Episode 706 – JTS Opens The Locker Debate

This Week In Jeep

Lets Just Call This Some Well Needed Closure Between Stellantis and China.

The venture between Stellantis and Guangzhou Automobile Group for producing Jeep vehicles in China is now filing for bankruptcy. According to the press release from  Stellantis on Monday, this is coming after a lengthy decline for the oldest foreign auto brand in the world’s largest market. Stellantis said its Chinese counterpart, the Guangzhou Automobile Group had also approved the bankruptcy filing making this split not only certain, but now official. Well no duh… China has been pushing a policy over the last four years that has slowly put a bind on outside automakers trying to gain ground in China. It’s a huge market, and anyone being able to gain even the smallest percentage of market share would reap big profits. For years that was true, and Jeep did moderately well in China. But for 2022, after four years of governmental meddling and policy changes all making it harder and harder to sell… Jeep has sold less than 2,000 vehicles in China. In May, it reported selling only one… single… Jeep.

Stellantis then officially terminated the venture with Guangzhou Automobile Group in July. Now, with the ink all but dry on the bankruptcy filing, and with Jeep and other Stellantis brands pulling up stake and leaving, the Guangzhou Automobile Group said it would continue to provide service to Jeep customers in China. Not sure how they plan on doing that in perpetuity… since they will now have to import parts from Stellantis at higher markup with tariffs and taxes and such making it nearly impossible to repair a Jeep in all practicality. When the repair is more expensive than buying a new domestic Chi-com car, that’s how you know the government has won.  

Speaking Of Cutting Things Off

Jeep is axing the right-hand drive Cherokee, meaning that it will also be scrapped from markets including Australia. The automaker has been trimming the Cherokee range in Australia having already killed off the Limited and Trailhawk models, in addition to the entry-level four-cylinder Sport. Sales for the Cherokee have had a continued downward slide after the Cherokee’s debut in Australia in 2015. But it’s not just in Australia where the Cherokee’s fate has been signed either, as it has already been discontinued in all of Europe as well. Don’t take this the wrong way, it’s actually a smart move that sounds worse than it really is. Jeep is going to end production of the Jeep Cherokee for all main markets outside of North America, including right hand drive models. You may be wondering like I was, as to why would Jeep do something so drastic on the heels of this whole China thing? Well, this is so Jeep can shift its focus of marketing and sales resources into models that have a higher volume of demand. It’s basic business sense. If something isn’t selling, and you have something else to offer, shift focus to that and discontinue the loss leader and replace it with something else. This isn’t the end of the Cherokee internationally. The Jeep Cherokee continues to be manufactured for Canada, and South Korea – where a version with a similar specification to North America is sold, …so this little Jeep is not going to be a U.S. exclusive. But let’s get back to the down-under… The Cherokee is the last mid-sized SUV in Australia available with a V6 engine and its discontinuation means Jeep will no longer sell any vehicle in what is Australia’s second-largest segment by volume. That could prove to be a big hit to Jeep’s bottom line if they can’t shift those lost sales into other Jeeps in the Aussie market. To that end, Jeep is expected to unveil an all-electric successor to the Cherokee in the coming three years and there’s a good chance that it will be sold in Australia.

It has also been confirmed that the electric Recon and Wagoneer S will be added to the Down Under Jeep lineup when they’re ready for production. So the future looks bright with Jeep and the Aussies… Maybe then we can get some more listeners from down there!

Newbie Nuggets with Wendy

Lockers or no lockers – it’s a question we get all the time.

When we wheel with others, or we have a student in a class, this is by far one of the most asked questions: When do I use my lockers? Our answer is almost always hardly ever. The look on their face is usually disbelief. They can’t believe what we just said. However, if you search on YouTube you can find lots of videos where you see drivers arriving at a dirt trail and “putting” their lockers on. I have no idea where it started or who said “To go off-road wheeling you have to have lockers and you have to use them the minute your jeep hits the dirt. Even on an easy fire road”.

If you own a jeep you may, or may not, have lockers or some of you may have only one locker in the rear. You can listen to episode 476 where I explain all the different types of lockers and how and when they are used.

So when do YOU use a locker?

A locker LOCKS both the driver and passenger axles together as if it were one solid axle and transfers power equally to both wheels regardless of whether they have traction on the ground or are spinning in the air. You would turn on the locker when you have tires spinning with no traction and you’re not moving forward. Maybe it’s an extreme rock crawl, or mud, or a spot where the tire is up in the air spinning and you want power transferred to both tires to help you get out of a sticky situation. Just don’t turn them on while the wheels are spinning. You could possibly break something very expensive.

The locker enables power to not only the wheel in the air but also the wheel on the ground that still has traction and it will move you forward until the other wheel can get traction on the next rock or ground.

Typically lockers are used in extreme off-roading while crawling through rocks where one or more wheels will be off the ground while going through the obstacle. If you don’t plan on rock crawling you really don’t need lockers. However, if you drive in sand, mud, snow or ice, having a locker in the rear makes life much easier because you are able to transfer power to both wheels equally for better traction.

Once you are through the obstacle it’s best  to turn the lockers off. It’s rough on the axle and tires when you’re trying to make a turn. With the lockers still engaged the inside tire will rotate more slowly than the outside tire and one of the tires would “scrub” or “skid” on the rocks or ground because they’re being forced to rotate at the same speed. And if it’s the front locker it will be difficult to turn the steering wheel.

We don’t use lockers unless, or until, we get stuck. WE love the challenge of getting through an obstacle and NOT using lockers. Of course we have them on the Rubicon, both front and rear and it’s easy for us to simply flip the switch when needed. IF we need a locker, we use it for the few inches or feet we need to get traction again and then turn them off.

At the JTS Big Bear event last month there were only a few times that we needed to have the driver use their locker. Usually it was a slippery spot in the fine silt on steep rocks, or their Jeep was balancing on three wheels in the huge rocks and having that little bit of extra power from the tire with  traction helped get them over but once they were through, they turned them off.

I always say before upgrading your jeep, figure out what you are planning to do with your jeep. If you are just doing easy trails you don’t need lockers. If you want to get into crawling, then you will need them at some point. And if your new jeep comes with them, then that’s a bonus and something you won’t need to upgrade. You can spend the money on some other upgrade.

So when I hear drivers say they use their lockers all the time off-roading, I say WOW you must have a big bank account because you are just speeding up the possible damage – or maybe that’s the plan all along, to break something and then upgrade the parts LOL.

Jeep Talk Show Gladiator Update

Are you concerned about having your catalytic convertor stolen, or maybe the random door handle checkers roaming your neighborhood at 3am.  Maybe you just don’t like the idea of your Jeep, “my precious” being molested.

YoLink Smart Vibration & Shock Sensor  $24.99

YoLink Hub – Central Controller Only for YoLink Devices, 1/4 Mile World’s Longest Range Smart Hub $23.99.

Amazon Echo app on your phone.

I placed the sensor on the driver’s side kick panel.

It has done amazingly well at not giving false alerts.

The people mowing the lawn

Trash truck

The guy with the loud motorcycle down the street.

It only works when the Gladiator is close to the house.

Links Mentioned in this Episode

NEXEN Tires USA https://www.nexentireusa.com/

Trails 411- POWERING Your Adventure https://www.youtube.com/user/backcountrydriver

The 4×4 Radio Network http://4x4radionetwork.com/

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