Your trip looked like way too much fun. So other then the tire rub, how were all the other aspects of performance Mike? Did you notice any significant increase or decrease in range and or ability?
Cam, thanks for the comments. Yes the trip was a blast if only for a couple of days of wheeling.
**Now for my lengthy review of the overall driving experience of the new powertrain.
As for the overall performance, despite the couple of minor interference issues, I couldn't be more happy with how the Jeep performed. My wife was getting a bit frustrated with me last week prior to leaving. She said "why are you so anxious? This is far from our first trip to Moab and we know the area like the back of our hands so why are you so stressed and anxious?" I had to inform her that the Jeep doesn't even resemble the same Jeep we have been wheeling for the past nearly 8 years and nearly 100k miles now. I told her it felt as though my first time going to Moab with a new Jeep. The Jeep has changed so dramatically even if it looks the same. Different gearing, different size tires, different suspension, different transfer case ratio and different engine & transmission. All of which I had calculated well out in my head but what worried me is the things that maybe I didn't think of or that slipped through the seams in the planning phases. After 3000 miles I now know what it handles like on the pavement in all weather and driving conditions and had an "image" in my mind of what it would wheel like and I wasn't going to be happy unless it meshed up with what was in my head.
Now that being said, it performed PERFECTLY. The power is so smooth and the seamless driving off-road I told my wife I feel as though I am cheating, if there is such a thing as cheating off-road.
It is just as docile and mild mannered off-road as it is on the pavement. What really pleased me is the fact that just like I have hoped is that I hardly had to use 4WD except on the actual obstacles. Being in 2WD most of the time kept my RPM's low and most of the time just idling along or well under about 1500 RPM unless I wanted to kick my speed up a bit which was a huge difference from before when I was in 4-LO and having to be up closer to 2500-3000 RPM as a normal RPM range. Fuel economy off-road didn't really seem to change because I was running so low of RPM and it was working so effortlessly the entire time. I noticed absolutely no difference in range based on this non-scientific gut feeling.
One trail in particular is called Gemini Bridges road. Those of you who have been to Moab will be very familiar with this road as it leads up to Metal Masher, Bull Canyon and of course, Gemini Bridges. The main trail is not difficult at all as it is just a narrow and winding dirt road but it climbs almost immediately as soon as you pull off of Highway 191. The road is steep and there are a couple of rough sections where the rocks are exposed but for the most part not technical at all. In the past this section had to be driven in 4-LO due to the fact of the grade and the lack of power of the 3.8 (and even the 3.6's in our group that had mild lifts and oversize tires) just wasn't sufficient to climb this in 2WD. Even the 3.6 Pentastars with about 80HP more than the earlier 3.8's would struggle but if they were run in 2WD for very long the transmissions would get hot and many times I have been on that section with novice Jeepers who would have their dash light up with overheating issues from the transmission or the engine if they didn't shift the transfer case down into 4-LO.
I was in the "testing" phase so out of curiosity I ran this trail in 2WD keeping an eye on both engine and transmission temps. and it never missed a beat. It motored up the grade without hesitation or even any sense of struggling. The engine temperature stayed in the 204-210 degree range and the fan would come on at idle speed (approx. 20%) and the transmission was around 150-degrees. Actually for the entire day the transmission temperature never raised above 165-degrees. I could toggle easily between first, second and even into third gear at a couple of times on that first section of trail on the grade. Much of it I went slower than normal due to the amount of bicycles on the trail that day but also because I just wanted to see if it would climb it at low speed vs. pushing the speed and cruising up it which it passed the test easily.
Once on top and cruising along the trail it was easily noticed that 4WD was going to something that I wasn't going to be using much in the future when not on the obstacles. I usually had to be in 4-LO because the sandy washes would just **** the power out of the engine as does any slight grade and 2WD just couldn't cut it, not so any longer. We took the turnoff down into Bull Canyon which is only rated as a moderate but just due to about 2 obstacles that require crawling over and tire placement. I did them both easily in 2WD and never slipped a tire. Speaking of tires, I love these Nitto Ridge Grapplers. Obviously it's Moab so traction is good but even in the sand and dirt they performed fantastic. I did air down a bit further than I usually did with my 35's and possibly a little too low on day number one. With my 35" KO2's I had my deflators set to 14 PSI and that is pretty much where I ran all the time off-road. I wanted to try a bit lower on these 37" Nittos but I think I set the deflators a bit too low on the first day. They dropped them to around 10.5-11 PSI and on a couple of occasions I hit a little hard and could feel the tire hit the wheel so once back at camp I played around with my deflators and adjusted the pressure up just a little. On day #2 on the trail they landed me at around 12.5-13 PSI which I found to be perfect for this setup. The ride was nice and smooth yet I had the traction I needed when I needed it. Along one long section of Debinky Well Road north of town I could easily cruise along at around 45-60 MPH and it just floated along with the engine sitting right on the thermostat and the transmission temperature around 125-130 degrees.
Once at the end of the trail the Powertank setup worked flawlessly when airing up. I couldn't be more happy with how the entire package worked off-road. Everything performed even better than expected and I am certain once I get those couple of interference issues addressed it will provide many years and miles of enjoyment.
I have two minor changes coming in the near future as soon as I get some time. I purchased a new CB for the Jeep during the holidays as I had several people mention that they had a hard time hearing me when we were in South Dakota at the FMCA 4-Wheelers gathering last September so I will be installing a new Cobra model 29 as soon as I fabricate a mounting solution for it. I also sold my Bestop Trektop NX soft top a few weeks back and purchased the Bestop Sunrider which will replace my two front panels of the Freedom top with a fold back setup. One thing the wife and I do miss is having the area over the driver/passenger open on nice days so this will provide that open feel yet I won't miss the hassle of the soft top. I will run this setup during the warmer months and put my Freedom tops back on during the winter.
I hope all of that makes sense Cam and I wasn't just rambling but I think I nailed the overall Jeep package right on the head.
