Matt's 392 Build

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Starting a new thread to track my progress on my 392 XR build, more for myself but hopefully some of you will find some of the info in here useful. I've driven about 300 miles on my new lift and tires which I had put on about a week and a half ago when my 392 was at about 8,500 miles, with a few hundred of those pre-lift miles out on the trails. Current mods are as follows:

Installed September 2022:
-Warn EVO 10S Winch
-Warn Winch Plate
-Factor 55 Flatlink
-Warn Power Interrupt Kit
-Ravelco Kill Switch
-XR Fender Flare Extension Delete

Installed December 2022 (by Hardline 4x4, Pottstown, PA):
-38x12.5r17 Nitto Ridge Grappler Tires (Load Range C)
- @Clayton Off Road 3.5" Overland Plus Lift for 392
- @TeraFlex Falcon 3.3 SP2 Fast Adjust Shocks for 392/4xe/JLUD
-Falcon 2.2 Fast Adjust Steering Stabilizer
-Steer Smarts Yeti XD Drag Link
-Steer Smarts Yeti XD Tie Rod
-Adams 1350 Front Drive Shaft
-Adams 1350 Rear Drive Shaft
-Teraflex HD Tail Gate and Tire Carrier Kit

2023 Updates:
-Baja Designs Squadron SAE Fog Lights (installed January 2023)
-Midland MXT275 GMRS Radio (installed March 2023)
- @Metalcloak Undercloak Skids (installed March 2023 by Hardline 4x4)
-AEV Front and Rear Diff Covers (installed April 2023)
-ARB Twin Compressor and Epic Kraken (installed April 2023)
-Outback Adventures Trailgater (installed May 2023)
-AWE Cat-Back Exhaust System (installed May 2023 by Hardline 4x4)

Future Build Plans (in priority order):
-2x Baja Designs LP6 Driving Lights (to be mounted on front bumper)
-2x Baja Designs LP4 Lights (to be mounted on cowls)
-Eventually UD60s (still probably 2-3 years away)

In case anyone is wondering what the current market is for our take-off parts, I sold the stock XR tires, suspension and steering components, driveshafts, and tire carrier / hinge gate reinforcement for $1,400, about an hour after I posted an ad for it all on this site. Sold locally, I’m in PA and buyer came up from MD today (1/1/23).

Below are some pics of the 392 both stock the day I took it home from the dealer, and then post lift. I think it looks incredible personally and am very happy with how it is coming along. More detailed pics and information regarding each of the mods to follow as separate posts since I'm limited on the length of each post.

Stock on Purchase Date (ordered 1/19/22, picked up from dealer 6/2/22):

Post Lift (As of January 1, 2023):

Sponsored

 

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Winch:
Thankfully I haven’t yet had to use the winch, so no first impressions on use yet, however I will say that the install process was very straight forward and took about 4 hours. Only snag I ran into on install was that the winch plate didn’t align perfectly with the 8 mounting holes in the frame so had to drill out some of the holes a bit. I also installed the Warn Power Interrupt Kit which is hardwired into the stock Aux 4 switch, so power is only supplied to the winch when Aux 4 is turned on.

 

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Tires / Lift / Shocks / Steering:
My overall initial post lift impressions are that it drives and handles great, the steering is super tight (much better than stock), and the adjustable Falcon valved shocks are not even comparable to the stock monotubes. You can absolutely feel the Hemi working harder to turn those big tires, and there is a noticeable loss of acceleration and feeling of power. It also handles a little more like a truck now and feels a little less 'sporty'. However, I don't mind that at all given I bought my 392 for its off-roading capabilities, not on road performance.

Surprisingly the 38s fit just fine (at least for on road use) without wheel spacers with the 3.5” lift. I have no rub at all under full lock of the steering. I haven’t yet taken it out on the trails, so not sure if that will hold up under full flex situations. I will report back once I start wheeling again in the spring.

The Falcon steering stabilizer really tightens up the steering, and the front end feels rock solid with the Steer Smarts parts up there. Note that the bracket that the Falcon stabilizer comes with is not compatible with the Steer Smarts XD Tie Rod. Had to get a bracket to mount. The link is below:

https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/...steering-stabilizer-tie-rod-clamp-kit-1-5-8in

I love these Falcon adjustable shocks too. Still playing with the adjustability. So far I like setting 2.4 the best for local in town driving, which allows the shocks to absorb the bumps a little more while keeping body roll down, and 3 (firmest setting) for highway driving. I’ll probably use setting 1 (softest setting) for off road use.

 

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Tire Carrier:
This Teraflex kit is rock solid. Way more solid feeling with a 38” Nitto than the stock one did with the 35” KO2. I did learn in the process that the max tire size with this carrier and the stock rear bumper is 38”. Mine clears, the bottom of the spare tire barely touches the top of the rear bumper (there is no resistance from it touching when I open and close the tailgate). The shop I had install it noted it did take a little longer than they expected to install and align everything. Overall I’m very happy with it, and it looks real clean, just like it was from the factory.

 

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Driveshafts:
The Adams driveshafts are super beefy. They feel much more solid than the stock shafts. Note that with the full-time AWD system that we have on our 392s, the front driveshaft is always spinning (absent using a Tazer to override to 2WD, however I do not want to destroy my axles / diffs so I do not run in 2WD at all). Given there is no aftermarket driveshaft for the JL that has an rzeppa joint, there is potential for driveline vibrations with the single / double carden joints on the Adams (and other brands) shafts. See below link for a whole thread on this forum regarding this issue on the 392s.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...et-driveshaft-mega-thread…buyer-beware.88097/

We initially had the caster set to 6.3 degrees (which is optimal for a lifted JL), however this much caster caused the pinion angle to be too low, causing fairly significant vibrations in the driveline above 45 MPH. We adjusted the caster down to 4.5 degrees and boom, all of the driveline vibrations went away. Not optimal from a handling perspective, however it drives just fine and will hold me over until I can get some UD 60s on there down the road, which have a higher pinion angle than the stock axles which will allow for more caster in conjunction with the AWD system on the 392. Note the stock caster is 4 degrees.

 

[Dyolfknip74]

Great build. You posted in general though and not in the build section.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/forums/build-rig-journals.68/

 

[frank-o]

Tire Carrier:
This Teraflex kit is rock solid. Way more solid feeling with a 38” Nitto than the stock one did with the 35” KO2. I did learn in the process that the max tire size with this carrier and the stock rear bumper is 38”. Mine clears, the bottom of the spare tire barely touches the top of the rear bumper (there is no resistance from it touching when I open and close the tailgate). The shop I had install it noted it did take a little longer than they expected to install and align everything. Overall I’m very happy with it, and it looks real clean, just like it was from the factory.

I love the Teraflex kit. It looks awesome! I was thinking about doing that myself, although I paused when I read your post and that it took the shop extra time.

 

[The Fixer]

Looks killer! My son and I were riding behind you and chatting with you at the Green ride at Rausch Creek back in October. Love the sound of that Hemi on the trails!

 

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Looks killer! My son and I were riding behind you and chatting with you at the Green ride at Rausch Creek back in October. Love the sound of that Hemi on the trails!

Thanks. I remember you guys, hope to see you both out on the trails again!

 

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I love the Teraflex kit. It looks awesome! I was thinking about doing that myself, although I paused when I read your post and that it took the shop extra time.

The shop said it was the alignment that took the longest. Also they said they had to tear apart the whole back of the Jeep to install. You’d never know it though, they did a great job.

 

[306overland]

That thing is a beast and looks great!

Was the winch mount the Warn 101255?

 

[frank-o]

The shop said it was the alignment that took the longest. Also they said they had to tear apart the whole back of the Jeep to install. You’d never know it though, they did a great job.

That’s great! Congrats!

 

[7.62x392]

That thing is a beast and looks great!

Was the winch mount the Warn 101255?

Thanks! Yes, that is the part number for the winch plate, link below. Looks like the price has gone up a little since I purchased it back in September, I paid $299 for it.

WARN 101255 Winch Mount for Jeep Gladiator JT & Wrangler JL https://a.co/d/gSBQDkb

 

[r.stevens]

Does she still fit in your standard 7’ tall garage?
I’m thinking of the Clayton 2.5” Overland lift.

 

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Does she still fit in your standard 7’ tall garage?
I’m thinking of the Clayton 2.5” Overland lift.

Fits no problem with about 4-5” to spare.

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