Ouray trip problems

[RocknLJ]

Returned from first trip with the LJR to Ouray. Had a great time for a few days until problems popped up on the Jeep.
Had the front gears replaced just prior to leaving as pinion was moving up/down & side to side due to worn bearings. Drove about 500 miles before leaving on the trip to break in the gears properly. Coming down into Animas Forks noticed a grinding noise in front diff. Took it out of 4WD and noise still there. Drove back to Ouray and put the Jeep on the trailer. Returned home and backing Jeep off trailer exhaust system rattling (pre cat bolts were loose before leaving for trip so I had tightened them)
As I pulled the Jeep into my garage it started missing and felt like exhaust/cats clogged.
While the trip was awesome, we had to rent a Jeep to finish up the trip.
Now I get to figure out what the heck is going on with Jeep.
Best investment was the 2024 Ford F350 diesel and throwing the Jeep on a trailer.
Oh well it’s a Jeep thing

Will post up the continuing saga of the LJR.

BTW do any of you know who’s still doing Hemi conversions on these?

May just pull the trigger and do this.
Thx
DC

 

[Old Jeepin Cowboy]

Returned from first trip with the LJR to Ouray. Had a great time for a few days until problems popped up on the Jeep.
Had the front gears replaced just prior to leaving as pinion was moving up/down & side to side due to worn bearings. Drove about 500 miles before leaving on the trip to break in the gears properly. Coming down into Animas Forks noticed a grinding noise in front diff. Took it out of 4WD and noise still there. Drove back to Ouray and put the Jeep on the trailer. Returned home and backing Jeep off trailer exhaust system rattling (pre cat bolts were loose before leaving for trip so I had tightened them)
As I pulled the Jeep into my garage it started missing and felt like exhaust/cats clogged.
While the trip was awesome, we had to rent a Jeep to finish up the trip.
Now I get to figure out what the heck is going on with Jeep.
Best investment was the 2024 Ford F350 diesel and throwing the Jeep on a trailer.
Oh well it’s a Jeep thing

Will post up the continuing saga of the LJR.

BTW do any of you know who’s still doing Hemi conversions on these?

May just pull the trigger and do this.
Thx
DC

WOW! not good. Keep us in the loop and next time you go to buy a Ford F 350, do not, instead buy a Ford F 450 and do the King Ranch if you drive a lot of highway miles

FACT: F 450 is a marketing ploy. What the F 450 is ...F 550 with a rear spring pack from a F 350. This is done by Ford to not go over 10,000 lbs, At 10,001 your truck goes up a duty class and depending upon where you live you may need to pay an excise tax, special plates, obtain a CDL and higher insurance rates because your truck is classified as a Commercial truck. You go from a CAT 2 to a CAT 3 is commercial by Federal Standards.

That said there are ways around it. The easy way is to choose Snowplow package and the Truck Camper package and certification. That gives you a 6000 lb front axle and a 16,000 lb rear axle.

I have had 6 F 350s and F 450s I will NEVER go back to F 350. Cost is not that big of a delta, in fact I paid almost the same for my F 450 King Ranch as my F 350 King Ranch. The seat in the King Ranch is the best I have ever had. Its like a Lazy Boy, even has massagers in both the front seats, wife loves it..

 

[NashvilleTJ]

WOW! not good. Keep us in the loop and next time you go to buy a Ford F 350, do not, instead buy a Ford F 450 and do the King Ranch if you drive a lot of highway miles

FACT: F 450 is a marketing ploy. What the F 450 is ...F 550 with a rear spring pack from a F 350. This is done by Ford to not go over 10,000 lbs, At 10,001 your truck goes up a duty class and depending upon where you live you may need to pay an excise tax, special plates, obtain a CDL and higher insurance rates because your truck is classified as a Commercial truck. You go from a CAT 2 to a CAT 3 is commercial by Federal Standards.

That said there are ways around it. The easy way is to choose Snowplow package and the Truck Camper package and certification. That gives you a 6000 lb front axle and a 16,000 lb rear axle.

I have had 6 F 350s and F 450s I will NEVER go back to F 350. Cost is not that big of a delta, in fact I paid almost the same for my F 450 King Ranch as my F 350 King Ranch. The seat in the King Ranch is the best I have ever had. Its like a Lazy Boy, even has massagers in both the front seats, wife loves it..




View attachment 555302

Unless Rockn’s 350 is not a dually…

 

[Old Jeepin Cowboy]

Unless Rockn’s 350 is not a dually…

I love my duallys. When I roll I am around 24-25 000 lbs, with 6000 lbs in the bed and pulling a trailer. The one thing everyone loves about F 450 is the turning radius and is very short compared to most non-commercial trucks.

1 other thing: F 450 HOLDs their value.

 

[ColoJeep]

WOW! not good. Keep us in the loop and next time you go to buy a Ford F 350, do not, instead buy a Ford F 450 and do the King Ranch if you drive a lot of highway miles

FACT: F 450 is a marketing ploy. What the F 450 is ...F 550 with a rear spring pack from a F 350. This is done by Ford to not go over 10,000 lbs, At 10,001 your truck goes up a duty class and depending upon where you live you may need to pay an excise tax, special plates, obtain a CDL and higher insurance rates because your truck is classified as a Commercial truck. You go from a CAT 2 to a CAT 3 is commercial by Federal Standards.

That said there are ways around it. The easy way is to choose Snowplow package and the Truck Camper package and certification. That gives you a 6000 lb front axle and a 16,000 lb rear axle.

I have had 6 F 350s and F 450s I will NEVER go back to F 350. Cost is not that big of a delta, in fact I paid almost the same for my F 450 King Ranch as my F 350 King Ranch. The seat in the King Ranch is the best I have ever had. Its like a Lazy Boy, even has massagers in both the front seats, wife loves it..




View attachment 555302

A Ford F-600 has a max GVW of 22,000 lbs. So why a CDL on a F-550 ??? both are under the 26,000 lb. CDL requirement .

 

[Old Jeepin Cowboy]

A Ford F-600 has a max GVW of 22,000 lbs. So why a CDL on a F-550 ??? both are under the 26,000 lb. CDL requirement .

That depends on the state, in fact there 1 state that you need a CDL just to drive a truck. In Texas you need a CDL to drive a RV or pull an RV....In over 24 years of RVing I never came across anyone in Texas that had the CDL...its not enforced very much at all.


This the Federal categories, when your truck hits 10,001 lbs Feds consider it as a commercial truck. https://afdc.energy.gov/data/10380

NOTE there are FEDERAL rules and each state has its own rules...

[th]

Vehicle Class​

[/th][th]

GVWR Category​

[/th][th]

VIUS Classes​

[/th]​

[td]

> 6,000​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 1: < 6,000 lbs​

[/td][td]

Light Duty
< 10,000 lbs​

[/td][td]

Light Duty
< 10,000 lbs​

[/td]​

[td]

10,000​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 2: 6,001 – 10,000 lbs​

[/td]​

[td]

14,000​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 3: 10,001 – 14,000 lbs​

[/td][td]

Medium Duty
10,001 – 26,000 lbs​

[/td][td]

Medium Duty
10,001 – 19,500 lbs​

[/td]​

[td]

16,000​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 4: 14,001 – 16,000 lbs​

[/td]​

[td]

19,500​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 5: 16,001 – 19,500 lbs​

[/td]​

[td]

26,000​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 6: 19,501 – 26,000 lbs​

[/td][td]

Light Heavy Duty
19,001 – 26,000 lbs​

[/td]​

[td]

33,000​

[/td]​

[td]

Class 7: 26,001 – 33,000 lbs​

[/td][td]

Heavy Duty
> 26,001 lbs​

[/td][td]

Heavy Duty
> 26,001 lbs​

[/td]​

 

[RocknLJ]

SRW
Dually would be a bit over the top for me.

 

[ColoJeep]

This the Federal categories, when your truck hits 10,001 lbs Feds consider it as a commercial truck. https://afdc.energy.gov/data/10380

Sure , for weight classes and and emission standards that is what this chart is showing. But since 1992 , CDL's are only required for > 26,000 lb GVW and over 15 passenger vehicles and certain Hazmat stuff. These are the Federal requirements. Before 1992 each state did whatever , leading to endless issues on anyone visiting another state and untrained drivers causing accidents.

 

[Moglocker]

SRW
Dually would be a bit over the top for me.

View attachment 555363

View attachment 555364

So the grinding was in the engine?

 

[Apparition]

WOW! not good. Keep us in the loop and next time you go to buy a Ford F 350, do not, instead buy a Ford F 450 and do the King Ranch if you drive a lot of highway miles

FACT: F 450 is a marketing ploy. What the F 450 is ...F 550 with a rear spring pack from a F 350. This is done by Ford to not go over 10,000 lbs, At 10,001 your truck goes up a duty class and depending upon where you live you may need to pay an excise tax, special plates, obtain a CDL and higher insurance rates because your truck is classified as a Commercial truck. You go from a CAT 2 to a CAT 3 is commercial by Federal Standards.

That said there are ways around it. The easy way is to choose Snowplow package and the Truck Camper package and certification. That gives you a 6000 lb front axle and a 16,000 lb rear axle.

I have had 6 F 350s and F 450s I will NEVER go back to F 350. Cost is not that big of a delta, in fact I paid almost the same for my F 450 King Ranch as my F 350 King Ranch. The seat in the King Ranch is the best I have ever had. Its like a Lazy Boy, even has massagers in both the front seats, wife loves it..




View attachment 555302

Platinum > King Ranch and it’s available in F150 and up they literally all use the same cab. No desire to have a dually until I need one.

No 450 Tremor option either.

Truck pic thread

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Returned from first trip with the LJR to Ouray. Had a great time for a few days until problems popped up on the Jeep.
Had the front gears replaced just prior to leaving as pinion was moving up/down & side to side due to worn bearings. Drove about 500 miles before leaving on the trip to break in the gears properly. Coming down into Animas Forks noticed a grinding noise in front diff. Took it out of 4WD and noise still there. Drove back to Ouray and put the Jeep on the trailer. Returned home and backing Jeep off trailer exhaust system rattling (pre cat bolts were loose before leaving for trip so I had tightened them)
As I pulled the Jeep into my garage it started missing and felt like exhaust/cats clogged.
While the trip was awesome, we had to rent a Jeep to finish up the trip.
Now I get to figure out what the heck is going on with Jeep.
Best investment was the 2024 Ford F350 diesel and throwing the Jeep on a trailer.
Oh well it’s a Jeep thing

Will post up the continuing saga of the LJR.

BTW do any of you know who’s still doing Hemi conversions on these?

May just pull the trigger and do this.
Thx
DC

Stuff happens sometimes. In 2020 my rear axle started making noise after Poughkeepsie gulch, turned out the shop I paid for a regear had their noob do the work and the pinion depth was all wrong. I drove it home to Colorado Springs and it made it fine.

Next year I had a hood latch break when I hit the wake of an oncoming semi with a cross wind, still 10 hours from Ouray on the way there. Had to rig it together and order a replacement sent to the O'Reilly's in Alamosa to pick up. The year after that was fairly minor...thermostat stuck open and fan clutch never warmed up enough to disengage so my LJ constantly sounded like a fully loaded big rig accelerating through an intersection.

I made it through unscathed this year, but one of my buddies sprung a leak in his transmission output seal and we had to check it and top it off every day.

 

[RocknLJ]

So the grinding was in the engine?

Grinding noise in front diff.
Haven’t opened it yet. When I got it back from gear change front locker light kept blinking even though it was locked. Told the shop about the issue and I said they probably didn’t install the diff correctly in relation to the sensor. They just blew me off. Also noticed before I left that locker seemed to stay partially engaged in the front after turning off.
Was pressed for time as we were leaving for Ouray so just said F it.
Wondering now if this may have had an impact on what happened to front diff.
Other issue is rattle in exhaust system up near manifold causing back pressure and a misfire without codes.
Thinking maybe precats decided to let loose internally.
Fortunately I got in on the smoking deal on Flowmaster that was posted in another thread. Bought the system to save for a just in case situation.

F350 is a Lariat with std output 6.7 and ultimate package, 4x4 , snowplow, and big ass moonroof.
Also has the pricey Star White paint job and Chrome

Have had jeeps forever and drove them around the country.
First time towing a jeep on a trailer and wow was this way better.

Ike gauntlet not an issue plus picked up the kids(adults now) at Denver airport and rode in comfort for 2800 miles. Round trip.
When we arrived in Ouray we weren’t shaking and could actually hear each other talk in normal voices… unlike previous trips just riding in a soft top Jeep.
Going to start my investigation next weekend as I need a break.

 

[Old Jeepin Cowboy]

A Ford F-600 has a max GVW of 22,000 lbs. So why a CDL on a F-550 ??? both are under the 26,000 lb. CDL requirement .

That depends upon which state you live in. 2 sets of rules: Fed & State

 

[macleanflood]

I drive my 2001 F250 with a V-10 occasionally around 29k when the rock quarry forgets I've got a 5 ton dump trailer and drops in 7.

And then there was the time we loaded 6.3 tons of shingles and hauled it with my friends 2004 6.0 F350 with a turbo with the vanes stuck.

-Mac

 

[Wildman]

Returned from first trip with the LJR to Ouray. Had a great time for a few days until problems popped up on the Jeep.
Had the front gears replaced just prior to leaving as pinion was moving up/down & side to side due to worn bearings. Drove about 500 miles before leaving on the trip to break in the gears properly. Coming down into Animas Forks noticed a grinding noise in front diff. Took it out of 4WD and noise still there. Drove back to Ouray and put the Jeep on the trailer. Returned home and backing Jeep off trailer exhaust system rattling (pre cat bolts were loose before leaving for trip so I had tightened them)
As I pulled the Jeep into my garage it started missing and felt like exhaust/cats clogged.
While the trip was awesome, we had to rent a Jeep to finish up the trip.
Now I get to figure out what the heck is going on with Jeep.
Best investment was the 2024 Ford F350 diesel and throwing the Jeep on a trailer.
Oh well it’s a Jeep thing

Bummer about the problems. Hopefully it isn't anything too serious.

Will post up the continuing saga of the LJR.

BTW do any of you know who’s still doing Hemi conversions on these?

May just pull the trigger and do this.
Thx
DC

Red Rock 4WD and JeepSpeed Shop would be the two companies I'd contact to see if they are still doing Hemi swaps on TJ's. Or you could source the parts and do it yourself?

That depends upon which state you live in. 2 sets of rules: Fed & State

Let's make sure we're clarifying the information correctly.

CDL is a Commercial Drivers License & is required when driving for commerce(for profit).

There are 3 classes of drivers license:
A Class A commercial driver's license (CDL) allows the holder to operate any combination of vehicles with a gross combination weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 pounds or more, provided the towed vehicle(s) have a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of more than 10,000 pounds. This covers large tractor-trailers, tanker trucks, and other heavy combinations.

A Class B CDL permits the operation of a single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 pounds or more, or any such vehicle towing a vehicle with a GVWR of 10,000 pounds or less. This includes large straight trucks, buses, and smaller trailers.

A Class C CDL is for vehicles that do not meet the weight requirements for a Class A or B license, but are designed to transport 16 or more passengers (including the driver) or transport hazardous materials.

Then there are a NON-CDL license in some state that is required to operate vehicles above a certain weight.
Some examples are like driving a Class A motorhome. Here in WA you don't need a special license to drive it while in other states you need a Non-CDL Class A license to drive it.

 

[Old Jeepin Cowboy]

Platinum > King Ranch and it’s available in F150 and up they literally all use the same cab. No desire to have a dually until I need one.

No 450 Tremor option either.

Truck pic thread

View attachment 555385

Now you know why I have a dually, I run about 24-25k rolling lbs

 

[deserteagle56]

I love my duallys. When I roll I am around 24-25 000 lbs, with 6000 lbs in the bed and pulling a trailer. The one thing everyone loves about F 450 is the turning radius and is very short compared to most non-commercial trucks.

1 other thing: F 450 HOLDs their value.

I love my dually too. But how do your 19.5 tires handle miles of washboardy dirt roads?

 

[Old Jeepin Cowboy]

I love my dually too. But how do your 19.5 tires handle miles of washboardy dirt roads?

View attachment 555854

View attachment 555855

Rare I ever drive on dirt/washboard. I did drive it around on the ranch, but those roads don't a lot of vehicles on them, mostly one of my John Deere tractors. Since most of my wheeling is alone I don't trailer my Jeep. I did for a while but got tired of it, too much hassle. By myself its a motel.

When I got my '03 Jeep TJ R I pondered on my build after a few months of wheeling OEM I decided to find out where the x y cross. X being mods and Y being a daily driver.

I built for the rocks as I had never done rocks over all the years it had always been dirt, backroads, mud, swamps, sand everything but rocks.

Somewhere the X & Y cross, you can wheel it and drive it to work on Monday. So I had to establish metrics. For wheeling my Metric was Pritchett Canyon, forward and back again, no winch, no stap, no spotter, do it alone. Daily driver was ice cold AC, full doors to keep the rain out and all the comforts + a safe street Jeep.

I guess. you could say I cheated, but I had a good friend who is one of the TOP Jeep builders in the US. I called him and we talked I ended up buying a set of Dyantrac ProRocks 60s and add in a Terraflex lift. I spent 2 weeks living with him and working and apprenticing under him. How do I know he is one of the top builders...he lives out in the country, and the shop is on his property. Car haulers come in and out on his property carrying Jeeps from all over the US from Cali to Maine, you name it. He always has 10 + Jeeps in the que.

He got his first Jeep from his Grandfather for a birthday present when he was 15 and he is in 40s and has been building Jeeps ever since. He wheels and is well known. I met him in Moab not long after I had my drive installed by him. A week of hitting the most difficult of trails Moab had to offer. Him, me and another 2 guys. What a week that was and I learned a lot from him and like he said if you need a spotter, your not a Jeeper.

I should have never sold this Jeep...this is the FIRST Jeep Rubicon delivered to the public, 2nd week of Aug 2002. Almost 100k miles over 9 years wheeling full time and I never any falilure of any other once the Optima battery had an internal short while in Moab on a one way trail and I was at the turn around. Bitch getting me out there.

 

[RocknLJ]

Is that a Canadian M101 trailer?

I bought one back in the mid 2000’s and still have it. Great little trailer for towing with a TJ or LJ.

 

[RockyTopTJ]

Platinum > King Ranch and it’s available in F150 and up they literally all use the same cab. No desire to have a dually until I need one.

No 450 Tremor option either.

Truck pic thread

View attachment 555385

I actually prefer the King Ranch > Platinum. Little bias because my father has a King Ranch 150, but it's also just a branding thing I like more. Ex: Twin Peeks may have better looking women, but I like the Hooters brand more. Who wouldn't like this: