Jeepeto III - JLUR XR (Xtreme Recon) Build Thread

[ExpeditionBuilds]

Hi Josh! You have a great list of upgrades already put together for this build.

Thanks for your response. You have a beautiful Jeep by the way!

I'm running the MC 3.5" Game Changer and love it (I ran the same lift on my previous JK build). My reason for running the MC lift is this, it rides great for daily driving and for a short arm kit, will flex like mad. I'm attaching a pic of the first flex as we installed the lift.

I keep reading nothing but good things about this lift. I pulled the trigger on it this morning, and I'm definitely excited to hopefully have my "buy once; cry once" solution

I have the AAL MASS Cargo Shelf, ARB compressor mount/Relocation Bracket and waiting on the MASS Storage System and Fridge Slide Out. All the AAL products are super well designed and manufactured. Having the ability to add custom colors is also very cool.

Glad to have some real world feedback on the AAL stuff. It looks very clean, I'm pretty sure this is what I will end up going with. I really like the way it looks with the red/black; that will match my rig anyway. What did you end up ordering for your storage system/fridge? I'm trying to find what works and what doesn't. (i.e. fridge slide out driver side with (2) 6" drawers and (1) 3" drawer on passenger?) I haven't seen too many full set-ups online. Also I noticed a YouTube video from a month or so ago that shows a triple fridge slider that may become available soon, looks like a nice option if it ever makes it to production. Also, what fridge do you have? And would you recommend it?

I'm running the Baja Designs LP4's...incredible light source.

Baja Designs is top notch. I ran them on my last rig and cannot say enough good things. I love the versatility, being able to change from a white spot to an amber flood is very nice.

Here's a few thoughts to consider:

- Upgraded shocks?

Going with the rocksports for now, maybe one day I'll throw on some six packs if I find the need

- TeraFlex Spare Tire Carrier to help carry the weight of the new 37's?

From what I understand the Mopar tailgate reinforcement is sufficient? Not 100% on this, but I think I read it somewhere. Anyway, it's part of the XR package. If it comes out that it's not sufficient I will definitely look into something to support the extra weight.

- Rock Slide Engineering StepSliders (Your wife will thank you)

Are these those steps that auto-magically drop down when you open the door? Do you have them? How do they hold up off road?

Looking forward to watching this build come together!

I'm signed up for my own mailing list on this one. Definitely excited to see it some together as well.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw

I'm a sucker for YouTube, I'll definitely check it out!

-Steven

Appreciate the compliment, Rubi is a work in progress. You'll really love the 3.5" Game Changer lift. The RockSport shocks are perfectly tuned the MC springs and sized for great articulation.

I spent 3 days running the Rubicon Trail (I was shooting content) with a group 12 Jeeps and several were running the AAL products. This allowed me to see them in action and all the owners had rave reviews. While I was building my Jeep I was in St. George and had a chance to stop in and talk with Brit the owner and see what they were doing. Again, came away impressed. My Jeep is my daily driver so I want/need open space in the cargo area. Initially I will have the MASS Storage System and Fridge Slider. I will only install the the slider for my wheeling trips. I will be using a RTIC 45qt cooler with the tie down kit. It's enough for what I'm doing now and I simply cannot justify a Refrigerator/Freezer. Having the MASS Shelf in the Jeep was a really great addition to my cargo organization. I ended up going with the AAL ARB Twin bracket because I'll be set-up for an Aux battery if I need that in the future for a refrigerator. The AAL Compressor Remote Kit is designed to maximize cargo space and sets you up for powering the Fridge as well as other accessories, take a close look at that.

The Mopar Tailgate Reinforcement Bracket is rated for up to a 37, so you should be good there. I'm running the same on my Recon/37's. I added TeraFlex Alpha Adj. Spare Tire Mount to move the tire up and I really like the design of the camera mount.

Yes, the RSE Step Sliders electrically deploy/retract. They recently released their Gen 3 which has a number of great upgrades. If you go that route, buy the armor kit. You can see the durability of them on my YouTube channel (Tough Enough For The Rubicon). On 3.5" lift and 37's, it was getting difficult for my wife and passengers to get in/out, especially on the trail. Also, I have a code that will save you 10% off of any RSE purchase should you need it.

By the way, the RK No-Limit Sway Bar Links look great! I may try running a set of those. Did you run them on your previous build?

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

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[rent]

@Jeepeto Josh, is this the AAL camp kitchen slide out you were referring to:

https://americanadventurelab.com/product/flipn-slide-6x4/?mc_cid=2b291bbcfe&mc_eid=564e89590d

 

[Jeepeto]

Appreciate the compliment, Rubi is a work in progress. You'll really love the 3.5" Game Changer lift. The RockSport shocks are perfectly tuned the MC springs and sized for great articulation.

I spent 3 days running the Rubicon Trail (I was shooting content) with a group 12 Jeeps and several were running the AAL products. This allowed me to see them in action and all the owners had rave reviews. While I was building my Jeep I was in St. George and had a chance to stop in and talk with Brit the owner and see what they were doing. Again, came away impressed. My Jeep is my daily driver so I want/need open space in the cargo area. Initially I will have the MASS Storage System and Fridge Slider. I will only install the the slider for my wheeling trips. I will be using a RTIC 45qt cooler with the tie down kit. It's enough for what I'm doing now and I simply cannot justify a Refrigerator/Freezer. Having the MASS Shelf in the Jeep was a really great addition to my cargo organization. I ended up going with the AAL ARB Twin bracket because I'll be set-up for an Aux battery if I need that in the future for a refrigerator. The AAL Compressor Remote Kit is designed to maximize cargo space and sets you up for powering the Fridge as well as other accessories, take a close look at that.

The Mopar Tailgate Reinforcement Bracket is rated for up to a 37, so you should be good there. I'm running the same on my Recon/37's. I added TeraFlex Alpha Adj. Spare Tire Mount to move the tire up and I really like the design of the camera mount.

Yes, the RSE Step Sliders electrically deploy/retract. They recently released their Gen 3 which has a number of great upgrades. If you go that route, buy the armor kit. You can see the durability of them on my YouTube channel (Tough Enough For The Rubicon). On 3.5" lift and 37's, it was getting difficult for my wife and passengers to get in/out, especially on the trail. Also, I have a code that will save you 10% off of any RSE purchase should you need it.

By the way, the RK No-Limit Sway Bar Links look great! I may try running a set of those. Did you run them on your previous build?

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

Again it's great to hear positive feedback for the AAL stuff, I really want to like it, and so far everyone I talk to seems to be making it easy to do so. I've definitely seen that bracket that fits in the OE storage space, and I really like the idea of using that space for a battery. I have already ordered a different tire inflation system that mounts under the front passenger seat and locates two air outlets under driver/passenger seats to fill all four tires at once with a pop off valve tunable for perfect PSI inflation every time. I may end up ordering the AAL for the battery placement, and maybe put the compressor under the rear deck too, and run hose up to the front seats to make a best of both worlds installation. I'll have to look into this deeper, but I like the rear fuse box/air filter/fridge 12v bracket they make as well.

Those RSE steps look pretty sweet, and as long as they're up to the task I'll definitely keep that in my back pocket if the wife starts to complain about 37s. If I do go with them, you'll be the first to know, 10% amounts to some money on those.

The RK No-Limit Sway Bar Links are something I saw in another thread. Apparently they pair well with the MC 3.5" GC lift. They seem to look up to task more than the supplied MC ones, so I went ahead and ordered them up with the kit.

Nothing wrong with RTIC (Texas company ) I will probably go the same way with my 45qt for a while until I can get everything figured out back there.

Thanks again for taking the time to respond on this. I do appreciate your input, especially on the AAL stuff. I'm pretty excited to have the room to build out some gear storage in this rig. I've never had any space to speak of, this is a big upgrade for me.

 

[Jeepeto]

@Jeepeto Josh, is this the AAL camp kitchen slide out you were referring to:

https://americanadventurelab.com/product/flipn-slide-6x4/?mc_cid=2b291bbcfe&mc_eid=564e89590d

Very nice! I swear I looked everywhere for that thing. I figured I was gonna have to send an email and get put on a watch list or something. Thanks!

 

[Jeepeto]

I stopped by Discount Tire today to order up some rubber and I was able to snag the last (5) 37x12.5r17 Yokohama Geolander G003's in the country. Nitto Trail Grapplers and Cooper SST Pros were on backorder nationwide. Just an FYI if you're looking to buy tires soon apparently there is a shortage.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

I recently saw an email from Northridge that the new 38x12.5 Ridge Grapplers were in stock. That'd be badass on your badass build.

Just sayin'!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw

-Steven

 

[Jeepeto]

I recently saw an email from Northridge that the new 38x12.5 Ridge Grapplers were in stock. That'd be badass on your badass build.

Just sayin'!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw

-Steven

I saw that too! I'm going to take it conservatively for now. Nitto's already run true to size, 38" would be BIG. (although I think I saw they were load range C, that's pretty sweet) I think deep down I secretly wanted to go back with the Yokohama's and was looking for an excuse to do so. They performed really well on my last build. I had 35k quiet miles on them (when I traded it in, still had ~40% life left) and they worked well on slickrock/mud/snow pretty much everything but sand. Also they just look so dang good, I know that shouldn't matter, but I think it changes the whole look of the Jeep.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

I saw that too! I'm going to take it conservatively for now. Nitto's already run true to size, 38" would be BIG. (although I think I saw they were load range C, that's pretty sweet) I think deep down I secretly wanted to go back with the Yokohama's and was looking for an excuse to do so. They performed really well on my last build. I had 35k quiet miles on them (when I traded it in, still had ~40% life left) and they worked well on slickrock/mud/snow pretty much everything but sand. Also they just look so dang good, I know that shouldn't matter, but I think it changes the whole look of the Jeep.

I know, Nitto did their homework on this one. It's going to be a big hit I bet.

You have to go with what you know you love. My thinking is if you don't look back at it after you park it you didn't build it right.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw

-Steven

 

[Jeepeto]

I know, Nitto did their homework on this one. It's going to be a big hit I bet.

You have to go with what you know you love. My thinking is if you don't look back at it after you park it you didn't build it right.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw

-Steven

I 100% agree. I've been saying the same thing to my wife for years.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

I 100% agree. I've been saying the same thing to my wife for years.

My man!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw

-Steven

 

[wesjtx]

Now that its in, is the build done yet?

 

[Jeepeto]

Now that its in, is the build done yet?

I can’t wait either. I’ll be sure to update the build thread with progress

 

[Jeepeto]

Took delivery of Jeepeto III yesterday after ~7 weeks of waiting. Here's the pic from my sales guy before I was able to get there and take a look myself.

Some quick shots from the pre delivery inspection:

And my first mods!

Shorty antenna and door catch trim pieces

 

[Jeepeto]

At home, it feels strange to finally have the Jeep I've been dreaming about for the last 2 months.

Took the dogs for a ride to break it in.

*Spoiler alert*

They broke it.

Found a neat looking product by @ThinSkinz that looks to be my solution to this problem.

I'll report back when they come in, but it's gotta be better than letting the dogs just thrash the door cards for the next 5-6 years

Harbor Freight hoist works a treat to lift the top off.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

Took delivery of Jeepeto III yesterday after ~7 weeks of waiting. Here's the pic from my sales guy before I was able to get there and take a look myself.

Some quick shots from the pre delivery inspection:

And my first mods!

Shorty antenna and door catch trim pieces

Congrats Josh, she's a beaut!!!

-Steven

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