New guy saying hello, minor plans for an 07 grand

[biere]

New guy to the board, been doing lots of reading and figured I may as well join up and do a hello post since I might be getting to where I have some specific questions that are not answered through search.

The grand is an 07 limited with the diesel and qdII 4x4 system. Right now it is totally stock and pretty empty. Mileage is averaging 23-24mpg for all my driving, high speeds on the highway drop mileage and backroads tend to bring it back up unless it is all hills. With a 22gallon fuel tank I am happy with the current range. And this is with me trying to see how good I can do for mileage, messing around all the time puts it at 20mpg really quick.

Currently still working on the very very first stuff, need to do an oil change in 1k miles or so and will be ordering the oil and filter plus plenty of extras to keep on hand.

Got a cb to fit in a cubby hole of the dash but still need to decide on a mount and then buy an antenna and cable to put it all together.

I know I want better on board air options than what I have now, but I am still reading about what others have done and figuring out what will work for me and my wants/needs/wallet.

Similar situation with an invertor and maybe a 2nd battery as well, been wanting more backup power for the toys when the power goes out in a storm and runing the jeep or generator seems excessive but a 2nd battery in the jeep would let me do a few things without having to start the jeep up for a bit.

I need some lockable storage in the back and a sleeping platform might fit into the plans as well, still figuring that out as well.

I have an extended warranty and don't plan to do anything major until that is done with.

I guess my biggest goal is to make changes now that let me use the jeep and then in the future when I make bigger changes the stuff I have done now helps with the bigger changes and does not need to be redone.

Overall I figured I better put in a hello post so folks can figure out who the newb is in some of the threads around here.

 

[mountainpete]

Welcome to ExPo :26_7_2:

This site will have a strong effect on your monthly credit card statement!

 

[1leg]

Welcome aboard,

 

[Redline]

Welcome and happy to hear your GC is a DIESEL!

 

[RunninRubicon]

Cdi

There are many here who long for your CDI in a Wrangler. Even some who actually enjoy GCs. We look forward to future stories and pics, we hope.
:REOutCampFire03:

 

[Scott Brady]

Diesel Grand! Congrats on a very cool machine.

Regarding the CB, do you travel with groups that use CB? I might suggest that you research the benefits of HAM and skip the CB step. I have done that recently and the benefits of 2M and other HAM bands is most impressive. I am finding that most groups I travel with use HAM bands now.

Best of luck!

 

[MuddyMudskipper]

Welcome to ExPo!

 

[Haggis]

Hello and welcome.:camping: +:truck: =:arabia:

 

[maximumrob]

If you have a real picky service department, you're making the best decision by not altering the truck. However, you can speak to your service manager to find out where he draws the line on mods. I found out my department locally is okay with mild suspension lifts and even gear changes, but not much else.

Put a set of stock-size MTR's on it and wheel it like that until the warranty is gone. The MTR's, though, will eat a mpg or two over the highway tires you have now, and you'd better rotate them every 3k miles or less!

 

[biere]

Thanks for the welcome.

I wish jeep had diesels in everything because I would have probably kept the old vehicle until I could get a 4 door wrangler rubicon with the diesel.

As it is, I can't say the grand makes me unhappy since it has so much more ability than I do that I wonder if it calls jeep headquarters up and tells the other jeeps about the stupid stuff the driver did today. And really that is part of why I don't plan to mess with mods yet, I need to bring my ability up to where the jeep is now before knowing what I want to change vs. what really needs changed.

I am thinking about other tires, the stock silent armors are awesome for commuting to work though. I am somewhat thinking about finding some steel rims and mounting up some mud tires. If I just replaced these I would be more likely to go all terrain and I kind of want some mud tires but don't want to drive mud tires to work everyday. I also kind of like having extra spare tires around, it makes taking 2 fullsize spares really easy even if the tread is different. And yeah, I would have to see what the real height would be before doing that.

I have not been back to the dealer yet so I do have to see what they think about mods. My last vehicle gave me fits so keeping one stock for a while is nice this time around.

I am finally feeling comfortable that I found all the nooks and crannies for me to hide stuff in so I can now start messing around with building some behind the seat storage and know what needs to be done to still access all the stock storage areas.

I do plan to get a ham license this summer but cb has its place as well and since you can't get a cb/ham radio I will just "get both" as they say on another board I post on. Besides, stock I have an am/fm antenna and a sat radio antenna and the gps/talking lady may have her own antenna as well. I want to compete with the local cops and see how many antennas I can have on this porcupine.

I need to figure out how to get the camera to talk to the computer, the cable is also needed and then I can set up a place to host photos and put some photos up. Won't happen this week but it is on the short list to research and get figured out.

Basically this thing is going to be my everyday driver and fun weekend vehicle while it is warranty. Once the warranty is out perhaps diesel cars getting 50mpg will be popular in this country and I can go with a commuter vehicle and get a bit more serious about mods for this jeep.

 

[IronSmiles]

Welcome to ExPo :26_7_2:

This site will have a strong effect on your monthly credit card statement!

:xxrotflma The ExPo is to blame to date for about $3000 worth of purchases! Aiie.. Just.. can't.. stop..

Welcome to the ExPo! And just remember, a jeep really isn't a J E E P until you Just Empty Every Pocket :safari-rig:

 

[RunninRubicon]

driving skills vs vehicle inherant abilities stock.

We all can relate to this comment. I certainly have pulled some great ones over the years. It's a wise man who understanding what his vehicle is capable of prior to "going commerical" and buying every advertised piece available. This is a much more prudent and financially responsible way to approach further additions/modifications. Buying what you need vs buying it because everyone else has it.....keeping up with the Jones' phenomena.
Your learning fast pal. Just keep reciting to yourself "Just Emtpy Every Pocket" each time your tempted. :coffeedrink:

 

[prepmech]

I am thinking about other tires, the stock silent armors are awesome for commuting to work though. I am somewhat thinking about finding some steel rims and mounting up some mud tires. If I just replaced these I would be more likely to go all terrain and I kind of want some mud tires but don't want to drive mud tires to work everyday. I also kind of like having extra spare tires around, it makes taking 2 fullsize spares really easy even if the tread is different. And yeah, I would have to see what the real height would be before doing that.

The wheels your grand has have tire pressure monitoring sensors mounted on the valve stem. If you went to steel wheels you would have to modify them to accept a set of the sensors, then match the sensors to the computer every time you changed tires. It can be done at most tire shops that sell new wheels. You may also be able to get around it by disabling the tire pressure monitoring system.

There are some good all terrain tires out there that do well on the trails and street. I am assuming that you are going to keep it on easy to moderate trails, and a set of all terrains would work fine for that.

I tried swapping the tires on my jeep to get it to fit on my trailer, and won't do it again. It is a major pain and the other set of tires takes up too much space in my garage.

There aren't many WKs out there that have been modified, and very few aftermarket parts available for them.

ARB makes a nice bull bar for them
Rustys Offroad and Superlift both have 4" lifts available for them.
AEV built a WK using the Superlift lift kit, and has some pics on their site:
www.aev-conversions.com

Oh, and if you haven't figured it out yet, your front air dam is removable for increased approach angle.

 

[biere]

Thanks for the advice, and yes this is just a mild vehicle and all terrains will do everything I want to do.

The spare tires and rims are more me just wanting spare stuff in case I kill a rim avoiding some of the drivers around here, instead of having to source a replacement right away I will look now and buy something cheap when I find a takeoff priced right. As always, the pressure sensor is just another thing to deal with and since it is nice knowing the tire pressure I will just get it swapped to make my vehicle talk nicely to it. Later on a more serious set of tires might be wanted, but that is more me thinking out loud I guess.

I agree the aftermarket is not huge for the wk, but it is better than I expected with some quality armor for underneath and a few lift kits.

I don't really want a winch up front all the time, I am leaning towards a portable winch setup since I might prefer to retreat instead of going forward. I also don't have any front tow hooks and need to put something up front for group trail runs and I am thinking about a front receiver.

I know the front air dam comes off, pretty neat setup. I have to admit that my spacial concepts are still needing work on the jeep. I drove a bit dually pickup the last couple years and I keep thinking the jeep is larger than it is. Everytime I think the air dam might need to come off I get out and look and find inches and inches of clearance. But I am improving, I really need to get the tow hooks or front reciever bought and installed so I go with some groups and bump my education speed up a bit.

Overall I am trying to keep the weight of the vehicle low, my pickup was bought because I like heavy duty stuff and hauling a lot of stuff but I went too far that way.

This is just my nice and mild camping toy and I am stealing ideas from here to make my camping trips much much better.

But I will never have to rely on this vehicle like some folks do so I won't be going wild with stuff.

Maybe when I can afford another vehicle I will take this one further down the mod list, for now it still has to crawl the mall and do that often.