'12 JKUR- First Expedition Build

[Inline6]

acton shot from a few years back




I will say I dredged the belly on everything, kinda sucked.

As it sits today.

I went to "2 inch" springs from Synergy, ended up with about 3-4" of lift. I run a fairly light JKU so that had a bit to do with it. I may be going back to these springs in the next few weeks. My parents had troubles getting into and out of the jeep, also the parking garage at work might become an issue. Well the new parking garage that will be opened next year.

not the best pic, but the 2" springs and freshly painted fenders



sorry for the hijack

 

[Walldog01]

I dig the colour coded PS rigid bracket, might have to paint mine


The difference between theory and practice is.. In theory there is no difference.

 

[daryn1979]

Thanks for all the inspiration, guys! I just got back from a two-week vacation in GA, and the Bilstein shocks and RK springs were waiting at my door when I got home. I'm hoping to get these installed next weekend at my parent's place (HATE apartment living without a garage to work in!), but it'll be a slow process because I'm still rehabbing a broken ankle and moving into a new place. I'll try to get some before and after pics with measurements- I'm thinking I'll net closer to 2" on these springs because I have a shorty bumper and little else other than the sliders.

 

[Phoenix]

Cool build. You may want to consider River Raider fenders. They tie into the frame, and are very sturdy. Always expect more lift out of an RK product, that is my experience and my rig has aftermarket front and rear bumpers, rock sliders, full set of skids, and a winch, not to mention me.

I started out building for Rocks and Mud, now working on back country adventures features. Mainly storage and organization as its a DD and I'm the ride for my daughters Lax tournaments. Lots of gear moving in and out of my JKU.

 

[daryn1979]

I just took a look at the River Raider fenders and they look pretty sturdy, but wow- aluminum fenders with a satin epoxy finish spec'd out at over $2k for a set of four! :Wow1:

I think it's time to find a sugar momma....

 

[daryn1979]

Over the weekend I installed the 1.5" RK springs, Bilstein shocks and 1.25" Spidertrax spacers. Probably the easiest lift I've ever done- no spring compressor required. It's so much easier to work on vehicles from down south- no rusty bolts to worry about! I also got a little crazy with some Plastidip on the rims and grille, just to see if I like the color.

BEFORE:


DURING:


AFTER:



I've put around 9k of the 29k miles on the stock suspension and it rode better than a 2dr, but still jarring on bumps. With the new springs/shocks it rides like a cadillac, but with much firmer handling in corners. I used to get a bit of wheel hop when hitting potholes, but now it just floats over them. I'm definately a fan.

I didn't get a chance to take measurements during the install, but I easily gained at least 2" of lift with these springs and it corrected the rake in the front end. Now I need to determine the amount of bumpstop I'll need...

 

[nate914s]

Looks nice Much better with the black rims?

Did you buy New in 2012 or used recenetly ? Curious what you paid?

 

[daryn1979]

I bought a 2013 2dr Sport last year and traded that towards this one. I paid $27k for it before trade-in, but that's because it was a lemon law buy back due to issues with the brakes. It turns out that the previous owner lived in FL, where the first issue with a safety feature can trigger a buy back, which the owner exercised.

 

[Phoenix]

I just took a look at the River Raider fenders and they look pretty sturdy, but wow- aluminum fenders with a satin epoxy finish spec'd out at over $2k for a set of four! :Wow1:

I think it's time to find a sugar momma....

No aluminum for me. But owning a Jeep and having a sugar momma, good idea.

 

[daryn1979]

Got a few things finished lately in preparation for winter.

First one I didn't get any picture of- installing heated seats. I've ridden in a few vehicles in with heated seats and I started to like it. Having a bad back and sitting in heated seats when I hop in the Jeep is a lifesaver! Plus, we've all had those mornings/late evenings driving with the top and doors off and realized that cranking the heater up to full blast does nothing. The install went pretty smoothly- the only difference from the instructions was having to cut a large T-shaped hole in the bottom passenger pad so nothing covered the airbag sensor. Other than that- piece of cake!

Tonight I finally took care of a problem that's been bugging me for months- the headlights. When is Jeep going to release a vehicle with a useable set of lights?! Anyway- I was initially looking at getting new buckets and better bulbs, but then started looking at HIDs and LEDs. JW Speakers were way outside of my price range, HIDs all seem to look like hack jobs, Trucklites owners all complain about X's projected on the road, so they were out too.

I happened to find a lot a good reviews about KC Hilites, but they are also pretty pricey. After doing some digging, I found out that they are just rebranded lights produced by Peterson. I found the Peterson's online for $350, plus an additional $45 for anti-flicker harnesses. The KC's sell for around $500, so I was happy to save $100.

They were waiting for me when I arrived at home today and they were quite impressive- heavy cast aluminum bucket and very solid feeling. They're also one of the few aftermarket lights that are DOT approved.




Install was simple- pull the grille, remove the old, add the harness, install the new ones, button up and test.

Before:


Half done:

 

[daryn1979]

Continued...



Done:


Low Beam:


High Beam:


I'll try to post a review with more pics once I get a chance to use them.

 

[daryn1979]

Took a quick drive tonight. The light output is WAY more than I expected- much better than stock. I may need to adjust the lights down a bit- I felt like I was shining people, even though nobody flashed their lights at me. The cutoff is clean, but the light pattern looks like you're looking down a fishbone. Not sure if I like that so much, but time will tell.

 

[mikeJKUR]

Over the weekend I installed the 1.5" RK springs, Bilstein shocks and 1.25" Spidertrax spacers. Probably the easiest lift I've ever done- no spring compressor required. It's so much easier to work on vehicles from down south- no rusty bolts to worry about! I also got a little crazy with some Plastidip on the rims and grille, just to see if I like the color.

BEFORE:


DURING:


AFTER:



I've put around 9k of the 29k miles on the stock suspension and it rode better than a 2dr, but still jarring on bumps. With the new springs/shocks it rides like a cadillac, but with much firmer handling in corners. I used to get a bit of wheel hop when hitting potholes, but now it just floats over them. I'm definately a fan.

I didn't get a chance to take measurements during the install, but I easily gained at least 2" of lift with these springs and it corrected the rake in the front end. Now I need to determine the amount of bumpstop I'll need...

I like the changes.

 

[LL247]

Rig looks good! I'm looking to build mine along a similar line, more overland style. Need to pull the trigger on a good set of tires and was really considering the 285/70/17 AT2's. After seeing your Jeep, and that I'm planning on a small lift as well, I'm sold. Yours is just right! The lights have me intrigued too, was just about to pull the trigger on some trucklites.

 

[daryn1979]

I like the changes.

Thanks- Slowly but surely, it's getting to where I want it to be.

Rig looks good! I'm looking to build mine along a similar line, more overland style. Need to pull the trigger on a good set of tires and was really considering the 285/70/17 AT2's. After seeing your Jeep, and that I'm planning on a small lift as well, I'm sold. Yours is just right! The lights have me intrigued too, was just about to pull the trigger on some trucklites.

Thanks! I'm still on the fence about the lights. I still need to aim them better this weekend- it's such a drastic change going from having almost no headlight power to having such a bright white light straight ahead of you. I'm self conscious when it comes to bright headlights because it's a pet peeve of mine when people drive around blinding oncoming traffic, and I don't want to be "that guy."

Next things on my list are to install a Cobra 75 WX-ST CB and Firestick as soon as my CoolTech dash mount comes in today. Then I'll need to find a good way to install yellow bulbs/lenses or HIDs for the factory fogs. I'm still researching the best way to do that, because when the snow starts falling here in MN, having super bright headlights with no yellow might be a serious pain while driving at night...