Episode 493 – It’s The Chicken Or The Egg – But Different
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This Week In Jeep
That Sounds Cool, When Can We Get Them Here In The U.S.?
As we all know the Jeep Gladiator JT is having one heck of a success story.
Not too many models over the years have hit the ground running as much as the Gladiator has. Don’t believe me? Well here’s the cold hard facts.
Jeep sold 77,542 Gladiator in 2020 just in the US alone. In 2019, Jeep sold 40,037 Gladiators. Let me do the math for you… that’s 37,505 more units sold in 2020 compared to 2019 with a percent gain of 93.68% Year over Year. So yes, the JT is a very popular truck. And the online retail sites are showing the love with an avalanche of aftermarket parts already here. Of course, as we all know, if you buy a new Jeep and want to keep the warranty on that new Jeep, you need to use authentic Jeep brand parts. So why… with the great sales figures, would Jeep offer two accessory packages that aren’t available here in the states. However, if you buy a Jeep in the Philippines, you can have your pick of these two different upgrade packages. Your first choice is the “Basic Kit” …which gives your Gladiator a set of running boards, seven-inch LED headlamps and four-inch LED DRL fog lamps for 162,000 pesos or just over 3300 dollars. For those who want a bit more out of their upgrade packages, you can opt for the brand’s Advanced Kit. This package comes with the same upgraded lighting package as the Basic Kit, but adds front and rear grab handles, a steel front bumper, and a removable rack kit, for 174,000 pesos or just over 3600 dollars. I don’t know about you, but that all sounds like things that a lot of Gladiator owners here in the states would like to have access to. Why these specific option packages aren’t being offered in the US is unknown, but if we get answers to this question, we’ll be sure to let you know.
Does anyone have any theories?
Biggest Offroad App and Jeep Join Forces
Two of the most trusted names in off-roading, the Jeep brand, and onX Offroad, the industry’s leading off-road navigation app, have launched a program empowering Jeep Wave customers and Jeep brand enthusiasts to get off the pavement and venture off-road more than they ever have before. The Jeep brand and its industry-exclusive Jeep Wave customer care program are always looking for new ways to provide benefits to Jeep 4×4 owners. Through a collaboration with onX, all Jeep owners with 2021 model-year Jeep vehicles will receive six months of Elite access to the onX Offroad App. The robust GPS mapping technology of onX Offroad is built for off-roaders, by off-roaders. Upon opening the app, both beginner and expert off-roaders are immersed in a world of possibilities, discovering 550,000 trail miles and 500,000 recreation points, like campsites, and scenic vistas. I don’t know about you, but when my Jeep is out on the trail, I opt to run premium, clear, non-ethanol fuel. The Jeep just seems to idle smoother, have more pep, and the tank lasts longer when I’m wheeling. Well now the OnX app will show you where the non-ethanol fuel stations are so you too can get the most out of each tank. And don’t worry if over a half-million trail miles is overwhelming. The app allows users to plan things out using the trip-planning features. These allow users to review trail descriptions, assess difficulty levels and duration of the trail. You can even check out route photos. Reliable offline maps give users the freedom to rally off-pavement and get home safely, even without cell service. By sharing customized Waypoints and Tracks, Jeep 4×4 owners can invite their friends along for the adventure
and mark places they don’t want to forget. Through the Jeep Wave customer care program, the Jeep brand’s premium owner loyalty program, available to the entire 2021 model-year Jeep brand lineup, Jeep owners can enjoy a six-month trial of onX Offroad Elite, the industry’s leading off-road app. At the end of six months, the cost of onX Off-Road Premium and onX Offroad Elite are just $30 and $100 respectively.
Well worth the price for the features you get.
No Jeep Owner Should Go Out Like This – GRAPHIC STORY
I personally believe that Jeepers are a different breed of humans. We are all cut from a similar cloth that has brought us together in various forms. Whether it be similar choices in customization of our Jeeps or the fact that we all hear nature’s call and long to get our Jeeps out into the wilderness. Or maybe it’s the shared, deep down willingness to want to help others. You’ll be hard-pressed to find bad apple JEepers out there, but they are out there nonetheless. Now even the story we had about an alleged Jeeper throwing a dog out of a moving Jeep in a busy intersection doesn’t deserve what happened to the victim of this story. I’m going to pause here for a second and warn you that the following story contains graphic descriptions and sensitive listeners may not want to hear some of the content.
A set of dismembered remains found at a property in Georgia have been identified, following the suspected killer’s arrest in South Carolina.
33-year-old Christopher Collin Demmon, was charged with malicious murder on Saturday. The victim has now been identified as 29-year-old Justin Yeng Xiong, of Eatonton, Georgia. Xiong’s remains were reportedly found decomposing inside at least one bag, described as a large job site clean-up bag, or industrial garbage bag. Investigators say that it was Xiong’s modified yellow Jeep that eventually led officials to the gruesome crime scene. Days before Xiong’s remains were discovered, Demmon was arrested in South Carolina after he allegedly blocked two lanes of a roadway with the stolen vehicle. An incident report from the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office states that Demmon was found wandering the roadway on foot, in an excited state, and his pupils to be pinpoint. Investigators allegedly discovered a bloody chainsaw in the back of that Jeep, that, according to investigators, still had tissue clinging to parts of it. Demmon has previously been arrested in Florida for crimes including grand theft, burglary, and credit card fraud. He has already served three and a half years behind bars in that state for his previous crimes. The charge of malice murder is one specific to the state of Georiga and it applies to a murder committed with express or implied malice to the victim. What relation these two individuals had is still unknown. Either way, I’m sure Justin was one of the good ones. And despite his failing, I’m sure he didn’t deserve to be dismembered by a chainsaw and left to rot in some cast aside garbage bags. Anyone who knows either of these two men, or has any information about this case is urged to call GBI’s regional investigative office in Milledgeville, or the Hancock County Sheriff’s office.
Newbie Nuggets with Wendy
25 Hour Jeep Run
On last week’s episode (492) I gave a teaser of a trail event we were doing with industry leaders. Well, it happened and boy was it epic! We did 25 hours straight, 10 black diamond/difficult trails, and obstacles. Have you ever driven for 25 hours straight over difficult obstacles and in the dark? Well, we did…. And I can tell you I’m still trying to catch up on sleep. Exhaustion doesn’t begin to describe how I feel now.
There were 9 jeeps, which is a good number for such an epic event. We wheeled over rocks (boulders) in the desert, a major trail that King of Hammers uses, some hidden gems in canyons and washes, and finally ended up on two of Big Bear’s major black diamond trails, Holcomb Creek and John Bull. We started at 4:00 pm and ended the following day at 5:00 pm. I can tell you that by 3:00 am in morning I was having trouble staying awake. Not to mention that objects began to take on other forms, literally. I would see a tree stump and I thought it was an animal of some sort. Your brain does some funny things when it’s sleep-deprived. I had done quite a bit of spotting early on through some of the desert obstacles as some of those put the jeeps in a position that the driver cannot see the line, at all. So I think that explained why I was so tired. I was climbing from rock to rock and up the sides of the small canyons to get enough height so the drivers could see my hands. And here I thought I was still 20 years old LOL! Bill noticed that as the night wore into morning his concentration and decision-making selecting proper lines became a focused effort rather than just second nature. No mishaps, but driving back to Big Bear at sunrise on a slow fire road was a real challenge to not nod-off.
Joining us on this fun journey was Paul Jho, with Nexen tire, and sponsor of the event. Don Alexander, who dreamed up this event, and coordinated all the details, and most of the Currie family; John and Brandon Currie with Rock Jock, Ray and Casey Currie with Currie Enterprises and, and their social media people and photographers (thanks Tiny for all the help and info), we also had Lorie Graves from IH8RDS YouTube channel. She has wheeled with the best of them and did an amazing job in a lifted TJ, topless, and stick. Gotta give her props, we had some cool temps overnight but she was prepared and knows how to wheel.
Some fun things that happened; because no run with a group is complete without something happening… Right?? When I was helping Don through a very tight squeeze and watching his front left tire start to roll away from the wheel bead, I said to myself I should have him back up and then I hear whoossshshshhshshhh…… his tire came off the rim. Yep too tight of turn and pushed up on the rocks and the tire is now flat and off the bead. Well when you wheel with the best, everyone goes into action. The jeep was wedged into a tight spot with no way of moving it out and it was at a very precarious angle up in a boulder garden. We secured the jeep to a winch line from the jeep behind so it wouldn’t roll forward, chalked all the other wheels, and lifted her up so we could pull the tire to the rim. Bill held the tire in place while his son Brent used the PowerTank to air up the tire and back on the rim then back on our way. It took about 15 minutes for this repair. Nice to be prepared for trail breaks, they can happen even to seasoned veterans. Then at around 1:00 am, halfway through Motino, Wash, Bill, who was leading the group, parked the jeep after an obstacle and started to walk back to watch the rest of the group get through when he noticed our jeep was smoking. Yep, lots of smoke. Well, the transmission cooler line had popped out of the push-in fitting and was puking fluid. Bill got underneath, with his son Brent holding the flashlight, and managed to stop the leak and get the line pushed back in place. Of course, he now has transmission fluid on his hat, shirt, etc. Didn’t realize I liked the smell of that synthetic ATF since I now had to live with it for the rest of the trip LOL. He had just recently replaced the hard transmission cooling lines and had a difficult time getting the push-in lines to “click” into place. He thinks the clip may have not fully engaged and it allowed the line to jiggle loose and when he put it back in a place he could tell the line snapped right back in place as it should have before. We did have a quart of transmission fluid on board and we filled her up. That worked out well, however, there was still fluid all over the exhaust, underneath the jeep, and inside the skid plates. So as we continued on our way, it continued to drip and smoke. It eventually all burned or dried out several miles later and all was good. Later that morning we stopped at the auto parts store in town and got two more quarts of fluid, one to top off the fluid left on the trail and one as a spare in case that ever happens again.
We made it through to all the trails we wanted and ended up right at 25 hrs. We had fun, shared stories, and enjoyed wheeling with people that loved to wheel. Don, Bill, and I learned some things that we might do differently in the future, but that’s what it’s all about. Who knows where this adventure will take us but we are looking forward to doing it again – just not too soon, I still need to catch up on my sleep.
Tech Talk with Jeep Talk
Gladiator Reverse Light Upgrade Options
It seems no matter the generation, Jeep just can’t seem to get their lighting perfected.
Regardless of the Jeep, there is usually some sort of lighting function that leaves something to be desired. Historically that has been the headlights. Jeep is notorious for having poor-performing headlights. Well for the Jeep Gladiator JT truck, the lighting falls short in the rear. One of the most common complaints from Gladiator owners is the lack of good reverse lights. Something that one would think would have been addressed at the point of design and engineeri9ng considering how much the towing capabilities have been a focal point for much of the marketing behind the Gladiator. And if you’re hooking up to something with your JT in at night, the lackluster illumination from the stock reverse lights may have you considering waiting till daybreak. Of course, the aftermarket is there to save the day, and several offerings are out there for various budgets and esthetic preferences. The common solution for those with a stock rear bumper still is to utilize the space adjacent to the rear tow hooks. If your Jeep JT doesn’t have the tow hooks, there is an oval-ish-shaped opening on either side of the cut-out for the license plate. Here is where the similarities of your options end. For the budget-minded, the solution is to swap out the bulb for the reverse light with one that is LED and has about 1000 lumens to it. That’s easily three times the brightness of what the stock bulbs put out, and they’re available for about $100 for the pair from various manufacturers.
For the budget-minded, the solution is to swap out the bulb for the reverse light with one that is LED and has about 1000 lumens to it. That’s easily three times the brightness of what the stock bulbs put out, and they’re available for about $100 for the pair from various manufacturers.
Next up would be a kit from Vision X. Vision X has been providing aftermarket lighting solutions since 1997. And they’re based right here in the Pacific Northwest. For a company that’s been around this long, you’d expect a better fit and finish. For me, this kit just doesn’t check all the boxes. But for those with sport trim or no tow hooks, or who don’t care quite as much about the finished look, this may be the option for you anyways. At a price point of around $250, this is an acceptable upgrade that replaces the factory reflector plates in the original rear bumper with custom steel mounting brackets and a pair of rugged Dura Mini LED Flood Lights. These lights put out a massive 4000 lumens of reverse lighting illumination.
Coming in somewhere in between these two options is an offering from Oracle Lights. Oracle has been in business since 1999, and lighting is their number one focus. When it comes to looks, this kit knocks it out of the park. This kit to utilizes the factory reflector locations to place an LED pod light as well as a functioning reflector plate. This gives you both incredible illumination but also keeps the safety aspect and “it’s supposed to be there looks” of the reflectors. You can get the additional 1500 lumens from this kit for just under $150 for the pair.
Now if you’re the kind of Jeeper where money is no object, and it’s only the best of the best for you and your Jeep. Then you will likely be just as impressed with the fit and finish of this next kit. This comes from Baja Designs, which has been around since 1996. This California-based company exemplifies style with many of its products for the Jeep world. Coming in at our most expensive option yet at $325, The Dual S1 reverse kit by Baha Designs is by far the best-looking kit out there right now. No frills, just a simplified style that is going to perform. Putting out an amazing 2300 plus lumens, this is easily one of the better performing kits out there. So if you too are tired of not being able to see behind your Jeep Gladiator at night, one of these kits may be just the solution for you.
Jeep Life – With Jeep Momma
Tony, Josh, and Wendy… I am exhausted. We moved our whole shop in four days. 17 vehicles, a brake lathe, tube bender, welders, a plasma cutter, alignment rack, tons of tools and used parts, probably about 20 different axles, and three machine shop machines. Don’t ask me what those machines do… I have no idea…yet. We moved to a new location. The first building didn’t have the power we needed. We could barely run the plasma cutter. It only took us six months to figure out it would cost us 250 thousand dollars to get three-phase power and to re-wire the building. That 6-month time frame is called valley time. Small town life I guess. The good thing is the owner of the building was also on valley time and never got us the paperwork we needed to make the building purchase official. So we lucked out. Everything happens for a reason, I am learning. Now we are in a new location in Monte Vista setting up a new shop all over again. Perseverance for sure. Our first 4×4 meet and greet are Friday and we started our monthly classes and trail rides. So we just keep pushing forward and taking it one day at a time. I have been doing a lot of reflecting this past month. Reflecting on the past years since I bought my Jeep in 2013. I know several of you have been listening to the podcast since I first joined… some even longer when it was just Tony and Josh while it was called the XJ Talk Show. It might be a good time to catch everyone up on how far I have come and all the changes. Tony first reached out to me back in 2014 for an interview. They wanted to talk to me about being new to the Jeep Life and being a new Jeep Mom.. I guess that interview went pretty well because Tony and Josh asked me to record a weekly episode for the show. Shortly after that, they asked me to join them as a host. There have been several changes in the podcast since then as well as huge changes in my life. At that time I would have never in a million years would have guessed I would be running a 4×4 shop in Colorado Let alone wheeling across America in my Jeep with a stranger then wheeling the Rubicon Trail without having to be winched. I didn’t even know what 4×4 was let alone about the offroad life. On the podcast, We eventually changed the name from the XJ Talks Show to the Jeep Talk Show. We have seen several folks come and go. We even added a call-in show for about a year. We added the interview section as well. It has been quite an eventful 7 years for the show as well as for me. During those years my marriage was struggling. I won’t get into the sordid details however I am sure they would make for a good movie one day. LOL!!! In 2019 I met Neil online and we ended up planning a trip across America.
I ended up raising about $10K in money and parts for the trip. A lot of people thought I was crazy doing a 30 day trip with a complete stranger. It worked. It was fun. Then along came 2020. The dreaded year for everyone. For me, my whole life changed. We finally separated and for personal reasons I left Maryland and headed to Colorado. Tony got lucky there because I was ready to head to Texas to live with my niece when Neil reached out and said come to Colorado and we can flip Jeeps. So I took him up on the offer. For about a year we lived in a 12-foot slide in Camper. Now we have upgraded to a 28 foot. I love this camper life. I surely don’t miss cleaning a 4 bedroom home. I miss my kids immensely. They were the ones who encouraged me to leave. My relationship with my kids is amazing. We talk every day and they even came on the Rubicon Trail trip with me. That was huge since they had no interest in wheeling with me when I was in Maryland. Definitely a memory for a lifetime. Lots of pros and cons. Mostly pros though. One of the cons is I no longer have high-speed internet. Just sketchy campground wifi. This is why I just record the show now instead of being live with Tony and Josh. Which I miss a lot. After recording the show live every Thursday night Tony and Josh became like family to me. Most people don’t know but there were some bad years in there for me personally that those Thursday nights became a much-needed positive in my life and kept me pushing forward. Even though we have never met in person I formed a connection with Tony and Josh. I miss those weekly recording sessions as Tony and Josh always cheered me up. I do miss the banter with the XJ guys however in the best interest of the podcast and as my life changes, I must adapt. So I will continue to pre-record my episodes then listen to the show as all of you and call in voicemail messages.
Must-Have Stuff Pick-of-the-Week for your Jeep!
ORACLE LIGHTING REAR BUMPER LED REVERSE LIGHTS FOR JEEP GLADIATOR JT $149.00
- Direct replacement lamp using existing hardware
- Taps into the existing reverse light power source without error code
- Integrated rear reflector for OE appearance
- 15x high-powered LEDs in each for a total of 30 with 1,500Lm output (raw)
- Clear PMMA lens, cast aluminum housing with powder-coat finish
- Optic-focused beam pattern for an extended field of view
Camp Fireside Chat
Armor, Winch, Or Recovery Hooks? Which comes first?
Or…. which is more important early in the Jeep build?
You can join us around the virtual campfire every Thursday night at 9:45pm when we record the latest episode. Subscribe to our newsletter to get weekly reminders and how to join via Zoom, or follow us on Facebook (https://facebook.com/jeeptalkshow) for notifications.
Links Mentioned in this Episode
NEXEN Tires USA
Trails 411- POWERING Your Adventure
https://www.youtube.com/user/backcountrydriver
The 4×4 Radio Network
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Southfork Jeep Dealer
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Pinto Scene From 1984 Movie “Top Secret”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9GGDOUDLhc