Good, Bad And What's It For?
There's enough trail armor between the body and 'cage that Joe's Rubicon could probably get sucked up by a tornado and come out none the worse for the wear. There's also lots of armor and heavy components downstairs like the Currie heavy-duty tie rod and drag-link assembly, Warn diff guard and even little skidplates on the control-arm mounts. A Warn 9.5ti winch with Masterpull 71/416-inch synthetic rope drapes on the front bumper, and a big ol' Hi-Lift jack is ready in the rear.
All of the armor and hard-core parts add up to a rig that's more "go" than "show." It's pretty obvious that this Rubicon sees more time on the trails than in a parking lot surrounded by other diaper-rubbed specimens. The only things we really don't like are the rather tall stance and the placement of the Hi-Lift in the rear. If it were our rig, we'd lay the jack down horizontally, ditch the body lift and swap out the coils for some 4.5 inchers. Then we'd cut the body as needed to prevent rubbing.
What We Think
Jeep did get it right when it designed the Rubicon. Offering front and rear Dana 44s with locking differentials, a 4:1 T-case and a factory warranty seemed like the stuff of dreams only a few years ago. What left a sour taste in our mouths were the minority of individuals who bought these rigs and then proceeded to trash-talk every other vehicle on the trail that didn't sport the word RUBICON across the hood. Most of these yahoos it seemed didn't even know how to air down the tires, but they could smack talk a guy who spent every paycheck upgrading his rig to perform better on the trail.
We're seeing more and more Rubicons in all stages of buildup out on the trail being driven by actual off-road enthusiasts. While Joe's rig happens to be a bit on the extreme side of what they're building, it shows the bones of the Rubicon serve as one great foundation for a gnarly trail rig.
Hard Facts
Vehicle: '03 TJ Rubicon
Transmission: Stock four-speed auto
Transfer Case: Stock NV241-OR
Suspension: 5.5-inch Rubicon Express long arm
Axles: Stock Dana 44 front and rear, stock front locker, rear locker/limited slip, 4.88 gears
Wheels: 15x10 Pro Comp Xtreme Alloy
Tires: 3x13.50-15 BFGoodrich Krawler
Built For: Reliable off-road wheeling
Value: $15,000 plus price of vehicle