IFS Jeep bombing through the desert

[legacy_etu]

You mean your Pentastar doesn’t sound like that?

LOL. I almost made a joke about wondering what kind of exhaust they put on the Pentastar to get her to sound like that?!

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[RubiNewbCB]

Not Bombing at high speed but still impressive.

 

[RubiNewbCB]

Can be done on a a fiscally constrained budget.

 

[MoparToYou]

No shit? Again, as I said they are on tons and v8 swapped... neither of which would help high speed bump handling though. Not to mention the extra wheelbase of the JT makes a huge difference. And as I said, mine will comfortably roll at the limiter so even the v8 swap wouldn't make it any faster (quicker for sure). ADS prices are up from the last time I looked 4 years ago. Fronts are $2300 and rears are $1900. But again, that's nowhere near a six figure build like people think they need to run desert trails at speed. A $3500 long arm kit and $4200 in shocks and your gladiator will out handle the stepchild thanks to wheelbase and lighter weight. Obviously you won't have the 6.4L acceleration. Obviously you won't have the strength of tons (more important for crawling than desert running in my experience).

Zachanadany,
I like what you're doing with your Mojave. It sounds like you have a 3 1/2" spring lift and probably stock shocks, presumably with shock extension brackets. And you also have geometry correction brackets; what brand? What tire size are you running? Have you done anything to the stock bumpstops, track bars, control arms? How much up travel do you have at ride height? How much shock travel do you have? Any thought about trussing the axles? I realize the Mojave front axle has tube wall thickness that is 43% greater than a Rubicon (10 mm instead of 7 mm), and that it has cast iron knuckles instead of aluminum. Just wondering about any plans to strengthen the axles, brakes, or anything else. Thanks.

 

[Zachanadandy]

Zachanadany,
I like what you're doing with your Mojave. It sounds like you have a 3 1/2" spring lift and probably stock shocks, presumably with shock extension brackets. And you also have geometry correction brackets; what brand? What tire size are you running? Have you done anything to the stock bumpstops, track bars, control arms? How much up travel do you have at ride height? Any thought about trussing the axles? I realize the Mojave front axle has tube wall thickness that is 43% greater than a Rubicon (10 mm instead of 7 mm), and that it has cast iron knuckles instead of aluminum. Just wondering about any plans to strengthen the axles, brakes, or anything else. Thanks.

Geo brackets are evo, bought from someone who never ended up installing them for $100. Front arms are stock as are the rear lowers. Rear uppers are rock krawler triangulted with their rear truss. I don't plan on putting any money into the stock axles. If they bend/break I'll upgrade to tons. 37s for the last 24k miles with no issues. Front and rear 2" bump stop extensions with stock bumps. Not sure on the uptravel, likely somewhere between 3.5-4". Shocks will be the next upgrade for sure although the stockers with extensions are really good.

 

[MoparToYou]

Thanks for the additional information, it sounds like a good set-up. I come from a desert racing background, so suspension talk is interesting to me. I always seem to mod the suspension in any 4x4 I own.

I have the same front axle as you in both our Mojave and our 392 XR. I don't plan to spend any money on the stock axles either. If it breaks, I'll change to UD 60s. Stock 4.10 gears are fine on our Mojave with 35" tires, and stock 4.56 gears are actually fine with the 392 XR and 40" tires. The 392 has enough torque that gearing doesn't seem to matter in that Jeep.

A shock upgrade can make a difference, especially by increasing suspension travel. Our Mojave is basically stock, with just a Mopar lift, shock extension brackets for the stock shocks, Metalcloak control arms and track bars. My 392 has had some mods in the 3 years I have owned it though. Initially a 2 1/2" lift and Fox DSC shocks on 37s; now with a 4 1/2" lift and Accutune valved King adjustable shocks on 40s. On the 392 I have 6" of uptravel in front and 4 1/2" of uptravel in back. I had to extend the rear bumpstops 1 1/2", but the front bumpstops are stock length to maximize uptravel. Aftermarket fenders provide enough tire clearance to prevent any rub. The King shocks ride much better than the Fox shocks did, just something for you to consider. They are plusher while also being more controlled. The additional 2" of uptravel that came with the 4 1/2" lift dramatically improved ride quality at speed. I think that made more difference than anything else.

Neither of my Jeeps are really what I would consider a go-fast machine though. I wouldn't be going 100 mph off road with either of them. Kudos to you for that feat.

Here's the 392:

 

[MaximusTX]

Here you go. IFS for only $37K

JEEP INDEPENDANT FRONT SUSPENSION

 

[ChecksOut]

Here you go. IFS for only $37K

JEEP INDEPENDANT FRONT SUSPENSION

How much can you trust 'em when they can't spell independent?

 

[salvino]

This is how I envisioned using my Mojave ( and I love that sound )

To each his own. I enjoy putting along in my JTR and enjoying a relaxing day in the wilderness with some adrenaline from the obstacles I slowly navigate. That doesn't look like fun to me.

 

[BillyP]

Can be done on a a fiscally constrained budget.

That Jeep is doing great. I was actually extremely surprised how good the 3.6 sounded. I was not expecting that.

 

[Bjeepz]

No shit? Again, as I said they are on tons and v8 swapped... neither of which would help high speed bump handling though. Not to mention the extra wheelbase of the JT makes a huge difference. And as I said, mine will comfortably roll at the limiter so even the v8 swap wouldn't make it any faster (quicker for sure). ADS prices are up from the last time I looked 4 years ago. Fronts are $2300 and rears are $1900. But again, that's nowhere near a six figure build like people think they need to run desert trails at speed. A $3500 long arm kit and $4200 in shocks and your gladiator will out handle the stepchild thanks to wheelbase and lighter weight. Obviously you won't have the 6.4L acceleration. Obviously you won't have the strength of tons (more important for crawling than desert running in my experience).

No shit at all. I compute in CDN Pesos, everything is nearly doubled up here. Just the axles are 30k here, so those shocks would run me 8k kinda thing. Then the long arm kit etc. A V8 swap here is a 50k game. Blah blah

 

[Bjeepz]

Geo brackets are evo, bought from someone who never ended up installing them for $100. Front arms are stock as are the rear lowers. Rear uppers are rock krawler triangulted with their rear truss. I don't plan on putting any money into the stock axles. If they bend/break I'll upgrade to tons. 37s for the last 24k miles with no issues. Front and rear 2" bump stop extensions with stock bumps. Not sure on the uptravel, likely somewhere between 3.5-4". Shocks will be the next upgrade for sure although the stockers with extensions are really good.

I don’t recall what our Mojave stock shock extended lengths are.. Metal Cloak I believe makes a 3 inch extension if that keeps you under the 28.5’ish zone for the front driveshaft limit. Everyone likes an extra inch!

 

[Zachanadandy]

No shit at all. I compute in CDN Pesos, everything is nearly doubled up here. Just the axles are 30k here, so those shocks would run me 8k kinda thing. Then the long arm kit etc. A V8 swap here is a 50k game. Blah blah

To build the stepchild you'd be pushing $100k then, but my point was to be able to go fast you don't need the really expensive parts. The 3.6L has no problem pushing the JT to triple digit speeds. The extra weight of the v8 would actually be a drawback to bump handling. The tons are not only not necessary, but the added unsprung weight is a double negative when trying to build a go fast suspension. A stock mojave with shocks and long arms would 100% handle better than the stepchild at speed for those reasons. $7k US or $14k CDN would do it.

 

[Bonanza]

Jeep could make an amazing IFS platform that can do well offroad. But at this point Stellantis and Jeep just aren't pushing the envelope and aren't innovating. Ford, on the other hand, is cementing their place with win after win after win, and to me that's a lot more impressive that relying on 1940s WW2 film to sell products.

Watching these IFS trucks get through rocks is great.

 

[WILDHOBO]

No shit? Again, as I said they are on tons and v8 swapped... neither of which would help high speed bump handling though. Not to mention the extra wheelbase of the JT makes a huge difference. And as I said, mine will comfortably roll at the limiter so even the v8 swap wouldn't make it any faster (quicker for sure). ADS prices are up from the last time I looked 4 years ago. Fronts are $2300 and rears are $1900. But again, that's nowhere near a six figure build like people think they need to run desert trails at speed. A $3500 long arm kit and $4200 in shocks and your gladiator will out handle the stepchild thanks to wheelbase and lighter weight. Obviously you won't have the 6.4L acceleration. Obviously you won't have the strength of tons (more important for crawling than desert running in my experience).

I’d guess my JT will match that handling if not better, with my ecliks. No idea how fast they’re going, but their body moves way more than mine at speed on bumps.

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