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My JlU Rubicon keeps throwing rocks on to itself. Fender protection?

rallydefault

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Yea, I just have a Sport with the all-terrains, so probably not as bad as you, but it really shocked me. First time I merged onto a highway I think my jeep threw a rock right up at one of my doors. Noise was like somebody pegged the jeep at point-blank range with a fast ball.

I know people don't like how they look sometimes, but I slapped the Mopar splash guards on there along with the Rubicon rock rails (modified them to allow them to fit with the splash guards) and it's REALLY helped so far.
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albatross

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... I was like "who the F_ck is throwing rocks at my jeep" but it happened too many times in too many different places.
My girl and i were driving and had the same thought when we first heard it. Havent noticed any marks yet but now that I see this post I'll be keeping an eye out.
 

Pugfug

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Yeah we are getting a ton of pebble sized rocks getting wedged btw the fender and the body....I'm worried that eventually its going to scrape the paint and lead to rusting. I'm going to try to find some after market universal kick back mud flaps...if that doesn't resolve the issue, I'm considering putting a bead of clear silicone to fill the gap...
 

MotoMax

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The wife and I drove our Rubicon on the beach yesterday in the deep soft sand at the high tide line. When we got back to the house I was shocked to find how much sand was piled in the lugs on top of the spare tire and on the fenders. And it wasn't like we were running dunes at full throttle either. We kept it under the NPS 15 mph speed limit. Those KO2's do throw stuff up!
 

fat_head

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My JLU Sport door hinges are all chipped up and the rear fender flares are covered in rock rash. If you want to keep your Jeep looking showroom fresh, you better get mud flaps.
 

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ALEX-4LO

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It is definitely the ko2. I ran them on my old tacoma did the same thing. The good thing is you can always get armored fenders and replace anything on the jeep. :like:
 

Jeeptimus Prime

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nature of the beast my man... yr obviously a noob. Mud tires will pick up less rocks, so will highway tires. take your pick..
But some areas are worse than others. If that is the case like OP then I would recommend mud flaps and side step may help a little too. The OEM mud flaps at least look decent and better than generic aftermarket but to each their own!
 

malic7

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I've only had my JL Sport S for two weeks now, I've gone off-road twice. It's stock with the stock Bridgestone tires. As soon as I got back on pavement up to speed, I started hearing the "dinging" sounds of rocks being tossed. Yes, it's my first Jeep and I'm concerned. I want to get those Mopar mud flaps, but wondering what happens when I want to go with Rock Slider steps in a few months (waiting for good after market ones), not sure they'll work together.
 

rallydefault

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I want to go with Rock Slider steps in a few months (waiting for good after market ones), not sure they'll work together.
I'm running both. You gotta modify your rails. I got the Rubicon stock rails for my Sport 4-door, and you just have to be willing to cut some metal and know how to seal it up afterward. 2 inches off on the rails I got and they fit with the splash guards just fine. Looks pretty nice.

Will also depend, obviously, on how easy the rails you choose are to cut. The Rubi ones are hollow inside, so it's not that difficult of a job to just do at home. Could even do it with just a hacksaw and no power tools whatsoever if you have the time.
 

Pugfug

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I'm running both. You gotta modify your rails. I got the Rubicon stock rails for my Sport 4-door, and you just have to be willing to cut some metal and know how to seal it up afterward. 2 inches off on the rails I got and they fit with the splash guards just fine. Looks pretty nice.

Will also depend, obviously, on how easy the rails you choose are to cut. The Rubi ones are hollow inside, so it's not that difficult of a job to just do at home. Could even do it with just a hacksaw and no power tools whatsoever if you have the time.

Can you take a pic of what you have done and post it so that I can see it? Would really appreciate it:)
 

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rallydefault

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Ok here we go - JL Sport Unlimited with added Rubicon rails and Mopar splash guards (overkill? meh lol)

I've included a couple pictures of the rails, one to just show you what they look like (they are the rails that come stock on the Rubicon I believe) and one close-up of the ends that were modified. You can tell the paint looks slightly different, but I think I got it pretty close.

Then I have some pictures of the jeep with the rails and splash guards installed. I tried to include a few that show you close-up how the rail still touches the guard even with 1.5 inches trimmed. If you want complete separation, you'd probably have to go 1.75 or even 2 inches off the rails. But to be honest, I wanted a snug fit as long as the rail wasn't actually pushing the guard forward at all, and I did include one picture of the wheel well just to show that the rail wasn't bulging the guard or inner plastic out toward the tire or anything. But again, if you absolutely want no rail/guard contact, totally possible by just taking another quarter or half inch off the rail.

To trim the rails, I just removed the little plastic circle at the front end of the rail (it's a weird rivet/screw thing that can be a bugger, but you can destroy it in the process because it won't be going back in, so use whatever force necessary even if you scratch the metal, it's being cut off anyway) and pried off the plastic cap that closes off the rail. I measured 1.5 inches and used a hacksaw to get into the metal a bit, then switched over to a power tool to just saw off the rest quickly. You could do it all with a hacksaw, though.

I used a metal file to clean up the cut (spent a lot of time on that to get it nice), and then I used some rubbing alcohol to prep the surface for the primer and then the rustoleum black paint. Did two coats of the rustoleum. Let them sit for a couple days. Then just put gorilla glue on the plastic caps that have to be reinserted into the ends, and installed the rails.

Hope somebody finds this helpful if they're considering doing this. Probably not a popular thing to do but eh... I'm sick of the rocks so I want all the protection I can get lol Plus the splash guards are just plastic and completely removable if I get sick of the look or if they get too bent going off road or anything. But I will say, haven't really had issues with debris flying up and nicking my paint after I did this, even during 300+ miles over the weekend.
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drummerchick

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I'm going to put 3M film on the hinges and rear fenders. My Jeep won't be here for another week. Could someone measure the width of the rear Rubicon fenders for me?
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