New Jeep Wrangler JL vs. Mud

This video from American Jeeper follows a new Jeep Wrangler JL Unlimited Rubicon through a very muddy day off road. See if the Jeep Wrangler can come out on top, and how it REALLY performs in tough, wet conditions. There are some exciting moments in the new Jeep as the first minute of the video sets the tone for the day. Follow American Jeeper and the lifted Jeep Wrangler JL Rubicon through rocky, muddy trails, watch it get stuck, and see how it gets out of a few slippery situations. Will the lift, winch, steel bumper, and 37” mud tires help the Jeep do better than the stock JL and lifted JK Wrangler wheeling with it? Watch and find out!

[@AmericanJeeper]

Visit the American Jeeper Amazon Shop here: www.amazon.com/shop/americanjeeper?ref=exp_inf_sh_mb_own_americanjeeper_tx

[@302irishaj]

You have to get those tires spinning fast to get them to clean out otherwise any tire you get will cake up like that.

[@AmericanJeeper]

302irishaj especially that “cake batter” mud.

[@RumrunnerAdventures]

4 hours of playing, 4 days of cleaning lol. Great video👍

[@AmericanJeeper]

Rumrunner Adventures isn’t that the truth?

[@mattsynth]

Fantastic video & narration. I would love to give that rock bouncer back at camp a go. Thanks for the post.

[@AmericanJeeper]

mattsynth thank you for checking it out, and you and me both on that bouncer! Quite a machine 🤙🏼

[@chadcook8216]

Great to see trails close to home. I'm in SW MO. Keep up the great videos!

[@AmericanJeeper]

Thank you for watching Chad! SW MO has some good spots too. Do you ever hit SMORR? 🇺🇸

[@chadcook8216]

@@AmericanJeeper I have not. I'm just now preparing to order a JLUR. Watching your videos for pointers and education.

[@AmericanJeeper]

I appreciate it. Now is an exciting time for you I am sure. Please let me know if I can help with anything 🇺🇸

[@hbrhodes1s]

Do you feel all terrain tires are best for those conditions? Would trail tires be better? I just got a two door 2018 Jeep Wrangler Sport JL with halogen lights and I'll be checking out those LEDs!

[@AmericanJeeper]

Bentley Rhodes when it’s that slick, most tires will have some issue. The all terrain may do slightly better in wet conditions, but you are also dealing with rocks you need big lugs to grip. The LED’s are a good one to upgrade!

[@rockinjames1]

Looks like you need to air down more to get way better traction

[@mikerobbins5049]

I’ll put Kansas Rocks on my list. We cross Kansas almost every year going or coming from out west. Looks like a fun little place to wheel

[@AmericanJeeper]

Mike Robbins I definitely recommend it. They are putting a lot of work into making KS Rocks even better. There are a few hidden gems out in the flint hills. Let me know when you come through and if I can coordinate a trip I will 🇺🇸

[@joepro5915]

Great video! Thanks for sharing.

[@AmericanJeeper]

You bet, and thanks for watching. Let me know what you would like to see for future videos 🇺🇸

[@mikem7618]

Get a cross member skid for the front one that your bumper doesn't cover before you hit it off a rock, it can tweak the front of the frame.

[@AmericanJeeper]

Mike M great advice. It is nice that under the stock bumper there is a nice plate (which I left on) but more armor is never a bad idea and definitely on the list. Thank you for watching 🇺🇸

[@Jeep.Generation]

Awesome footage. Mud is always fun.

[@AmericanJeeper]

Thank you Kevin! Mud is fun, but the cleanup isn’t 😀

[@jeffhamel2449]

Hi there I’m getting hooked on your videos. I’m a new owner of my first jeep and love it. I bought 2019 Rubicon. You mentioned in this video you have a spacer lift. I’d like to install 35” tires on my Rubicon.... would you suggest the spacers or should I go with a lift? I won’t be doing much off roading so I don’t need an elaborate set up. What did you install for a spacer lift? I’m also hearing that bump stops ruin the ride. Being new to this any info would help. Thanks jeff

[@chrisdonohue3305]

how do you have the winch mounted to the bumper and does it get in the way of the headlights?

[@KJsProjects]

Need more wheel speed for most of those obstacles to make them easier.

[@AmericanJeeper]

Quite possibly. That was a muddy day for sure. More aggressive mud tires may have helped but even lockers can’t help that stuff too much.

[@shockerracing]

Awesome! Glad to see her getting dirty!

[@AmericanJeeper]

Thank you and definitely! I get everything cleaned up only to go out and do it all over 🇺🇸

[@williamkozar1783]

Great video!

[@AmericanJeeper]

More to come soon! Thank you for watching 🇺🇸

[@krasnaludek298]

Going to a 13.5” wide tire would not be my choice, but everybody has an opinion. There are better mud tires, but at the sacrifice of on-road performance. Interco Swampers are such an example, but I don’t see many people (or anybodybto be more specific) running those on daily drivers.

[@connorkrukowski6600]

When in doubt, throttle out man! Guess I'm a lead foot lol I would have pegged it in that hole

[@JsGarage]

Same. Mud likes wheel speed.

[@tumbleweedking5668]

No LED lighting a bummer, When I ordered my JL rubi they were not avaliable, it's a pain to upgrade to Mopar due to needing to replace wiring harness.

[@AmericanJeeper]

Scott Falkner it is a bummer, because there isn’t really an aftermarket option that is the same or better quality yet. I am not sure why halogens would even be an option on a 2018 vehicle, especially one north of $50k

[@TexaSteven]

Awesome video, can’t wait to see more of your adventures. I’m planning on moving into a Jeep Rubi from my 18’ PRO 4Runner. And I love your setup. Do you do detailed install of your mods and are you going to keep your current spacer lift or are you going to do a suspension lift? I’m thinking of going with a Icon Stage 6 for my future Jeep I have one on my current Runner and love it. But that is a maybe they really don’t have a lot of options for the Jeep like they have for their Toyota suspensions.

[@AmericanJeeper]

Stephen Williams thank you for the compliments and for watching; there will be more adventures to come for sure. I do almost all my work myself and have noted that people want more detailed installation videos. Everything I add from this point on will have detailed installation with it. My plan is to do a full lift, but for now things are going well with the setup I have. If I go with a taller or wider tire, more of a lift will be needed and then I will be doing driveshafts. Larger tires mean a re-gear, and as opposed to re-gearing I may just do axle swaps so I can really get serious with 40” or 42” tires. It’s a slippery slope! Icon isn’t as well known with Jeeps as Toyotas, but I am sure they make a good product. Now there are starting to be more and more aftermarket lift and other options for the JL from quality, reputable manufacturers. You will be happy with the move!

[@cp_atving5084]

Do you plan to regear soon? Or is the stock 4.10 doing fine for a daily driver rig running 37s?

[@AmericanJeeper]

C P with the new 8-speed automatic transmission, the JL does great with 37’s and some are running 38’s or 40’s. I have no plans to regear, and this does great even on long highway trips. As you may know, the JK was not like this, but the JL is a different beast! You will lose 8th gear at higher highway speeds, but that is barely noticeable and the mileage and acceleration are still pretty good even in the mountains of Colorado. Thank you for watching 🇺🇸

[@SoManyBasses]

Check out Dominion Offroads Steath Hi Lift Mount. Infinitely better solution than what you’re running. Beyond that, I’m not sure 13.50 wide tires will give you what you seek.

[@AmericanJeeper]

SoManyBasses thanks, I have seen that. I think eventually I will try that or run it on a rear carrier or bumper, but we shall see. The wider tires may not do any better in these conditions, but I think they would be a better tires for the size and weight of the JLU. Won’t know until I try! Thank you for watching the video and hope you enjoy. 👍🏼

[@jhonn236]

I like the roof rack - which one is it?

[@AmericanJeeper]

Jhonnatan Cortes thank you! It is the Rhino Pioneer platform with the Maximus-3 brackets. There is a recent video on the American Jeeper channel that goes into the details. Thank you for watching 🇺🇸

[@BobLionel]

a 1" wider tire will make no difference in those conditions..especially on the factory wheels.

[@AmericanJeeper]

Bob Lionel not much can help that, you are right. My decision to go wider is an aggregate of my wheeling trips with the JL so far. I “need” wider tires 😀

[@emi123nem]

American Jeeper It will only make it worse with tighter wider radius and 2 inches more Jeep on each side. Wider tires have the opposite effect of what you expect ... Even competition mud trucks have a very narrow tire contact patch when you take into consideration the size of the tire itself, not sure exact science but something to do with cutting through the mud not creating more resistance by going wider. If at all a 1” taller tire will have a better mud leverage than wider

[@AmericanJeeper]

emi123nem great point! I am thinking floating on the mud but this decision is from all of my wheeling and I think this size/weight of Jeep needs more meat.

[@emi123nem]

​@@AmericanJeeper For the floating effect to come in play you'd need an extremely wide tire which for any practical purpose would not work on the jeep. If you went an inch taller on the other hand you can argue that it will give you just a little bit more leverage as you would have less tire in the mud at any given moment. The other thing you might wanna look at which I think is way more effective than either width or size :P ... is the thread and side bitter knobs ... might wanna do some research and see what works best for you ... personally big fan of the toyo & Nitto MTs but they are E rated and very heavy for the jeep and still ride pretty decent on the street, but worth the trade off imho.

[@AmericanJeeper]

emi123nem great points, and I appreciate you sharing your perspective. Going taller would be great, and that’s the eventual plan, but then I am looking at taller lift, driveshafts, and a re-gear. I might as well swap axles instead of re-gear to save more in the long run and just go with 42’s...decisions, decisions. Maxxis look like pretty aggressive tires, but have also heard good things about Toyo and Nitto. I will say these Destination M/T2’s do pretty well as an all around tire, giving me quite a bit of performance balanced with road manners. Maybe I just need two sets 😀❓

[@adrehh4590]

Little less tire pressure

[@AmericanJeeper]

TJ2-K4 for sure-need some beadlocks. Running 12 PSI non-beadlocks. How low do you like to go?

[@leepiclychill4284]

Hello

[@AmericanJeeper]

Hello, and thanks for the 👍🏼🇺🇸

[@chrisdonohue3305]

Sorry I meant the highlift jack

[@AmericanJeeper]

H Chris, the hi-lift jack is mounted to the tabs on the bumper which are meant for lights. I used a universal hi-lift mount for the bolts, wing nuts, and little retention brackets to complete the setup.

[@chrisdonohue3305]

American Jeeper does the base block any light from the headlights?

[@AmericanJeeper]

Chris Donohue sorry I missed that part. It blocks a tiny bit but barely noticeable.