Real Newbie here

[akhoopes]

Hello all,

I just bought my first 4x4 two days ago. I got a 2010 Jeep wrangler sport. It is all stock at this point, I traded in a 2008 mustang for it. I have been a sports car guy most of my life, but being in the navy they stationed me in Buffalo New York. I am from the south born and raised. The mustang did horrible here though on these winter roads. I have always wanted a Jeep though, so i went and got one finally, and the more I look on line since I got it, the more I want to get out in it and see what it can do.

Some questions for the experts here....

How much trail can a stock 2010 wrangler take....as far as mud and water...rocks and hills. just curious, dont want to over do it, if the jeep cant handle it.

What mods would you guys recommend first.

Also, how about around here....trails, off road...where can a person go around here.

Thanks for any information you can give.

I am in west seneca new york, just outside of buffalo.

Bill Hoopes

[smichaelR22]

Great to here new comers into the sport with a rig off the dealer lot and quickly looking to challenge it.  

My knowlege about what 2010 (JK\'s?) come with now is limited, but probably everyone would agree depending on budget, tires are usually the first thing to consider, followed by some swaybar disconnects.  

lift kits and lockers and recovery gear depend on budget and fabrication desire/ skill.  

Have fun!

as for trails, id recommend keeping an eye out for a date to be set for our 4x4101 event we have in the summer at Whispering Pines in Lyons NY.  its a great place for stock to wild to have a fun day.

Also, because of your location, id recommend checking out our neighboring club closer to you, WNYOR



-Smike

[akhoopes]

Thanks I will check them out. Apprciate it.

When you say lockers and recovery gear...I am assuming recovery gear is like wenches and stuff to get unstuck...

What is a locker.

[CoraC143]

a locker replaces the spider gears in the differential. there are a couple types out there, but the least expensive and best road mannered one is a \'ratcheting locker.\' one of our club sponsors is Aussie locker and they make a ratcheting locker. most of us run these.

a locker will greatly improve trail capabilities. what it does is it makes both tires on one axles, turn with power. the stock limited slip will only turn one tire on an axle with power, most of the time.

recovery gear is tow straps, winch, recovery points I.e. hooks on your fron and rear bumper. a winch is not a necessary purchace, most of us don\'t run one. a  tow strap and a buddy\'s vehicle can get you out of 90% of situations.

check out our trail safety equipment list (link on the left menu) to get started.

the 4x4101 event in the spring will go over all of these basics and then we will apply what you learned on the trails with experienced guides to help you through tough spots.

as to what your vehicle can do, and what is too far, as some general advice:
- wash mud off before it dries like cement
- don\'t go in mud or water deeper than 50% of your tire height
- go slow in the rocks - they call it rock \'crawling\' for this reason.
- use 4x4 Low gear when offroad
- always trail ride with at least one other vehicle, in case someone gets stuck or hurt
- don\'t use a tow strap with hooks


what to do next: I would suggest a front locker first, good tow points, then a budget boost inexpensive lift, sway bar disconnects, and 33\" tires - new or used.

[ollllllo]

hey bill,
Welcome.
Congrats on the new jeep. Jeeps have played a significant role in many of our lives, especially our first one.
Like smike and cora suggested, Sway bar disconnects are going to give you the best advantage for you money in the early stages of building.
 (Dont JK\'s have electric sway bar disconnects from the factory or is that on Rubicon models only)
Upgrading to a good mud/all terrain tire will definitely be my second purchase.
You should definitely carry the recovery gear like what is listed in MudNuts trail requirements.
Lockers and lifts can follow, but id suggest getting to know your jeep now, its very capable in stock form.
You can upgrade you suspension and axles as your offroad driving abilities require.
Good luck
And, the guys from WNYO are awesome and can offer some great advice and help too. Espicially considering they are much closer to you.
[color=006600]hope to see you at 4x4 101, keep us updated.[/color]

[jeepfd16]

Welcome hope to see ya over at WNYO. A stock JK are pritty capable in stock form with some good tires and sway discos.

[99TACO]

Hey bill,
  I am also in the navy and in the club. I and station in greece. Wispering pines is alot of fun for stock trucks and jeeps and its a easy place to learn how to drive offroad. The only one tip I have is never go offroad alone, you never know what can happpen!  Welcome to western new york and have fun in the snow!!!

Michael

[Doppleganger]

The one thing that sticks out about the new TK\'s, is that their axle housing is weak, due to the extra width, but no extra strength.  Apparently, adding larger tires to the stock Dana 30 front end can actually bend the axle tubes (or at least where they are mounted in the center section) and cause gear and bearing failure.  I\'ve seen an article in one of the 4x4 magazines about adding axle tube inserts that get welded to the inside ends of the tubes, and gussets that are welded in various spots.

Might want to research that before lifting and adding larger tires.  But, for stock height, I agree that traction aids (lockers, limited-slip diffs, etc) are probably one of the best ways to make big difference in off-road capability.

You\'ll have to weigh traction vs. on-road manners, though.  When I picked the units for my Bronco, it was still my daily driver.  I picked a clutch-type differential for the rear, and a torsen-type differential for the front.  I wasn\'t planning on crawling on rocks, just trails, and light mud, and I generally drove 25-30K miles per year.  The clutch diff works pretty good offroad, and has great road manners.  The torsen acts like an open diff in the front, until a difference in wheel speed is sensed, and then power starts to transfer to the other wheel thru a set of gears, no clutches.  You\'ll never notice it under normal driving conditions.

Neither of them work as well as an Aussie Locker on the trail, though.  ;)

If you\'re planning on driving a lot on the road in the snow, I suggest a set of real snow tires on another set of wheels.  You\'ll poop yourself with how much better they work than tires meant for the other 3 seasons.  I run them on the WJ in the winter.  (Any brand of modern-design snow tires will work.)

[CoraC143]

I LOVE my snow tires - winter force - they are so amazing, nothing can stop the pat pat now!

[Dragon]

How much trail can a stock 2010 wrangler take....as far as mud and water...rocks and hills. just curious, dont want to over do it, if the jeep cant handle it.

What mods would you guys recommend first.

Also, how about around here....trails, off road...where can a person go around here.

Thanks for any information you can give.

I am in west seneca new york, just outside of buffalo.

Bill Hoopes

Welcome, Bill, from a fellow JK driver!

don\'t go above your diff if you have a manual until you get some experience.  The manual tranny will suck mud/water into the clutch if you press the pedal in while underwater.
For rocks and hills, the stock JK does pretty good, just take your time and watch your flex.
i took my JK to Whispering Pines last year and it was a blast.
Depending on what your JK came with, you will most likely want to get tires first.  Usually, unless it\'s the Rubicon, you\'re running street tires which are ok for trail rides outside Phoenix AZ, but will slick up fast in mud.
you can run 33\" tires on stock suspension with either new rims with a 4.5\" backspacing, or 1.5\" spacers behind your stock rims.  Just be careful with extreme flexing as you might rub the fenders.

once you decide to lift it, there are TONS of options, from inexpensive spacer lifts to pricey long-arm conversion and coilovers.  It\'s all what your budget can handle.

After tires, I\'d probably recommend a front locker.  It made a world of difference to my JK, and Aussie makes a great inexpensive auto-locker for the JKs now.

While I\'m not an expert by any means, I\'ve been doing a lot of research on JK mods.  Ask, and if I don\'t know I might be able to point you to people that do.
I also live near Brockport, so if you want to see my rig sometime either come to the monthly meeting (yes, I\'ll be going back to them now that the silly season is over), or PM me and we can meet up.



2007 Jeep JK 2-door, 3.8L 6-spd manual
2.5\" Teraflex budget lift with 4-door Rubicon hardtop springs
Cragar 16x7 soft-8 steel rims
285/75R16 Cooper Discoverer STT tires
Aussie front D30 auto locker
Rugged Ridge modular front bumper
Smittybuilt XRC-8 winch

[akhoopes]

alright guys thanks for all the help. Just a little mor einfo on my jeep it is a sport, not a rubicon, I got the 17 inch rims with the upgraded off roaf tires, although i think thats just a name cause they dont look that off road to me. It is a auto, not a stick. Hard top.

So there was a lot of good info here. Still confused though what is a sway bar disconnect and why would i need one. I do not plan ondoing a whole lot of crazy stuff to the jeep, maybe a tire and a small 2 inch lift upgrade. The locker you guys are talking about sounds useful. I dont want to conquer mount everest in it. Just do some trails some mud and shallow water with the wife and kids and see some new stuff.

When is the 4x4 101 class and where is it held. Thanks again

[akhoopes]

.

Doppleganger wrote:
The one thing that sticks out about the new TK\'s, is that their axle housing is weak, due to the extra width, but no extra strength.  Apparently, adding larger tires to the stock Dana 30 front end can actually bend the axle tubes (or at least where they are mounted in the center section) and cause gear and bearing failure.  I\'ve seen an article in one of the 4x4 magazines about adding axle tube inserts that get welded to the inside ends of the tubes, and gussets that are welded in various spots.

I believe my jeep comes with a heavy duty DANA 44, not a 30.

Thats what the sales sticker says

I also thing the 2010 is a JK not a TK is that right

[smichaelR22]

4x4 101 is an event our club puts on, it was a huge success last year with 36rigs that showed up.  we had a blast.  recovery and driving techniques were covered as was trail safety and gear.

we are in the process of setting a date for this summer.  its held at whispering pines hideaway in Lyons NY.  

[akhoopes]

awesome please email me at akhoopes@gmail.com when you know i definitely want to attend.

[ollllllo]

the sway bar disconnects will allow your front axle to articulate (flex) much more than stock. (sway bar connected)
this is basically the second thing street driven vehicles will do after they begin to air down their tires for a day on the trails.
[color=990000] They are not necessary[/color], but for a relatively inexpensive upgrade, they will improve your \"JK\'s\" off road abilities dramatically.
here are a few that i found
i have run JKS on my CJ7 in the past, and they work well.


http://www.quadratec.com/products/16160_10X_PG.htm

http://www.quadratec.com/products/16191_60X_PG.htm