ORR Jeep Blog

Last Friday, a buddy from work mentioned he was going to be geocaching over the weekend. What the hell is geocaching I asked? He proceeded to tell me about it.

Essentially, geocashing is a game you play with a GPS unit. Various clubs and organizations around the country hide these “caches” which are usually trinkets or small rewards. The club gives information in the form of GPS coordinates or waypoints that help the user find the reward.

I immediately thought this game would be cool for Jeepers. After some quick research I found that Jeep actually sponsors a geocaching event each year. You can get info on the event here: http://jeep.geocaching.com/

There are dozens of other sites dedicated to geocaching and many of them have off road-specific adventures for Jeepers and other 4×4 enthusiasts.

Here’s a killer new product from Skyjacker. The RockLock Sway Bar Disconnect System is one of the coolest things I’ve seen in sway bars since quick disconnect systems were introduced.

The RockLock system uses an adjustable locking mechanism that looks and functions a lot like a hub. When you’re on the trail, simply unlock the hub for zero resistance from the swaybar. Back on the street, another twist of the hub locks the sway bar into place with three optional setting to suit your driving preference.

Skyjacker’s RockLock fits 97-06 Jeep Wranglers (TJ) and 04-06 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (TJ). The kit takes approximately 4 hours to install and comes with all the necessary hardware. A couple of things to keep in mind: You’ll have to trim the stock bumper to provide clearance for the hub. Also, vehicles with Skyjacker’s adjustable front track bar may need a new track bar relocation bracket.

Overall, this seems like a great solution for hassle-free sway bar disconnect. You can pick up the RockLock at a variety of online dealers for around $400.

If you haven’t heard of these guys, you probably will soon. Gen-Right Off Road is a new-ish company started in February of 2006 in Simi Valley, California. A quick look around their website and you can tell these guys have really put a lot of thought into their products.

The bulk of their product offerings consist of body armor, skid plates and exterior roll cages, but they also offer link-based suspension kits, gas tanks, shock mount kits, engine pulleys and some other miscellaneous stuff.

One of the products I was really impressed with is the GenRight XO Bar system. The XO Bar is essentially an exterior roll bar for your Jeep consisting of three bars that mount to “solid” points on the body. The cool part about this system is it’s removable. So if you don’t want that gnarly look when you’re driving your rig on the street, you can remove the cage in a few minutes with just an allen wrench.

The XO Bar is available for YJ’s and CJ’s and will cost you $499 plus shipping.

Amid the torn wrapping paper, empty boxes and plastic packaging, i found a minute to post during my Christmas break. The subject was sparked by a gift my 3-year-old received. It was a remote control Jeep Commander with what looks like a gnarly set of 60″ tires.

The toy was a bit out of proportion, but it got me thinking about how cool a real Commander would look with a lift and some big meats. After a bit of research here are some different options I came up with:

Superlift makes a 4″ lift kit for the 2005 & 2006 Commander 2WD & 4WD models. The Superlift kit will kit will clear 33″ to 34″ x 12.50″ tires on 8.5″ wheels with 5.5″ backspacing.

Rocky Road makes a 2.25″ kit. You can get a kit with shocks or one without. On the kit without shocks you can use your stock shocks, but they don’t recommend it. The Rocky Road kit will easily fit 265/70/17 tires with no backspacing.

Revtek offers a 2″ budget boost system comprised of polyurethane spacers. Stock shock and steering geometry are retained with this system. It’s an economical solution at around $250.

Daystar offers a kit similar to the Revtek system. It’s a 2″ kit that uses poly spacers and strut plates. The Daystar kit uses stock shocks and also runs about $250.

Yet another budget boost comes courtesy of Skyjacker. Their 2″ kit is much the same as the Revtek and Daystar, but costs around $290.

One of the tallest lift kits I’ve seen comes from Rusty’s Off-Road. Their 4.5″ XK kit will clear 35″ meats. I couldn’t find a price on this one, in fact I couldn’t even figure out how to order it from their website. Rusty’s also makes a 2″ budget boost kit for around $250. The big difference between this kit and the other budge boosters is the Rusty’s kit includes two extended gas shocks.

I got an email from Quadratec this morning…thought I’d pass it along. They’re offering $100 gift certificates for $80. Here’s a link to the promo: http://www.quadratec.com/products/product.php?id=GIFT80&sgsc=QNEWSLET1206C

It’s a fact of life: Jeep seats take a beating. Whether it’s sun damage, rain damage, mud damage, dog damage or usually a combination of all the above, the seats in your Jeep are going to get hammered sooner or later. A quick and cost effective way to prevent damage to your seats or cover up existing damage is by throwing on a set of seat covers.

Today’s seat covers aren’t simply coverups either. You don’t have to settle for the old saddle blanket style your grandpa had in his Ford pickup. Depending on your application, you can get a seat covers in just about any style, color combination and pattern, including camouflage, animal prints, tropical patters and more.

A popular choice among Jeepers are neoprene seat covers. Made of material similar to wetsuits, these seat covers are well liked because they are extremely water resistant and if they do get wet will dry out very quickly.

If you plan on driving your Jeep on the street at all, you’ve got to have insurance. But for many Jeepers, their rig isn’t a daily driver. Some of us only pull our rides out of the garage in the summer months. So what’s the best choice for insurance?

Obviously you don’t want to insure your vehicle full time if you’re not going to be driving it full time. So make sure to check with your insurance agent for other cost effective options they might have for part time use vehicles. In my case, my insurance company offered insurance specifically for hobby/recreational vehicles. This costs me about $10 a month and is well worth it.

Other insurance options include seasonal insurance for a time frame you specify. For example, you can insure your Jeep for just spring and summer rather than spending the dough to insure it all year.

Whatever the case, make sure you do insure your vehicle. If you get caught driving while uninsured the penalties are stiff and could result in you losing your license. Not to mention, if you get in a wreck the other motorist could sue you for damages.

Most of us are always looking to squeeze more horsepower out of rides. Now Edge Products makes a solution that allows you to increase the horsepower on your TJ 4.0 liter by a whopping 20%. Oh, and the best part…it’ll take all of an hour to complete the upgrade!

This miracle horsepower kit is called the Edge Trail Jammer . Edge products has become wildy popular in the diesel performance market with their Edge Juice performance chips, but now you can get similar gains from a gas motor.

The Trail Jammer Kit includes a performance module that tunes your 4.0 liter for max power, a machined throttle body for better engine response and a cold air intake system complete with lifetime filter.

The Edge Trail Jammer Kit is available online for around $650 which might sound a bit steep at first, but for the raw horsepower gains (not to mention the smile on your face the first time you press the gas peddal) it’s well worth the dough.

Gibson is a staple in the performance exhaust market. So it’s no surprise they’re one of the first manufacturers to market with an exhaust system for the 2007 Jeep JK.

Aftermarket exhuast systems are a great way to increase your engine’s horsepower and the Gibson cat back system is no exception. Typical horsepower gains average in the 15-20 horsepower range. That’s horsepower you can feel when you step on the go pedal. You’ll alse enjoy increases in both torque and fuel efficiency.

Gibson’s cat back systems are available for both 2-door and 4-door JKs and come in either aluminized or stainless steel. Either way, you’ll love the sound. Gibson catback systems produce a rich throaty sound that’ll turn heads without drowning out your stereo.

With an average install time of 1-2 hourse, the Gibson cat back sytem is fairly simple to hang and includes everything you’ll need for installation. Includes mandrel bent exhuast tubing, Gibson Superflow muffler, stainless steel tips and zinc-plated hangers.

The Gibson cat back system for your JK can be had for around $380 and is available online at a variety of dealers.

Looking for a way to lift your JK on the cheap? Many manufacturers are offering what’s called a “budget boost” kit. The basic design of a budget boost kit is to lift your Jeep via spacers on the front and rear suspension. Many manufacturers even offer options that allow you to utilize the OEM shocks your Jeep came with.

The Teraflex Budget Boost is one of the best kits on the market. It comes in two varieties…one with extended shocks and one with adaptors that allow you to utilize your factory shocks. Along with front and rear spacers, the kit includes spring retainers, bumpstops, and hardware.

Installing this kit on your JK will give you 2.5 inches of lift and allow you to clear up to 35 inch tires with absolutely no drilling or welding. Installation is pretty simple and at just $229 for a “shockless” version, it’s an economical solution to putting bigger meats under your JK.