2005 Rubicon; A Rubi Brother

What’s up friends and….other people?? It’s been a minute but I still have stuff in the works! I have been using the Jeep and it’s has been performing beautifully with the new tires and suspension setup.

First off, I got a bumper set from @Fluxor since any hope of Savvy continuing their version is a joke. This bumper is a beautiful substitute and you can tell a lot of work went into designing and building it.


Next. I’m moving closer to getting my half doors ready for the fall. I’m taking a dash speaker cover to an auto shop this week to get an SEM color match.

Also, I’ve had a plan in the works that I will be trying to achieve in the near future and wanted to share. In short, I plan on doing a “poor man’s” outboard.

A few months back, @JMT was nice enough to send me a set of Walker Evan’s tuneable 10” travel shocks. Since I have no plan to move to 35s, I felt this would be an ideal travel length for 33s without hacking too many things up.


How do I plan on doing this? Well, the rear will be simple I think. I really just plan on boring out the rear crossmember enough to fit the shock body through, and mounting it between the crossmember and the tub. I’ve seen examples of it done on the TJ, and I remember doing some measurements and finding I could make it work.

The front will be a little more complex, but not super labor intensive. Mr. @carrotman was nice enough to send me the remains of the front shock towers he lopped off several months ago. What I plan to do is cut the top of my front shock towers off, and weld these on as extensions. It’s not a lot of work, and if I really want to go the full blown 35s/outboard route in the future, this will still come off plenty easy since I’m trying to maintain a relatively “stock” setup. I can’t remember my measurements exactly, but I know I have enough room to get these in here.


This may seem counter productive for a result that probably won’t be quite aa quality to what a true outboard accomplishes. But I’m out $0 for these parts thus far. I figured it would be worth diving into and playing with a bit to see how I can improve the handling and feel of my Jeep. These are a great shock with excellent support behind them so I think they will pair nicely with the 33s I’ll be playing on for awhile.

Again, not sure where these will land on the timeline, but I’m hoping before winter.

jjvw said:

Years ago, TeraFlex made a pair of shock mount brackets that bolted on up above the rear crossmember and raised the upper mount about an inch. It requires a body lift and the portion of the shock that sticks up into the crossmember couldn't be too big.

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Thanks for chiming in. I've seen the thread where folks have done the extra 1" or so by bringing the eyelet above the crossmember. I found a couple of other threads where folks have successfully bored out the hole to about 2-1/2". These shocks are 2" in diameter so I see no reason why this couldn't work even taking into account that the shocks work in an arc and not a linear fashion. I have a solid 1.25" body lift, and with my brief measurements I believe I have the space I need to maximize travel for an even split.

jjvw said:

My very first upper shock mount relocation was similar to this, except I opened up the top of the mount and put a hat on it for the pin to attach. There are many ways to do it and they all work well. Especially when you are building to fit the shock properly.

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I'll have to get creative with the front as I'd prefer not to use the JKS adapter and lose travel. I would like to utilize the bar pin and will have to get creative on how to create something that is sturdy but is serviceable for easy removal. I've thought of a couple of ideas but realistically I won't know until I start cutting and tacking things into place.

jjvw said:

Good luck, there will be a lot of good things to learn during this process. Many many years ago in a different place, this is exactly how Blaine and I started to get to know each other.

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Thank you, this is something I have been wanting to tackle for a minute as I've seen enough evidence of the benefits a properly tuned and fitted shock.

Wildman said:

Glad to see JMT passing those shocks onto someone who will use them.
Walker Evans would rebuild them the last time I'd talked to them but not sure about the current rates.

JKS sells the upper adapter for the front shocks to go from a stem to those if JMT didn't send them.
They also make the bar adapter for the bottom.

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I know someone local that can tune shocks and has offered me use of his equipment whenever I got to this point and wanted to learn, as long as I compensate him for any materials used. This keeps the cost of this experimental project down to almost nothing, but hopefully Walker Evans can still offer tech support on these. Jeremy did send the JKS adapters, but I'm going to see if I can avoid using them. I'm not sure I'll ever get to a 12" travel shock, but I imagine that being able to tune these will be a vast improvement over the Black Max shocks I'm running now. I'm not even sure 12" is feasible for 33s, kind of like a mid-arm.

Just to reiterate to everyone, I no longer have the space where I can do custom fab work and leave things disassembled for long periods of time. I can do smaller cuts and welds in my brother's garage if need be (like extending the stock front shock towers), but trying to go full custom fab on a suspension and shock setup isn't realistic for me at this time. I recognize there is a right way to do things, but I'm trying to do the best I can with what I have without stalling progress. This is why I'm dubbing this project the "poor man's outboard."

Wow, it’s been 10 months since my last post So much has happened! Through a series of unfortunate and also fortunate events, a buddy and I started our own business last year to fill a need in our area. So much of my time has been consumed getting things up and running etc. but now that things are running themselves to an extent, I can focus on other things again. Business is also good so I can start buying Jeep parts again.

Updates to follow.

I have done nothing in terms of mods since last year. I have a Fluxor bumper I still haven’t installed, no new shocks, I have a new set of 3” JKS springs I have not installed, and I have done no serious wheeling since last March of last year.

Some of you saw my post a few weeks ago how I completely gutted and deep cleaned the interior. I have to say, this really helped reinvigorate me to start getting work done again.

Here is the interior gutted. I pressure washed the tub and roll bar padding and let it air dry.


This really looks as OCD as it is lol. I pulled the dash, sprayed it all down with simple green, hit it with my handheld steamer, then wiped it all down. Front and back, including all wiring. I did this with every interior trim piece, and also went over the remaining wires and HVAC stuff still in the Jeep. No dust left!


I pulled the carpets and threw them in the washer, then let them air dry.


I went back and forth on the seats but ultimately decided to pull the fabric and wash it all, and it was so worth it! Hog ring pliers are a must, but it’s pretty simple to do once you understand the attachment points. Good write up HERE.


I did the rear as well.



The results were more than satisfactory. Especially in the seats, I could not believe how much cleaner they were.


To commemorate the deep clean, I installed a cabin air filter to help keep dust out, if I can It definitely works because when I pull outside air, there is definitely a decrease in CFM from what I’m used to. But, it definitely has helped with the dust.


I have a set of half doors that I’ve had for almost five years that I need to paint. I plan to do that this summer. We now have a 5000+ sq/ft climate controlled warehouse for our operation so I can make a little spot in a corner somewhere to knock out some painting projects. I’m worried the doors will turn out so well that I’ll want to paint the rest of the Jeep

Wildman said:

Congratulations. You've got more balls than I do. It was something I'd always wanted to try but just never did. I commend anyone who does .
Wishing you the best of success and prosperity.

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Thank you! I never wanted to own my own business. I’m happy clocking in and out at $50/hr with a 9-5 schedule. It is mostly rewarding, but there are days I think I’ll feel better about it when I get my profit share check at the end of the year, which will include last year.

In the plus side, I have a great view from my home office. 3/4 of my week is spent here. Can’t complain about that.

Ok, now on to the tech stuff that y'all are here for. Don’t worry there are pictures.

Last year my OEM thermostat failed open, so I replaced it sometime in August I think with a store brand (I know I know). Well wouldn’t you know it, it failed maybe 6 months later. I decided on a Robert Shaw thermostat. It’s USA made and I really like the science behind it; their claims don’t seem to be a gimmick (see link). I’m tired of gambling every time I get a thermostat and “Motorad” is stamped on it.

I also decided on replacing the water pump and fan clutch at the same time so I went with the Flowkooler water pump. I bought it simply for the fact it is USA made and seems to have a sturdy design vs. store brand. There were no Mopars available until recently, and even then I’m not convinced the available Mopar ones aren’t counterfeit. There were no other cooling benefits I was trying to achieve with this pump, even though Flowkooler claims HP savings and better temps. Original pump still works fine and will be shelved as a spare.

Lastly was the fan clutch. I went with the USMW fan clutch for two reasons. One, it is made in USA. Two, I have good experience with it. I had a USMW on my truck until it failed due to a defective wobbly fan. When I replaced it with OEM, I could tell no difference in the performance. That was enough to make me confident it would also work on the Jeep. Original clutch works fine and will be shelved as a spare.


The radiator was replaced with a CSF brand when I did my tranny swap three years ago. It’s had no problem keeping the system in check so it stays. I did purchase a new Mopar cap to tie everything together. Original works fine and is also shelved. Hoses are relatively new too.

Also on the list of tune up stuff is a Felpro valve cover gasket, spark plugs, serpentine belt, and an aux transmission cooler. Hang on, what?? A cooler you say? That’s right bitches, it’s happening. Our @PurpleTJAZ friend was nice enough to sell my his aux trans cooler a couple years back. No idea on the brand, but it works (according to PO) and also bolts up directly to the v-brace mounts. Here’s a photo of the goods. More on this in the next post.


I proceeded with typical cooling system dismantling. Coolant was replaced 10k miles ago and looked perfectly clean (like apple juice according to my niece lol) so I captured and reused it. Then off went the fan shroud and fan, thermostat housing, and water pump. Next I dismounted the radiator and condenser so I had access to the inside of the grill.


The way this cooler mounts is the mounting tabs sit between the grille and the vbrace, so the brace had to come off to get the cooler in.


I remounted the brace with the cooler, and bought some longer bolts to pass through the welded nuts on the inside of the grille. I bought some lock nuts just in case to thread on to the side passing through, but I want to see how these hold first because threading those nuts on would be a giant pain.


Cooler installed with condenser and radiator back in place.


I wish I had taken more photos but this whole process had taken way longer than I had anticipated. Water pump went on without a hitch using a Felpro gasket. Then I moved to the thermostat and housing and used a Felpro gasket there as well. After buttoning everything up, I finally tackled getting the fan shroud properly aligned after the tuck. It took a lot of trial and error with the Dremel and measurements but I got it basically sitting as low as it can. So that’s one less lingering thing I have to worry about. Fan clutch went back on no problem as well and sits very close to OEM positioning now. New continental belt on and it was ready for coolant.


If you don’t have a funnel kit, get one. It makes bleeding air out of the system so much easier. My brother bought a funnel kit from Harbor Freight and it has worked for us just fine on other projects. I had an oops and leaked coolant because the thermostat slipped slightly out of place. Theres a shutoff valve in the funnel so I was able to save the coolant that was still in there. Quick ten minute in and out and the thermostat was properly sealed.

Here’s a picture of everything buttoned up from the front ft. new trans cooler.


And a video because why not. Sorry it’s in portrait mode I thought it would attach as a short.

Post install thoughts.

• As I’ve seen said by other members, the systems gets up to temp much faster and stays more consistent for the Robert Shaw thermostat. This is not placebo and is verified with OBD.
• The USMW fan clutch operates exactly like the OEM does. Loud startup but dies down after 30 seconds. Under normal driving conditions, I can’t tell the difference.
• Water pump works like a water pump should. I’m hoping for good longevity. But it’s quiet and balanced? No idea how the impeller affects cooling but again I bought this more because of the quality vs. what they claim it does over OEM.

I took two long drives, one last night at 75° ambient air and one today at 100° ambient air. Temperatures stayed right in spec and the fan did not sound abnormal to what I’ve been used to hearing for the last four years (6969 haha nice).


There are also no leaks as of the end of my second drive today, so a job well done if I do say so myself!

Hey guys! Two-week update; cooling system is working flawlessly. I was watching OBD yesterday during a drive with AC on and temps ranged from 200-210°. It most consistently stayed between 203-206°. There are absolutely no leaks so I consider my Robert Shaw/Flowkooler/USMW stuff adequate OEM replacements. The jury is still out on longevity. And speaking of longevity, this is my fourth summer with my cheap CSF radiator and it is still chugging away.

On to my transmission cooler, @PurpleTJAZ is who I got it from and he said it was a flex-a-lite. Lo and behold, I found an example online though it does not appear to be manufactured anymore, at least the bracketry that mounts it directly to the v-brace. LINK HERE. I had planned on doing Blaine's Setrab method, but since I have this, I might as well give it a try, though I will adopt some of Blaine's method's in hooking this up. I have the 05-06 quick disconnect radiator so I will be using this adapter below, as well as the 90° AN fitting attached to it. These are Blaine's photos from his thread on the Setrab install. Adapter and AN 90° on the left.


Both ports for the transmission cooler are on the driver side so I will run a hose from the AN fitting to the lower port, then run a line from the upper port down to the return line for the transmission, seen below. These are also both Blaine's photos.


Unfortunately, the cooler I have has fixed barbs and will not support adapting to an AN fitting.


I will buy my own 3/8" hosing and mold it for routing. I plan to do what Blaine does and route both lines through the air dam on the driver side, then it will bend downward 90° or so. This will create the least amount of bulk in the grille, and look clean without any tight turns or creating kinks.

I will be gone for the next two weeks backingpacking through Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks, so this project probably won't happen until later July. I will also need one of Blaine's fancy Dorman pans he sells with the bung installed, as well as a gauge. I would like to see before and after temps before I hook the cooler up. July-August is the hottest part of the year for AZ so it is the perfect time to see what extremes and lows the fluid temp gets to.

That's my update for now. I will be disconnected from society for two weeks so I'll see y'all when I get back from the mountains!

Tob said:

Sorry if you’ve covered this already, but what OBD2 adapter and software do you use, and do you recommend it?

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I’m just using a cheap Amazon wifi OBD I got for $20. It shows me the basic things and also checks codes if I need. I use OBD Fusion for my app. I think I paid $10 for that.


I would eventually like to do the DRB in a virtual machine but it seems one of the key components has become hard to come by and OP hasn’t been on in a few months.

If that doesn’t work, I’ll just buy a $250 android based tablet that can read transmission and ABS modules and call it a day. I’ve used one before and they are handy.