2012 JKU Rubicon Build/Adventure Thread

[Septu]

Epic wheeling trip yesterday. Did a 60km trip into a very remote lake. Some minor carnage - but not to me. But had a great time with my friends. One thing I've concluded, is that I need a lift. The one time I got stuck was due to my frame getting hung up in the mud. I scrapped and rubbed way too many times. Am thinking that I'm going to need at least 3.5-4 inches. However once again I've come to realize what an advantage lockers are.

Trip in. 5.5 hours in, 2 hours for 'lunch' - basically a great bull**** session around the camp fire with great people. 3 hours out. All in all a 12 hour day going somewhere that most people don't get the chance to do very often.

Travis... showing what he can do.

Buddy from Alberta who's up here for the summer... same hole that I almost rolled my JK in last summer. Messed up his rear bumper. He's quite happy about that, as it's a great excuse to replace it. This picture was taken before he went further in... was crazy. He (much like me last year) was scared ****less. A couple of us propped up the pass side, while he got a tug backwards.

The little XJ that could. We give this poor guy a hard time all the time... But I have to say... he manages to wheel his rig pretty hard, and followed us everywhere... At some point we'll have to stop giving him **** over having an XJ... just not anytime soon. Fortunately he doesn't come here, so he won't see that. : )

Overlooking Alligator Lk. The mountains in the background on the left... I plan to go up there in the next week or two. I've been up there before, but it's an epic trip. In this picture, we have 5 jeeps. 1 silver, 1 white, 2 green, 1 blue. When we were off the trail... we were ALL the same color.

 

[Presto88]

Hey Septu. I'm sorry if I come off as a noob, but what is the purpose of those cables that run from the top of your A-pillar to the front of your hood?

 

[Septu]

Naw it's all good. I get lots of questions about them. They're Pat Harrison's Limb raisers site. Most of the wheeling up here is in the tree's. These will lift the branches off the hood, and the mounts protect the A pillar frame.

But being honest that was not the primary reason I bought them. I needed a front tie down spot for my kayak, and the holes at the top at perfect for that. But I'll run them whenever I"m going on a run I haven't been on before, or if I know the trail has a ton of trees. Yes I bought a 40k jeep to wheel the piss out of it... and I do. But I'm vain and want it to look pretty too.

 

[Presto88]

Good to know, and it makes a lot of sense. Thanks!

 

[jeepgc]

Thanks for asking and answering that question about the cables on the hood, I've wondering what they were for for a while now.

Nice Jeep, great trips and some excellent pics there. I'd love to take our WH to North America.

 

[Septu]

Purchased the AEV snorkel while in Edmonton (made a trip to Northridge - don't do that when you have spending money).

 

[redthies]

So what is happening with your overheating issue? Will Chrysler be impressed with the new snorkel, or say it is exacerbating your problem? I am a little nervous about warranty on ours, but all I have done is 285/75s and OME coils. It would take a knowledgeable tech to notice the mods. I have access to four more Rubicons at work to borrow factory size tires if I need to deal with a warranty issue.

 

[Septu]

So what is happening with your overheating issue? Will Chrysler be impressed with the new snorkel, or say it is exacerbating your problem? I am a little nervous about warranty on ours, but all I have done is 285/75s and OME coils. It would take a knowledgeable tech to notice the mods. I have access to four more Rubicons at work to borrow factory size tires if I need to deal with a warranty issue.

Still ongoing. Dodge will replace the temp sensor (whenever the part arrives).

I can always pull the snorkel, put the old air intake in, and using the rivet holes, put a mesh/cover over the hole in the hood - a la AEV hood. Might not be the prettiest, but it's somewhat reversible. Also seeing how I have video of it overheating pre-snorkel, they can't really say that the snorkel is causing the issue. Realistically the snorkel is helping the issue, as it's pulling in cold air, vs warm air from the engine bay. It has changed the symptoms somewhat (runs cooler when moving, slightly hotter at idle), but I can still get the temp to jump when going up a small hill.

Maybe buying it or adding it at this time wasn't the smartest... but the price was right, I was there (no shipping) and it was on my wish/want list. If Chrysler can't fix the issue, the $400 snorkel will be the least of my worries.

Edit,
On my 07, I broke the front drive shaft, and later broke the front u-joint (then drove 50km out of the bush). The dealer didn't even blink and covered both under warranty. That had 33s, 2.5" lift and a heavy front bumper and winch. Both times the JK was plastered in mud. The only reason why the tires seem to be getting some blame this time, is because no one can find the issue. When I first brought it in to the place in town, they replaced the thermostat no questions asked.

 

[Septu]

A pic from the trail yesterday... Opps. Made it out without breaking anything. Just scared the crap out of myself when I slid in.

 

[heehawhardy]

DANNNNNNNNG....crazy! Dirty or Clean love the simplicity of your Jeep septu (three thumbs up)

 

[mvbeggs]

A...... Just scared the crap out of myself when I slid in.

Is that what is all over the side of that Jeep!! :elkgrin:

You definitively need larger fenders!

 

[Septu]

Is that what is all over the side of that Jeep!! :elkgrin:

You definitively need larger fenders!

Yeah, that's on the list. I plan on having extensions welded on to cover a lot more of the front tire. Part of the issue is those tires are 13.5" wide... I'd rather have 12.5s, but they were damn near free, so I have those. And I like a little bit of tire sticking past the fenders (even though it makes a mess), so even with the extensions on the front, not a lot will change until I change to a narrower tire.

I ended up washing 140 lbs of dried mud off the jeep. The guy at the carwash place hates me. Normally I just wash it at home.. but there was way too much mud to do in my driveway.

DANNNNNNNNG....crazy! Dirty or Clean love the simplicity of your Jeep septu (three thumbs up)

Thanks. While I have a huge list of things to do, I don't expect the appearance to change too much. The big one will be the 3.5" lift and what I decide for a light bar (if I go that route) or roof rack.

 

[Septu]

So what is happening with your overheating issue? Will Chrysler be impressed with the new snorkel, or say it is exacerbating your problem? I am a little nervous about warranty on ours, but all I have done is 285/75s and OME coils. It would take a knowledgeable tech to notice the mods. I have access to four more Rubicons at work to borrow factory size tires if I need to deal with a warranty issue.

Figured I should post an update on this. Issue has been fixed (more or less). They replaced a sensor that seemed to correct the issue. Have driven it over one pass (Skagway - to US Customs) where the issue should have replicated, and it didn't (temp went up a bit, but stayed a LOT lower than it did previously). But it still occasionally goes up on the trail where it shouldn't... so until I take it south again (not until next summer at the earliest) I won't be 100% positive.

 

[iRagedoYou]

Awesome Jeep and a very nice and simple build 👍👍

 

[Septu]

I'm going to blame Mark Doiron for this. I was looking at the stock Dodge Nav setups (saw a used one - but was pricy). Then remembered Marks setup. Had a bunch of OT on my last paycheque, so today I decided to pick up a Nexus 7, a RAM mount setup and a cooltech dash mount (the mounts should arrive in the next week or so). Nexus 7 has 4g and wifi. Didn't really want the 4G, but it was on sale, and the only 32GB model they had in stock. I guess I'll suck it up

I stole the pics from Marks video of his install. Only difference is I have a 2012 and my mount will be further to the right to mount off the grab handle. Haven't decided if I want to run music off this, or stick to my ipod - which I hate... but it functions great with my stock radio for playlists and using the steering wheel controls.







I also am in the process of painting my DIY Poison Spyder rock rails. Had a buddy weld them up yesterday. Not sure how the paint will turn out (it's -13c), but it just has to last till spring when I'll redo them. I also have some solid grab handles (mounts to A pillar and up by the visor), and new lights that all showed up the other day. But it's been damn cold (-30 last week) and I've been too much of a wimp to work on wiring or anything when it's that cold out. Might make an exception for the grab handles (at least the drivers side) as that shouldn't take too long.

Here's a stock pic of the PS steps.


Here's a link to his video of the Nexus 7 install.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6UolIlksZs

Edit, Sorry for the crappy picture. Will take some more tomorrow. Good news is they look amazing, and will work - for now. Bad news is they flex way too much for my liking when I stand on them (I weigh 230). So sometime this spring I'll get my buddy who welded them up to make some brackets and I'll have these welded to the frame. It's unfortunate that I have to do this. I don't play in the rocks at all, and don't really need something that tough. I just don't like them moving when I stand on them... so frame mounted they'll be. When it comes time I'll likely ask about making them in such a way that they can be removed (maybe something like the receiver hitch setup?). Not sure that other than to touch them up that I'd ever need to remove them... but now I think I like the idea of being able to remove them at some point.