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Insight needed from Rubicon owners

Chad1433

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The rear metal bumper can push into the body if you come down on a rock on the corners. Lots of people have had it happen including myself. The front bumper is pretty good though.
It's actually the bracket that bends. All of our fleet vehicles have the same problem, so we shifted to plastic in the rear to save the body. Seems to have worked. A better, slimmer bumper would be ideal and is what I'll do on my own Wrangler.
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MRH512

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2020 4dr Rubi JLU here.

I'm on the stock Rubi tires and suspension and have zero complaints. My offloading is limited to dirt trails and some Level 1-3 adventure park areas and it eats them up. And it's really comfortable on-road as well.

I have no interest in rock crawling so I'm going to take it to some places in Colorado and Utah to see how many obstacles I have to bypass and how that makes me feel before deciding to lift it or not. My gut tells me I won't lift it because, as a weekend warrior, I don't want to sacrifice ride quality and comfort.

Get the aux switches and the larger factory touch screen. They're worth it. I added a pair of Baja Design Amber Squadron Pro lights on the cowls and the connection was ridiculously simple with the aux switches.

I got mine with the stock plastic bumpers and added the Mopar steel front bumper only afterwards. I read a lot about how unnecessary the steel rear bumper is and wanted to save the weight by only replacing the front. If you get the stock plastic bumpers and do the steel front after the fact, you'll also need to get the steel skid plate because you have to remove a crossbar that the plastic one connects to during the install.

I added a Warn EVO VR10 winch because I tend to off-road alone or with some friends in my Jeep rather than a caravan or a club. If you go wheeling with a group and someone else has a winch, you can probably skip it.

Something I recommend that I haven't seen mentioned much is replacing the LED fog lights. They're just too white and bright when used in actual fog. They reflect off of the moisture too much. I'm waiting on a set of amber fog lights (also Baja Designs) to come in.
 

MRH512

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Yeah, this time around, I don't need a lift for 35s. Don't need to regear. Stereo is great. Can add a winch with a plate. Head Lights are great. Aux switches are so simple to wire up.

Just my $0.02...
Are you running 35s on the stock Rubi suspension without a lift? I've been debating going this route but haven't found anyone who's done it without a lift to ask how they like it.
 

HardRock

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Are you running 35s on the stock Rubi suspension without a lift? I've been debating going this route but haven't found anyone who's done it without a lift to ask how they like it.
Yes you can do it - at full articulation the tires will rub. If mall crawling no problem. There are lots of posts and photos about it here.
 

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moonlit

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Nole_Dynasty

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With my 2020 Rubi JL now 6 weeks old I am beyond happy with my 3rd and by far best Jeep I’ve ever owned. Mine is Used primarily for dirt road and country paved. Living in Vermont an absolute MUST was the Cold Weather Package. As for other options.. I opted for the following:

Alpine w/ 8.4” screen( if you enjoy music this is a fantastic upgrade)

Auxiliary package( to keep the lines and aesthetics on the inside, having these switches so easily accessible was worth every penny)

Steel Bumper( with the bolts already in place , add ons are easy to install and look amazing
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What bull horn is that? Love it
 

wibornz

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What's worse the bridge or the white pants??? LOL
The white pants are the worst of the two. You can always rebuild a bridge or buy a new Jeep, you can not unsee the white pants.
 

EJH220

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Are you running 35s on the stock Rubi suspension without a lift? I've been debating going this route but haven't found anyone who's done it without a lift to ask how they like it.
Technically they are 315/70 R 17s, so not quite 35s, but I haven't (and probably won't) hit full articulation. I'm mostly snow and mud fun.
 

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ML7

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•What are your impressions so far bone stock?
You will probably want some of the features, but thats up to you.

•What mods do you think are absolutely necessary if any for a stock Rubicon for driving habits I mentioned above?
none really if you dont mind taking some bypass routes

•What are your personal thoughts from experience on the factory aux switches and steel bumpers?
Dont get the Aux switches, having something not connected to your main computer is better, for the price you can get 8 switches, and they can try to say your 3rd party accessories are the cause of issues, and depends if you want to do the work or have it all done at the dealer, the steel front is ok, the rear is not, if I was going to order just get aftermarket for both

•What winch recommendations do you have? Not going to be used heavily just there for those just in case scenarios.
Harbor freight gets a lot of good reviews here, I went with a Smittybilt
 

wibornz

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Are you running 35s on the stock Rubi suspension without a lift? I've been debating going this route but haven't found anyone who's done it without a lift to ask how they like it.
One of my wheeling bud runs a stock Rubicon with 35s. He completed the Rubicon trail with us. Mind you he scrubbed often, but hey we all scrubbed some. We only winched him twice. So I would say that if you can do the Rubicon trail with out a lift and 35s, you can wheel just about anything as long as you pick good lines and have a good spotter.

Pics of Rob and Kimberly's JLUR on 35s with no lift.

Jeep Wrangler JL Insight needed from Rubicon owners 1615925917618


Jeep Wrangler JL Insight needed from Rubicon owners 1615926006808


When someone asked Kimberly if she wanted to turn back. She said, "I would rather flip this mother fucker upside down and light it on fire than turn around." She is an inspiration to all of us.

Jeep Wrangler JL Insight needed from Rubicon owners 1615926109338
 

MRH512

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One of my wheeling bud runs a stock Rubicon with 35s. He completed the Rubicon trail with us. Mind you he scrubbed often, but hey we all scrubbed some. We only winched him twice. So I would say that if you can do the Rubicon trail with out a lift and 35s, you can wheel just about anything as long as you pick good lines and have a good spotter.

Pics of Rob and Kimberly's JLUR on 35s with no lift.

Jeep Wrangler JL Insight needed from Rubicon owners 1615926109338


When someone asked Kimberly if she wanted to turn back. She said, "I would rather flip this mother fucker upside down and light it on fire than turn around." She is an inspiration to all of us.
That is awesome! Sounds like a great wheelin' buddy to have! Do you know if they went with 305 or 315 width on the 35s? I want to go up to the 315s but I don't think they'll fit the stock Rubicon wheels (which I actually like).
 

Carolina Jeeper

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Since I added the Rusty's tailgate reinforcement kit I've had no more squeaking sounds in the back. It's pretty solid back there now. It's got an antenna Mount I can use later if needed. The third tail light is mounted behind the spare and easily shines through the spokes of the wheel. Camera is now protected inside heavy gauge metal as well.

I also installed a LOD Destroyer rear bumper that has an integrated hitch and off road lighting pockets. Mounted the license tag on the to left of the bumper too. No holes needed since there are hidden mounting brackets on the bumper. Haven't done any hauling yet since i don't have the trailer light wiring installed.

Very pleased with this setup.

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wibornz

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That is awesome! Sounds like a great wheelin' buddy to have! Do you know if they went with 305 or 315 width on the 35s? I want to go up to the 315s but I don't think they'll fit the stock Rubicon wheels (which I actually like).
His tires are 35x12.5r17 on the factory wheels.
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