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Comments
Start by checking tire pressures on all four. New tires certainly would improve your ride/handling and you'd want to have an alignment done with new tires as well which may solve the issue. You also might see if your Jeep has stock suspension parts that are worn. If not stock, previous owner(s) may have changed them out or added a lift.
Just wanted to give you a few simple thoughts...I'm certain more ideas from the real experts on this forum will get you straight 'n smoothed out. Happy Jeepin'.
While we are discussing rpm. A few weeks back there was a discussion about the valves not rotating until above 3000rpm. The rotating knocked carbon off which helped smooth running. Heck, with my 3 speed auto, 4.0, I doubt mine had ever been above 3000rpm. What is the recommendation here? Run up to 3200 or so for a short period every once in a while? How often? How long?
I put mine low and ran it up for ten seconds or so. Plan to do it every couple of weeks. My TJ is a run around town car. Darn few road miles.
Terry :confuse:
TrXuS MT's are a PAIN to balance on a good day.
-Paul
No, the typo was on the speed. :P
Should have been 2500rpm at 60mph. Just under 2300rpm at 55mph, 2700rpm at 65mph, and a little over 2900 at 70mph. All figures taken from the tach, so they're approximate.
Referring back to the original mention of 4000rpm, that would equate to about 95mph. Quite achievable, and even a little more, but not recommended as a cruising speed.
As for the engine rpm required for the valves to start rotating, I don't know the exact figure but the theory is correct. However, the benefit is the evening of wear on the valve faces and seats, rather than the removal of carbon. You don't have to engage low range, just put it in first or second (after the engine is fully warmed up) and accelerate up to 3500rpm or so, hold it for a few seconds then slip it into 'D'. Do that once a week and it should keep you ahead of the game.
Thanks for the reply. I have been putting it in 1st gear, not low range. My bad on terminology.
Terry
I get close to 20mpg on the highway with my 4.0L, 3.73 differential, 30" BFG A/Ts. It seems to me if I ran in 4th gear only I'd run close to 3000rpms vs 2500rpms. I don't know. Good to know about revving it up now and again though.
Jeeps aren't perfectly designed and I do think potential buyers should know when Chrysler has been less than perfect, as with sticking a no-OD auto in the Wrangler, or the whole exhaust manifold fiasco.
No offense taken on the 3-spped auto. Many of us have been on this forum since the early days of the TJ. Mine is a 2000, so I missed the manifold problem. My little "crappy" deal was poking a little fun harking back to the discussions on this forum about the crappy 3-speed auto being so bad that those who had the 5-speed (I think) manual just could not understand how we could put up with them. You would have thought crappy was part of the official name. Well, I drove manuals for thirty years. The TJ was my retirement present to myself. I was just tired of shifting. I knew it was my around town wheels and the auto would get the job done. It has not given me any trouble.
Most of the problem the stick shift guys had with the auto seemed to revolve around not having an overdrive. With the 3.07 dif's, you kind of live in overdrive all the time. A little slow off the line, ( even a little slower since I put 30's on it) but it gets me there.
True, the manuals are probably more fun to drive. True, you have better control over engine speed and power for up hill climbs. True you can use the engine for down hill braking. Heck, I live in the Chicago area. We don't have hills you can't see over. In fact, most of our pot holes are deeper than our hills are high.
No problem.
Terry
The three speed in the earlier YJs was the basic TF999 without a lock-up torque converter. Revs would have been higher and changes more frequent, so I can see where you're coming from.
However, when it comes to the number of gears, less doesn't necessarily mean cheaper. Chrysler had some truly awful transmissions available that could have been used to bring an automatic to the Wrangler for the first time, but to their credit they picked a strong, heavy duty but smooth unit that was fully capable of handling off-road duties as well as those on.
Remember as well, that the Wrangler is a true dual purpose vehicle. If its development had been directed purely at on-road driving then it would long ago have had a unitary body, smaller wheels, two wheel drive, independent suspension and a smaller higher revving engine.
Virtually all the features on a Wrangler are a compromise of some sort, but right from the early days the vehicle has been in evolution, and continues to be so. The vehicle on which the current model is based was introduced over sixty years ago as an off-road military transport. The vehicle will never be perfect for all people, all the time, but I do think that the introduction of the Torqueflight 999 was the correct decision at that time. Especially considering the alternatives, which were either a much weaker four speed or no auto option at all.
Oh, and congratulation on your fuel mileage by the way. That really is the top end of what can be expected from an early TJ. You must be a very smooth driver!
I never thought I'd wheel like I do now, so if you know you'll be doing trails and such in the future, it doesn't take much to go that next step and want to do something a little more challenging.
-Paul
Thanks
The other nice thing about the Unlimited is that the is a lot smoother than the regular Jeep. Also, there is a good space between the back seat and the back end to through gear and stuff like that. Now that I have my Unlimited I would be hard pressed to give it up.
I would say a big consideration is how much modifying do you want to do - The more you want to modify the more entry level model you may want to consider.
Lastly which Jeep looks the best to you?
Good Luck and enjoy!
Thanks.
I would say that Jeep's are probably one of the easiest cars to modify and make your own. This can be a lift kit, new fog lights or more lights, new bumpers, side steps, different covers, wheels. Do a search for Jeep Parts and just watch the sites pop up.
Off-road the difference in traction between wheels on the same axle is likely to be much greater than on-road, so the LSD will provide greater benefits. Again, the operation of the Wrangler's unit is pretty seamless.
One of the reasons I said it would be invisible to you is that some LSDs can be quite 'clunky' as they do their job.
As for the whole dash lighting up, there is a connector between the body and the dash that that is EASILY cleanable and can be filled with dielectric grease to ensure good connections. Other than that, the only electrical issues are usually owner-created when adding stuff to their TJ's.
Mac may have more, but that is all I've experienced.
-Paul
Does anyone else hate that feeling? Granted, most owners aren't riding back there.....
I consider the back seats on a Wrangler (YJ, TJ, OR JK) to be token seats that are better served to hold groceries or car parts, or better yet, removed entirely.
My rear seat is out most of the time. I only put it in if I HAVE to transport more than 2 additional people. I wouldn't want to have anybody back there when wheeling. Besides the bars, I'll be having fire extinguishers mounted on the cage, another potential hit location.
-Paul
The good news is that your warranty should take care of it.
ole BamaTazz is still around. Been a few years.. Tazz(Jeep) will be 6 years old next month still enjoy him as much as i did that 1st day. His paint is starting to show his age.. but in all still the best vehicle ive ever owned..
Is ole Tom still around? He probably thought ive disappeared..
Talk to ya later
ROLL TIDE
Bamatazz
Terry
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
Rough Country wouldn't be my first choice, but a suspension lift is a much better way to go, though it's not the cut price way to do it.
Perhaps you can say why you want a lift (looks/function/bigger tires etc.).
I even have tidster peeking in on my lack of memory..
And i see Mac is even still around.
hope everyone is doing well..and of course still hugging their jeeps
BamaTazz
Terry
gh
Mmm, bar...be..cue....ahhhhh. Doh! :shades:
Tom still checks in on occasion, but not nearly like he did. He lost Ross Allen a year and a half ago. He has also gotten a new Jeeping bud, Hank. He has replaced his Procomp lift with an OME lift, and some of us who have been here a while have modded our Jeeps a bit more - some of it intentional, some not!
-Paul
With all your knowledge of all things Jeep, I thought you might have a clue on something like this...
-Paul
I've never looked into it, but maybe it can be converted?
Maybe a smaller body lift combined with shackles?
Good appearance, high quality, cheap. You can pair any two except cheap and high quality.
Oh well.
-Paul
And, why would you not recommend the rough country 4"?
I thought of it only after taking my 2005 Unlimited to Silver Lake Sand Dunes in Western Michigan overlooking Lake Michigan in April. It was only 20 degrees so sand had blown over sections of frozen snow/ice in areas of shadows formed by the dunes. I had to keep my speed high enough to keep forward motion and sometimes the weight of my Jeep would crush down through the upper crust of sand and my Wrangler would violently pitch-pole through those ice/snow pockets. One notable time I got stuck after what felt like my brain was going to pop out of my head...it was a pretty violent pitch-pole effect where my front bumper had to have impacted multiple times on hard-pack sand/ice/snow in a wrenching fast-stop as I high-centered on spikes of ice/sand. I got out to find myself walking on what looked like upside down ice cream cones anywhere from 12" to 18" long and felt like concrete...very treacherous and I was convinced I'd have under-carriage damage but to Jeep's credit, I couldn't visually find any damage and after over a month of daily driving since that day, she behaves like those episodes never happened. Took her back when weather was more "dune-like"...well, Michigan "dune-like" which was in the 60s/70s...Conditions were much "softer" and far more enjoyable than that first cold blustery attempt to hit the dunes a bit too early.
Anyway, thinking back, I'm amazed the airbags didn't deploy with those forward bumper smacks. Made me realize I better understand how to deactivate the airbags for future off-roading so as not to inadvertently explode $700-$1,500 or more out of my wallet. Granted, most off-roading shouldn't be done with such speed to cause such violent hits to the front bumper but again, with sand dunes, you have to get a good head of steam going to chug up the steep slopes or you're not going to crest the tops...along the way, ruts in the sand can make things a bit choppy.
Forgive me if this has been discussed in past posts...I scanned through about five pages of 'airbag' references in a forum search but didn't see it if it's there.
I'm not sure why I stopped by, but it could be that my ears were burning. I see that I have not been forgotten around here; some folks have asked about me. That makes me feel good.
Bamatazz, I see that you have just checked back in, too. Good to hear from you!
Hello to all of the rest of my old friends here. I have not forgotten you guys.
I still have Thelma Jane, but she has become pretty much just a trail rig. I don't even spray her off after wheelin' any more, and she is showing her many, many miles of wheelin'. She has bent, dented, and scratched fenders, busted flares, and an interior that will never come clean. I hardly ever drive her, except to go to Turkey Bay.
I don't wheel every weekend any more. It's partly due to gas prices, partly due to getting a little burned-out on it, and partly due to not having my Best Bud, Ross Allen, with me any more.
I have my new dog, Hank, or "Henry Louis," as I call him when I am being silly, and he is a blessing to me. He loves to go Jeepin' just about as much as Rossie Pup did. I'm not without a wheelin' buddy, and I enjoy having Hank along with me when I go.
God bless.
Tomster
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My suggestion would be to focus on your health and well being rather than your wallet. I've never heard of an uncalled for airbag deployment offroad.
Assuming that the description of your violents impact was accurate, consider it a love tap compared to what you would have felt if you'd hit hard enough to ignite the bag.
Bottom line, if your airbag inflates, offroad or on, it's because you need it to save you from injury. If you'd prefer it from the financial perspective, it doesn't take long to run up more than the cost of an airbag in the Emergency Room.
Yes, you can disconnect your airbags, though it's not as simple a pulling a fuse. I think you'd be crazy to do it, so I'll let someone else explain the procedure if they want to.