Halley - '17 WK2 Trailhawk Overland Build

[JKJenn]

Nice build! I have a couple of questions, if you mind.

Furst question is about your rear cargo deck. How did you secure the deck, itself, to the cargo area? I have an ARB. On my Overland I used child seat anchors and the 2 rear tie down points but am looking for something a little neater for my Trailhawk.

Second, question: doesn't the new Trailhawk include a 650ah deep cycle AGM?

Lastly, did you try the accessory outlet in your cargo area for the fridge? I am wondering if the Jeep limits power to it? I also tow a trailer and the fridge amp draw is high.

I just traded my 2015 Overoand for a 2018 Trailhawk.

Thanks!

 

[2180miles]

Nice build! I have a couple of questions, if you mind.

Thanks!

Thanks Jenn! Happy to answer..

1) Cargo deck is "secured" to the tie down hooks at the 4 corners of the rear bed. I know this isn't a phenomenal solution, but it's better than nothing and without going crazy back there, it's enough to keep the fridge and Pelican gear cases in place during off-camber and fast-braking situations. Not "rated" for anything, but it has worked now for almost a year.

2) I think you might have Ah and CCA confused. 650Ah battery would be insane, and would cost probably close to thousands in todays market. I paid nearly $200 for a 100Ah battery. Best I know, the included battery is an 800 CCA (cold crank amps) battery. Deep cycles by design are not made for starting cars, they're designed to deplete slowly and thoroughly to power things in an "off the grid" situation. Like the "turtle" vs. the "hare" that is the starting battery.

3) I wired a friend's Dometic fridge to the outlet in the cargo area. If you swap one fuse location in the engine bay fuse box you can set the rear outlet to be constant on instead of switched with the ignition. He did this and hasn't had an issue, but as you may be able to tell from my build I like overdoing where I can and clean installs, which for me involved hard-wiring it. I know that you can get away with using it to do the fridge though. It should be 10-15A rated, and the fridge doesn't come near to that.

Welcome to the Trailhawk family. Hopefully you'll love it as much as I do mine! Happy to answer any more questions as they arise.

 

[JKJenn]

Thanks Jenn! Happy to answer..

1) Cargo deck is "secured" to the tie down hooks at the 4 corners of the rear bed. I know this isn't a phenomenal solution, but it's better than nothing and without going crazy back there, it's enough to keep the fridge and Pelican gear cases in place during off-camber and fast-braking situations. Not "rated" for anything, but it has worked now for almost a year.

2) I think you might have Ah and CCA confused. 650Ah battery would be insane, and would cost probably close to thousands in todays market. I paid nearly $200 for a 100Ah battery. Best I know, the included battery is an 800 CCA (cold crank amps) battery. Deep cycles by design are not made for starting cars, they're designed to deplete slowly and thoroughly to power things in an "off the grid" situation. Like the "turtle" vs. the "hare" that is the starting battery.

3) I wired a friend's Dometic fridge to the outlet in the cargo area. If you swap one fuse location in the engine bay fuse box you can set the rear outlet to be constant on instead of switched with the ignition. He did this and hasn't had an issue, but as you may be able to tell from my build I like overdoing where I can and clean installs, which for me involved hard-wiring it. I know that you can get away with using it to do the fridge though. It should be 10-15A rated, and the fridge doesn't come near to that.

Welcome to the Trailhawk family. Hopefully you'll love it as much as I do mine! Happy to answer any more questions as they arise.

Thanks!

The Mopar video that explain the Automatic Start and Stop technology actually states that the battery is a deep cycle, which I am actually more familiar with from my travel trailer and the build sheet listed it as a 650 amp battery, thus my confusion over the battery.




The four points you mention seem the most logical places to secure the deck. I am now debating between something like you did, or simply adding tethers from the existing deck to the existing mount points and using the existing deck. To secure the fridge and cargo. This would use both the "clip" and the existing anchor points to help keep things in place.

 

[2180miles]

Thanks!

The Mopar video that explain the Automatic Start and Stop technology actually states that the battery is a deep cycle, which I am actually more familiar with from my travel trailer and the build sheet listed it as a 650 amp battery, thus my confusion over the battery.

The four points you mention seem the most logical places to secure the deck. I am now debating between something like you did, or simply adding tethers from the existing deck to the existing mount points and using the existing deck. To secure the fridge and cargo. This would use both the "clip" and the existing anchor points to help keep things in place.

Yup, I'm familiar with the second ESS battery, but had never heard it was deep cycle. I haven't looked much into it because my ESS is permanently disabled for the sake of my sanity, haha.

I've seen examples where WK2 owners have used the same Airline Track sections I used (US Cargo Control product link) and fastened them to the OEM rear deck instead of creating a new one. I simply wanted something more robust for the gear on top. By using the OEM deck as you mentioned, you'd have access to the "clip" at the rear of the deck, as well as the anchor points.

Great website, by the way. Gorgeous landscapes. One of these days I've got to link my Fine Art America page to my actual website... or start advertising the fact people can even buy my images. I sell a ton of Boston landscape stuff, but always to strangers who stumble upon them.

 

[JKJenn]

Yup, I'm familiar with the second ESS battery, but had never heard it was deep cycle. I haven't looked much into it because my ESS is permanently disabled for the sake of my sanity, haha.

I've seen examples where WK2 owners have used the same Airline Track sections I used (US Cargo Control product link) and fastened them to the OEM rear deck instead of creating a new one. I simply wanted something more robust for the gear on top. By using the OEM deck as you mentioned, you'd have access to the "clip" at the rear of the deck, as well as the anchor points.

Great website, by the way. Gorgeous landscapes. One of these days I've got to link my Fine Art America page to my actual website... or start advertising the fact people can even buy my images. I sell a ton of Boston landscape stuff, but always to strangers who stumble upon them.

Thanks. This whole system is still new to me and the jury is still out. I think I will disable it while towing, but might try it for a bit around Pittsburgh. I need to pop open the battery compartment and take a look.

Thanks for the kind words and for the very thorough write-ups you do. They are very helpful. Like, I you, I am generally selling to folks who just stumble across my stuff. Your cityscapes are great and cityscapes are always great for sales!

 

[2180miles]

So I've been quiet for a while now, as work has had me out straight. In the past three months I've flown some 20,000+ miles, and have only been able to spend a handful of days back in Boston, none of which have allowed time to work on the Trailhawk project. I figured I'd check in with a couple updates as hopefully the summer months allows me some time to both get some projects finished and also to get the rig out into the mountains for some exploration.

- The dual-battery set-up is installed and tested, but not finally plumbed out and connected.

- The driver's side headlight LED circuitry had an issue, Jeep replaced it under warranty without much issue.

- A few weeks ago I placed my order for the Wilco Hitchgate Solo High-Clearance... it'll be here mid-June and I'm VERY excited for the aesthetic and functional improvements it will bring to the rig overall.

- Tires are in progress.

- The roof-top tent I bought in early April is being delivered this month. In the day and age of Amazon Prime, my instant-gratification sense has struggled, but I've enjoyed tracking the container ship with the tent on it as it crossed the Pacific Ocean.

----

So that's it for the Jeep's status. In other news, Dani and I got engaged a few weeks ago (thankfully she said yes!) and are headed to Greece on Saturday for 14 days of traveling around the mainland and southern islands. We've got at least two trips planned with our overland club over the summer, and are still very much looking forward to OverlandExpo East in the fall.

More photos to come once the new gear starts rolling in. Hope you're all doing well and gearing up for summer adventures!




RTT Vessel Tracking by 2180miles


Boston Public Library 05/25/18 by 2180miles


Trans-Canada Adventure Trail by 2180miles, on Flickr

 

[TT-Tacoma]

Congrats on the engagement!

Getting married was/has/is the best thing I've ever done.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

 

[dolli310]

Congrats good sir!

 

[RacerAV]

LOVE your TH man... wish we had got that instead but I made sure the wife picked one close to it lol... got a limited, but with the overland package, for the air ride, (man this thing can go high!) and 4x4... love it so far. Tows our little trailer like a dream! Sub'd for more!

 

[2180miles]

Thanks all! First month went by and she hasn't killed me yet with her new title so I think we're good! We just got back from two weeks in Greece traveling around the islands and mainlands (rented a BMW 116d and had a blast bombing around the windy mountain roads in second and third gear...) and am now back to the real world with work and travel.


Updates on the Jeep front:

1) Wilco Hitchgate will be delivered soon.

2) Big announcement with tires soon to be delivered

3) The new Waypoint RTT will be delivered this weekend.

4) Dual bat install has been completed. Just need to go through and finish up the photos before I can post!

 

[68camaro]

1) Wilco Hitchgate will be delivered soon.

4) Dual bat install has been completed. Just need to go through and finish up the photos before I can post!

Since it looks like you have backup camera above license plate can you post how usable it is with tire on Wilco Hitchgate, also did you get center or off-center mount?

 

[2180miles]

Since it looks like you have backup camera above license plate can you post how usable it is with tire on Wilco Hitchgate, also did you get center or off-center mount?

Hey Camaro-

I did not get the off-center, I got the Hitchgate Solo High-Clearance (photo below). I don't often use the reverse camera, but from what I've read it's still pretty usable with the tire. I also have yet to see someone else with a WK2 running the high-clearance version, so if anything I should actually get more visibility than the other images that I've seen on the web from Grand Cherokee owners.

I'll be sure to capture some photos of how it looks from the dash screen when I post up pictures of the unit mounted!

 

[2180miles]

So I wanted to take a moment to finish up the dual-battery install in the WK2. After getting the system tested with temporary wiring, I went ahead and got to work making the necessary wiring looms to get all of the electrical components (lighting, radio/comms, fridge) bought back to the Blue Sea Systems fuse panel and connected appropriately. This took quite a bit of time, and was sort of a pain in the butt, but I think the cleanliness of the end result was worth it.

In order to get the wiring into the trunk area I was hoping to use some kind of brush-plate from home A/V installs, but in my searching I found a computer-desk type grommet for wiring, which turned out to be perfect for my use. It measures about 2.25" across, and using a hole saw I cut out the appropriate hole in the trunk/tire surround trim to allow wiring to pass through. It's high enough to clear the rise in the floor of the vehicle and allows wiring to fit in the minimal gap between the suspension air tank and the floor. This took some tricky snaking, but the end result was worth it. I used adhesive silicone to seal the grommet to the plastic trim, and though it's not 100% perfectly adhered, it has done a good job making it look clean.

After pulling all the loose ends of the aux. component wiring into the trunk space I then had the fun (read: tedious) task of cutting them all to the appropriate lengths so they fit cleanly and were able to be loomed up together in the trunk. Testing each fixture one at a time, reappropriating the right fuse size to the connection point, and checking the dash panel switches as I went to make sure everything was functioning appropriately from a control standpoint. Once all was great I used some more of the adhesive tie-downs to secure everything in an organized manner, then took some photos and put the storage deck back on top, calling it a day.

For now the system is fully functioning and seems to be doing so flawlessly. In the next few weeks I'm going to install a 12v meter by the fridge so I can monitor the house battery without lifting the storage deck lid, and also a switch to disable the isolator system. Because it's intelligent and not just passive, it draws a tiny amount of power to see if the starting battery is on or not... where I travel a lot and the vehicle sits in the garage, I'll be able to use the switch to disengage the grounding wire of the isolator to shut it off, essentially disabling the charging capabilities of the second battery until I turn it back on. I've got miscellaneous switches in the basement, so when I've got a meter and time I'll add those to make the entire setup even easier to use.

That's all for now... photos of the final set-up - I know they look a lot like the previous ones, but they're hugely different in function and completeness



WK2 Dual Battery Wiring by 2180miles


WK2 Dual Battery Wiring by 2180miles


WK2 Dual Battery Wiring by 2180miles

 

[fran_swa]

WK2 Dual Battery Wiring by 2180miles


WK2 Dual Battery Wiring by 2180miles


WK2 Dual Battery Wiring by 2180miles

Sorry if you've already stated it elsewhere, but what did you do with the spare tire? I really enjoyed the comfort of my '17 WK2, but I wasn't willing to invest in what it needed for me to feel comfortable overlanding in it. It's a great vehicle though.

 

[2180miles]

Sorry if you've already stated it elsewhere, but what did you do with the spare tire? I really enjoyed the comfort of my '17 WK2, but I wasn't willing to invest in what it needed for me to feel comfortable overlanding in it. It's a great vehicle though.

All good, it's been mentioned a few times but no photos because I haven't received it yet to install... I'll be running a Wilco Hitchgate Solo (High Clearance version) to get the spare tire and a Rotopax jerry can on the back of the vehicle. The move to the tire carrier wasn't too cheap (~$700 with accessories) but with a RTT going up top I didn't really have another option for where the tire was going. I've read great reviews of the product, and should be one of very few Grand Cherokees running them.

It should be here in a week or so!