Rancho

Can't believe all the bad luck and it pretty much came down to a national recall on the part!

Mr_Angry

Exactly, after putting in the third steering pump and having it go bad in about 15 minutes we were really feeling pretty down and frustrated. We basically did the entire trip without any power steering which made those switchbacks by Telluride a bit more hairy then they needed to be. I'm not sure if you know, but we almost caught the jeep on fire on the way back. We used ATF in the leaking power steering when we ran out of power steering fluid and it was blowing out onto the manifold. In case anyone doesn't know, ATF is much more flamable then power steering fluid. We were in a pinch and the owners manual states you can use it. Anyway, there was a bunch of smoke from the hood so we yanked it over in the rain and we both grabbed the fire extinguishers expecting the worst. Luckily we caught things just in the nick of time. We let things cool down and didn't have to use them, but we were a bit nervous at first. While we were pulled over thinking about what to do, dynamax JK and Ryan and Terra gave us enough power steering fluid to limp to the next town like 25 miles away. Ryan, Terra, Mel and everyone on this trip was extremely helpful and we appreciated it.

You know, if we would have anything else go wrong on the jeep the Falcon rig could have fixed it by welding, fabing or replacing it. Unfortunately this was something that was not serviceable. We appreciate all the support when we pulled in under our own power after hours and many times late.

Jester116th

That's right, I have no fear!

Mr_Angry

I have to say, you did a great job of driving as it could have been much worse considering the extreme terrain! It just makes your choice of rocker protection pretty easy.... Just look for anything that is high-clearance...

Mr_Angry

A question or 2 for the folks with big 60 axle upgrades (GCM 2, WayaLife, Trailbud, Lo2ay, any of the Gregs...etc) How many miles are on your JK's since the axle upgrades? Are you still using the factory ESP? How's the ram assist steering for daily driving?...Any lag in response?

Thanks..

wayoflife

i think i've got about 45,000 miles on my 60's and yes, still using the factory esp. ram assist is practically a must with 40x15.50s especially for daily driving. no lag and if anything, it's kind of hyper-sensitive. you don't want to grip the wheel but rather, lightly hold it on the freeway.

Mr_Angry

You have the PSC box and ram..right? I think most folks had the PSC on the trip. I agree, even with aired down 37's it's a handful on road and just forget about it offroad. BTW, we found out once we got home that we bent the inner C's on the stock rubi 44..... Even with 35 spline shafts, those C's just couldn't hold the pressure. So the front 60's in the works as well as new steering.... No more screaming "HELP" from the stock box...LOL!

jaydoc1

Could you clarify exactly what it is you're saying here? Do you mean a handful without the upgraded steering assist?

Mr_Angry

I had quoted WayaLife's response, so I was asking him if his ram assist was PSC? I'm pretty sure it was... There were a couple brands on the trail including HOWE and another unmarked ram. I wanted to make sure which ram he had as we are building our front end and wanted to make sure we had the right components.

To your point, We had basically no power steering because of a blown pump and when we aired down to 10lbs of pressure it was a handful for us to steer on the road... I wouldn't recommend manual steering with aired down 37's... unless you have arms like Popeye..LOL

With normal stock steering 37's would be ok on the highway, but you'll find the limits quickly offroad once aired down. Not to mention the stress on the steering box mounts when trying to turn against a rock to climb it..

thanks..

GCM 2

WOL sums it up pretty good with his posting answering the same question.... And to add to what he says, I would not call the PSC ram assist flighty like some have said in the past, more like very precise, very accurate, with no lag from driver's input to wheels receiving that input. I really can't imagine a stock steering box and 40's with no hydro-assist. Since my build I have put approx. 15k miles on my rig, it's my daily driver and it's awesome, and it's fun!