Wife's JKU Build

FredBMOC

New member
Hi Everyone, First post!

After researching and imagining this Jeep build for over a year, reading lots of threads, looking at lots of people's builds, it is finally my turn! Let's get this party started! :clap2:

- 11/27 Order placed
- 12/02 Vin assigned
- 01/09/17 (tonight) Delivery of "wife's" JKU
( She is traveling so I was forced to put it in my name; I guess it's mine now )

2017 Wrangler Sport 23 C
Granite Crystal Metallic
Manual Transmission
Max Tow Package 3.73 gears
Connectivity Group
Half Doors :wings:
NOTHING ELSE


First impression driving the Jeep in stock form with the steel 16" wheels and stock tires (P225/75 R16) at highways speeds: steering is very vague, no "on center" feel (wanders), very light steering effort. Hopefully we can make this feel better with some improvements.

Half doors and stock soft top at 65 MPH on highway: a bit loud! I had never even seen or driven a half door JK before but wife said let's go for it so now we have it! Also, I wish Jeep would have spent the money to match the trim on the half doors with the rest of the interior - It is kind of mismatched but I already knew that before buying it so it didn't surprise me. So lucky it's going to be the wife's DD, not mine :bleh: Let's see how long before she tells me she needs a more "civilized" car to drive :icon_crazy:

Thanks to everyone who has posted and shared their experience on Wayalife, you guys have helped me spend thousands of dollars before even getting this Jeep! now it is time to put it all together and see how this turns out :clap2: Since placing our order on 11/27 I have spent every free moment here on this forum reading and have been burning a whole in my bank account :naw: buying a lot of stuff to try to do this build right but quickly. I'll start modding things and uploading pictures starting tomorrow. Tonight I have some more research to do ... Wish me luck I don't screw up anything I can't fix!

Fred
Fort Lauderdale

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Newjeep15

New member
I remember my first post

Welcome to WAL... have fun tons of Information here.. These guys truly are great a great help..

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FredBMOC

New member
First of all, thanks to everyone for the warm welcome!

Last night I started to work on the Wife's JKU.
First, in preparation for the lift install this Saturday, I took some measurements and some pictures:
Starting measurements:
Center of wheel hub to bottom of stock fenders:
RF - 20 3/4
LF - 20 3/4
RR - 20 5/8
LR - 20 3/4

Ground to bottom of stock fenders:
RF - 34 1/2
LF - 34 1/2
RR - 34 3/8
LR - 34 1/2

I also measured the springs from the perches to the tops so later I should be able to see the effect of the changes we have make on the height of the JK and it's suspension.

After measuring I started on some of the lighting:

JW Speaker Headlight install
Sunpie turn signal and side marker install
Both really easy projects. I went with the JW headlights because I wanted a quality product for such critical component but I used the inexpensive Sunpies for the other lights because I felt those applications aren't critical and I could try to save some cash; which will obviously be used for yet more mods to the Jeep. This project already feels like a slippery slope :shock:

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Springs 17/57: I don't know what these mean in terms of stiffness, and length but those are what came stock on Wife's jeep with half doors and soft top.

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Finally, today I also had the wheels and tires mounted so I can install them on the weekend and I was really surprised how heavy they were as I loaded then on my company van so I decided to see how much those wheels and tires weigh! 110 lbs each! OUCH! :icon_crazy: I guess the spare is going to be a pretty gas guzzling and suspension spring crushing ornament hanging on the back of the JK as I know for a fact my wife will never attempt to change a tire that big and heavy!


The fun will continue Saturday with the lift install.
Tonight I have to watch videos and read up some more to make sure I get the lift installed right:thinking:

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Fred
Fort Lauderdale
 

black pearl

Hooked
Welcome to WAYALIFE [emoji112] I have a 2.5 lift on my 16 JKUR after adding my rear bumper and gas cans and spare I may put 3" lift Springs on the back as it squats a little in the back now with the added weight


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FredBMOC

New member
I'm installing a 2.5 lift as well along with a heavy bumper and tire carrier combo plus this 110 lb boat anchor in the back so I will add a spring spacer in the rear right off the bat. Hopefully things will line up and I can avoid having to change the springs.
This jeep modding thing is not an exact science :thinking:

Welcome to WAYALIFE [emoji112] I have a 2.5 lift on my 16 JKUR after adding my rear bumper and gas cans and spare I may put 3" lift Springs on the back as it squats a little in the back now with the added weight


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FredBMOC

New member
Hi everyone, I did the lift install this past weekend with the help of a friend. The lift kit as I installed it:

2.5" Teraflex lift
Rancho 9000 shocks
Rancho Geo brackets
Teraflex exhaust spacer
Teraflex monster front track bar
Teraflex 1" coil spacer in rear only

I know Teraflex isn't the most popular lift kit around here but I had already bought it and received it when I read about it here; hopefully it won't be as terrible as you all report, if it is, I'll buy some different springs and change.

Overall not too bad of an install if you have plenty of wrenches and sockets. The rear was easier and faster to install. The front took longer, especially the install of the Geo Brackets because there seemed to be a lot of tension on the upper and lower bars and we couldn't figure out how to release it to disconnect everything and install the brackets; once we got past that hurdle the rest wasn't too bad.

Measurements pre and post install:
Center of wheel cap to bottom of stock fenders:
STOCK - WITH LIFT
RF - 20 3/4. - 23
LF - 20 3/4. - 23
RR - 20 5/8. - 23 7/8
LR - 20 3/4. - 23 3/4

Ground to bottom of stock fenders:
STOCK - WITH LIFT
RF - 34 1/2 - 39 1/2
LF - 34 1/2 - 39 1/2
RR - 34 3/8 - 40 3/4
LR - 34 1/4 - 40 3/4

It is a little hard to get an accurate measurement because the wheels stick out a lot further then they used to so the measurement isn't precise. Overall I like the new height of the Jeep.

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FredBMOC

New member
On Sunday I worked on installing the Offroad Heroes Multi top. Now, that was a bitch of an install but it does make the Jeep look pretty awesome!

I'll try to get some better pictures tomorrow.

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DeJkUnlimited

Caught the Bug
Nice looking Jeep! I'm a little partial to the color and the rims! I found the Fuel Beast looking for a rim that didn't have an obnoxious center cap. Just so happened to look REALLY good on the Granite Crystal. :thumb:
 

FredBMOC

New member
Thanks for the compliments gents! color, half doors and wheels picked by the wife, not me; I'm just the buyer, installer and bank :thinking:

Regarding wheels and tires:
- 18x9 Fuel Beast wheels
- 35x12.5x18 tires

More mods coming in the future.
 
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