Heck, a Sport S with some decent treads would have made that TRD Pro look pretty sorry, too. It just can't do what solid axles can do and with the wheel base and flex on the Gladiator, it just keeps all 4 on the ground all the time. I never once saw my brother get a tire in the air in Moab, even in the one or two spots where my JL lifted one of the rears. Just amazing.I don’t disagree with you on your points except the 1” higher Mojave. both are great options and the Gladiator in general is bad ass. I don’t do a lot of rock crawling and really only hit the dunes a few times a year so either would work for me but I just dig the Mojave. I’m just on a Sport S budget. LOL
Awesome man!!! Both are great. Maybe later this year we can all schedule a trip to the dunes in MI or Badlands. Don’t forget the picks of the new ride as well.Rubi won
Well, you all made valid points for both. Going to look at both today. The battleship gray Rubicon and the nacho yellow Mojave. Might have to flip a coin
SWEET!!!! Congrats! Let the fun begin!
Paging Principal Skinr!
Maintenance question as I'm not clear after checking my owner's manual and various message boards. I've seen your posts and trust your recommendations.
I have a 2021 JLU Willys, D44 LSD rear end. No towing package. Would you go with 75/140 syn gear oil with LSD additives as I saw in one of your recent shopping cart pics, or 75/90 since I'm not towing? And what do you suggest for thread sealant, a particular Permatex for high temps? Not doing the front right away since it rarely gets used. Thanks for any insights you can share!
Thank you @maxwelhse! I've been leaning towards the 75/140 even though I don't tow as it sure seems like it would give a bit of added protection (in spite of being mostly a road rig) at the very slight loss of MPGs. The Willys package comes with a slightly larger tire package, so the 75/140 makes sense to me.
Nice thing about the JL is no need to drop or replace the cover as it has a fill and drain plug. The thread sealant I was asking about is more for the plugs themselves so they don't weep.
Thank you!
Rear is done, and easier than an oil change. I've seen some say to change out the break-in fluid (if that's truly what's in the new JL diffs) at 1K miles, others at 5K. I split the different at 2,700 miles. The fluid didn't look as bad as I thought it might but not great for sure, and there was some fine crud on the drain magnet. I went with the 75W/140 Valvoline Synthetic with LSD additives in the 1-quart squeeze bags at Sknr posted upthread, which absolutely took the mess out of the job!
Agreed, I bet most don't bother with it. Mine had an ever-so-slight shudder in reverse at low speeds (like backing out of a parking spot or into the garage). Will be driving in a bit, wonder if it made any difference, we'll see. But nothing alarming or concerning for sure."Break in" fluid usually isn't anything special. People advise performing the first change early because there's going to be some wearing in of metal parts and you don't want those particles in there forever.
FWIW, I'd bet money that 90% of new vehicle buyers never change their gear oil and don't even know that you should. I know for a fact that mine went from 21k-56k with no fluid changes other than motor oil (I bought it at 56k).
You could run either and be just fine. I'd highly recommend Valvoline in the flex fill bag. Makes it EASY. I used teflon tape on the drain and fill plugs last time I did mine, but I really don't think it is necessary because the previous time I did not and I had no leaks or seepage. But Permatex thread sealer will be great, so why not?Paging @Principal Skinr!
Maintenance question as I'm not clear after checking my owner's manual and various message boards. I've seen your posts and trust your recommendations.
I have a 2021 JLU Willys, D44 LSD rear end. No towing package. Would you go with 75/140 syn gear oil with LSD additives as I saw in one of your recent shopping cart pics, or 75/90 since I'm not towing? And what do you suggest for thread sealant, a particular Permatex for high temps? Not doing the front right away since it rarely gets used. Thanks for any insights you can share!