Builds mcgaskins' 2016 build thread - Ruby (1 Viewer)

[mcgaskins]

Added a Factor 55 Flatlink to the winch today. The front bumper came with a pivoting license plate bracket for the front plate, but I can’t seem to figure out where I put it. Once I find and install it, the Flatlink won’t interfere with it unlike the Prolink I tried first.

 

[Mendocino]

@mcgaskins Got tires? We need pictures...

 

[mcgaskins]

@mcgaskins Got tires? We need pictures...

Dropping off Tuesday morning for the new meats! Just for kicks I weighed one my current wheels and tire for a baseline, and my current setup is 100 pounds per corner (weighed 4x and 2x it was 98 and 2x it was 100). I’ll be curious to see if the 35s are really only a 10 pound per corner increase. Bathroom scale apparently has the LED flicker going on so I snapped 2 pics:

 

[Stuckinthe80s]

Still going through the Cruise Moab pics and videos and wanted to share some in this thread. Here is a video of the truck showing how well the multi terrain select system works on the 16+ trucks. I had the earlier system in my 14 LC, and I can confirm it did not work nearly as aggressively as it does in this truck. You can see slight wheel slip and the brakes working to stop it and send the power to the wheel that needs it. I was the first person in our group to go up this section, and the truck made it up easily on the first try without a spotter (just walked it first to see what it looked like).

When I came down to snap pics of the other guys in my group, a group of ~6 Wrangler Rubicons on 35-37" tires had lined up behind me to up the same obstacle. I figured it wouldn't take long at all for them to work through our group, but that was a very wrong assumption. The first Jeep took ~15 minutes and 5 attempts to climb it, and the attempts were not kind to the Jeep. The next couple were much worse and took longer, and I was afraid they were going to flop or break an axle or driveshaft at a minimum. I don't know what their skill level was, but I could tell they were VERY frustrated a 4runner/Sequoia/Highlander thing walked up the same section with zero drama.

This is freaking INCREDIBLE!! Dare I say it almost takes all of the fun out it? LOL

 

[mcgaskins]

Added the 35s today. They rub a little on the plastic at the rear which is expected and pretty easily fixed, and they rub a little on the KDSS which is annoying since I JUST remedied that with the BORA spacers. My biggest concern is ensuring the tires don’t hit the front bumper under extreme cycling causing damage, so I’ll play around with it this weekend to ensure all is good. I haven’t been on the highway yet, but around town I can barely feel any difference over the 34s.

 

[grinchy]

Let me know if you want to swap spacers. I have 25mm and could go a little narrower

 

[mcgaskins]

Let me know if you want to swap spacers. I have 25mm and could go a little narrower

That might be the right width for this setup so I’ll see what it looks like this weekend when I can get under the truck. The .75” was perfect before but these are bigger tires than I was anticipating!

I don’t know if it’s ever going to be possible to go any larger and fit in my garage, so that’s one thing my wife is happy about

Also it’s funny to see the difference rubber makes. These are both 18” wheels:

 

[Markuson]

That might be the right width for this setup so I’ll see what it looks like this weekend when I can get under the truck. The .75” was perfect before but these are bigger tires than I was anticipating!

I don’t know if it’s ever going to be possible to go any larger and fit in my garage, so that’s one thing my wife is happy about

View attachment 1990615View attachment 1990616

Also it’s funny to see the difference rubber makes. These are both 18” wheels:

View attachment 1990618
View attachment 1990619

Dang it, Matt!
Just when I downsize from 35’s....and adjust my eyesight to 34’s...you had to go and remind me that 34’s just plain can’t visually compare with 35s!
!

 

[Stuckinthe80s]

Added the 35s today. They rub a little on the plastic at the rear which is expected and pretty easily fixed, and they rub a little on the KDSS which is annoying since I JUST remedied that with the BORA spacers. My biggest concern is ensuring the tires don’t hit the front bumper under extreme cycling causing damage, so I’ll play around with it this weekend to ensure all is good. I haven’t been on the highway yet, but around town I can barely feel any difference over the 34s.

View attachment 1990576View attachment 1990577

Damn that big girl looks good with them new shoes!

 

[linuxgod]

You just like the challenge Matt. As soon as you get the rubbing on the 35s worked out it'll be time to try 37s...

 

[tbisaacs]

You're gonna put that one missing center cap on right?

 

[mcgaskins]

You're gonna put that one missing center cap on right?

Good eye! Yes I popped it off to experiment this weekend with potentially painting or dipping the wheels, and I'll start with that one. I am thinking a very dark grey with some gloss, but I haven't decided yet. I'd also like to do something unique with the center caps too just not sure what yet!

 

[Tremek]

That bumper is cool. Is there one made for pre-'16 trucks?

Good eye! Yes I popped it off to experiment this weekend with potentially painting or dipping the wheels, and I'll start with that one. I am thinking a very dark grey with some gloss, but I haven't decided yet. I'd also like to do something unique with the center caps too just not sure what yet!

For what it's worth gunmetal plastidip with Metallicizer? Pearlizer? Can't remember - I thought came out well years ago when I used it on our X5M;

 

[Willy beamin]

why the paradigm shift in 35’s? Thought you
Were an advocate for less than.

 

[Markuson]

why the paradigm shift in 35’s? Thought you
Were an advocate for less than.

That was my initial thought, too, but he went skinny. Surprised he’s still hitting sway bars without the 12.5”+...

 

[mcgaskins]

why the paradigm shift in 35’s? Thought you
Were an advocate for less than.

You are right...I was TBH I never really planned to take the build this far, but every time I go out wheeling there's always another mod or two that pops into my head and apparently I'm bad at keeping to the minimalist gameplan. It does help that I have recently sold a couple cars so my attention is less spread out now, and the remaining cars we have aren't going to get modded at all besides the 200. All that said, I'm going to experiment with fitment and ensure the performance gain (admittedly not much) is worth the work to get everything working ideally. If the tradeoff isn't worth it, the 34s will go back on.

That was my initial thought, too, but he went skinny. Surprised he’s still hitting sway bars without the 12.5”+...

Although the published specs on these tires show they're no wider than the 34s that came off, they are definitely at least a half inch wider which is a bit frustrating. The only place they hit on the street is on the KDSS at full lock, but I'm going to experiment a bit this weekend to see if there is more interference in situations where the tire is stuffed into the wheel wells. If there isn't a comfortable safety margin, they will come off and 34s will go back on. I had the 285/70/18 RGs dialed in perfectly - no rub anywhere even wheeling under full stuff - and I don't want to compromise performance for aesthetics and a half inch or less of ground clearance. I really hope these work out, but I'm not committed to sticking to something that's not going to work at the level I expect/want.

 

[Rigger]

Sweet rig. I love it!

 

[mcgaskins]

Update on the tires. I checked clearance, and they surprisingly fit pretty well everywhere except on the KDSS sway bar on the front driver's wheel well. The issue is as much about overall diameter as much as it is width, and the rubbing is significant enough when turning right that it will literally bring the truck to a stop at ~1.25 turns. I had to ask myself what the point of the "upgrade" is by moving up in size, and the pros list is a lot shorter than the cons list. The truck was already dialed in perfectly with the 34s, and I feel like I'd be chasing solutions for the problems 35s creates for basically a half inch of ground clearance. I could add spacers, bump stops, KDSS relocation, trim plastic, etc., etc., but it seems silly to add the complexity and expense when the easy solution is to just go back to the 34s. I only put 3 miles on the tires, and the tire shop was more than willing to let me exchange the tires for new 285/70/18 Ridge Grapplers. I probably could have just returned them, but I don't want to be a PITA customer and who doesn't like new rubber?!

Here are some pics of the clearance if anyone is considering running this tire. I'm sure it's doable, but there will be compromises made in order to get it to work at its full potential. I stand by my original decision that the 285/70/18 is the best size tire for this platform, and fortunately I was able to correct my mistake before going down the rabbit hole I will admit the 35s look incredible, but people like @Willy beamin were correct in calling me out for going against the original ethos of my build.



A couple of big pieces of wood and 4 Maxtrax stacked to see how the front passenger tire would clear (~13" off the ground). Doesn't appear that it would have any issues, but trimming the plastic the rear would likely be necessary for real world wheeling situations.

Rear driver tire - no problems, but I'd likely replace the ARB mud flap bolts with more flush allen bolts to keep the tires from getting damaged under flex.

Here is the real problem. You can see how much it rubs even without turning the wheel to full lock. Couple potential solutions like alignment, wheels, spacers, KDSS relocation, etc. but IMO they all compromise something somewhere else. I had the KDSS relocation on my 2014 truck and wasn't a huge fan of it, and it looked like the bushings were put under a ton of strain with it on.

No body mount or frame interference, but keep in mind this is static/not moving.

Passenger front BARELY touches the sway bar, but it's not enough to cause any real issues IMO.

 

[grinchy]

That’s a bummer! I’m a bit narrower on the 275 have a bit more spacer with 25mm and just barely get into the inside of the wheel well above the frame at full lock. And of course no kdss interference on the lx.

 

[mcgaskins]

That’s a bummer! I’m a bit narrower on the 275 have a bit more spacer with 25mm and just barely get into the inside of the wheel well above the frame at full lock. And of course no kdss interference on the lx.

It is a bummer, and I think this setup would work on an LX with no KDSS to worry about.