Jeep JK & Caster: What is it? How do I measure it and how does it affect my Jeep?

March 1, 2012 wayoflife 4

Caster is the tilting of the uppermost point of the steering axis either forward or backward (when viewed from the side of the vehicle). A backward tilt is positive (+) and a forward tilt is negative (-). Caster influences directional control of the steering but does not affect the tire wear and without adjustable control arms, is not adjustable on this vehicle. With too little positive caster, steering may be touchy at high speed and wheel return-to-center may be diminished when coming out of a turn.

J.E. Reel Offers Must-Have Driveshaft Solutions for Lifted 2012 Jeep Wranglers

February 23, 2012 wayoflife 9

Pomona, CA – The new 3.6L Pentastar engine in the 2012 Jeep Wrangler JK is one of the most welcome changes to the popular JK since their introduction in 2007. However, the position of the new engine in the chassis creates some unique challenges when driveline angles are changed even slightly from stock, as with a lift kit. Only J.E. Reel offers durable must-have driveshaft solutions for lifted 2012 JKs.

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KEEP IT TIGHT : JK-Experience Teaser Clip
Winching out of Carnage Canyon BV

February 20, 2012 wayoflife 0

With nothing but sky in front of you, climbing your way up the extremely steep ledges out of Carnage Canyon BV requires skill, throttle control, a good spotter, strong winch and, if you have manual transmission, the use of all your hands and feet. With our upcoming KEEP IT TIGHT : The JK-Experience Rocky Mountain Run series scheduled to be released this February 28, 2012, we thought it would be fun to put this short clip from the cutting room floor – just to get you juices flowing.

DieHard Platinum Battery for
a 2012-Up Jeep JK Wrangler

February 20, 2012 wayoflife 17

So, for some reason, Jeep decided to change the type of battery they use in the Jeep JK Wrangler from a Group 34, which was used in 2007-11, to a Group 91 which is now used in all 2012’s and I presume, on up. While this really shouldn’t be that big of a deal, the terminals on a Group 91 battery are opposite to those on a Group 34 and, this makes it near impossible to hook up the leads or, at least not without having to do some modifications. Of course, as luck would have it, a Group 91 battery or it’s equivalent, a Group 48, isn’t really a common size you find in a deep cycle format and unfortunately, not something that’s available in a Sears Diehard Platinum, Odyssey or even Optima.

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King of the Hammers 2011

February 16, 2012 wayoflife 0

It’s not everyday that you get to see a street legal JK participate in the Ultra4 Class King of the Hammers Race and, all I can say is that I’m so glad that we had the opportunity to be apart of the Off Road Evolution Team. Thanks to their awesome off the shelf EVO Lever system, EVO 1 JK was deemed to be “too fast” for the Everyman Challenge and really, that was fine by them.

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DEATH WOBBLE : What it is, What it isn’t
and What You Can Do to Fix it

January 5, 2012 wayoflife 4

There are few things more terrifying than experiencing “death wobble” in your Jeep for the very first time. More times than not, it’ll happen out of the blue soon after hitting a bump in the road or a pot hole, driving over a rough set of rail road tracks or even after driving over rhythmic sections of expansion joints in a concrete laid highway. The sensation is unbelievably violent and so much so that it can feels as if your whole Jeep is about to tear itself apart. You literally feel as if you’re about to die and the only way to get it to stop is to bring your Jeep to a stop. Unfortunately, some people become so traumatized by death wobble that they become reluctant to drive their Jeep again and others go so far as to sell it.

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Gettin our Kicks on Route 66

December 26, 2011 wayoflife 5

About a week before Christmas, we flew out to Niagara, New York to visit our good friend Ken (HappyCurmudgeon) who’s been fighting a losing battle against cancer, buy his silver 2-door JK and drive it back home to Southern California.