Suggestions for a New Jeep Owner

[BillG]

Love your Rat Rod Truck.

Thanks

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[Al13]

My first add to my stock Moab will be a wench. I will only be doing moderate trails but learned from years ago with my CJ’s that mild trails can suddenly change or stuff happens. A wench will come in handy as long as you know how to use it.

 

[Brian0128]

Last week, I drove on a "nature trail" at Patuxent River Park in Maryland (basically a dirt road through woods and f
Question: what mods would you suggest for a complete newbie? I'm not going out to Moab, and don’t expect to do any serious rock climbing, but would like to do a bit more than a dirt road, and am looking for recommendations for fun and interesting upgrades.

Thanks!

Brett

Since you are in MD, I would recommend doing the Off Road Consulting 101 Off Road Driving Class with offroad-consulting.com. The courses are at one of 3 local off road parks. Rausch Creek, Anthracite or Reading Offroad. It's a 6 hour hands on training class that will teach you what you and your vehicle can do off road. The class is $175 but you do not need any gear or special equipment to participate in the class except for having 4Low. The class was built with a stock vehicle in mind. The course is all done out on the trail with no classroom time. The instructor will go over:

Approach, Departure and Break Over Angles
Water Fording
Off Camber Situations
Muddy terrain/obstacles
Choosing the best drive line
Various ways to approach up/down hills
Vehicle specifics such as traction control or hill decent

 

[Jeeper Fever]

My first add to my stock Moab will be a wench. I will only be doing moderate trails but learned from years ago with my CJ’s that mild trails can suddenly change or stuff happens. A wench will come in handy as long as you know how to use it.

A winch for my bumper, totally overrated.

What I really need is a wench for my passenger seat. And backseat, ofc.

 

[multicam]

My first add to my stock Moab will be a wench. I will only be doing moderate trails but learned from years ago with my CJ’s that mild trails can suddenly change or stuff happens. A wench will come in handy as long as you know how to use it.

A winch for my bumper, totally overrated.

What I really need is a wench for my passenger seat. And backseat, ofc.

 

[@OUTDOORTREE]

For me winch, steel bumpers, and roof rack are my most essential. My Jeep came with plastic bumpers and the were getting. Chewed quickly on the approach and departure. The Warn steel bumpers just slide right off.

Winch has pulled me out multiple times - I think essential if your going to off road alone. Plus I winched out at least 6 people this winter (feeds my super hero complex)

Roof rack is a luxury but needed for me because I haul a canoe a lot - along with other fun stuff like ski, and cargo boxes on long overlanding trips.

Mopar 2” lift was half for looks and half for function.

Light bar and side spot lights for convience but not a necessity- but very nice.

35” nitto Ridge grapplers - needed new tires so went just a little more aggressive and wider for more of a footprint, which means more traction. But for what I do I think the KO2s are great and might go back next set but in 35X12.5

Air compressor shovel, axe, fire extinguisher, water purifier, tow strap, jumper cables, tire plugs, blanket, small packing fishing rod and spinners and fatwood are accessories I always have in Jeep and use pretty often. When riding trails I take my chainsaw also. Winter always brings down trees. Plus easy firewood.

Now throw on a flannel shirt and fill your pockets full of jerky and your set.

 

[xtopherm]

A couple of months ago, I bought my first Jeep—a 2018 JLU Sahara. First fun ride I’ve had in over 30 years (4 kids will do that to you). It’s my main ride to work. Never did any off-roading before.

Last week, I drove on a "nature trail" at Patuxent River Park in Maryland (basically a dirt road through woods and farmland), loved it, love my Jeep, and am looking for more.

Question: what mods would you suggest for a complete newbie? I'm not going out to Moab, and don’t expect to do any serious rock climbing, but would like to do a bit more than a dirt road, and am looking for recommendations for fun and interesting upgrades.

Thanks!

Brett

Here's how I'd attack this I were you. I'd think of it in terms of "use cases" with associated levels of mods:

Level One - Weekend Warrior on Moderate Trails
If you really like the way the jeep drives and don't want to mess that up, I would just do a belly pan to protect the underside and a winch to get you out of trouble. And maybe swaybar quick disconnects - they are cheap and allow you to maximize your articulation to keep both front wheels on the ground so they can deliver their traction. You could wheel the heck out of that on mild forest roads and lite trails for years.

Level Two - Bit More Capability for More Challenging Trails
If you want to get a little more capability for slightly more challenging trails, then on top of the above, I'd go up to a 35" tire size and move to a slightly more aggressive and capable but still very street-able tire like the BFG K02 or the Nitto Ridge Grappler and put the minimal amount of lift on you need to accommodate a 35 inch tire (1.5-2.5 inches - if you go more the on road handling is really affected and all sorts of wear and geometry issues crop up).

Level Three - Really Capable All-Arounder That Is Still Comfortable But Can Do Serious Trails
If after that, you've really got the bug and want a bit more capability for more rugged and challenging trails, the only thing I would do at that point is add a front locker on top of the previous mods. With a Sahara, you've got a limited slip in the rear end already, and a jeep with an LSD in the rear and a locker in the front is going to be a pretty capable vehicle, especially with 35s, extra skid plates and a winch. Sure, not quite as much traction as a Rubi with its twin lockers, but really not that terribly far off. My only advice would be to just go a bit easy with this set up (for example, no bouncing up onto ledges and dropping fast spinning wheels down onto rocks) because the Sahara axles and CVs are not as sturdy as the Rubicon's and a locker puts added stress on an axle. But assuming you wheel it with some common sense and keep up with maintenance on wear&tear parts, you've built yourself an incredibly capable Jeep for a pretty reasonable cost.

Best of luck - hope to see you out there!

 

[Mom2SNSH]

Really excited to read these responses! My Jeep is still stock, but getting my 3" lift, new wheels, and 35" tires this month. Tow strap and fire extinguisher in place. Bumpers/winch next then going out to play, hopefully! We have a good amount of mud and rocks pretty close to here so I could potentially get into a lot of stuff.

 

[roaniecowpony]

The problem is, I don’t know what I need. I’ve been lurking on the forums for a bit, and it’s like drinking from a firehose. No problems on the dirt road, and I don’t like to just burn money.

Brett

Then, you don't NEED anything. And that's okay too. Become a member of the local jeep club. Make sure you have essentials like first aid kits, fire extinguisher etc.

Get stuck in the mud.
Get high centered on rocks.
Break off a fender hitting a tree.

Before long you'll have a list as long as your arm of what you want for your jeep.

The best old stories I recall from my youth about off-roading were about things like Joe mentioned above. With my JLUR, which I bought primarily for my retirement hunting, I have been very reserved about modifications. The very top priority for me was to get it towable. All the fist pumping mods that get posted about large lifts and huge knobby tires are enticing, but simply pull my attention from the real "needs" I have for flat towing, bird dog compatibility, shotgun stowage, misc hunting stowage. It's easy to get sucked into the chest bumping mods. But they cost lots of money and frankly may even detract from my uses. i know my uses will be lots of highway and a small portion of well maintained dirt roads, and even smaller portion of unmaintained 2 track trails that may be from mild to harry. Lifts change pinion angles which affect driveshaft joint wear/reliability, affect handling adversely and make it harder to get into and out of and raise the center of gravity, which is never a good thing. Big knobby tires make lots of noise, cost lots of money, adversely affect acceleration and braking, and sometimes require lifts. My philosophy on lifts is to do the minimum. For my Rubicon, I'm leaving it stock height and with the OEM K02 A/T tires until I see my needs are not being met.

So, this past week or two, I've received my winch, the aluminum Rock Hard bumper shipping, side step/rock rails (to make it easier for my wife) are also on the way, and I found a good used towbar on craigslist last weekend. A towing brake system and light system is next. Then I need to address stowage of hunting equipment compatible with having 2 dogs and 2 hunters onboard. These things are not all that flashy and exciting to post pictures of on a forum, but they get me what I need.

 

[roaniecowpony]

A winch for my bumper, totally overrated.

What I really need is a wench for my passenger seat. And backseat, ofc.

Wenches are highly over rated, IMO. I'm keeping the same ol' one I've had for over 35 years. Sure, newer and flashier ones are available, but my ol' wench is all I need, and often more than I need. Be careful what you wish for.

 

[Archer85]

A couple of months ago, I bought my first Jeep—a 2018 JLU Sahara. First fun ride I’ve had in over 30 years (4 kids will do that to you). It’s my main ride to work. Never did any off-roading before.

Last week, I drove on a "nature trail" at Patuxent River Park in Maryland (basically a dirt road through woods and farmland), loved it, love my Jeep, and am looking for more.

Question: what mods would you suggest for a complete newbie? I'm not going out to Moab, and don’t expect to do any serious rock climbing, but would like to do a bit more than a dirt road, and am looking for recommendations for fun and interesting upgrades.

Thanks!

Brett

I think best first purchase is new tires. Im not sure what your sahara came with but im assuming 31'' road tires. Upgrade to 285/70 Falken Wildpeak. They are bigger, MUCH more aggressive look, gives you a little more clearence and the tread helps a LOT when offroading. No modifications in any way needed to put these on. After that id go 2.5'' lift. Then from there you can do spacers and 35'' tires if you want to get into more hardcore stuff.

 

[RancherRob]

I've turned a 180. I also started out buying a rubicon to be a "toad" behind an RV with occasional off road use. So I had planned to leave it stock and not do anything but drive it around topless during nice weather.
However, I made a mistake and took a drive with the kids up in the mountains on DNR lands with gravel roads and logging areas near where I live. Holy Crap batman, that was fun! Now I'm getting quotes for expensive 4" lifts and 38" mud tires, bead lockers, bumpers, winches, etc. Luckily, the RV deal fell through, as I don't think it will be usable as a "toad" for long. I believe I just accidentally jumped into a new expensive hobby. I wish I'd gotten one years ago.

 

[LLRubylady]

I suggest you continue to keep it stock for a while. From what you shared, the type of 4x4 experiences you plan on having require very little to no modifications. If you daily drive your Jeep, keep it as is. Although a lifted Jeep rolling on 37s looks cool, it does have a negative impact on efficiency, reliability and drive comfort.

This is true.
I had 35s on my Jeep for a few weeks before I pulled them off due to the sluggishness. Some people rude they way but I didn’t like it. but...now that I put the stocks back on, I realize how nice the drive is.
Also I think the offset with the wider wheels made a difference in the handling. Not what I would call bad definitely different than stock and the turn radius not as sharp.

 

[GGolds]

The problem is, I don’t know what I need. I’ve been lurking on the forums for a bit, and it’s like drinking from a firehose. No problems on the dirt road, and I don’t like to just burn money.

Brett

You don't need anything. You can add toys like many guys do. I can go on some pretty serious rocky roads that I never expected to encounter and my standard Sahara JLU can handle it like "butta". So, have fun and add what makes you feel like your erector set did when you were a kid, it can tackle anything. After all, it's nothing more then a big grown up erector set that you can drive anywhere anytime and always makes you happy.

 

[Oldbear]

As most of the guys have said, your box stock Jeep is far more capable than most folks will ever need. If you’re going off road a better set of tire (Rubi takeoff KO2’s) will make a huge difference. Through an entrenching tool in the back and a “come along“ just in case and you can likely go wherever you want and still have some capability is you were to get hung up. Try that for a while. If you find you actually need to self rescue, add a winch. Build for what you actually “need”, NOT for what the kewl kids “say” you need.

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