TrailRecon drops the Diesel

[DanW]

Excellent points about regearing. I don't think that I ever heard him mention doing that.

Hopefully WOT under load up a steep grade at altitude isn't required with the torque of the diesel, but in a stock 3.6L manual JLUR you have no choice. With a ~1,500 lb trailer the engine is either screaming in pain to hold its speed at the very top of 3rd or it's unusably bogging down if you try to save it by putting it into 4th.

Slightly off topic, but your comment triggered that flashback.

All true. But you won't overheat or hurt the 3.6 doing that. It can take it.

I have to believe that Brad's diesel had some kind of problem that could have been found and fixed. I cannot imagine it would have that overheating problem without something being amiss.

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[grimmjeeper]

All true. But you won't overheat or hurt the 3.6 doing that. It can take it.

I have to believe that Brad's diesel had some kind of problem that could have been found and fixed. I cannot imagine it would have that overheating problem without something being amiss.

The cooling system in the Wrangler is not up to cooling the diesel when it's being worked hard. There simply isn't enough air flow through the radiator for several reasons.

The Ram has a much bigger grill and radiator so the same engine can be worked harder without overheating.

Load up a Jeep with tons of add ons, push it up a healthy grade and it will run hot. The harder it works the more heat it builds up. Add in a hot day and altitude and the problem just gets worse.

Each of those things by themselves can be managed. The more you put together, the hotter it runs.

 

[troubledog]

The cooling system in the Wrangler is not up to cooling the diesel when it's being worked hard. There simply isn't enough air flow through the radiator for several reasons.

The Ram has a much bigger grill and radiator so the same engine can be worked harder without overheating.

Load up a Jeep with tons of add ons, push it up a healthy grade and it will run hot. The harder it works the more heat it builds up. Add in a hot day and altitude and the problem just gets worse.

Each of those things by themselves can be managed. The more you put together, the hotter it runs.

I guess the 64-thousand dollar question has been asked then many times - what can be done to cool down that big diesel packed into that little engine compartment?

 

[grimmjeeper]

I guess the 64-thousand dollar question has been asked then many times - what can be done to cool down that big diesel packed into that little engine compartment?

Don't push it so hard. If you're heating up, slow down and take it easy.

 

[ogo]

Some on here have modified the Rubicon hood vents to be functional if heat under the hood is a concern.

 

[ChuckQue]

The cooling system in the Wrangler is not up to cooling the diesel when it's being worked hard. There simply isn't enough air flow through the radiator for several reasons.

The Ram has a much bigger grill and radiator so the same engine can be worked harder without overheating.

Load up a Jeep with tons of add ons, push it up a healthy grade and it will run hot. The harder it works the more heat it builds up. Add in a hot day and altitude and the problem just gets worse.

Each of those things by themselves can be managed. The more you put together, the hotter it runs.

Exactly. That’s why I believe a regear with 37’s is critical, so the engine isn’t working as hard to turn those under hard conditions.

I do intend on looking into the e-fan CFM for the stock setup. Could be room for improvement there with a higher CFM SPAL.

 

[Sydwaiz]

Jumping in 19 pages deep. Heat is definitely an issue. I'm on 35s and stock gears. I travel LA to Vegas and in the heat of the summer, temps spike into uncomfortable territories for me going up Baker grade even unloaded.

IMO, most of the heat is coming from the turbo. The turbo in these things are water cooled. Lug down the engine and build boost, you are building a lot of heat that's going to the cooling system. Instead, downshift and use higher RPM to lower your boost and EGTs. That's another thing, these things need an EGT gauge or at least a boost gauge stock.

I have a Duramax as well and pull a toy hauler. I installed boost and EGT gauges and when I'm towing heavy, I use those two gauges the most to keep everything in check. I just need to get around to installing my Banks with iDash on the Jeep now.

 

[grimmjeeper]

Jumping in 19 pages deep. Heat is definitely an issue. I'm on 35s and stock gears. I travel LA to Vegas and in the heat of the summer, temps spike into uncomfortable territories for me going up Baker grade even unloaded.

IMO, most of the heat is coming from the turbo. The turbo in these things are water cooled. Lug down the engine and build boost, you are building a lot of heat that's going to the cooling system. Instead, downshift and use higher RPM to lower your boost and EGTs. That's another thing, these things need an EGT gauge or at least a boost gauge stock.

I have a Duramax as well and pull a toy hauler. I installed boost and EGT gauges and when I'm towing heavy, I use those two gauges the most to keep everything in check. I just need to get around to installing my Banks with iDash on the Jeep now.

A ScanGauge or banks iDash can show you all of the temps and boost. All you have to do is plug it in.

 

[Knight Offroad]

The cooling system in the Wrangler is not up to cooling the diesel when it's being worked hard. There simply isn't enough air flow through the radiator for several reasons.

The Ram has a much bigger grill and radiator so the same engine can be worked harder without overheating.

Load up a Jeep with tons of add ons, push it up a healthy grade and it will run hot. The harder it works the more heat it builds up. Add in a hot day and altitude and the problem just gets worse.

Each of those things by themselves can be managed. The more you put together, the hotter it runs.

After adding tons, 40s, winch, skids, etc I probably gained 1200 lbs (guessing). Not a surprise that my drives over to Moab on easy rollers cause my engine oil temps to go up to 240. That's not dangerous but is much higher than I was seeing when stock. And that's not even going the 80 MPH speed limit in Utah. Temps on the trail are significantly lower and not an issue. I haven't tried turning east on I-70 yet and going through Vail or over to Denver since adding all the weight. The 4.56 gears help but I think I'd need 4.88 if I were towing anything. But I doubt I have any overhead at all to haul a 2,000 lb trailer and try to maintain highway speeds.

 

[BigGreen]

Jeeps aren't 'modern overland' vehicles. Gotta adopt a backpacking mentality and use the Jeep to get out there without having to hike.
F350s and Freightliners are more suited to the amount of garbage people tow out to the campsite.

 

[Geos7812]

Jeeps aren't 'modern overland' vehicles. Gotta adopt a backpacking mentality and use the Jeep to get out there without having to hike.
F350s and Freightliners are more suited to the amount of garbage people tow out to the campsite.

So true. Some of these posts on what has been added to highway rigs scares me!

 

[TX_Ovrlnd]

It would help if they didn’t use rhino lined plywood shelves and try to pack every little unnecessary knick knack known to instagram/youtube.

 

[InVinoVeritasty]

"He just gives them up so he can review the next thing."

... so he can modify the next thing, "with links below." It's a business.

 

[troubledog]

"He just gives them up so he can review the next thing."

... so he can modify the next thing, "with links below." It's a business.

It is a business and he certainly has made it work. You have to be impressed on how he has evolved his brand and then even convinced his wife to retire and join with him. I think when he buys these vehicles he genuinely wants to keep them, but he does turn them over quite often. He did say he regretted letting go of his gladiator. I was disappointed on how he handled the diesel transition but I guess he just had to have that Bronco!

 

[Wrangler man]

I really enjoy watching his videos and I have a bit of respect for Brad’s opinions, however, I do think he missed the mark on the diesel.

I’m fairly certain he never regeared, yes? Based on all the reading I’ve done here and other forums, it seems the folks on 37+ tires who regeared their diesels haven’t had issues with overheating. Perhaps if he’d been at, say, 4.10’s or even 4.56’s there wouldn’t have been an issue. I also think going WOT under load with a steep grade at altitude isn’t the greatest idea. We pull a fairly heavy TT with our F-350 6.0 diesel and I’ve always taken it easy up grades by running it at a higher RPM. Even over max weight when moving my wife out here from New Mexico, going up the mountains into Vegas in 110* heat.

I dunno. I realize it’s apples to oranges. I’ll be running 35’s on mine most likely, with a high probability of picking up a Patriot camper as well. Guess I’ll see if I have similar issues.

KC250 who owned the 1st 3.0 EcoDiesel in Canada already commented on this. His friend Sean who also had the EcoDiesel diesel in the Gladiator had 456 regarding they both experienced the same overheating issues at the exact same time. They were at high elevations on a very steep grade deep grade he claims it was the hottest day he ever experienced. He had put thousands upon thousands of miles across Canada and through a good portion of the United States. He only experienced it one time but it forced him and his buddy SeanIs to a maximum speed of 40 miles an hour. I've never experienced it but in the event I'm in a extreme heat low density air situation like that I'd rather my engine degrade to prevent any serious engine damage or mechanical issues. This just recently happened case in point one of our fleet vehicles at work was pushed well beyond its capability because the payload was far exceeded. Not low density air situations but extreme heat on an extreme grade. The operator saw the temperature rising and and just pushed it anyway basically destroying the engine it's seized and hasn't run since.

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