Need some advice for a JL Rubicon

wibornz

New member
So I retire soon, 5 months 20 days, but who's counting.... My plan is to buy a Unlimited Rubicon for my retirement gift. The only options I care about is the cold weather group, led lights, auto transmission and tow package. I will buy most likey in the spring of 19 as I will be traveling so much and there is no reason for it to sit over the long michigan winter plus it will give Jeep a little more time of building experience with the new model.

So this is where I need the advice. In retirement, my wife and I plan to use our motor home as a base camp and then use the jeep to explore mountain passes and trails from AZ to Ak. We plan on parking the motorhome and then taking off from there with the Jeep. I want the Rubicon because of the locking diffs and the swaybar disconnect. I plan to not use them to get somewhere, only to help get out of trouble if I find myself in it. I will mod the jeep in hopes that I never have to make the wife walk 60 miles out of the mountains.

I plan on sticking to easy and or moderate trails and passes. I DO NOT want to tear up a new vehicle, but I do understand the risk of it happening. We do not have a time limit and plan on just moving from state to state until we gone from AZ to Ak. Leave in March and come back to Michigan about early October.

So I am leaning towards 37 in tires, but think that there is a lot of added expense to go to 37 in tires over 35 in tires. I will have bead lot wheels. I just want to do it right the first time. Is the extra tire size worth it for easy to moderate trails? I am also looking at it like insurance as I want the Jeep built so that I only use about 70% of its capacity leaving room to ensure that we are not walking out.

I want a quality lift and shocks. There are so many suppliers of lifts and shocks that they are hard to sort out. I am looking more for quality and durability and function. Once again trying to avoid the long walk.

I have pretty much decided on the Warn 12,000 pound winch unless someone can sway me in a difference direction. I am open minded.

I will need an air compressor also. Thinking on-board air is the way to go, but not against having a compressor in a bag. Once again, there are so many of these, that it is hard to pick out the best.

I have about 5 grand set aside for mods and will do the work myself and with the help of a friend. I have 25 grand set aside for the down payment, and if I wait until spring of 19, I will probably have a little over 30 to put down. My goal is to have an under 400 a month payment and then just put cash to it to pay it off as soon as possible. I will have a little over two years to sort the Jeep out do all the mods and be ready to head out. The two year wait is waiting on the wife to retire. Yes, I will be slacking around the house while wifey brings home the Jeep money...... The 36 ft motor home is paid for and the aluminum trailer for the Jeep is paid for. Might even start buying the mods before I get the jeep.

If you can suggest web sites or products that you think would be useful in my quest, Please post a link and give me feedback. I want to hear from people that are actually doing what we want to do.
 

longarmwj

New member
From the type of trails that you are wanting to do, I would set up your JL like Eddie currently has JET Li set up. 2.5 inch lift, and 37s. Honestly, you probably don't even need 37s for your application. You could run a 2.5 inch lift and 35s and be fine. Take a look at what JET Li did stock in some of Eddie's videos. It sounds like the trails you will be on will be nowhere near as severe as the one he went down STOCK.

As for lifts, Offroad Evolution is fantastic quality, as is Rancho. Plus they are both Wayalife supporters which is a plus. AEV makes good quality stuff too, as well as JKS, and I've seen nice kits from Rock Krawler too.

Stay away from brands like Skyjacker, Rough Country, and Teraflex, as they all use cheap metal and weak bushings.

If you want a winch, the Warn you mentioned is a GREAT piece of equipment. You mentioned wanting to run an air compressor. Look into the Warn Powerplant series of winches. They have air compressors built into the winch :yup:
 

Brute

Hooked
I like your plan...and I think you won't need anything larger than 35's for your use...that way you won't need to regear
 

wibornz

New member
I was thinking 35 should be ok. Any recommendations for shocks and a lift.
The fridge is now on my list of things to buy. I have multiple 40,000 pound straps and multiple clevises and was thinking about getting a land anchor. Also a hi lift jack, different front and rear bumpers.
 

MonoJoe

New member
I went 35’s with 4.10 (cause that what it came with) and I love it. Wife drives the jeep daily and loves it. Mostly street, so went Duratrac. Progressive springs too. So far so good. Now let’s take it on the trail....


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wibornz

New member
This will not be a daily driver persay. It will be mainly used for off road or to get to the off road so I am not to worried about the street. I do not want loud mud tires.
 

NC Taxman

New member
I want to be just like wibornz when I grow up! Sound like you've got this all figured out. Congrats on retirement. I think you've received lots of good advice. I'll recommend 35s also and will recommend some sort of portable compressed CO2 tank (Power Tank is just one brand, but there are others). I've had on-board air, portable air compressors and a PT. The PT has by far been the best and most useful. I never leave home without it.

Enjoy retirement and Godspeed on your travels.
 

wibornz

New member
I am thinking for options on the JL, that I want:
Cold Weather Group.....heated seats and stearing wheel so that if the top is off and we go up in elevation, we can still keep some heat in us.
tow package....... may need this if the Motorhome struggles and we off load the jeep and use the jeep to pull the trailer in mountains at times.
auto transmission,......hey I am oldER and like to drink coffee while we wheel.
upgraded sound system.......We rock it out at time. Rob Bailey and the Hustler Standard...... check them out. They have some great music if you actually listen to them.
https://youtu.be/Bcf4Wyf520A

Hard top and soft top.
LED lights


Is there any other options that you wish you would have got? I like the steel bumpers, but it is not a deal breaker as they are easily replaced. I also like the proximity keys but again not a deal breaker.
 

Erockhopper

New member
I just jumped from a JKU Rubicon with 35s and grabbed a JLU Rubicon. I went with the cold weather package, towing and 8 speed as must haves. everything else you can add or build up later. I would agree with others that 35's are going to be plenty, but if you are set on the 37s it wouldn't take much to get there. The main reason I am sticking to 35s is it will be my daily driver. If it wasn't for that I would have a hard time not going with 37s as easily as the JL's can accommodate that tire size.
 

LittleWilly

New member
I am thinking for options on the JL, that I want:
Cold Weather Group.....heated seats and stearing wheel so that if the top is off and we go up in elevation, we can still keep some heat in us.
tow package....... may need this if the Motorhome struggles and we off load the jeep and use the jeep to pull the trailer in mountains at times.
auto transmission,......hey I am oldER and like to drink coffee while we wheel.
upgraded sound system.......We rock it out at time. Rob Bailey and the Hustler Standard...... check them out. They have some great music if you actually listen to them.
https://youtu.be/Bcf4Wyf520A

Hard top and soft top.
LED lights


Is there any other options that you wish you would have got? I like the steel bumpers, but it is not a deal breaker as they are easily replaced. I also like the proximity keys but again not a deal breaker.

This is the stuff I ordered today for my 2 door JL. Now gotta wait 6 weeks.
 

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WW_Svi

New member
If you can afford the options, all you listed are great!

I got the rubicon with:
leather (wife really like the leather when we test drove)
Cold package: heated seats and steering wheel are great, get pretty hot. Comes with remote start and engine block heater.
Infotainment: gives you the premium sound which includes active noise cancelling and I believe the offroad pages when the software update is released
Led lights are amazing
The floor mats are really nice but can be ordered later, the aux switches with the tow package can be ordered later if you don’t get that package, ( tow package gives an upgraded alternator but rubicon has a 220amp I believe, slightly bigger battery, and of course wiring and hitch.)

If you want factory bumpers and a winch then I think you have to get the steel bumpers unless you want to do some custom work.

I wish I would have gotten the proximity purely for the convenience but not a problem without it.

However, if you get all the options then the price adds up fairly fast. I can get employee pricing which helps out a lot but I’ve seen a lot of people on the web getting good discounts, near the employee price level.


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