Newbie, many questions

[Jill]

HI! I recently picked up a used 2001 Wrangler sport, pretty much stock. The only mods are Bridgestone All Terrain Tires 30 x 10.5 and Old Man Emu shocks (no lift). A couple of weeks after picking it up I headed out to Utah for a 2 week trip with lots of off roading. My other ride is a dirt bike, but ride time is getting less and less with an 8 year old daughter so I decided to give the jeep a try.

We had a blast in Utah and I have a couple of questions based on our experiences:
1. The jeep ride was very rough. I had the tires at 25 - 23 psi. Any suggestions on how to smooth out the ride. The ride was so rough I had to slow way down, this was a little frustrating. I do not plan on doing rock crawling. Dirk at DPG offroad suggests airing down more and purchasing the OME springs (medium). Sound good or any other suggestions?

2. I need a better air compressor. I used one of those cig. lighter ones and it seemed to take all day. I am looking at the Viair 400 or the Quickair 2. I would like to mount it under the hood, any suggestions?

3. I need a good deflator. Any suggestions on something fast and easy?

4. Looking for a reliable mechanic in the Orange County area to help me with these mods, any suggestions? I live in Irvine.

5. Finally, I am considering removing the rear tumble seat and installing a single bucket seat in the back to give me extra storage space in the rear (at most carry 3 people). My thought was to mount a slider directly to the rear floor (omit the riser because the rear is about 12" higher than front) and purchase an aftermaket seat. Does this sound resonable?

6. The driver seat is a little soft and low for me. Any suggestions for a good aftermarket driver seat. So many chooses but it seems difficult if you cannot sit on them.

Sorry for the long post and many questions. I appreciate all your time and help. Cheers!

[Paradiddle]

Jill,

Glad you made your way over here.

I already sent you the OC mechanic I recommend.

On the OBA thing - are you sure you want a compressor? Many of us use CO2 and have had great success with it - the major benefit is you don't have to mount or wire anything and the air source is portable.

Check the CO2 section - Brad at Spectrum gas is a friend of the forum and is in Costa Mesa - he can set you up.

As I stated in my post on JU - I'd leave your suspension stock and try the RS 9000 shocks. You should also consider the Currie Antirock - it will give you a lot more control off road and soften your ride up.

Someone makes a lift kit for TJ seats - I can't remember who, but someone on here might know.

Welcome and have fun.

Jeff

[Scott Evans]

I have the Viair 400. I love it. It's not vary noisy, it's pretty fast for a compressor. I have a YJ so I can't help on where to mount it. I went this route because I tend to carry a bunch of stuff and did not want something that took up more space. Also I wanted something that I did not have to refill.

Scott E.

[Dan-H]

another option for OBA is a york engine driven compressor.

the 00+ TJ 4.0s have a very slick kit available from www.onboardair.com I have this kit and am very pleased with it. plumbing it was a mild PITA, but it is the direction I went with over C02.

downsides are the initial cost will likely be 300 to 400 before you are done, and it needs the engine running to use, and can't be carried where a C02 bottle can be carried.

upside is it doesn't need to be refilled and won't run out.

[Robert J. Yates]

Hey Jill,
Welcome aboard.

Originally posted by Jill
Dirk at DPG offroad suggests airing down more and purchasing the OME springs (medium). Sound good or any other suggestions?

I think you were up against a couple of different things on the washboards. First, the wheelbase of a Wrangler is not condusive to taking them at speed and second, I never liked the 10.5 sidewall aspect as for some reason, those tires always seem to run stiff. My suggestion as was Dirks, would be to run lower pressure off road - you can probably safely run around 15lbs or so if you are running at speed and probably down to 12/13 for crawling over stuff.

If you want to consider an aftermarket suspension but don't want alot of lift, the OME springs as you were advised will give you a really nice ride. OME doesn't not really advertise them as lift springs but rather as suspension systems. I had really good luck with mine although if you want to carry loads and will be adding aftermarket bumpers and possibly a winch, then I would get the heavy duty versions.

I need a better air compressor. I used one of those cig. lighter ones and it seemed to take all day. I am looking at the Viair 400 or the Quickair 2. I would like to mount it under the hood, any suggestions?

I have a Quickair 2 and have been using it for close to 4 years to good success. While I agree that a CO2 system is a great way to go, I would still have a compressor on my rig as a back up. HTH.

[blkTJ]

Sun Performance has some cheap tire deflators (around $10) that seem to work just fine for me.

I have the Viair 400 and it works fine as well. Nowhere near the spead of a York or CO2 tank, but it works.

Good luck and enjoy the Jeep.

[bobgoblin]

as for the back seat, there is always this option: http://www.twinseats.com/

jas