Testing Out the Rubicon XR in Moab

[ColoradoMike]

Hi, team--
Finally got to take the XR to Moab.
Poison Spider, two laps on Hell's Revenge, and two on Fins.
Videos, and analysis:
Video: The XR on Posion Spider
Video: Hell's Revenge in Rubicon XR
The context was, I had taken my '21 Rubicon on Poison Spider, Hell's Revenge, Top of the World, etc., and had fun, but it felt punishing at times. Too much bottoming out, needed more clearance, etc.
Ordered the XR hoping to do those trails with greater ease.
And?
It gave me exactly that. I was able to pretty much sail through without so much as a whisper of a scrape, 99% of the time. The XR's added clearance was very noticeable.
I did NOT have an issue bottoming out the shocks at all despite minimal bumpstop gap.
Now, the limited up-travel MAY have resulted in sub-optimal flex in a couple of places. I lifted a tire pretty good on the Staircase obstacle on Hell's (find it in the video) and almost rolled over on V-Notch on Poison Spider. I think my V-Notch line was my fault; had the passenger tires too high on the wall. But on Staircase, I thought the line was fine and shouldn't have lifted a tire, but that it lifted because of inadequate flex. What do you think?
Anyway, all in all, I was extremely happy with how it performed and felt. It was such a great trip.
Long live Moab!
@blnewt @Murphydog @Wheelin Matt @BDinTX

Sponsored

 

[blnewt]

Very nice to hear that you're happy w/ the overall XR setup. Looking forward to taking some time w/ those videos, thanks for the updates and glad you had a great trip!

 

[Wheelin Matt]

Nice scream in the sand hill….. watched it in my hotel room and the scream scared my dog ?

Dude, love your videos! Haven’t watched the Hells video yet but I believe lifting the wheel is due to limited flex as I have done this also.

Question: how much does the roof rack on your Jeep weigh?

 

[ColoradoMike]

Very nice to hear that you're happy w/ the overall XR setup. Looking forward to taking some time w/ those videos, thanks for the updates and glad you had a great trip!

Yeah, two ten minute vids is kind of a lot, but hey… I could have made them longer! Had to restrain myself! ? And yes, while the XR generally gave me what I was hoping, I guess I couldn’t say I am totally happy with it. I really DO wish they had done a 2.5-inch lift with proper front shock travel. But, getting through Poison Spider without scraping and banging is pretty satisfactory for a stock vehicle.

 

[Tyler225]

Awesome thanks for videos!

This is super helpful because I'm planning on taking my XR to MOAB in November and running Hell's/Poison Spyder but wasn't sure how it would handle those trails. I ran Fins back in May and the XR did fantastic.

 

[ColoradoMike]

Nice scream in the sand hill….. watched it in my hotel room and the scream scared my dog ?

Dude, love your videos! Haven’t watched the Hells video yet but I believe lifting the wheel is due to limited flex as I have done this also.

Question: how much does the roof rack on your Jeep weigh?

Hahaha, thanks, dude. I make my movies like pizza; too big and too cheesy. But they make me happy. Glad you like them too.
Yeah, as for that scream…. I had SOO much trouble the first time I tried to get up that sand hill and was afraid I was going to get good and stuck. So when I utterly slayed it this time, I was a little over-stoked!
As for the rack: the exoskeleton rack itself weighs 133 pounds. The basket on the top might add 25 pounds or so. I don’t usually have it up there; usually it’s kayak stackers. Thankfully, addition of the rack did not seem to hurt the bump gap, as most of the weight or all is behind the front axle.
The tire lifting… concerns me. Because it could lead to a back flip on something like Hell’s Gate. It’s enough to keep me considering mods, which I did not want to do.

 

[ColoradoMike]

Awesome thanks for videos!

This is super helpful because I'm planning on taking my XR to MOAB in November and running Hell's/Poison Spyder but wasn't sure how it would handle those trails. I ran Fins back in May and the XR did fantastic.

It will slay Hell’s easily if you skip the optional obstacles. It will handle Staircase well if your line is good, but be careful. I worry about Hell’s Gate because of the sub-optimal front shock travel. Might not be enough flex.
You can absolutely clean everything on Poison Spider; be smart with your line in V-notch and make sure you know how to drive deep sand before trying to climb that sand hill.

 

[BDinTX]

Hey glad to hear you didn't have any issues. Thanks for the tag, the videos look great! Not to mention your Firecracker Red... every time I see that color I kinda wish I'd done it.

 

[Murphydog]

quickly watched Poison Spider with headphones on - loved the yee haw as you crossed the sand!

I am still leaning towards an XR upgrade, though I am looking at lift options as well. Thinking we will visit Moab again next year

 

[ColoradoMike]

Hey glad to hear you didn't have any issues. Thanks for the tag, the videos look great! Not to mention your Firecracker Red... every time I see that color I kinda wish I'd done it.

Thanks, Brad. I went with the red because it needed to look clearly different from the one I was replacing. I was scared the Snazzberry might look too purple. When the red one arrived, I almost thought it was too much. Like parking a fire truck in front of the house. But it has grown on me, especially since adding the rack and hood decal, and I wouldn’t have it any other way now.

 

[ColoradoMike]

quickly watched Poison Spider with headphones on - loved the yee haw as you crossed the sand!

I am still leaning towards an XR upgrade, though I am looking at lift options as well. Thinking we will visit Moab again next year

Right on; yep —it was amazing how much easier the sand hill went this time.
I hear ya on the debate between lift or XR. I have run like a dozen solid trail days now in the XR, and while I can clearly say that my XR is a big improvement over my non-XR, I can’t clearly say that it’s better than if I had just modded the crap out of my first Rube. But again, the gearing and the heavier axles and brakes and everything besides the tires and lift… I really couldn’t have afforded to do that all to my last one. So I made the right call, and if I end up slightly lifting/modding/leveling this one, it will be a vastly smaller job because of starting with the XR platform. In the meanwhile, I can run Poison Spider without scraping a thing, and that’s a good place to be.

 

[No IFS]

What motor do you have in your XR? And ess or etorque

 

[ColoradoMike]

What motor do you have in your XR? And ess or etorque

It’s a 3.6 etorque.

 

[Sobchak Security]

Great videos. I love seeing the paper plates out there wheeling.

 

[Rubi SoHo]

You video gives me the confidence to take on Poison Spider. Great stuff!

I’m going down Friday, but for an MTB trip (gonna ride The Whole Enchilada, which is sort of the mountain Biking equivalent of the Moab Trifecta) so I’m not likely to get any Wheeling in since I have to head back after the ride, but hopefully soon!

Sponsored