Tire size re-calibration, gearing re-cal, FlashCal, etc.

If you read my last post you'll see I got screwed by a Jeep dealership.  What I've learned since then is that the dealership can't re-calibrate for tires over 32" (or somesuch).  I expect the dealer, you know, understands this.  I have 35s, a fact made clear to the dealership as we discussed re-calibration of the speedo.  I wasn't born knowing they couldn't do it.  They should have told me they couldn't do 35s.  But they were all "Ok, sure, we'll do that for you."  When I picked it up a day later and paid them $120, they said they calibrated it for "the largest tires they could".  I'm repeating myself now, but suffice it to say I think they should have told me they couldn't accommodate 35s and saved me the $120 I gave them to essentially do NOTHING to my Jeep.

So my advice for the 2 people in the world that don't already know that the dealership isn't the best place to service your mods, research first how to do these darn things yourself.

I recently got turned on to the FlashCal by Superchips.  The more robust product, the FlashPaq, isn't available for 2015s yet, so I got the Cal.  It plugs into your Jeep via a remarkably accessible port under the steering wheel.  With this device you can set the tire size up to 42" and re-cal your gearing.  I'm learning new stuff every day, I'll try to keep this blog up to date with what I'm learning now that there's actually something happening in my Jeep world. 

Tah for now, got someone waiting on me.

Dealer service, really guys?

Since I got the new tires (35") my speedometer was about 10mph off.  I took it to a Jeep dealer to get...

• The  speedometer recalibrated
• 20k mile service (can't believe I'm already there)
• The trailer hitch wiring fixed (doesn't work)
• My clutch checked out (it was creaking)

They said they calibrated the speedometer to accept the largest tires possible that the computer would accomodate.  The hitch wiring will need "further diagnostics" (I was told this after spending $3 on a new fuse they thought would fix that problem).  The clutch had a service advisory for it to grease a particular part.

The speedometer, after $120, reads 7mph slow instead of 10.  :-/

The hitch wiring still doesn't work.  :-/

The clutch still creaks.  :-/

Not real happy, I feel like I spent $140 (total out the door) on the 20k mile service alone, which is really just a bunch of inspections (all of which apparently passed so there was nothing "fixed").

I'm looking into second opinions on the tire size thing, seems weird that of all vehicles a JEEP wouldn't be capable of correctly reading 35s.  Shoot, people are commonly known to put 40" tires on Jeeps.

I feel cheated.  I called the service guy and let him know.  Maybe I'll hear back.

Riding High!

News!  So I got the lift and the tires.  In all I got...

• Lift
• Teraflex 2.5" coil lift, no shocks
• Rancho RS9000XL shocks
• Rancho Control Arm Correction Bracket
• Tires/Wheels
• BFG All Terrain TA KO2 35" tires
  Fuel JM2 wheels
• Spare carrier
  • Teraflex Hinged Carrier
  • Teraflex Adjustable Spare Tire Mounting Kit

The result:

 

My thoughts:

Lift-  I got the lift before the tires, so I can talk about JUST the lift.  The ride improved GREATLY.  We felt like we were on a carnival ride at times with the stock suspension.  The lift provided a lot of ride stability over, for instance, speed bumps.  We'd rock back and forth on stock, after the lift it felt more like, well, a normal car.  haha

Tires-  The tires came later.  The ride stiffened up.  The shop that installed them inflated them to the max PSI, so that might have something to do with it.  Speed bumps aren't rocky like they used to be, but they're harsher than with just the lift.  The tires could be deflated a bit, and the shocks themselves can actually be (easily) adjusted to make the ride softer.  I just haven't played with it yet because its really not that big a deal to me.

Tire carrier-  The tire carrier is burning my biscuits.  I decided to install it myself because it would save me $550.  The general consensus was it should take 1 hour.  It took me about 4 hours.  I'm completely inept.  Once it was finished I was ready to be done with it.  Then I realized, after I had installed it, that I needed to prime some bare metal left under the old factory hinges, now under my new Teraflex hinges.  My own fault.  I took the thing off, primed it with Rustoleum, and let it sit to dry for 24 hours.

Then I put it all back together - this time in an hour!  haha

But, the darn thing squeaks!  I think I just need to adjust it to hold the tire closer, but it's already pretty dang close (touching quite a bit).  I'll still have to fiddle with it, but I'm getting pretty sick of it.  I have to take off the spare, loosen some bolts, re-adjust it, tighten the bolts, remount the spare, drive around, rinse and repeat (about 3 times so far).  Maybe it's my ineptitude.

But it LOOKS good.  I even got a custom printed spare cover for ol' Colonel Mustard.  :)

Next time... the bad news.

Hello Void! And an uplifting experience...

Sorry people who don't exist (or I don't know, who knows, maybe I've got a million followers and don't realize it).  I got a new job, moved to a new city, started and try to maintain said job, etc.  I haven't posted in forever.  I don't know if I'll be able to too often going forward, it's not like anything's really changing in my current life (and that's ok!), but just so you know because I know you're worried, I'm alive and well as is the Colonel.

And about the Colonel!  Nothing's really changed since I posted last.  Moving is expensive and it wiped me out.  Recently I've been spending on other hobbies and haven't put anything new on the Jeep.  But all that changed today!

I bit the bullet.  I put some money down on a lift!  2.5" Teraflex lift with Rancho RS9000xl shocks and a Rancho control arm.  I'm having it installed, so beaucoup bucks.  But if I tried to install it myself?  Well, that would be impossible.  If I enlisted the help of a friend I don't have, I don't even know enough to know if we would be doing it right.  So heck with it, I'll pay for convenience on this (although I think it would have been a lot of fun to learn how to do it myself).

Just getting the lift at this point.  Later I'll put some BFG All Terrain 35s on that bad boy and I'll have a tank.  Until then I'll be cruising 2.5 inches higher on factory wheels and tires.  :-/

Anyway, I'll try to get on again and post pics.  Finally something to talk about!  And if you'd like to help me out with tires, just send all of your money to Discount Tire on my behalf.  haha