Birth of Phoenix

So I took the Jeep down for a few days. I had a bunch of little things so to do. The most important one was to replace the stock TJ tank skid.

I picked up a skid from my buddy. It’s a heavy duty skid from Rokmen Off-road. Much beefier than the stock one.
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I pretty much had to do the same modifications to this one as I did before.
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Once I got the new skid installed, I decided to move the axle forward about 1/2” to ensure there is enough clearance.
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I also decided to add a Teraflex rear coil spacer. I’ve noticed with the extra tools and kids the Jeep sits lower than I would like.

My initial ground clearance for the old skid was 21.5”. With the new skid, it was 22.25”. With the spacers it is now 23.75”. Eager to see how it does now.


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Also replaced my seized exhaust manifold collector bolts. The exhaust shop loosened them in VA but apparently they never tightened them because they couldn’t. Cut those out and replaced them. IMG_0696.jpg
For an early birthday present, my wife bought a Bed Rug floor liner for the Jeep. The carpet was getting gross. This stuff looks good and is pretty durable.
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More updates. Wife also bought and iDrive and some JL latches for the Jeep. I would say the iDrive is a game changer. Drive ability has gone up dramatically. Much more confident in town when it comes to accelerating. Also it works well on the freeway. When going up hills, light touch of the throttle will cause the transmission to downshift it much sooner therefore maintaining my momentum. Yes I know I don’t get any more power but it’s much more pleasant to drive. I’ve been driving in U2 and switched it to E9 on the trail. So far so good.


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BABOOZLE said:
More updates. Wife also bought and iDrive and some JL latches for the Jeep. I would say the iDrive is a game changer. Drive ability has gone up dramatically. Much more confident in town when it comes to accelerating. Also it works well on the freeway. When going up hills, light touch of the throttle will cause the transmission to downshift it much sooner therefore maintaining my momentum. Yes I know I don’t get any more power but it’s much more pleasant to drive. I’ve been driving in U2 and switched it to E9 on the trail. So far so good.


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I added a HikeIt a few months ago, which looks like pretty much the same as the idrive. I agree it makes a big difference, especially with the 3.8 and 4 speed AT. Much less sluggish. MPG have dropped though. [emoji17]


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fiend said:
I added a HikeIt a few months ago, which looks like pretty much the same as the idrive. I agree it makes a big difference, especially with the 3.8 and 4 speed AT. Much less sluggish. MPG have dropped though. [emoji17]


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I’m sure the MPGs will drop but the smiles per gallon go up. [emoji3]


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Went out to Tahuya yesterday for an easy day on the trails. I didn’t plan on doing anything extreme. Well we ended up at Sasquatch Bluff which is a pretty gnarly hill climb. I’ve done it before. A JT in our group made it up on 37s. Wasn’t the prettiest thing and it took awhile but he made it. So I decided to give it a go. Did the first 90% in about 2-3 minutes. The last bit I fell off my line into a hole and it became much more difficult. Working my way out I got to the very last rock to overcome. Just had to climb it and I was free. Listening to my spotters I started to crawl. Jeep rose up and with a loud “bang” my Jeep fell back down. It was either ring gear, axle shaft, u joint or hub. Quickly figured out it was a hub and I winched the last boulder. Unlocked it and drove home.
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Where I broke.
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Winched over the last boulder.


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This morning I pulled the hub to see the damage.
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Teeth wiped clean.
Got another one today and installed it. A lot of people are telling me to upgrade but I think having this as the weak link makes sense. If it breaks I can drive home. Not catastrophic and I can easy fix on the trail. I’ll have a trail spare now. The video is fun to watch. It’s on my IG @harsh_customs


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Oh yeah, that exploded real good. Glad it's a warranty coverage deal. Always nice not to pony up if you don't have to.
 
BABOOZLE said:
This morning I pulled the hub to see the damage.
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Teeth wiped clean.
Got another one today and installed it. A lot of people are telling me to upgrade but I think having this as the weak link makes sense. If it breaks I can drive home. Not catastrophic and I can easy fix on the trail. I’ll have a trail spare now. The video is fun to watch. It’s on my IG @harsh_customs


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Click to expand...

Shame about the hub, but like you said, better that than a ring and pinion, axle, or even u joint.
 
fiend said:
I added a HikeIt a few months ago, which looks like pretty much the same as the idrive. I agree it makes a big difference, especially with the 3.8 and 4 speed AT. Much less sluggish. MPG have dropped though. [emoji17]


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Click to expand...

Do you know if this will work with Superchip Flashpaq?
 
Seahawkfan said:
Do you know if this will work with Superchip Flashpaq?
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I don’t have a super chip but the websites of the throttle control guys generally say there won’t be any problems with tuning mods.


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