2007 UA Jeep JK Wrangler - UAJK

Flowmaster again sponsored our Ultimate Adventure trip. We had the company send us its '06 Cummins Dodge after-cat exhaust kit with a 50-Series heavy-duty muffler and 4-inch tubes. We also checked out Flowmaster's new HushPower muffler for the Cummins and would have used it except the 50 Series tucked up slightly more within the frame. This exhaust gave the Cummins a great sound, but wasn't too loud on the trail or street.

With big 42-inch tires we went to PSC Motorsports for a steering ram assist. This not only helps turn the big tires when aired down, but reduces abuse to the steering box. The ram assist is plumbed off the steering box and offers more direct force when turning the wheel.

Since we are using a Fab Fours steel diff cover, we welded the mounting tabs for the ram directly to the cover. Also note how we attached the ram to the driver-side knuckle. These are the knuckles we showed last month that were modified at Knoll Racing to give us crossover steering.

One of the final additions to the Jeep was the tube fenders from Poison Spyder Customs. With the curved body panels this new Jeep poses complications for any aftermarket body armor. We got our hands on the first set of fenders for the JK. Poison Spyder general manager Paul Herrera had his crew working double-time to help us get the fenders on, and they turned out great.

The rear fenders were so fresh that we actually painted and installed them during the check-in for the event in Texas. Both the front and rear have a tube frame with 1/8-inch steel skin. The fenders have extra bracing added to the tub for support since the thin bodywork would barely support the fenders alone. We didn't lay the entire weight of the Jeep against the fenders, but when squeezing between rocks and trees they did get rubbed at times and held up excellently. We were also able to stand on them to access the bed or engine bay of the Jeep.

A trip like this requires extra parts, tools, camping gear, a good cooler, and a place to put it all. Last year Slee Off-Road installed a set of drawers in our Ultimate FJ Cruiser and they were such a hit that we discussed a set of storage drawers for our Rubi Wagon. Christo and Ben from Slee came by to do the actual install. The drawer system we used is a prototype with a galvanized framework that bolts directly to the floor of the Jeep tub.

Within the framework is a set of drawers that can support all our tools and spare parts. On top of the drawer system are tie-downs where we attached our ARB fridge/freezer that runs off 12 volts and keeps all our drinks and grub cold.

Amongst those tools was a recovery bag from ARB with its new straps. The winch bag, affectionately called the "snatch pack," was very useful in the muddy, rocky, and steep trails of UA since it contained all the required shackles and straps. We especially like the color-coded orange snatch strap (we chose the 33,000-pound version), green tree-trunk strap, and crazy purple winch extension strap.

In addition to the drawer system, Slee also supplied us with a Scepter 20L fuel jerrycan. You would think that with a diesel engine we would never run out of fuel, but running the small 19-gallon Jeep TJ fuel tank wasn't always enough.