Hey all,
I am really late to getting on the forums, but I have had my 2008 Rubicon Unlimited since 2015, picked it up as my first vehicle when I was 16 with 92,000 miles on it for $17,000. A killer deal for a 4 door Rubicon back in the day, most were going for 20-25k at the time, but this one wasn't running right and had some body damage. Split the price down the middle with my father, who was more than enthusiastic to split the difference with me since he has a 2010 Mango Tango Rubicon Unlimited. It was a New Jersey title Jeep for the entirety of its life, and was owned by a really wealthy man before me, who put a Snow-Way plow on it and used it to plow his property in the winter, and go around town when it wasn't ideal for his sports cars. 2 days after I bought it the snow plow was sold to a local for $2,000, so really got away with the Jeep for $15k. Not bad at all, a drop in the bucket compared to how deep I've gone into it now....

Day 1 of ownership, if only this poor thing knew what the future held for it



It didn't take long for the modifications to happen, Rampage front bumper, Expedition One rear bumper and tire carrier, window tint, and scored a set of wheels and tires off a 10th Anniversary Rubicon, also picked up a take off shocks/coils set from a Rubicon Hard Rock edition



Maiden Voyage offroad



It didn't take long for it to start taking priority in when the paychecks came in, June 2016 I installed an AEV 4.5" Dualsport SC lift kit on it and a set of 37x13.5 Toyo RTs on 17x10.5 Raceline Avengers fake beadlocks. Ft. my late Jeep dog Rascal who used to love going out on topless doorless rides



Black fuzzy dice on the rear view... real classy Coston



Started taking it offroad much more often and beating on it hard and realizing the shortcomings of the factory drivetrain on such a large wheel/tire combo



And well, turns out beating on the poor thing will only end up in broken parts... blew the motor up, and decided it was time to upgrade the rest of the driveline while everything was torn apart. It got a hear transplant, Yukon 5.13s, axle trusses, RCV shafts, Tom Woods driveshafts, and some other goodies. I had my friend's shop that specializes in Jeeps and 4x4s do the majority of the work since I cannot weld to save my life, and needed him to set the backlash properly, I love wrenching on my Jeep and take pride in the work I do, but I know when I something is out of my skillset.





Fast forward about another year, a front/rear bumper setup, winch, sway bar, remote reservoir Bilsteins, inner fenders and flares, real beadlock wheels, and I discover something new and exciting, off-roading, but you go for a few days, with a set destination goal in mind... what is this "overlanding" witchcraft that these people speak of? Trips to these rarely traveled overgrown WV trails become a new favorite.



Man in hindsight I wish I didn't rock the angry grille look for as long as I did. At least it wasn't one of those God awful crazy looking grilles I see nowadays that don't even have the 7 slots in them anymore



Snow wheeling! Also managed to grenade the steering box, so perfect excuse to get a PSC Big Bore with hydro assist, score!



My Friend's JK8 that really made me consider doing extremely irreversible things to mine... those water rotopax worked fine on day 1, I kept them in the cab overnight and ran the heat for about 15 minutes to keep them from freezing. Day 2 after being on the back tire for 12 hours of trails in the single digit weather, they were rock solid, Doh!



Spent 10 days solo on Cape Lookout National Seashore the first week they opened for the calendar year. Had 60 miles of OSV beach to myself for the majority of it. Need to go back badly. Also got the license plate changed to 08JKUR, finally some sort of name for the Jeep has been born!



Time to switch things up... I learned the hard way black is a very unforgiving color for a vehicle going through brush and branches on trails, the paint was trashed and I couldn't stand the sight of it, so time for something new! is it just primer or is that the paint?



Nardo Gray! Very similar to Jeep's String Gray on the JLs and JTs. but this Audi paint code has a little more yellow in it, giving it really nice hues in the sunlight. Winner winner chicken dinner. Also picked up an AEV hood for other reasons down the road. Put on some yellow fogs to help cut through the dust when going down gravel roads in the back of a group. had a few close calls on previous trailrides, and finally found a set that I like. Also featuring my fancy new transmission cooler because 42RLEs love overheating



Why spend all that money on a paint job you're going to trash anyways? Well, I'm not trashing this paint job, once the paint cured, I picked it up and trailered it directly to a friend's shop that specializes in paint protection film and ceramic coatings. This thing is getting the full treatment. PPF is no joke either, took a wire brush and screwdriver to a sample piece they have on a little panel, I put gouges in that film and with a little bit of heat it went right back to brand new. The ceramic coating on top also adds a layer of hardness, scratch resistance and easy to clean. They have pre-designed stencils that don't require any trim removal but we weren't satisfied with them, the edge of the film is easily visible. we opted to tear all the panels apart and make sure all of the seams were not visible when everything was put back together



His face says it all... this was no easy undertaking



So that's what the AEV hood was for!



Rear bumper setup 3.0 Finally got the one that I should have gotten in the first place. 5gal of water storage, good jacking points, easy step up, shackle mounts, flush with the MCE fenders, checks all the boxes for me! I already had the carrier, so the fuel caddy and lights just transitioned over.



All nice and shiny at a cars & coffee hosted by the shop that did the PPF and ceramic coating work.



Now it's time for the next big step in my build. I'm selling my factory tops and earlier this week I have taken delivery of an Ursa Minor Vehicles J30 camper top. Mine is unit # JK-525



I will be posting write ups soon on some of the prep work that I'm doing before installing the top. This includes installing dynamat on the entirety of the tub and wiring a plethora of interior accessories the proper way. I'm also going to be installing a Goose Gear rear plate, 60% delete, and side cubbies as well.

Thank you and congrats if you have made it this far

 

PARTS LIST - I'm probably missing a few small things in this, but here is a general overall parts list of everything that is currently on the Jeep, this will be subject to change in the next couple weeks as I kit out the interior and install all of the overloading accessories that go along with the camper top

Lighting:
JW Speaker 8700 Evolution J2 headlights
JW Speaker 6145 J2 fog lights
JW Speaker 239 J2 turn signal lights
JW Speaker 279 J tail lights
Rigid Industries DSS-Pro spotlights
Rigid Industries DSS-Pro floodlights
Rigid Industries D series Pro SAE yellow fog lights
Rigid Industries Radiance scene lights
Rigid Industries 12 pc cool white rock lights
KC HiLites Cyclone red interior dome lights
DIY white / red LED rear hatch lighting

Performance:
Mishimoto transmission cooler
Ripp cold air intake
Ripp long tube headers
Ripp catback exhaust
Ripp coil pack
Ripp spark plug wires
DiabloSport tune
Powerstop big brake kit

Winch:
Warn Zeon 10s
Warn Epic 1.5 black hawse fairlead
Warn wireless control system
Factor55 FlatLink E
Factor55 FlatLink rope guard
Bartact Warn Zeon winch cover

Drivetrain:
Rebuilt 3.8L
Rebuilt 42RLE
Tom Woods 1310 front driveshaft
Tom Woods 1350 rear driveshaft
Yukon Gear & Axle 5:13 gears with Rubicon E-Lockers
Revolution Gear & Axle rear axle shafts
RCV Performance front axle shafts
Synergy MFG rear axle truss
Synergy MFG front axle truss
Synergy MFG front axle sleeves
Synergy MFG front axle C gussets

Armor:
Artec Industries full belly pan
Rubicon factory side rail
Ace Engineering rock sliders
Synergy MFG lower control arm skid plates

Bumpers:
10th anniversary Rubicon front bumper
Maximus-3 winch plate
Maximus-3 bull bar
Maximus-3 light pod mounts
AEV rear bumper / tire carrier

Wheels/Tires:
17” Mopar beadlock wheels with functional rings
37x13.5r17 Toyo Open Country RT

Suspension/Steering:
AEV Dualsport 4 1/2” lift kit
AEV high capacity 4 1/2” springs
Bilstein 5160 remote reservoir shocks
Metalcloak DuroSpring bump stops
Currie Antirock front swaybar
Currie adjustable front/rear swaybar links
PSC Big Bore XD cylinder assist steering
SteerSmarts Yeti XD front/rear track bars
SteerSmarts Yeti XD drag link
SteerSmarts Yeti XD tie rod
TeraFlex HD ball joints
Timken wheel bearings

Interior:
Bartact seat covers
Bartact center console cover
Bartact dashboard bag
67Designs phone mount
Switch-Pros SP8100
Armorlite front & rear floors
Misch armrests
Midland MXT275
JeepUniq radio mount
Outback Adventure Products Trailgater
Dominion Offroad Hi-Lift jack mount

Exterior:
MCE Narrow fender flares
Hyline Offroad inner fenders
AEV snorkel
Sy-Klone snorkel prefilter
AEV heat reduction hood
AEV fuel caddy
Rugged Radios antenna mount
Midland 3db GMRS antenna
ARB twin piston air compressor
ARB Differential breather extensions
M.O.O.R.E ARB engine bay mounting bracket

 

Welcome from GA! Wow that is a lot going on. It seems like you are OK with the 3.8. That is what I have as well. It seems to do Ok. Did you do anything to the engine when you rebuilt it?

 

Thanks for sharing! I would have never guessed that jeep started out as black. That paint looks great and the PPF part was pretty interesting. With every other car I've owned keeping em nice, shiny, and detailed was always a big thing. With my jeep I have gone almost the opposite direction and it's lucky to get washed now and then. I guess over time little dings here and there happened from wheeling, and the wheeling was just so often that cleaning seemed pointless.

I think your progression from wheeling to an overland style is a natural progression. It seems that at first most of us just love to get out and use these things in more day-trip type adventures. I'm sure it varies based on what we all have available, but for me playing in the organized parks, even with big rocks and obstacles, it gets a bit old. I don't get out near as much these days doing that kind of thing and my interests have also veered more towards longer trips. I built a camping trailer a couple years back to throw a RTT on (link) that allow me to stretch the legs further from home up into Colorado, around Moab, or down into Big Bend. I have more of a boondocking setup with the trailer more than taking it down trails with me, but it's great if I can pick a general location with various directions to branch out from over a few days.

I have a friend that had an AEV jeep with that rear bumper. I razzed him every single time we were out wheeling....."where's that damn water spigot? I need to wash my hands!". When he moved to a PSC bumper he was happy he'd never hear me bring that up again.

Anyhow, great looking build. Thanks for taking the time to chime in. You have built up some experience along the way. Don't be shy to chime in on other threads with opinions or assistance where you can help.

 

I have a love/hate relationship with it. I find working on things in the engine bay is much easier than some friends that have the 3.6s instead. Its a pig, but on the other hand I don't need a bunch of horsepower. I have no desire to make this Jeep super fast and sporty, I have muscle cars for that, when I'm in this I'm driving like a grandma in the right lane just trying to keep up with the speed limit. My drivetrain is built to be more than capable of handling the horsepower that motor puts out pushing the 115lb wheel/tire at the gross vehicle weight that I'm currently at. I care more about feeling confident in my drivetrain while in the backcountry going up a precarious obstacle rather than boasting a number from a dyno sheet. As far as the motor itself, no it is just a Powertrain Products remanufactured long block, the only thing I had to source myself was a new front casting. When I blew my motor the oil pump grenaded and shredded the timing chain cover, Powertrain (and nearly every other company) no longer carries them and they are hard to come by. I had to fork over $1,700 for it in 2018, I don't even want to know the going price for one now....

 

That's quite a run-down. Welcome to the overlanding scene. FYI, that top is made in my home town (Chula Vista, CA). I'll be heading back there in a few days to visit my folks. Also, just a couple weeks ago, I did some overlanding with a fellow from Chula Vista who had an Ursa Minor top. It makes for a pretty cool rig ...



If interested, you can see it in this video playlist on days 1-4 of the trip (he had to leave on day 5) ...

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...duyRmcUtcahvqK

 

Just found this post Mark! Still love that shot of my Jeep that you took. It was a wonderful trip!

-dmulk