Iām not the most mechanically inclined person: I have swapped bumpers and grilles numerous times; it is easy. If I can do it, you can do it.
I really wish I could have put like, wow, and several other emotions for that reply.[Sorry for the long note - I bolded the items I would add so you could skip the editorial content]
Depends - if you are going to use off road then consider tires first (or tires and lift). If you are staying mostly on road then I'd look to a Tazer Mini (or one of the alternatives- there are threads but I only seem to find those at 3am) to make some usability adjustments like sticking your stop start status, alarming the hood, lighting etc. I've been modding my LR Discovery for years and am waiting on delivery for my new 6MT Rubicon. You should address your primary needs. here is how I went about thinking this through:
My first mods are being done at the dealership mostly because I want them covered under warranty/financing etc and I don't have tools for these kinds of things: Mopar 2in lift, 35s, wheels and a smittybilt xrc gen2 bumper for my winch. I'll move over my 10K Smittybilt X2O winch that is currently on my landrover by myself and most mods I expect to make after that don't require airtools or a lift bay. I've got the following list to work on:
- Tazer Mini
- Ball mount for a Ram phone holder - i don't plan on a ton of dash mounted accessories (like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08B85B9XY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=A1V7K390MMOUY3&psc=1
- Lockable rear seat storage (definitely doing something DIY)
- Locking hood catches or hood pins (something like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TKJ5P8R/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_4?smid=A3A7QZT98J4YCQ&psc=1
- New dashcam (my current one is fine and installed well so not sure i want to take it out of the Rover). I've had great experience with Rexing and I would probably put in something like: https://www.amazon.com/Rexing-Generation-Supercapacitor-G-Sensor-Recording/dp/B07FCSMJZB/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?crid=QG3W961MTCTF&dchild=1&keywords=rexing+dash+cam&qid=1609265679&s=electronics&sprefix=rexing,electronics,203&sr=1-2-spons&psc=1&smid=A6UEJTLUY290N&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyR1o3U0pSREJLUEs1JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNjcwMTEzMlJST00zOVI3ODJFUiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMDc3NTUzMUhPV0RCNE0yU0Q2RyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=
- Passenger door rain visors so I can keep the windows cracked with interior dry - sucks in MN if you forget and then it blizzards 3 inches in your back seat...
I would consider the above items "must haves" - but I already got the LEDs, a factory bed liner (which you already did) and a roll up toneau cover to keep stuff in the bed mostly dry and out of sight while giving me some instant flexibility for Home Depot shit... If I hadn't ordered these I would probably looking at addressing these as part of my early upgrades. Think about where you will store valuables in the bed too... I won't be storing any valuables in the bed unless/until i have a lockable storage box that I can chain lock to the bed or until I have a more permanent cover - looking at RSI Smart Cap or possibly the GoFastCamper but that is $$$ and I'm not sure I need to carry a roof top tent permanently as this will be replacing my daily driver.
In the longer term I'll be building drawers (assuming I get some kind of waterproof cap - I am not going to do Decked solution because the are pretty space inefficient...), adding a Genesis dual battery set up, a rear fog light (for crappy MN weather days), better front foglights, rear and side work lights (depends on what I choose for a bed cap), and eventually some additional front lighting (but I think you can waste a lot of $$$ here for lighting that you may not be able to use much on road and that may be sort of unnecessary off road except in very limited, hard core situations - not to mention the added wind noise). Extra water and fuel storage are going to be DIY and not permanent. Same with onboard air - one of these [ https://www.amazon.com/STORM-BRO-Cy...jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==] is a lot cheaper than anything ARB makes... . I don't do enough rock crawling for that. And there isn't enough sun to make solar worth it up here : )
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to organize my thoughts. To summarize - do what you want and consider what your primary needs are. Of course if you are just building a mall crawler then ignore everything above. I would suggest (but I am not speaking with any expertise) that you start thinking about color matching your springs with your factor 55 link and then everything else will fall into place from there - you can add 2 or three spacer kits in a row to get 40s on 22in rims and then start to save your money for rock lights - but they are only worth it if you can get infinitely variable colors - better still if you can link them to your head unit so they change with your music. Sorry if I offended anyone but your fault for reading all the way down. I'm going back to work now.
About those latches - they do look cool right? I'm worried about that too. A bit too cool. Also I think you can defeat the lock with ordinary hex wrenches. I also ordered this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V723YPK/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_3?smid=A56YUN1FLV2KR&psc=1
so I'll try them out.
Thanks - you got me - I picked that item because it said "stainless". Also - I understand that the alarm function needs to be turned on which is why I ordered the tazer mini - are you telling me that the hood alarm function is already on from the factory (assuming the rest of the jeep is "armed" via the key fob door locks)? If so, maybe I'd rather avoid the lock. Serious thieves are going to take what they are going to take - I'm insured so just take stuff and don't break or damage too much else. In my rover I typically leave it unlocked because (a) good luck getting it started, and (b) I'd rather you take my tape deck and avoid having to clean broken glass. What a PITA.
I havenāt made any changes to my Gladiator, and the alarm works (much to my earsā dismay!)
Cool - thank you!
So I bought a pair of locking latches. They were some of the bling ones. I think I may try to find a way to secure the bottom without using the hex bolt included. I'll let you know.About those latches - they do look cool right? I'm worried about that too. A bit too cool. Also I think you can defeat the lock with ordinary hex wrenches. I also ordered this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V723YPK/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_3?smid=A56YUN1FLV2KR&psc=1
Cheaper, have to physically defeat the outer plastic to get to the locking mechanism, lower profile, same barrel key [NOTE: not sure if its true but I think barrel keys are harder to pick than blade keys]. But not as cool looking. I haven't decided yet. My primary goal is to make functional mods only. Bling and stuff like that should be secondary. Except, ahem, my wheels. Not fully committed yet but i got polished ProComp Series 69 wheels: https://www.quadratec.com/p/pro-comp/pro-comp-series-7069-wheel-wrangler-jk-jl Not sure they will look good on billet silver but I have been on black steelies for 10 years and I'm bored
Warranty covers factory defects. So when you change something from factory there is a REAL possibility you'd have to fight to get warranty work done on things adjacent to mods. For example, larger tires means more wear on driveline components and a dealership may determine that ball joints and such won't be covered if they wear out before 36k miles.
I am curious about this. I understand what you are saying. If I have the dealership install the Mopar lift and 35s on a new vehicle - and purchase it from them with those additions, then aren't they tacitly warrantying the vehicle as purchased? I guess my other question is whether 35s really cause material wear on the driveline... I understand how 37s or 40s might get up there but most of what I've read about 35s is that this is just the upper limit of what a Rubicon was designed to handle. Totally get that this is not a scientific question and there may be no evidence to back up anyone's opinion or answer but honestly 35s are what I went with as a compromise to longevity, drivability, and capability.
That's the crux of the dillema: they deny it and give a reason, then you'd have to in theory sue them to get them to comply. I started a thread for such discussions, hope more folks contribute their thoughts.
I just did this remote start for my JT and I have very little mechanical skills. It took maybe an hour but that's good because I was just bouncing around.
My hood does NOT alarm unless I have the Tazer plugged in and set to add that feature. I just went and double checked it. I checked that the red alarm light was blinking.
