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Rolling my Jeep JL on highway makes me think....

Poseidon

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Whats up all. I’m the gentleman who had the Scary Rollover of my Jeep JL on Highway a few weeks ago. I’m ok and you read that story. Rolling my Jeep JL on the highway makes me think about lifts. Obviously the higher lift you get 2” 3” 4” 5” 6” plus the more of a chance of a rollover. You get the idea. I can tell you when we first purchase our Jeeps they sit very low to the ground. Ok maybe not like a car but for a Jeep there low. That’s just me how I feel and I had the unlimited which sits even lower than a Rubicon and I think the Sahara. So I went ahead and lifted it 3 1/2” plus I added mud terrain tires. Well I rode it and felt great as far as height and control and normal speeds as in speed limits. Serious sad limited here. I quickly realized with a 3 1/2” lift and 35 inch BF Goodrich T/A KO2. Great looking tires on the rig see the pics. So the focale point I make is this. When I rode this awesome vehicle my JL in the rain I had to be extremely careful in the rain as anyone should, but I had to even more carful due to the fact that the height and definitely the tires I had on Mud Terrain made for very bad traction in the rain. I felt not the greatest of traction and I will stress I’m your regular joe on the highway riding slow and not taking chances period. Around sharper turns in the rain on highways had to be carful. I felt it going out under me 3 to 4 times on me, meaning : slid my JL out on me a few times. Talking sliding for about 2 seconds no control. Not much but a little is feeling your not in control. I’m just stating that for me that’s how it felt so I just had to be very carful around sharper turns and much and stress much reduced speed on the highway due to just not the same traction period and again stress I did have on the wrong tries under those conditions which all terrain is what needed period I again had on Mud terrain tires. Off roading was a must for me so and to have them. Love those tries but in rain on pavement made hard on the traction.

Now moving on to dry ground is where my JL rollover accrued. I will start by saying that if I had left it stock and obviously sat lower to the ground I might not had flipped the JL. Continuing when I veered with the JL over to the left to allow the maniac driver to go by me is when my 2 left wheels hit the dirt and not much traction as the 2 on the right had total taction on the pavement is when the issue occurred of losing traction on my 2 left tires wheels causing my Jeep to start to sway side to side eventually sliding perpendicular to the highway. At that instant is what I remember last as the other cars rear hit my front right bumper and bang the JL rolled 2 1/2 times ending up on my side. I will say I feel that when you decide to get a lift, think about how your going to be using your Jeep and what works best for it ultimately leading to your desired liking and be aware of all the important thinks that really matter.good safe times and always putting safety first for all of those around us and ride with us (Jeep buddies) The higher you go the more your going to feel it in the rain or dry pavement when making turns. It’s just not like riding a sports car period and I know 99 percent of you know that.

Pls tell me your views on lifts,rain,tires used,control,speed they can handle etc etc. Tell me your thoughts and views and experiences as I will read all and much appreciated for my maybe future purchase of another Jeep JL and always people stay safe first! fellas and ladies. :)

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Blu bi Kong

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Most importantly glad you're here to reflect on this as a survivor!
That said, it seems that most drivers on highway are in a hurry. We aren't going to ever see that change. In the San Fernando Valley near Los Angeles, I have to heed to those people if I want to stay safe and not go all Rambo trying to school them. My Jeep has turned out to be built like an ox. I have enjoyed all it has evolved into. That said, I really drive more defensive than ever. What the Jeep has become has alot to do with it, getting older has a TINY amount to do with it and of course surviving my motorcycle accident on the freeway has contributed to it. I definitely drive different at this point in my life. Let em go, know they're gonna do the stupid thing before they do it and breth easy. All my family and friends are even more surprised than me of who I've become behind the wheel! I have evolved into this hyper peaceful, no hurry, let em have it guy. A Corvette, several Mustangs and a couple 500 hp plus trucks back in the day along with motorcycles for 51 years of my 56 yrs of life. Me and my Jeep just gonna be plutzzing along as a regular guy watching the movie of madness! I will get there when I get there and I feel like I am pretty confident I will be in one piece.
Sad to think that I have bowwed in any way to the crazies!! !
Turns out I'm all good with it tho. Oh, and did I mention there are whackos carrying guns out there that have no problem shooting any driver they feel bothered by!
I have definitely slowed my roll tho, for safety and serenity in my life.
Stay safe, don't give up and enjoy the life you've been blessed with. We're the lucky ones!
 
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ormandj

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Drive defensively and let the 'other guy' win. You don't win money being first. I pay just about as much, if not more attention behind me than I do in front. I can control what happens in front of me by maintaining a safe braking distance. I can't stop a yahoo behind me from hitting me. Maintaining situational awareness of what is behind allows me to avoid a lot of potentially bad situations.

As to lift/tires/etc, you always have to be aware of the nature of the vehicle you drive. I always make sure I have tires reasonably good in the wet, and drive a Jeep like a Jeep. No sharp turns, no sudden movements, etc.

Glad you are still with us to talk about things; I wish you all the best. Happy holidays!
 

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From someone who has lived a fairly long time now and experienced more than their fair share of dangerous/deadly encounters, I think now that you've rolled your Jeep and lived to tell about it, you are probably golden no matter what mods you do to your Jeep from here on out. I say, "Have at it, amigo!" ;)

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year! :like:

P.S.- One Saturday afternoon in 1972, I rolled my 1967 Triumph GT6 a number of times till it finally came to rest right-side-up on the westbound berm of US 322 just past the US 50 overpass in Atlantic County, New Jersey. I had been traveling eastbound and barrel-rolled across two lanes of oncoming traffic after hitting a huge puddle of water that was hidden in the shadow of the overpass. The water sent me hydroplaning across the low, wide concrete center median that was there. Fortunately, I didn't come into contact with anyone or anything. Yeah, that was an exciting afternoon!
 
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Poseidon

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Drive defensively and let the 'other guy' win. You don't win money being first. I pay just about as much, if not more attention behind me than I do in front. I can control what happens in front of me by maintaining a safe braking distance. I can't stop a yahoo behind me from hitting me. Maintaining situational awareness of what is behind allows me to avoid a lot of potentially bad situations.

As to lift/tires/etc, you always have to be aware of the nature of the vehicle you drive. I always make sure I have tires reasonably good in the wet, and drive a Jeep like a Jeep. No sharp turns, no sudden movements, etc.

Glad you are still with us to talk about things; I wish you all the best. Happy holidays!
Totally awesome answer my good good brother and yourself and family HAPPY HOLIDAYS :)
 

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Poseidon

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From someone who has lived a fairly long time now and experienced more than their fair share of dangerous/deadly encounters, I think now that you've rolled your Jeep and lived to tell about it, you are probably golden no matter what mods you do to your Jeep from here on out. I say, "Have at it, amigo!" ;)

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year! :like:

P.S.- One Saturday afternoon in 1972, I rolled my 1967 Triumph GT6 a number of times till it finally came to rest right-side-up on the westbound berm of US 322 just past the US 50 overpass in Atlantic County, New Jersey. I had been traveling eastbound and barrel-rolled across two lanes of oncoming traffic after hitting a huge puddle of water that was hidden in the shadow of the overpass. The water sent me hydroplaning across the low, wide concrete center median that was there. Fortunately, I didn't come into contact with anyone or anything. Yeah, that was an exciting afternoon!
God Bless you and so glad you made it also and here to talk about it. I was 8 years old then playing with my match box cars. Lol. Happy holidays buddy! :)
 
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Poseidon

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Everything the OP wrote is obvious. More lift, more chance of roll over; even if you widen the track 1.5 times the amount you lift the vehicle b/c the wider stance will exert more leverage on the springs meaning more body roll. Traditional mud tires aren't as good as all terrains on road.

The question is: why lift in the first place? Most people do it for the look. Period. Even if they wheel. They want to clear bigger tires and not rub and aren't willing to cut their brand new vehicle to make the bigger meats fit at a lower ride height (or even factory height). It's a personal preference thing....if you mod, you have to learn to drive to mitigate the risks of the mods you made. It's that simple.

We should be thankful that most of us live in states that still allow owners the freedom to customize their vehicles. Thought processes like this thread are what lead legislators to think that regulation is the answer rather than common sense (which seems less and less common...in defense of these legislators) when operating a modified vehicle on public roadways. The tendency is to blame the inanimate object (where have we seen this before?) rather than the person using it.

Accidents happen for all sorts of reasons....and this particular one wasn't caused by lift; it was caused by poor decision making on the part of the people involved. The lift *may* have made it worse but there's no way to know that for sure....so it's simply conjecture.
God Bless you buddy and happy holidays :) Stay safe as I will definitely keep this is mind as my next vehicle comes into play. :)
 

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Very well said and that was a great looking OFF-ROAD JEEP--

If we modify our jeeps to look like a REAL OFF-ROADER--how easy to forget that we MUST drive them on TODAYS FREEWAYS AT 70/75 MPH--

It's all OUR OWN STUPIDITY/FAULT--it's like riding a MOTORCYCLE--you may be the BEST RIDER, but the FREEWAYS are full of IDIOTS--

My JL see's almost NO FREEWAY--but that's not an ASSURANCE OF NO ACCIDENT, it still may happen-

I rolled my 1974 RAMCHARGER in 1975 after racing North of Sacramento--I've been there, unless you give up driving--it's part of out lives all my freeway driving now is in my BIG RAM !

Merry Christmas-

JIMBO
 
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Poseidon

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We're running 37s on our JLUR with no lift. And we wheel it....it can be done. That said, Jeep engineers did a piss poor job of belly clearance on this vehicle...as they have always done on the CJ and the Wrangler series....so it may be necessary to lift it a little to get break over angle...depending on the types of trails you like to run. Another option is to reconfigure the crossmembers and gas tank to gain 1.5" or so of clearance at the belly...that's the option I plan to explore on ours to keep the CoG down.

Best of luck to you. I'm glad you are okay from the accident and may YHWH bless and keep you and yours as well. :)
Thank you brother. Love the answer on clearance. I get so much knowledge from you Jeep guys. Thanks and thanks for caring! Happy holidays :)
 

Mrjimmystewart

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The lifts do look awesome! Yours looked great. I plan on just running stock, Moab. It still looks pretty good, although not as nasty as a good lift with big tires. But... It'll take me anywhere I want or need to go. No rock climbing. Will tow behind a bus I converted. Just want to get out and hike in places I can't normally get to. I anticipate that there will be very few places I can't get through.
 

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Poseidon

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Very well said and that was a great looking OFF-ROAD JEEP--

If we modify our jeeps to look like a REAL OFF-ROADER--how easy to forget that we MUST drive them on TODAYS FREEWAYS AT 70/75 MPH--

It's all OUR OWN STUPIDITY/FAULT--it's like riding a MOTORCYCLE--you may be the BEST RIDER, but the FREEWAYS are full of IDIOTS--

My JL see's almost NO FREEWAY--but that's not an ASSURANCE OF NO ACCIDENT, it still may happen-

I rolled my 1974 RAMCHARGER in 1975 after racing North of Sacramento--I've been there, unless you give up driving--it's part of out lives all my freeway driving now is in my BIG RAM !

Merry Christmas-

JIMBO
I love these thought out great answers. I’m going to learn much through this thread! I was 11 when in 1975 when I had my first rollover myself riding a Big Wheel. Just a couple of scraps and bruises.lol. Now that was a ride! God bless and happy holidays my man! :)
 
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Poseidon

Poseidon

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The lifts do look awesome! Yours looked great. I plan on just running stock, Moab. It still looks pretty good, although not as nasty as a good lift with big tires. But... It'll take me anywhere I want or need to go. No rock climbing. Will tow behind a bus I converted. Just want to get out and hike in places I can't normally get to. I anticipate that there will be very few places I can't get through.
True with the look but now this experience for me has me thinking just like you buddy. Maybe no lift and just enjoy the ride! :) Happy Holidays buddy :)
 

Blu bi Kong

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True with the look but now this experience for me has me thinking just like you buddy. Maybe no lift and just enjoy the ride! :) Happy Holidays buddy :)
It seems clear that you're replacing your Jeep. Happy to hear that's the case as well as even being a possibility! Wish you the best thru this and your holidays.
 

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Great to see you writing about your experience and your thoughts on what led up to it.

I agree with the different tires and traction section wholeheartedly! Mud tires are not made for everyday driving unless you live where it’s dirt roads! When making a change you need to understand this from that point forward! Under wet conditions I use to slow down well below the speed limit of simply get off the road until they get better, much like when riding my bike! Best case scenario is that you have a bad weather vehicle to use for these conditions, like when using a motorcycle. It really scares me when I see so many lifted mallcrawlers today. Most of these people do not understand what they have.

Lifting any vehicle above factory height automatically places you at a higher risk for turnover. Slight lifts can be compensated by making the stance wider through offset rims of spacers. I have a JRUL that I spaced out 2” on each side because I wanted to reduce the chance of a rollover on factory tires. This is because I understand the limitations of my rig. I have owned several lifted trucks in the past and have learned what can happen. I chose to try to be safer in today’s bad driver world.
That being said I also understand the desire to lift a Jeep! It looks awesome! But let’s be truthful! It’s not needed for over half the lifted Jeeps on the road today!

The factors you really did not discuss much was your surroundings during your accident. We know about the idiot driver and the fact that you went off the road with two tires but not what else was around you. I say this because years back I caught a blowout on the front right of a lifted Toyota when I struck something in the road. When my truck took off hard to the right I had room to allow it to go off the road and come to a stop instead of having to cut back towards the road. This room allowed me not to roll the truck.

Through the years with a lot of motorcycle riding I have trained myself to be aware of all my surroundings. This was not easy and was also the one hardest thing to train my wife in when I taught her to ride a motorcycle! It seems that at anytime today I am always looking for a way out if I am run off the road or something happens. Having two tires go off the road is not the end if you can slow down before trying to get them back on the road. Being able to let yourself go all the way off and come to a stop would also not be a bad thing as long as there is not obstructions there. In order to make these split second decisions though you must first be able to know what you are up against. Much like swerving for animals in the road. This has caused more accidents then anything. Yes you do not enjoy killing an animal, but killing people with you or other motorist would be worse. Remember that if a vehicle gets sideways it will roll a high percentage of the time. Speed along with this will determine how many rolls you do! Always try to keep your vehichle as straight as possible and avoid stomping on the brakes in these cases. Going completely off the highway may be a better choice then coming back on it if you are losing control. You can always tow your vehicle back out but rolling it is very bad.

My point is that in today’s world you really have to be aware of all of your surroundings including texting motorists and shoulders. My wife hates that I slow down when I see someone acting stupid passing me when I am doing the speed limit (or slightly above). The truth is I don’t care about them, I care about us.

Poseidon, I just want to say that my post above is for other members who may read this thread and not something trying to tell you what you should of done. I’m not into I told you so’s. I love the ability to learn from different members on this thread and like to contribute whenever I have first hand knowledge is all.

Merry Christmas to all.
 

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My rubicon suspension is staying stock. I don’t believe in lifts. I like my KO2 tires, when the terrain gets too much for them the chains come on. No mud tires for me because I want to drive with the crowd on the highway, and not be a hazard to them by keeping same speed as the guy running highway tires. Been driving off-road most of my life mainly for work. The main difference for me has been that I look for a way to get there instead of getting nowhere but going thru or over that for the sake of it. This last attitude is the sport most people practice here. So the mods will be endless since there is always a bigger boulder.
To me the joy is setting a point in the map and getting there with my daily driver. For some of the stuff people use their jeeps I rather get an ATV. It’s a lot more fun and built for purpose.
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