For a few years, Jp magazine ran a Q&A column in each issue called "Ask Bree Three." For the benefit of our new readers, the column featured a different photo of a scantily-clad model who just happened to be into several types of motorsports, along with three question-and-answer submissions from Jp readers.

It turns out that some of you guys out there actually read what I have to say. As surprised as I am that the editors of this magazine keep inviting me back and that some of you actually like the column (thanks for the fan mail!), but I was really surprised when a pair of LED headlights showed up in the mail.

As a general rule of thumb, never admit to anything embarrassing. This creed has served me well over the years. For example, I'd never admit that I belong to The Dukes of Hazzard Reenactor's Society. Furthermore, there's no way I'd ever admit I've been chosen as understudy for the coveted role of Boss Hogg. Nope, I'm keeping that info close to my chest. If you're looking for another example from the "Never Admit Anything" files, you can be doubly sure I'll never 'fess up to the Tupperware Incident.

Crown Jewels
I enjoyed very much your two-part article on the $500 YJ project ("Why-J," March '09)! I don't have a YJ, but I do have an '85 XJ I've owned since new and have been gradually restoring. Since it has the venerable 2.5L motor, a lot of your article applies to me, including the high-reading oil pressure gauge, which I never figured out until now!

Send us your Jeep Shots. Include at least a 3-megapixel photo, your name, and information about your Jeep. Send 'em to Jp magazine, Jeep Shots, 6420 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048, or e-mail 'em to pete.trasborg@jpmagazine.com.

For some perverse reason, we keep buying these piles of parts and justifying thepurchases by calling them Jeeps. While it usually translates into great stories, it never gets easier for us. Most people learn from their mistakes. Except, apparently, for Jp magazine editors. Year after year, and time after time, we go and buy long-neglected Jeeps and try to get them ready to not only drive, but wheel, some big event; often with time tables that seem OK to us at the time, but once we are honest with ourselves afterwards, weren't anywhere near attainable.

Jeep News & Rumors
*Is the electric Wrangler a go? Obama is big on electric vehicles, so if Chrysler's plans get approved--and Chrysler survives--we could be looking at one in 2014.

Jeep News & Rumors
*Is the electric Wrangler a go? Obama is big on electric vehicles, so if Chrysler's plans get approved--and Chrysler survives--we could be looking at one in 2014.

For years I've wondered how the Jeeps and trucks I drive received such poor crash ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). I mean, how is it even possible for a 5,000-pound -ton fullsize truck with a real frame and factory 33-inch tires to get a lower crash rating than a 1,800-pound tin can on 22-inch shopping cart wheels? That's like telling me a .22 caliber pea shooter has more punch than a .50 caliber rifle! Then it dawned on me that the people performing the test must have no clue what they are doing. They've thrown reality, simple physics and Newton's Laws of Motion right out the window. Even a 5-year-old who is somewhat proficient at rock-paper-scissors can tell you that a larger stone will make a bigger splash than a small pebble when thrown in a pond. But what's worse is that average America has no idea what this institution is feeding them. Ultimately, I don't care how many seat belts or airbags you have in a Smart car, if it gets crushed by a -ton truck or even a Wrangler, it's not gonna be a pretty sight.

Since the dawn of time, people have been making up new, funnier, shorter, or morevisual versions of actual words. It's what made the cavemen more evolved than, say, their pet stegosaurus, Fluffy. Take the automotive world-there's an entire dictionary that could be filled with slang just for the internals of your Jeep.

We always have the same thought before undertaking any major drivetrain change. "How hard can it be?" This was especially true with our 4.0L swap in this '68 J2000. And while actually bolting in the 4.0L, NV3550, and NP208 went down without drama, we got complacent and some of the little stuff bit us in the ass.

We have had enough experience with crappy, half-built, or half-resurrected Jeeps over the years that we are uniquely qualified to help just about anyone. We aren't bright enough to know when to say when and leave those piles of Jeeps at home, and not take them off into the woods. So, that leaves us uniquely qualified to fix basically anything with nothing, especially in the dirt, and especially well enough to get back to camp.

Last month we covered the installation of a Rubicon Express 2.5-inch uspension system on our '89 YJ. We actually got over 4 inches of lift in the front and over 3 inches in the rear thanks to the Jeep's light weight and the longer 5-inch Rubicon Express shackles (stock is 4 inches).

In the June issue we tried to break the huge news about the all-new Grand Cherokee as gently as we could-which for Jp meant sugarcoating it as, "We bet it'll be less capable than its predecessor." As for the rumors? Mercedes-Benz M-Class chassis and four-wheel independent suspension. As for reality? Mercedes-Benz ML chassis and four-wheel independent suspension. There's not enough sugar, people.

Getting stuck, breaking down, or even surviving a rollover off-road isn't the end of the world providing nobody is harmed. So when your progress is impeded for whatever reason, it's important to keep your head about you and remember a few simple rules.

High-end coilovers and other mono-tube shocks have never been shipped with the required Nitrogen, and charging these shocks as well as hydraulic bumpstops has always been expensive or just a hassle. In the past you had to either invest in a large nitrogen gas bottle, regulator, and a fill kit or you had to find and then haul your rig to a shop that would charge the shocks for you. Rubicon Express went to work whittling a billet aluminum solution to this common problem. The company came up with the nitrogen recharge kit (PN REC300).

It's hard to beat the advantages of an FSJ. They're not quite a real fullsize truck and not quite a mini truck so they fit on most trails, yet are big enough to be comfortable. Many FSJs have 1/2-ton truck drivetrain or better including V-8s, stout axles, and truck transmissions. They really don't need much work to be solid trail rigs. For us, the J-truck pickups have several advantages over a typical utility vehicle. The most obvious is more storage space in the form of a bed. Last issue we covered the lift, tires and wheels, and fender trimming of our recycled truck. This issue we we'll cover all the doodads that make our truck a reliable, convenient and capable off-road rig.

There is nothing worse than missing a photo-op. We've all got these greatstories to tell and often have no pictures to go along with them. The problem is, being Jeep owners there just wasn't a decent camera that we could keep in the Jeep without fear of dirt, water, or the sensitive electronic components getting jostled around to the point of damage. Until now.

When we got the invite for Jeeptoberfest in Strum, Wisconsin, we were on the fence.

Are you the guy who blocks the trail and stands next to your broken Jeepscratching your head, waiting for someone to fix it for you? In our minds, a true off-road enthusiast is not only measured by the capability of their Jeep or driving skill, but also by their ingenuity and ability to solve a problem when something inevitably goes wrong and a Jeep needs to be limped off the trail. It doesn't matter if you're driving a $100,000 shop-built buggy or $100 rust bucket, these are the top five trail repairs you need to know.

A huge sticking point in the program was that marketing estimated they could sell 2,500 units each year while the engineers behind the program thought 10,000 was more realistic. Nearly everything that made up the Rubicon package except the tires and decal would be hidden, so marketing had a very hard time believing that more people would pony up the roughly $6,000 that the package would cost. The initial tooling was set up to build between 4,000 and 5,000 vehicles the first year. The company ended up taking orders for that many before the fist one went down the assembly line, which sent the team scrambling to increase the supply of transfer cases, axles and tires.

We've been to a lot of off-road parks across this great country. It is, after all, what we do for a living. Over all those wheeling miles, we just seem to have the most fun out in the Badlands in Attica, Indiana.

You ever watch those old war movies where the hero's buddy gets hit andthrough gritted teeth manages to squeak out the words, "just leave me, save yourself." It can sometimes feel like that when you're wheeling. Most times you're the hero who makes it out unscathed, but sometimes you're the unlucky buddy who gets nailed by a sniper and slows the whole group to a crawl.

Everybody has a favorite. Some guys are content to slap on a dime-store lift and call it a day, while others wanna continually tweak and fabricate until perfection is reached. Still, other guys just throw booty-fab and booger welds at a frame until the axles can flex clear to the other side of the vehicle, spitting coils and snapping brake lines in the process.

We've been happy wheeling our stock-suspension '89 YJ with two exceptions.