Made the Leap - 2012 AEV Built JK Unlimited Rubicon

[cobound]

I do a lot more overlanding style Jeeping now, would love an AEV...we have a stock '08 JK Unlimited Sahara that has had some miles put on cross country but nothing as deep into the rocks as I like to get. My Scrambler is set for long hauls and rock crawling but simply isn't as comfortable.

Thanx for sharing the things you have going on...I'll keep my eyes on this thread.

B

 

[hollaback55]

Thanks Cobund: I loved my LJ but with the change in style and type of adventures and wheeling I do the AEV Unlimited Rubicon is the perfect vehicle. It has nice room inside, spacious cabin for 2 adults and either kids or dogs, plus you can have all the creature comforts you want. Its definitely the best platform jeep has ever made IMO.

Items completed this week

1. black water cap installed
2. oil change
3. air filter change
4. install rear seat covers
5. adjusted front covers

Ok so to the important question of the seat covers. The rears fit nice and snug on the seat portion and slightly loose on the back rest portion. I figured this would be the case as the backrest portion has a different style of velcro attachment. It slips on from the side. the bottoms are very tight however and quite snug. There is much more space to rear under the seat and grab the straps to tighten them down. Also there are no sensors,plugs, or wires to get in the way like there are with the fronts.

On the front covers; after adjustment they are nice and tight on the bottom as well. the back rest is tighter but still shows some of the wrinkling. Now its hard to gauge in the pictures but I think they fit very well after a bit of use. Also they do not move around at all which is nice as you do not need to keep re adjusting them over time. I have a few pics now to post and will submit more later, fiancé took the jeep to visit the vet with Thor our bull terrier.

 

[fullofdays]

how did the headliner install go?

 

[hollaback55]

didn't get to the headliner yet, planning on doing the two front sections that come out tomorrow at work hopefully, will get to the rear pieces later on in the week.

Jeep spent most of the day at the vets office, Thor decided my shoe laces were quite tasty as well as my shorts.

 

[hollaback55]

so was planning on installing the headliner today at work but ran into a small issue.

the headliner is shipped very nicely. everything is packaged tight and taped down. they even included a small roller to complete the job. you will need to buy acetone to clean your hardtop which you can get from any local hardware store.

the instructions said that if using 3m tape which I am it is best to do the initial install between 70-100 degree's Fahrenheit. I watched the reviews online and also was on the website and did not see this information. They also state that it is a bad idea to do the install where ambient temperature is around 50 degrees or so. I can do the small panels upstairs in my office but the rest would have to wait until it warms up a few degrees on a warm day here in NYC. I'm hoping to get to it in a couple weekends when the weather is warmer. I do not want to take a chance the adhesion isn't solid b/c I couldn't wait a few more weeks.

attached are some photos of the packaging and what you get.

 

[Kiddmen57]

^^^^My Hothead liner is in the box, in my office right next to me right now. FedEx delivered it this morning. Just needs a jeep to go in now.....

Are you planning on installing the liner with the roof on or off? I'm thinking I will take the roof off and flip it over in the driveway on a blanket. I wont have any issues with temps here in Tucson, except I do risk being over the high end of the install range

can't wait to see your install post.

 

[TreeTopFlyer]

Not sure why you would take it off. I did mine in about 30mins with the top on. You just press and hold for a few seconds for the tape to adhere. They made it through 100+ degree days without falling. No cleaning the top with acetone either. Just stuck em up on there. The jeep only had about 50 miles on it so not much dirt or dust on the inside.

^^^^My Hothead liner is in the box, in my office right next to me right now. FedEx delivered it this morning. Just needs a jeep to go in now.....

Are you planning on installing the liner with the roof on or off? I'm thinking I will take the roof off and flip it over in the driveway on a blanket. I wont have any issues with temps here in Tucson, except I do risk being over the high end of the install range

can't wait to see your install post.

 

[hollaback55]

hothead headliners install

I plan on doing mine with the top on the jeep. It was designed to be able to do the rear sections with the top on and the front sections come out and can be done on a bench or table top.

i would definitely clean with acetone. I'm hoping to get this installed in the next few weeks. would have waited to order if I had know that I needed 70 degrees to install without any problems. we might not have 70 degrees for another month at least. either way i'm going to wait. gives me time to find someone whose within 500 miles that wants to swap tops with me. I'd like to have a body colored top instead of the textured black.

 

[hollaback55]

Next up on the mods list:

JK Trailgater rear storage table
JK interior rack: not sure if I'm going to go with AT or Frontrunner
Roof Rack: I like the Look/Function of the AEV Roof Rack but the Gobi stealth looks killer as well; thoughts, ideas?
Baja Designs Stealth LED Light windshield light mount
Baja Designs Stealth 50" light bar (already have)
Baja Designs Squadrons in factory fog light locations (already have)

Should be a busy month :Wow1:

 

[fullofdays]

hey Austin - I took my AEV/ RHINO rack off this weekend and the mounts and bolt location are not conducive to removal. Its the best rock out there but for removing the hard top. i posted in the AEV forum thread on my experience.

 

[hollaback55]

yeah i was reading your posts over there. they seem to be hard to reach from your experience. I loved my soft top with my LJ and figured I would definitely use the soft top with my JKU. I dont know which route to take b/c of the removal issue. I was planning on the AEV snorkel and I dont believe that works with the Gobi Rack. Frontrunner looks awkward to me on the front mounting with respect to the lines of the JKU. I really wanted the AEV setup but this entire install/removal issue is making me second guess the rack idea entirely.

If I removed it 1 or 2 a year do you see it being a major P.I.A?

 

[fullofdays]

That's the boat I'm in with my hardtop. Removing 1-2 times a year wouldn't be a deal breaker especially with all the amazing new products that Rhino is releasing next month that go on the rack...

 

[hollaback55]

idea on what products they are releasing for use with the rack?

 

[GetOutThere]

idea on what products they are releasing for use with the rack?

Also curious about this...

 

[fullofdays]

I heard from a guy @ SEMA that Rhino are finalizing development of a foxwing awning and tent combo and other accessories for their pioneer aluminum rack.

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