looking at a new 15 hard rock and have some questions

First off I really like the looks of the hard rock, and since I won't have any free cash after I buy one then I won't be worrying about new bumpers etc., but i do have a couple of questions Can you get a tube bar to protect the winch? The only one I can find so far is as expensive as a bumper at +$600.
second with the new maps being Garmin and I presume a garmin gps in the radio. Can you load or via a secondary device use any of the top maps series That run on a Garmin gps through the 430 n radio?

those of you that have it was the Hard rock package worth it?

wanderer said:

First off I really like the looks of the hard rock, and since I won't have any free cash after I buy one then I won't be worrying about new bumpers etc., but i do have a couple of questions Can you get a tube bar to protect the winch? The only one I can find so far is as expensive as a bumper at +$600.
second with the new maps being Garmin and I presume a garmin gps in the radio. Can you load or via a secondary device use any of the top maps series That run on a Garmin gps through the 430 n radio?

those of you that have it was the Hard rock package worth it?

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Maximus-3 sells one and it's not too bad, but it's the only one really other than an AEV solution. IMO, it's not needed at all. My Xeon 10 fits down in the HR's bumper pretty nicely and the only thing that would really get it would be something directly coming for it, which a tube wouldn't help with..only something falling on it.

You can not do anything with the garmin maps in the 430..its just garmin licensed stuff, but it's not a seperate garmin unit.

I have a Rubicon X (the only difference is the Hard Rock has the new premium sound system that's available for all 2015 models, and the 10A is also almost identical except it has red leather seats, a 1/2" body lift and one size larger tires). I was thinking the same thing as you: I like the look, and it has a lot of the things I'd want to improve already upgraded. When you add up what those upgrades would cost if you did them on your own, it's a real good value. It will also save you time on your build since there's less that you would need to upgrade. The MOPAR bumpers and rock rails are stout and shouldn't let you down unless you really thunder in hard, so you can't go wrong with this. And even if you decide to upgrade the bumpers, etc later on, you should be able to get some decent money back by selling your take off parts.

Like H8ROADS said, the bumper protects the Zeon winch really well. The only part of it that isn't covered by the bumper is the control pack, and if you really wanted to you could use Warn's relocation kit to put that somewhere else (like under the hood), but that shouldn't be necessary. H8ROADS did an install thread when he put his in, it's worth a look because it will show you just how well protected the winch is: http://wayalife.com/showthread.php?22568-Maximus-3-Winch-Plate-and-Zeon-10S-install-on-10A-X-HR-Bumper&highlight=maximus.

FYI, the Maximus-3 stinger is in the $350 range, and they have a few other hoop designs that cost even less. They would do more to protect your grill than the winch, but unless you're spending most of your time in the woods and may have to plow through brush you probably won't need to worry about that. They do look real nice though.

And about the nav, yeah it's intended for on road use. It's the same head unit that's available for most Chrysler vehicles, and there's nothing special on them for the Jeep. You can't add maps yourself either; the only thing that would change them is an update disk from Chrysler. It basically has the same OS as the Garmin Nuvi, but there are even a couple of its features left out. My recommendation would be to either pick up an hiking / outdoors GPS, or if you have a smart phone there are a few GPS apps that you can use (GPS Essentials or Backcountry Navigator are two android apps that I've used, and I'd recommend either of them).