off in BP Gulch, after breaking off at the base, where it threads into the connector.
I made it through that toughest spot in BP Gulch, where the left rear wants to get down into that deep hole, making the right front want to get up in the air. But, the right rear slipped into a hole just after I made it through that place.
In trying to climb out of that hole, I cut the sidewall of the right rear tire on a sharp rock (I guess). POP! There went a $140 tire!
Also, as you can see in the picture, I crunched the right rear corner of the hard top into the side of the gulch. You can see the "white" showing, which means I scrubbed off the black paint, and I got down into the fiberglass.
That right rear corner panel took some punishment, so I guess it earned its keep today. I STILL don't like the looks of them, though.
My spotter says he put me on the right line, but it was just so dusty and dry that the walls of the gully were slick (like they were coated with talcum powder).
Oh well, if ya gonna play, ya gotta pay (sometimes). I had enough fun today to make up for the troubles I had.
We had to use the winch to get Thelma out of BP Gulch.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
$140? That just covers the greens fee and cart rental at some country clubs. Where would you rather be? :-)
Steve, Host
Just not my day, I guess.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
By the way, were you running your tires at a lower pressure?
Thanks for your input. A 4x4 newbie!
Chuck
All of this is important if you are going to do more than light off-roading. There is a super, super good deal called the AAS package, if you get a Sport. This package gets you 30" tires, gas shocks, the really nice looking Ravine wheels, and THE DANA 44 REAR AXLE! It has to be the world's greatest bargain (It used to be only $850. Not sure about now.). You can trade-in those 30" GSA's and get some REAL tires.
The Rubicon has SELECTABLE lockers, and those puppies are VERY expensive to buy after market. Selectable lockers are nice, since you can turn them off when driving on pavement. Lockers have some undesirable side effects on pavement, so being able to turn them off and on is a great feature.
The rear Dana 44 on a Rubicon is limited slip, with a full locker too. When you turn off the locker, you still have limited slip back there. This is really the best of both worlds!
A locker truly locks both sides of the differential, so that BOTH tires will turn, even if one is completely off the ground. This can be VERY important in off roading.
A limited slip will make both tires turn, but you have to have at least a little bit of traction on each tire. If one is completely off the ground, the other side will not turn. You can "fool" the differential by applying some brake and gas at the same time. The brake makes the differential "think" that both tires have traction, because there is some resistance to turning.
If you can afford it, and if you think there is even a slight chance you will get into off roading, then get the Rubi by all means! They are a tremendous bargain compared to buying a Sport and adding all the goodies that you get to start with on a Rubi.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Lots more in previous posts if you use the search.
D44/35: The rear 44 has stronger axle shafts and a slightly larger R&P and housing. The tubes are the same as the 35. The front 44 (Rubi)is really a hybrid 44/30 and offers no real advantage.
ABS is unavailable on the 44, though this may be about to change.
Chuck
Tom, I'm afraid that this a myth. The D35 and D44 tubes are the same. It appears to have been started by the same people that say the D35 will explode if you look at it wrong!
I still say that if a person can live without anti-lock brakes, why in the world NOT get the stronger of the two rear axles?
I am SO glad that I learned about the advantage of the Dana 44 before ordering Thelma Jane! I know that even a 44 can be broken, and I know that a lot of the broken 35's are the results of driver stupidity. Still, there is no denying that the 44 is quite a bit stronger than the 35.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Agreed, on all three points!
No, I wasn't. I run 28 psi on the street, and I am not in the habit of airing down for wheelin' at Turkey Bay. It's partly laziness. They have free air at TB, so I could air back up at the end of the day.
Most of the guys I wheel with do air down.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Don't forget, it took a long time before you became a believer in running disconnected.......... it's about time you had another eye opener!
;--)
I have aired down a time or two at TB, and I really couldn't tell any difference. It all depends on the situation, I'm sure, and maybe I was getting some benefit from being aired down that I didn't even notice.
I agree with the concept of airing down, just too lazy to do it most of the time.
There are disadvantages to airing down, too. I have seen guys pop their beads in BP Gulch due to being aired down.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I made-up my own hose with the proper fitting on it, so, you see, I was preparing to air down sometime.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Since you are going to have your top painted why not have them through a little white paint on those panels? I think they will blend right into the rest of the body.
Someday, I will probably paint those panels white. I have gotten more used to them, but I know they would look much better white.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Good luck on your fishing trip.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
I have never lost a bead, but did have one situation where I had to try about 5 different lines over some rocks. While I was off-camber hard to the drivers side and uphill about 20 degrees, lost some air out of the drivers rear (a few gasps as I tugged forward, but it held). When I got through I checked it and was at 8psi; I aired back up to 14 and finished the day no problem.
There are some inexpensive auto deflators that would make it easier to air down before you head out from your meeting place. I use a set of Staun deflators that are a bit more expensive, but work great and are fully auto - just thread them onto the stems while I'm disco'ing and in a few minutes, each tire is at 14psi.
Since you have a good air source at TB, I'm with Mac in suggesting you air down to at most 15 and try some stuff you're familiar with, but know it can be a challenge. You've got Thelma outfitted (locked both ends) such that it may not seem needed, but the control and lack of need for wheelspin being aired down is great. Never spinning a tire = treading lightly :-) ! You may even find that some of those impossible situations (very dry or very wet) become doable with a better footprint from your tires. Physics and gravity are your friend. I've been in situations that I would have thought impossible for a tire to hold the side of a V ditch, but between gravity and leverage, it worked out.
Sorry to hear about the tire and hard top damage, but I'd say you've done pretty well to have as many trips to Turkey Bay with only the minor battle scars and trail rash you do.
-twylie
Guess your trip to Turkey Bay just ain't ever gonna happen, is it?
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
mtngal, the Alpine CDA9280XM has been out for a while now. My current Alpine may soon be in my daughter's Honda, so the XM model will be in Kermit (Helps that the display is greenish vs the current blue - it matches better - but you can change display colors too). If you look at the XMradio site, they have an antenna that is about 1 inch wide and less than a half high. It'd fit great on top of your sound pods.
-Paul
The Warn 9.5Ti is the only winch I have ever had.
You might be thinking of MikeA. Think he has the xd8000i on his Jeep.
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
You are right about the PIE adapters for XM radio working with our factory CD players. You do need to purchase one additional adapter, called a 3.5 to RCA to run from the PIE adapter to the Roady. I'm going to try to order one today. The PIE adapter model is CHRY02-Aux.
-Paul
but hey when i was stuck, I didn't like it!! and hated even worse having a chevy pull me out.
so i did all reading i could, looked at all the manufacturers websites, came to the conclusion that the wound motors were recommended highly over a permanent magnet, and that WARN seemed to be the big dog when it comes to winches.
I bought a magnum 9000 made by warn. (right at $500 including shipping)
Then picked up a mount from Collins that is a knock off of the Warn Mount for less than 1/2 price.
Neither the mount or the winch came with any method of mounting the solenoid pack. Here's my plan, let me know if there is a better way out there. I'm taking 2 large U bolts, bringing them up under the motor, using the straps to hold them to the motor, then attaching the solenoids to a couple more straps higher on the U bolts, just over the electrical connections.
I have seen the metal bars coming up from the bottom of some mounts, with the solenoids mounted above the winch, but its on now, and I don't really want to take it back off, nor do I really want the solenoids sticking up that high.
jeff
hoping for lots of snow, and lots of girls stuck in the ditches this winter.
If you go offroad with a group, you'll find that your winch will most likely be used to extract someone else, but then that builds points with your buddies, don't it?
I've pulled two stuck cars out of yards (my sister's Camry and and friend's Corsica), pulled a Chevy pickup out of a small creek after an ice storm and helped extract several 4x4's during our clubs trail rides.
The best one, though, occurred when the winch was mounted on the Trooper, but I'll relate it anyway. A K5 Blazer turned over in a washout during a night trail ride (no injuries, fortunately), the driver wasn't paying attention to the trail. We went back the next morning with my Trooper, a Bronco, and a Scout. The Blazer was completely on its top, the tires barely stuck out above ground level. After tying the Trooper and Bronco off to trees and using snatch blocks to get the proper pull angle, we rolled the Blazer onto its wheels on the side of the washout then pulled it up the bank onto the trail.
So far, that's the hardest pull that my winch has been subjected to. It's amazing how much a steel cable can stretch when under load.
I don't have any dramatic "rescues" to talk about, whether self-rescue or otherwise. My winch has been used NUMEROUS times to get me out of some bad places and to help others.
I don't see how I got along without a winch so long. I got mine after I had been wheelin' for a year.
I'm still on my original cable, but I think I might go synthetic when it is time to replace it.
Thanks for sharing your story. Do you have some pics of your Jeep? Any pics from your wheelin' adventures?
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
Don't forget that the winch doesn't have to be used for vehicle recovery only. Mine has recently been working hard removing downed and damaged trees after the recent storms. It's also been used for pulling cars on and off trailers, removing engines, repositioning machinery etc., etc.
Not only that, but it saves my puny D35 from exploding on a regular basis!
:--)
Is there someplace that I could upload some pix so that they could be linked to the forum? I have some shots of the day I brought my Jeep home (bone stock) and some shots after each addition and modification.
LOL! Good one mac.
Terry
Terry
Tom
Have you hugged your Jeep today?
tidester, host
According to Quadratec and FedEx my receiver hitch/bike rack combo should be waiting for me at home right now. Any installation advice? It sounds like it should be pretty easy.
Yours in Jeep Coolness,
Dave
-Paul