Trouble Maker

Thanks, the size doesn't seem to have a huge effect on the price, they all seem around $200/tire roughly for a good tire. If anything the taller sidewall tires seem to be a little lower price than the OEM size. Of course I'll have to buy 18" wheels, but I can sell the 20's to offset the price. There seems to be a much wider selection of ATs in the 18's.

I'm finding mixed info on that, seems like maybe with some paid apps via OBD2 (Bluetooth dongle). https://offroadpassport.com/forums/topic/5690-how-to-calibrate-speedometer-change-tire-size-on-2021-jeep-grand-cherokee-wk2-using-alfaobd/

You don't like wheels with a huge star in the middle and fake wheel lock bolts that are shiny so they look like jewelry? Yes, these keep popping up when I look at highly rated tires in this category. Seems like the easy way to go, and it's good to hear actual experiences from trusted sources. I'm not expecting the world, but they should be better than just regular ol' all seasons right? Everything is a compromise, even 2 or 3 sets of tires and wheels (cost, complexity). Mitch, still getting used to this touch screen. Seems OK so far, but maybe a bit glitchy and not well integrated. I was listening to bluetooth music and using maps, but maps didn't voice over the music as far as I could tell. Maps was fine when not navigating, but when I brought up directions my current location went to the other side of the world, so that's a huge problem. I'm going to try to updated google maps to see if that helps. It seems like there maybe be someway to do something like Android Auto/Car Play, or just mirror the phone. That seems like a better solution if it's a thing and works well. I'm also curious to see if I lost any functions or performance. The rear camera quality is hot garbage, but I don't know what it's like stock. I also wonder if I lost any 'Jeep apps'. Once I get some more time on this we should get together to compare, you can check it out and see if you like it. If (google) maps worked I think it could be great, since google maps w/ an internet connection is probably better than 99% of OEM navigation systems. You can hotspot from your phone to this thing so it can get data over wifi. So there's a ton of promise there. There's some way to put files like movies or music directly onto this thing, probably by it's USB connection. Stock it will only play video files with the parking brake on, which is still a cool feature but if there's some way to bypass that would be pretty awesome for the passenger on road trips.

I don't know where you got that from. I'm happy to buy new. Or if someone can give me basic advice about how to find these on FB or CL I'm all ears. But if the answer is just wading through 1000 post to maybe find what I'm looking for to save a few bucks, no thanks.

I don't even know where to start looking on places like FB or CL. Is it even possible to properly filter or do you have to look at everything that looks like it might fit and then maybe they have measurements, or if not you have to back reference the car it was on to see it's measurements? I fuckin' refuse to search from rims since they are called wheels.#changemymind #fightme So far like 99.32% of these say almost nothing in the title, not even the wheel diameter.

New car has so-so condition tires, and who doesn't like a new tire or tire/wheel combo anyway! It's a 2014 with air suspension. Stock is around 30.5" and many people say 32" tires fit, but random reports of rubbing or some people saying they were fine then it happened once. Hard to tell if it's the exact actual size/footprint of each tire used and/or if they just got into an extreme tire/suspension position one time. What I think I can tell is that the 275/55/20 combo puts the tire really close to upper control arm and I'm not sure how comfortable I am with that. Is a less aggressive AT all-season with 3PMSF too much of a jack of all trades master of none? Tire suggestions? Target is reasonable on and light off-road performance, focus on on-road and we will tow up to 5.5klbs. I also don't want to completely trash fuel economy and have headache inducing tire noise since we will do long trips and it would kind of negate the better mpg of the diesel. So I'm not looking to put MTs on this thing. Options 1) Keep stock 20" wheel and stock tire size - 265/65/20 = 30.5" 2) Keep stock 20" wheel and 32" tire. Many go with a 275/55/20 =31.9". Or a 265/55/20 = 31.5" and probably 0% chance of rubbing. 3) 18" wheel, 32" tire - 275/65/18 =32.1", or 265/65/18= 31.6" and probably 0% chance of rubbing. Not sure what combo people are saying works here, I haven't deeply looked into this. Plus/minus on each type of setup based on my target usage?

This is huge for some of my coworkers, I actually imagine that's part of the reason the pilot is happening in Union county. Work from home and remote school plus poor internet for some of them is a daily struggle right now. 2 or 4 video chat's happening at the same time doesn't work, at all. Good internet for entertainment via streaming video or video games will just be icing on the cake. Though it seems like there is already 100 pre-selected test sites, 90 houses and 10 small businesses. https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/starlink-ohio

So, what's the actual value of this thing?

If there is an easy/good way to bolt an a-frame type tow mount that folds up, I would do that. If not do they make replacement bumpers with one built in? I would agree with Geeto, you would want to mount to the frame/bumper that's mounted to the frame, not any steering or suspension part. Just because it might be legal doesn't mean it's a good idea to not have them. Maybe if you were towing a 2k# vehicle behind a big modern RV that's 20-30k#s with a big beffy brake system it wouldn't be a big deal. Maybe if you were only staying around flat land around here it would be ok. But neither of those are true. Also someone said 3k#s but is that true in every state in the union, every one you will go through? What happens if the vehicle breaks away from the RV? <- if it has a braking system there will be an emergency braking wire that when pulled will trigger full lock on the brakes. For me in that situation there's no way I'm not having some brakes during towing on the Jeep. I don't have personal experience with these systems, and while not cheap, seem like a great solution. Still probably as cheap or cheaper than any half decent tow dolly with brakes and it's not adding the weight of the tow dolly system. https://www.google.com/search?q=braking+systems+for+tow+behind+vehicle https://rvibrake.com/collections/shop/products/rvibrake3-flat-towing-braking-system Don't forget about lights. I'm sure they make some magnetic ones that will work perfectly fine. I would personally want to splice into the stock lighting system to not have to deal with extra parts. I don't know if this is a normal thing or not, but it makes sense to me.

Thanks for the advice and letting me bounce ideas off of everyone! Picked up a 2014 Grand Cherokee Summit ecoDiesel! It's really clean inside and out for it's age.

I don't want to parse this too much, because no matter how you slice it 1114 hp is massive amounts of power. But my brain likes to put things in perspective. 7.3L is a big engine by any standards, but especially for a modern engine where specific output (power/displacement) has really skyrocketed. That's about 150hp/L, even for mass production that is pretty normalish now-a-days. We are even getting mass production turbo diesels up near that area. But outside of very expensive high performance engines, and even sometimes there, this is a result of downsized-turbo engines and they are smaller, 1.5L-4.4L is probably the normal range in US market @ 150hp/L would be 225hp-660hp. And also the reality is we see numbers that high usually more in the lower displacement range. But it's often unnecessary in the higher displacement and the hp/L is lower to get better driveability. Maybe a better way to look at it is hp/cylinder, at 140hp/cylinder, it's really high. Quick google fu says the crate engine is rated at 430hp in stock n/a form... something's strange there. That's really low for that size engine outside of some fuel economy specific applications like Atkinson cycle engines. Going from there to >1000hp seems suspect. But I'm reading it's maybe underrated and with a few basic bolt on's it's at 660hp? That seems more reasonable out of a modern engine that size, even kind of high in n/a form for an engine that size. Then with a reasonable amount of boost could get up to >1000hp. Any knowledge or thoughts there? That much power through a stock engine is just awesome, but also it's going to shred everything else behind it.

I'm confused, are these track-ready factory cars (gutted, caged, not 'road legal') or is that just the marketing and these will be full on road cars that are track-oriented?

The Zero's do almost nothing for me. They are based too much off of traditional motorcycle architecture, parts and design, which seems big, bulky and heavy VS mountain bike or some in-between. I think the later would be perfect for city riding. I really think the growth market is a city runabout that's more like a beefy bicycle (think downhill bike) or scooter VS motorcycle. I think the average person is going to feel much more comfortable on something that's more the size and style of a bicycle or scooter. Personally I have a ton more experience on mountain bikes, so that's what I selfishly want. I think it would be much more controllable/fun/flick-able, whatever you want to call it at those weights and sizes. But it seems like the only real thing out there is the Suron/Segway and they seem like marketing garbage with specs that are outright lies, like the stated range.

I really want a 'big' electric-bicycle/small-motorcycle for puttzing town. Think something around 100-150lbs, looks like a beefy mountain bike but electric only with decent range/speed and the right lights to be road legal. I don't think anyone is making anything in this segment that's not a pile yet. I do think it's going to be a segment that grows massively in the coming years. Something like this but actually meet's it's specs. https://lunacycle.com/sur-ron-x-bike-black-edition/

What an awesome idea. You're not completely alone, but maybe in there with just a few other nut jobs. So there might be some resources out there to help you plan. https://jalopnik.com/this-nutty-bastard-rode-a-honda-grom-from-portland-to-1625358412 Hard to tell if this every went anywhere. https://www.rideapart.com/news/360181/honda-grom-alaska-argentina-tour/ It looks like the first guy used some light weight backpacking gear. I would highly suggest to look at bike-packing gear, which is touring and camping from a bicycle. There's a lot of really well made stuff out there, I imagine some of the bags might be usable/adaptable to a small motorcycle. There's also people out there making custom bags for what I remember to be really reasonable prices considering they are custom. https://www.google.com/search?q=best+bikepacking+gear https://bikepacking.com/gear/2020-bikepacking-gear-of-the-year/ I imagine the biggest thing is having a decent plan laid out, testing out your situation and gear here before you head out there. My wife and friend went from somewhere in Washington to Hyder Alaska, almost ran out of fuel and had to get someone to open up a gas station for them even though it was closed. Edit: I just read what Kerry wrote, I meant an awesome idea in general. I'm of no help on specific bikes so please listen to whatever he says and if not may god have mercy on your soul during your trip.

I'm loving watching the HBO Max conversation in this thread.

All Trails is really good too, worked well up in Banff too, so probably good in most of Canada. I imagine the National Park guide is well, specific to the national parks and possibly a little bit in the national forest. All Trails will have many trails outside of those areas so the scope of coverage is much broader. If anyone happens to find themselves in Japan and want to go hiking, neither of those are any good there. They have one like All Trails, https://yamap.com/ that's really good there. More importantly, these kind of user aggregated info apps generally seem to blossom in specific regions of the world. So, if any of you travel to another part of the world make sure you know which one works well there.

I honestly haven't followed it much, but I think we will still see movies. Actually I think we will see better more original movies on lower budgets instead of the endless stream of mega block buster hero movie garbage that's coming out of there now. The big budgets will be gone but I think that mostly means less money for the ultra rich and mega stars. Movies, and as I note below the amazing volume of high quality TV will still feed the industry, especially the workers there. And they made a Matrix 4... dear god why? At least it still has Keanue and one of the Wachowskis involved. I assumed it wouldn't since that is what typically happens, due to time and difficult with puling something like that together after so long. I had forgotten about that, the first few episodes are really good but that's as far as I had gotten in it. I can't remember where I was watching it through, but I don't think it was HBO. I think it was available either on Hulu or Prime in Canada or Japan, via using a VPN. I would argue that many of the good mini-series/series like this are long form movies, and much better than many of the for theater movies that have come out lately. This is the direction I think the industry has been going anyway, due to customer demand; enabled due to streaming technology and much better audio and video at home. COVID is just blowing out the already slowly extinguishing flame of mega theaters more quickly.

Let's do it! I've been texting withe EC92 a bit too, when things slow down for them I need to catch a beer with him and catch up. Maybe we can all get together. We've got a kid free house and enough room for a few people to socially distance inside and I hardly ever go out in public right now. I'm happy to have a few people over. Yeah, I figured the good timing was most of it, just using the cheap shot to call you cheap. :gabe: I roughly estimate we had about a week of travel, maybe even longer, and two weeks of actually being at places. And that was with something that can do any highway speed one would want. I think we drove 6kmi+ on the trip. We had a few day buffer on the end and did a day in San Diego, the wife used to live there so she was happy to be in one of her happy places for a bit. We also came back up through the South/west->south (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi) so I could knock out a few states down there. So, knock a day or two and 1-2kmi off and you're probably at the bare minim for travel distance/time. Then slow it down for the RV towing a vehicle, you're probably about spot on for 6 days just to get out there and back. Roughly the route we took from my memory, a few more stops in there but that's as many points as Google will let you do at once.

Clay, I know you are cheap, but it's only $80 for an annual pass. We did a big out west trip about 5 years ago, 3 weeks and we went to something like 6 or 8 parks. Let me know if you have any questions or let's chat next time we happen to see each other. Re: the tow/off-road vehicle post I made, my parents w/that car and their future camper are going to do an out west trip. I suggested they make their plan to go further north or south to have less elevation gain and probably lower grades, rather than go right through Denver and across 70 w/6-7% grades at almost 11kft. That might not be a bad idea in your case too. IDK if southern Colorado get's you any lower, but we started our trip at Great Sand Dunes and really liked it. It also get's you into a park about half of a day quicker or maybe with the RV and Continental divide even a decent day quicker than if your first stop was in Utah. We left on Friday afternoon and were in Great Sand Dunes Sunday morning; first night outside of St.Louis, 2nd at some rando hotel in SE Colorado, Sunday morning at Great Sand Dunes. Definitely tack on some time due to slow RV.

Any thoughts on the diesel Jeep Grand Cherokee? Prices for used ones I'm looking at seem similar enough to the V8, which seems like a no-brainier to pick the diesel. But I've never had a diesel vehicle before, and don't know much about this one, so I thought I would ask here.

That's awesome Clay, should be a great tow behind vehicle. It should be much easier to mount a tow behind hitch on that than on something like a Fit. I imagine it's pretty light with those fiberglass panels. It looks like they were already in the 2500-2700lb range and the fiberglass might save around 100lbs from the really quick looking I did. ... you were right Brian. :nod:

Through this process, talking it over with people including this thread, thinking about it, I'm pretty much set on an SUV for the space inside. The reality is most of the time I'll be throwing something like skis, camping gear, a bike in the back.

Lexus GX or LX would be awesome to get into a Land Cruiser. But the prices are too damn high. $24k would get me roughly into a 2016 Grand Cherokee, 2013 GX or 2009 LX. https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/price-trends/Jeep-Grand-Cherokee-d490 https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/price-trends/Lexus-GX-d2063 https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/price-trends/Lexus-LX-570-d1518 Sure, they all other things equal including year and mileage they are probably nicer and more reliable than the Grand Cherokee. But price being equal they are older and the Cherokee seems like the better deal on the surface to me.