preparing for the Rubicon trail. steering boost?

[Spartywarrior]

not sure where to post this...

heading to the Rubicon at the end of July for the Jeep Jamboree. i have been modifying my jeep like crazy to prepare for it: 392 axles, MC 3.5" lift, RCV axles, new 37" tires, skid plates, driveshafts, etc...

im about to swap my aluminum steering box for the steel one and installing Steer Smarts brace while at it.

now its been mentioned to look at the APEX steering boost kit. (PSC etc are not in the picture financially any time soon). This Apex kit is affordable at this moment. not that i want to spend another $400 right now....

what im also running low on (besides cash) is time. im down to a little over 3 weeks. this install looks pretty involved. i still have more stuff to take care of, little things here and there. by the time i get the kit, take the jeep apart, install it, and get it back together, could be pushing it. i dont want to be rushing it back together before its time to start packing to go on the trip.

my question is, would this make a considerable difference for my jeep on the Rubicon trail? i know its going to be hours of crawling, and im on 37s.

and maybe im overthinking the install. i have to look more into doing it without removing the grill/bumper. that's the worst part of it all.

obviously many people have made it through without any kind of steering boost of any sorts, including on 37s. does it suck? would it make it much better? meh?

I run he psc hydro assist with apex. Have a hy ride so it is using the mopar electric. Turn my 37s with 1 finger in 4L. You will love it!

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[Spartywarrior]

I've had a JKU on 37's for years, stock pump and box until recently. I have a 4xe on 37's w stock steering (steel box) and a 392 on 40's w PSC. You will be fine on the Rubicon unless you are locked in the front, just realize you can't really turn when locked. You are only going to need your front lockers for a few obstacles, like 20 yards of the whole tail. Plan your lines accordingly.

I'd save the $400 and skip the boost as it doesn't contribute enough steering or cooling power to materially help. Swapping in the steel box is great but not the real fix. Ultimately you need a PSC box IMO for 37's or larger. And I'm over it w cooling that electric pump. Replace the box first if you need to approach the spend in stages. I've run PSC boxes w stock pumps in 2 prior jeeps for years w no issues. Before you spend a dime boosting or cooling that electric pump just ditch it and get the belt driven PSC pump.

If he has a hybrid he can't switch to belt.

 

[Sportacus]

I dont have a hybrid wrangler.

ive been on 37s for a few years, with a lunchbox locker. Recently swapped to 392 axles with electric lockers. Ive never had steering issues with all the crawling ive done. Big bear, cleghorn, johnson valley, rocky gap, etc. ive never had any issues with steering; cooling or struggling.

i usually air down to 17 but the last run i dropped to 10-11ish. I did feel more resistant than but nothing crazy, and it was a fairly hot day at about 93 iirc.

i usually stick to so cal, one day trails. Rocky Gap is the only overnight run ive done and that was really a one day trail with a sleepover the night before.

Maybe ill do the rubicon again next year or the year after. Who knows if/when id get to moab. I think im going to see how it goes and reassess from there.

 

[WillysMeow]

i (on 37" KM3s) had the stock electric power steering pump give me the overheat warning on Cadillac Hill, but a View Stop for a few minutes and it was gone. if i would have taken more stops instead of continuing on through the relentless steering back-and-forth on the way up the hill i might never have gotten that warning.
i haven't felt the need for any additional steering upgrades, but i don't try to move rocks sideways at a standstill, either.

i think the electric fan option might be a nice upgrade, but i've never seen that warning again, not even running in deep sand in the Dez in the summertime. but i also have some hood ventilation now that i did not have then. (the underhood temps on these things get up there!)

i wouldn't sweat it. if you get the overheat warning, you could stop for a bit and/or pop the hood and let it vent. at the speeds you'll be moving i'd think you could easily leave the hood unlatched for a bit without trouble.

Interesting, on Rubicon in June on 35s and the stock power steering is ok...my old 1981 Toyota stock PS with belt driven pump was way better. Jeep's electric pump is underwhelming to say the least.

Really wish Jeep still had belt driven pump. Saw the Apex Designs and it looks/sounds nice.
https://www.apexdesignsusa.com/products/1-1-steering-boost-kit-jl-jt-compatible

However, a belt driven pump with a cooler would be even nicer. Dunno what I'll go with later.

 

[zouch]

yeah, don't know if it was just a hotter day when i did it, but more likely it was because we weren't taking a lot of breaks and just pressing through. 37" KM3s @ sub-teen pressures have got to be hard to turn, too.

to be clear; it wasn't the steering fluid that overheated so a cooler wouldn't have made any difference; it was just the electric steering pump that gave me a warning. steering never failed to work fine.
this was before i was using a ventilated hood, too, and the underhood temps on the Diesels seem to be high even though the fluid temps were all lower than when driving around on the pavement.
hood ventilation alone might have made enough of a difference that i wouldn't have gotten the warning.

Interesting, on Rubicon in June on 35s and the stock power steering is ok...my old 1981 Toyota stock PS with belt driven pump was way better. Jeep's electric pump is underwhelming to say the least.

Really wish Jeep still had belt driven pump. Saw the Apex Designs and it looks/sounds nice.
https://www.apexdesignsusa.com/products/1-1-steering-boost-kit-jl-jt-compatible

However, a belt driven pump with a cooler would be even nicer. Dunno what I'll go with later.

 

[WillysMeow]

@zouch Good info, thanks! Wranglers are very tight under the hood and with all the extra tech and junk packed in there, there's not much way for the air to escape. I'm thinking ventilated inner fenders just aft of the radiator, maybe improve the side fender vents, cut holes in the hood. Sahara hood with the blockage removed is intriguing as it is taller and therefore has more airspace for the heat to rise up and with the blockage removed it can escape at idle, while driving would force in cooler air? What have you done for hood ventilation?

 

[zouch]

i tried a commercially available aftermarket hood in an attempt to help bring down fluid temps at speed; sadly, it made little-to-no difference there.

i did not measure Underhood Temps.
low-speed fluid temps didn’t change, but they were already not a problem.
Intake Air Temps did drop a bit, and recover mote quickly now, but don’t seem to have made much (if any) difference in performance, even though there is a measureable difference in Air Density (especially in cooler weather).

@zouch Good info, thanks! Wranglers are very tight under the hood and with all the extra tech and junk packed in there, there's not much way for the air to escape. I'm thinking ventilated inner fenders just aft of the radiator, maybe improve the side fender vents, cut holes in the hood. Sahara hood with the blockage removed is intriguing as it is taller and therefore has more airspace for the heat to rise up and with the blockage removed it can escape at idle, while driving would force in cooler air? What have you done for hood ventilation?

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