Mohawk's Detonator Rubicon

[Mohawk]

Hellooo SJC,

My name's Nick (aka Mohawk), and my wife Pam and I are a couple Canadians, relatively new to Australia (landed 14 months ago).

We look forward to seeing as much of Australia as we can, so last December we bought a Jeep!

This being the Members' Rigs section, let's get to the topic at hand – Ours is a 2008 yellow SWB Rubicon, with a manual transmission and a few mods:
- 2" OME lift
- 33" Bighorn tyres
- Smittybilt front & rear bars, and rock rails
- Warn Xeon 10S Winch
- Aftermarket exhaust system

I'll post pics when I can take a moment to figure that out. We've also got an air compressor and a bunch of recovery gear.

It's nearly due for a major servicing, so I'd be happy to hear about any recommended shops in central Sydney. I'll probably take it to a dealership for the first servicing, and less expensive places after that (unless recommended otherwise).

I've also been considering our next upgrades... A stereo with bluetooth and a UHF radio are key for us (and club outings), a soft top, and eventually a snorkel so that we don't need to worry about water. This is sure to become an expensive habit ;)

We look forward to meeting everyone, but we're going to be in Cairns during the February meeting. Being novice jeepers, we're looking very forward to joining you on the trails too!

Cheers,
Nick

[Wallyd]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160122/c2b07f77a4d0110e1a4b94536efc38d8.jpg

Welcome fellow 08 Rubicon


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[Mohawk]

Hahaha Nice! I've got some catching up to do.

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160122/63041e370849b07d8b71c19fe24bb413.jpg


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[Jeep11]

Hey Nick,
welcome to SJC .......mate I can recommend Hills 4x4, at Castle Hill. Just ask for Sam he can do all servicing and will fit aftermarket parts no problems at all.
I hope go see out on the trails
Steve and Hayley

[Steve F]

No need to change anything ;) It'll do 90% of trails like that.

Cheers
Steve

[Dave]

Hills 4x4 is definitely very good!

Depending on where central Sydney is for you, I'd also recommend

A&J Automotive Repair Services in Blacktown.
Unit 4 / 47 Third Avenue, Blacktown 2148. Phone 8678 9078.
Email a-jautomotiverepairservices@outlook.com
They specialise in all Jeeps and Chryslers. Can do diagnoses, services, suspension, pink slips...
They are also Club Members.

Dave

[Mohawk]

Thanks for the recommendations! We hail from Pyrmont. I'll check 'em out when we get back to town.

Cheers!

[redrubi]

Well it's Abooot time we got some more Rubi's!!! LOL.

Hill's 4x4 give club discount if you run their stickers! And A&J at Blacktown are excellent too. Both are club members.

Cheers

Andy & Charl:pirate::angel:

[Hills4x4]

Thanks for the shout out guys !!


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[Mohawk]

https://www.dropbox.com/s/b3y8r9vogevrbdh/Jeep%203.jpg?dl=0

Found a 2014 Soft Top NIB for $150 on Gumtree a few weeks back. Finally found the time to fit it today. With some elbow grease and a little fiddling around, it fits like a charm.

[Elio S]

Purely as a matter of convenience as you're in Pyrmont, these guys are probably your closest non dealership Jeep specialist in Five Dock http://www.atvautomotive.com.au/ . I used to drive past here for work all the time, and although the sign out the front says Land Rover, Jaguar and Mini specialist, the workshop was always full of JK's lol

[DanD]

Purely as a matter of convenience as you're in Pyrmont, these guys are probably your closest non dealership Jeep specialist in Five Dock http://www.atvautomotive.com.au/ . I used to drive past here for work all the time, and although the sign out the front says Land Rover, Jaguar and Mini specialist, the workshop was always full of JK's lol

Have had great service from ATV in the past - they're very clued up on wranglers

[Dru]

I also live just around the corner from ATV.

ATV are very clued up on AEV packaged mods to Wranglers. AEV do very good stuff, but its a tiny (and more expensive) part of the Jeep modification world. They did everything they could to dissuad me from certification as part of modding my jeep. Just not interested in being involved. Costs quoted to do it were astronomical, followed by a litany of reasons not to do it. The ATV finished product is very good, its just imo a limited approach, and I dont like what appears to be an unwillingness to be tested by the authorities.

I went elsewhere and ultimately have settled with Sam at Hills. The Jeep is literally with the certifier at the track as I write. Last update from the VSCC certifier "another well presented jeep from Sam, flying though the testwork".

I recommend Hills 4wd.

[Wooders]

If you are serious about your Jeep mods then engineering cert should be part of the plan.
Disappointed to hear anyone advising against it.

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[Mohawk]

Thanks Elio for the recommendation!

I've actually already paid them a visit. I went on a Saturday morning to inquire about wheels and tires. The shop was dead and Frank was happy to talk my ear off about all kinds of potential mods. Nice guy! Dru is spot on in mentioning that they stick to AEV - If that manufacturer has a solid reputation then I don't disagree, but it is somewhat limiting.

I'll take this opportunity to give AJ's a shout out as well... I sent the jeep to them for our 96k servicing, plus replacing all front ball joints and a few minor ticks, and it's now in better shape than when we bought it in December. Avi was very accommodating and communicative, and I'm really happy with their work.

As for mods, I'm pretty sure I'll be sticking with regulation tires for now, but when I'm ready to jump to 35s, certification will definitely be part of my plans. Driving without valid insurance is madness. It was great meeting Sam on the Mt. Airlie trip, and I'll definitely look to Hills 4x4 as I contemplate future upgrades.

Cheers,
Nick

[Mohawk]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160724/673de9029dce4733c67981a6ce1c6dde.jpg

Pam hauled about 25Kg of steel through 2 airports on her flight home from the states last week... She's a saint!

We've now added the end caps to our Smittybilt XRC bumper, making it the full width of our vehicle.

That should save us a potential defect notice, and all that remains is to wire up those fog lamps.

[isherz]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160724/673de9029dce4733c67981a6ce1c6dde.jpg

Pam hauled about 25Kg of steel through 2 airports on her flight home from the states last week... She's a saint!

We've now added the end caps to our Smittybilt XRC bumper, making it the full width of our vehicle.

That should save us a potential defect notice, and all that remains is to wire up those fog lamps.





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[isherz]

[emoji106]


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[darksidecustoms]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160724/673de9029dce4733c67981a6ce1c6dde.jpg

Pam hauled about 25Kg of steel through 2 airports on her flight home from the states last week... She's a saint!

We've now added the end caps to our Smittybilt XRC bumper, making it the full width of our vehicle.

That should save us a potential defect notice, and all that remains is to wire up those fog lamps.

Nice.


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[Mohawk]

Finally replaced the worn out Bighorn tyres...

We're now riding on 35x12.5 R17 BFG KM2s, fitted to Mickey Thompson Classic III wheels.

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160807/996a59a647918835309bde590535145e.jpg

[Teshie]

Looks awesome.. nice and tall :smile-new:

[DanD]

Do the tyres stick out past the flares much?


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[Mohawk]

Here's a pic of the old tyre at the back, new tyre up front during the installation:

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160807/f5cde672b6260c0a564fdfc56e6ecea3.jpg

So yes they stick out noticeably, but we're having Dru and Kerry's old pocket flares installed by Sam at Hills 4x4 next week. Just in time for the Wheeny Creek trip!

Cheers,
Nick

[DanD]

Thanks for the pic!

[isherz]

Finally replaced the worn out Bighorn tyres...

We're now riding on 35x12.5 R17 BFG KM2s, fitted to Mickey Thompson Classic III wheels.

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160807/996a59a647918835309bde590535145e.jpg

Awesome



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[Rocket55]

Nice looking set of boots, I'm also hoping to pick up some new rubber prior to Wheeny, will be good to catch up and meet a fellow Jeeper.

[darksidecustoms]

Nice


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[isherz]

Hey nick
You have your own big-foot now


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[Mohawk]

Really happy about things so far :)

I'll add more about initial impressions after a month of use, and a couple excursions.

[Rocket55]

Do you know what offset those rims are?

[Mohawk]

Do you know what offset those rims are?

Mine are the last ones listed on this page: https://www.mickeythompsontires.com/wheels.php?item=ClassicIII

They have a -12 offset, and 4.5 inches of backspacing.

Not that it's critical, but the center bore is also a little larger than the hub pilot, so I had the installer place hub centric rings during installation.

Cheers,
Nick

[4-Man]

Thanks for the recommendations! We hail from Pyrmont. I'll check 'em out when we get back to town.

Cheers!

Hey Mohawk...
There's a place closer to you...
ATV Automotive
94 QUEENS RD FIVE DOCK
Telephone: 02 9712 8001

Good Luck & Happy Trails...

[Mohawk]

Thanks!

I've actually been there once before. Frank is quite the character [emoji4]

Have you had work done by them?

Cheers

[Mohawk]

I think he's sorry he missed our AGM last night [emoji6]

[isherz]

I think he's sorry he missed our AGM last night [emoji6]

Lol you speak Russian?


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[Mohawk]

Least expensive mod yet [emoji6]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20161111/9e74dfc1e24b3adb69485de178e9aa94.jpg


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[redrubi]

That's aboooot time!!!:highly_amused: