Made the Leap - 2012 AEV Built JK Unlimited Rubicon

[hollaback55]

DH of AEV had a maggnolia RTT on his brute double cab and he said it wasn't an issue off road except for some extra creaking. I also know that they don't have their rack attach in this manner so I'm sure they dont believe it to be strong enough long term. I don't think I would be putting anything heavy up there so I might be ok.

I'm loving the look of the Gobi more and more as you can use it with multiple tops which is really nice. Just worried about wind noise and buffeting from the rack.

 

[hollaback55]

Cool Tech Ultra Mount CB Install

Started on my CB mount for the jeep. I went with an Ultra Mount from cool tech. It comes with everything you need to mount up a CB in the JK except the CB radio itself (you can source this from them as well but I already had my Cobra 75 I planned on using).

Why I went with Cool tech:

1. Everything you need in 1 place, no sourcing different hardware and no looking for additional parts
2. Mini UHF allows for easier routing of coax cable as you don't need to muscle the large end through the holes you drill (this proved invaluable in routing the cable throughout the vehicle)
3. Well thought out design and hidden mount prevents thievery (I live in NYC so this is a real issue)


Quick Notes:

1. If you have AEV corner guards installed you will need to remove the driver side bolts so you can shimmy the guard out of the way

2. You will also want to get a longer mount screw that goes through the factory hole where the clip nut used to be and holds the ultra mount tight to the body. Using the supplied bolt won't allow you to fully seat the bolt into the nylon lock nut they supply.

3. If you have an AEV rear bumper with water tanks you will not be able to remove the bottom bolts from the license plate mount to remove it. I did not need to remove the license plate as I did everything with the plate holder still on the vehicle. It made some steps a bit more difficult but nothing that you couldn't do.

4. You need an 11/16th's drill bit which is quite large (I didn't have one, just made do with a 5/8's and worked it a bit in the hole). I used a nice bead of silicone around the hole to make a watertight seal anyway.

The mount is very well made and installs very straightforward. The directions are not very helpful as the pictures and instructions don't always correlate with what you are doing. I found it best to read it through once and then just use logic and common sense to put the pieces together. The coax cable routing is very neat and clean with the JK license plate mount. It tucks up nice into the body and on into the interior. Once inside you can trace the factory wiring harness all the way to the front drivers seat and go from there depending on where you plan on placing your CB. Space is at a premium in jeeps which is why I choose the Cobra 75 WXST.

When working on installing the mount into the license plate you will have to cut off 1 tab and a 1" section of the factory inner plate mount molded plastic cap. This will be easily understood the minute you separate the inner plate mount from the plate holder. The trickiest part was removing the factory wiring harness plug from the slide lock on the inner plate mount without breaking it (again this is easier to understand once you see it than someone trying to write it). Once you get this separated and pop out the stock clip nut all that is left is to cut the tab, cut the factory molded cap, drill the hole for the mount to come through the plate holder, and then run your cable.

 

[hollaback55]

some photos for install.

First few photos show what you need to cut 1" off, the second cut you have to make is to the long tab that comes out the back of the inner license plate holder

next photos show the ease of routing this along the interior wire harness for the Hardtop and Lights.

 

[hollaback55]

routing along interior tub by rear seats

removing the plastic inserts that hold the trim pieces together was easily done by using needle nose pliers and some patience and persuasion.

the turn in to the center console under the drivers seat.

 

[hollaback55]

completed.

 

[WKexpedition]

what an awesome rig you have. great work, very clean looking!! absolutely love the color.

 

[rainstatebear]

Wow great set up, I have become a fan of AEV products as well.

 

[hollaback55]

Thanks for the kind words. I've owned 3 jeeps now and really love the utility, use, and functionality of AEV's products. Simple ideas make using the vehicle much easier: rear bumper water tanks, accessories carried by tire carrier, weight capability of suspension and on road handling.

It's a real bummer they don't make sahara tan any more. Never could figure out why chrysler stopped producing them in this color

 

[hollaback55]

Quick story on why on road handling is so important. I've waited two weeks to write this to gather my thoughts and give an accurate assessment of what happened instead of having emotion cloud judgement.

We (fiancé, myself and our two bull terriers) were driving to my parents house out on long island two weekends ago during a driving rain storm. I noticed a 90's model Cherokee on 33's and a lift with its hazards flashing. Being a jeep guy I'm always checking out other people's rides so I get over into the middle lane for a closer look. At first I thought maybe this guy forgot to turn them off because he's cruising at 65 like nothing is wrong. I slow down a bit just to be safe and move over to the far left lane. 30 seconds later he spins from the far right lane of 495 to the far left HOV lane (40 feet or so). As the jeep starts to spin people start panicking and swerving from their lanes all over the place. Instead of hitting the brakes I quickly check the rear view and my driver mirror and just calmly hop off the highway into the center grass median at 60+ mph.

It had been raining all weekend (this happened on Sunday) and the median grass had just been cut (why I made this decision). The jeep acted like nothing had happened. The suspension unloaded briefly as we went from asphalt to grass and then quickly settled back down and firmed up. It soaked up the initial hit smoothly with no shimmy, the steering remained stable and allowed for confidence in turning back right to straighten out the jeep. There was no wobble, shakiness, or bump steer exhibited at all. I slowed to about 45 and rode out a 1/4 mile on the median before getting back onto the highway and pulling over to the far right to see if anyone needed help.

The car directly in front of me struck the right front tire/fender as the Cherokee completed its spin causing a mini explosion of parts. That would have come crashing through my windshield. Fortunately they were the only two vehicles involved in the incident.

Real world suspension handling is paramount for me because of how many miles I rack up on the road a year (25k). The engineering that went into AEV's suspension worked as advertised and keep me and my family safe in a very dangerous and scary situation. Kudos to them for their diligence in providing an amazing product.

 

[hollaback55]

So back to the mods

I've been spending a few weeks thinking/analyzing my cb radio install. I know not everyone is a fan of CB's but for where I wheel and who I wheel with its important to have one. What I did not want was some bracket permanently attached to my interior as I feel like this detracts from the clean lines and improved interior of the 2011+ JK's. I decided to go with a Carolina Metal Masters Grab bar as my base and then use the ram mounting system for my cb holder. This will allow me to remove it when I dont need it (90% of the time) and have it on when I do. I can also add future accessories as I see fit (Ipad ram mount, Lowrance, Map Holder ect.)

The fit and finish of the CMM product is amazing. Build quality was excellent as was customer service. By accident they sent me a 2007-2010 grab bar instead of the redesigned 2011+ and with no issues they simply asked me to send it back and sent me a new grab bar along with a winch mount free of charge for my trouble. Thats top notch in my book.

I used the shortest ram double ended socket mount I could find (it was about 2" long) along with their smallest trapezoidal base which I'm actually going to have to change out for a square base with an upgraded cb mic holder mount that has 3 screws instead of 2. It came out really clean and works perfectly to hold the mic where I need and out of the way of passenger, knobs & buttons, and legroom.

 

[dstock]

Very nice CB mount idea! Going to have to try that myself!

 

[hollaback55]

it works really well. I'm going to buy a new cb mic holder though that sits flush with a square base. I dont like the silver mic holder for a few reasons.

1. it doesn't sit flush with the plastic base as it has a bend in it and the mounting surface is only a small portion of the actually holder
2. it wobbles too much b/c of this design. A mic holder that is flat and the entire backside is flush with the ram ball bracket would be much sturdier IMO

 

[hollaback55]

Brown box showed up today. Finally have the winchline to go with my new fairlead. I went back and forth on this between Warn, Masterpull, and Viking. I ended up going with a 3/8ths line from Warn but was seriously considering the Superline from Masterpull. Price difference of $200 ended up swaying me toward the Warn rope. They have a great reputation so I'm confident in my choice.

Quick Notes:

Line looks great, is super light and has a very nice heat guard on the first wrap around the drum.

Drum will need to be sanded down with fine grit paper; steel line scarred it up a bit

If you have an AEV front bumper you will need to remove it to install the new fairlead and winchline. Normally this would not be an issue but if you have a AEV built truck after 2010 they most likely did not remove the metal portion of the front frame section where the crumple zone is. This means that trying to remove the AEV skid plate becomes a royal pain in the ***** b/c there is no access to get a wrench or a socket on the two bottom bolts they use to attach the skid plate up through the bottom. You will most likely need a lift or very tall jackstands, you will need to remove the tires, and you will need to get creative in getting a wrench in there. After speaking with their head tech Greg yesterday he said that once its on a lift there is a way to get a wrench in and get it on the nut while you get the bolt out through the bottom.

 

[UnlimiDozer]

lol, that's a heckuva stout mounting system for what amounts to a microphone! It is a great setup though. I love mine. I use it day-in, day-out for my iPhone (I know, probably lighter than your CB ) but i really bought it for using my iPad off-road. Works great for that as well!

The folks at Carolina Metal Masters are awesome as well! I was one of the first to get the version for the new interior ('11 up, I believe), and it happened at the time that my wife was having some very serious health problems. Jill kept in touch for several months afterward and always asked about her. You don't find too many companies like that anymore!

Here's mine:

 

[apalmer]

Well, there goes $150 bucks.