Gents, finding myself shopping for a vehicle to replace my 2013 10A, because I am getting tired of symptoms that have annoyed me since new.

As title suggest,

ANNOYANCE NUMBER ONE: The darn thing has been pulling since new. Mostly left, but sometimes right, at highway and city speeds. I have installed somewhat of a levelling kit, by installing 1 inch front and 1/2 inch rear Teraflex coil spacers to make room for 285's and level the ride. To recuperate the loss of turning radius, I have installed 1 inch hubcentric wheel spacers. Pulls just as much, no more no less than it did in stock form.

I am getting ready to order and install front lower control arms to adjust caster and hopefully fix the wandering. Also wondering if I should first try and loossen the control arms bolts to make sure that there is no binding. PLEASE ADVISE !!!


ANNOYANCE NUMBER TWO: The darn heated seats don't get warm ?? Mentionned it to the dealer service advisor over the phone, and he said that the climate controls have to be in defrost mode to work properly ???? which doesn't make sense at all. My wife owns a Ford edge, and at the warmest setting, within 3-4 blocks down from my house, we have to switch to the lower setting cause our butts are on fire (well, you know what I mean). With the Jeep at the warmest setting, we have time to get to destination and we feel no obvious warming, and I actually think that it is our body heat that made the leather seats warm up. PLEASE share your experience and ADVISE !!!


ANNOYANCE NUMBER THREE: That 10A rattles my bones. I know it is designed to rockcrawl and avoid bottoming out of the suspension, but for crying out loud, it does nothing to absorb the road imperfections and is straight up dangerous on washboard surfaces where I find the Jeep out of control. I lowered my tire PSI to 28-30 PSI, and although it helped some, it certainely doesn't fix the problem. Is there a suspension that would make it ride smoothly and make me enjoy the ride ????

I drove Jeeps for over 20 years (1986-2006) and really enjoyed the lifestyle. A Land rover Discovery and then a Volvo XC90 followed my last TJ Sahara, until I decided to come back to Jeeps in 2013 where after being spoiled rotten with comfort and conveniance, I decided to buy the very best Jeep money could buy at the time, in the form of this fully loaded Unlimited 10A.

However, not enjoying the vehicle half as much as I thought I would, I find myself shopping for a new Land Rover LR4. Realising that I haven't given the Jeep half a chance, I am coming to you for help and advice, to see if I can make it more enjoyable to drive. It would be nice if I could fix most things and make it acceptable to keep.

Thanks a million for any help.

 

my thoughts anyway

 

What 285s are you running and what is the load range?

Did you loosen all the controls arms before installing the lift and re torque once on the ground?

Was the ride to harsh and the stock tires and suspension setup?

 

ROFLMFAO!!!!!! Go ahead, buy a Land Rover. Ride is great, plush, quiet, comfy, creature comforts galore. And it's even better when it's in the shop at least every other month for work (pray it's under warranty, otherwise, it's most often $1,000+), but the up side? They lend you a newer unit and start talking you into buying it. I owned one. 9 of my friends owned Land Rovers of varying models. We all had the same issue. ALWAYS getting worked on. Always in the shop. Always getting stranded by a broken down vehicle. Didn't matter the model, age of the vehicle, etc. some were street queens, some were hard core off roading machines. Mine was in the middle. Meticulously maintained and painful on the wallet. I had $13k done in repairs under warranty, another $9k under the extended warranty and another $8k out of warranty before I finally threw in the towel.

Your gripes about the Jeep are legit, but you bought a true utilitarian vehicle. What did you expect? As for the heated seats, Maybe there was a change? Mine (2012 JKUR) come on whenever I turn them on. HVAC on or not.

The ride? Solid axle on ladder frame. And you changed the geometry with your lift. Albeit not enough to influence your steering. But, who's to say you didn't nail a good size pot hole or curb?

Do what you wish, but I'll bet $10,000 you grow tired on that LR inside of 3 years and either sell it or trade it. When it's in the shop so damn much you can't use it? Or when it leaves you stranded on a road trip or the middle of a trail 20 miles from nothing? Yeah, this will be an easy pay day for me. And bet your sweet cheeks, you accept this bet, for $10k, I'll come collect. LOL!!!!!

 

Jadmt, I haven't had an alignment done yet, trying to figure things out before I do since I hate having to have things done twice. Therefore, If I find that I need adjustable control arms, I will buy and install them and then bring it in for alignment. Unless of course, I have no choice but do it twice. And I will check the plug-ins. Will also do some reading about that suspension.

Thanks.

 

Saharaunmltd,

Tires are 285/70-17 Duratracs load range D and the ride was almost as ruff with the stock set-up with the stock 265/70-17 KM2s load range E aired up to 43PSI.

I have not loosened up the control arms at all.

Thanks

 

you need to get it on an alignment table to see where you are at. Otherwise just guessing. you wont actually get an alignment altho I would have them set toe in as if that is off that could be part of your issue. You have no other real accurate way of telling what your caster is so spend the $50 and find out.

 

Jeepstin12,

As said, I have owned a D2 that I modified myself and played around with for 4 years. So I know what I would be getting myself into. It took me 4 years to throw in the towel. But there's no way in hell, a new LR4 can be anywhere close as problematic as those D2s were. Although that D2 was the vehicle I hated most owning, it was curiously the one I loved the most driving !!!

My old TJ with Teraflex suspension and GY MTR ran a LOT smoother than this 10A.

 

I have been test driving new jku over the last month or so as I am getting ready to purchase one.
The new jeeps ride better than our Ford Escape
My Ford Escape DD rides rougher than the jku I have test drove.
There has to be something wrong with your jeep?
Your just guessing until you check the alignment

 

Anyone that has purchased a LR in the last 15+ years and complains about reliability....well. It takes a 3 minute internet search to understand you're more likely to be left on the side of the road than with any other brand. It's British, what would you expect?

Your pulling is likely all in alignment. Garbage in, garbage out. Throwing a lift and larger tires on without a baseline alignment is fair game with any make/model. Maybe you've done that already? Get at least an alignment readout and post it for help if you want a determination on LCAs.

Mine have heated seats primarily because they came with the leather package and that's what gets the wife to ride along. Couldn't tell you how they work but she's never complained. Maybe yours are unplugged like suggested? The defrost excuse sounds like BS, check the ops manual.

Ride harshness is completely objective. I come from the CJ world and have driven them for 30 years. When I got a JK it was (and still is) like a Cadillac in comparison. I would second the suggestion for RK springs. They ride nice but may still be too "harsh" for some. (shock selection plays here as well)

In the end, it is a Jeep. They've come a long way to appeal to the masses but have a tendency to aggravate long after the cool factor tolerance wears off. For the money; I would never own one as a DD that never sees off road. But there's nothing out there as capable or fun off road with minor improvements and that's the hook for the rest of us.