Off-roading Checklist

[DexterJeeper]

I bought the Lifestraw at Walmart and the Bear Spray I think I got on Amazon. The Lifestraw was only 20 bucks, so I have one in ech of my 2 Jeeps. If you lived near me or passed through, I'd let you take the bear spray. There's probably less than 1% chance you'd actually have to use it. I've told friends that if they go west or even south/east where there are black bears, they can borrow it. It has a nice glow in the dark handle and it wedges perfectly under the driver seat.

Wish I could've met you sooner! My wife and I went to school at Purdue and we lived in Fishers for 5 years. Thanks again for all your help!

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[DexterJeeper]

Do you already have all the offroad gear you need? I personally use a duffle bag, like the heavy duty one for carrying tools and i put all of my offroad gear in it so i can grab and go.

Yup, I have tools in a bag, an air compressor, a recovery kit and a bunch of misc. tools that @DanW mentioned above. They're kinda all over the place right now so I could use some organization!

 

[DexterJeeper]

We decided to try the UTBDR from four corners to bear lake. May swing west a bit too to check out zion np and Bryce canyon. Super excited about it and leave on Saturday

Sounds like an amazing trip! Hope you have a fun and safe journey! Would love to see some pictures along the way too

 

[DanW]

I forgot to mention another piece of emergency kit that I consider essential: A set of strong ratchet tie downs (short as possible). These can be used to lash suspension or other parts together to get you out of a jam. I got the tip back in my early days of off-roading and actually had to use them once.

Many moons ago, probably around 2000 or 2001 at the Badlands off road park in Attica, Indiana, in my old 93 YJ, I was running around some sand dunes. I mashed the gas in low range, 2nd or 3rd gear, and started up a very steep dune. The little 2.5 4 banger was peddling for all it was worth at over 5,000 rpm when BANG!!!!!! An engine mount broke! The engine tilted severely to the passenger side and oil sprayed everywhere, including the passenger foot well! Fortunately, i instinctively cut the engine and managed a somewhat controlled roll backward down the hill. The transmission or transfer case made the most horrendous noises. I thought I not only blew the engine, but also the transfer case and maybe more. My brother and I looked under the hood and the engine was listing like a ship that had taken 10 torpedoes in one side. We broke out the ratchet tie down straps and slung together a jury rig to get the engine almost level again. That stopped all the noise in the gear trane. I didn't start it, for obvious reasons (no oil), but we were able to tow it a few miles to a Jeep dealer. I got the call from them the next day, and expected to hear the bad ($$$$$) news. The repair came to a whopping 120 bucks! They said they replaced the broken engine mount and another one, as well, which had corroded over the years and broke under the strain of all those horses from that 2.5 LOL. When the engine tilted, the oil filter was lascerated and spewed oil all over the place. (I still don't know how it got into the footwell, but it did.) I asked them if they checked the tranny and transfer case and they said they did a test drive and they were fine. I still marvel that there wasn't more damage, as badly as the grinding was.

I have heard of others handling broken springs and other parts with these ratchet tie downs to get out of jams. It is a good, cheap, light weight tool to stick in that bag. I usually carry two of them and hope to never need them again.

 

[Lorenc]

I would make sure you have a can of Mopar Electric power steering fluid, there is not a substitute I’ve found other than the Mopar.

I just bought a Ready Welder as insurance, and am looking for lists of spare parts recommended, hard to find at this point. One thing that used to be a deal breaker on my JK was the the plastic transfer case linkage piece that breaks and keeps you from shifting transfer case. It was a $5 part and weightless. Not sure if they changed in on JL, I hope so...

Only other thing is to download the entire JL Owner’s manual to a phone or tablet so you have it available when you don’t have an internet connection.

Loren

 

[Lorenc]

Check www.bushducks.com for CO trail information.

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