theksmith 5,778 Posted June 30 (edited) Gadget was getting too hot this weekend, especially on the climb up out of Camp Verde on the 260 - had to turn off the A/C and slow to a crawl. then i noticed she was getting a little warm very erratically the rest of the trip - i.e. not directly related to engine load. i figured air in the system or fan working inconsistently. after i got home and she cooled down completely, i saw the coolant expansion tank was full. so, i pressure tested the radiator cap and sure enough it wouldn't hold its rated pressure. i topped off the radiator and put on a new cap. then i ran up the 17 to Sunset Point yesterday afternoon and she was back to normal. normal for Gadget in the summer is still not as good as i'd like it to be. she does great the rest of the year. but, i have to back off a ton on long climbs when the weather gets to be near a 100* out. i'll be down to 50 mph or less by the time i get to the top of that climb to Sunset Point in order to keep the cooling system under 235*. fortunately that's with the A/C still ON the whole time. now that isn't at all horrible for a really heavy JKU with the 3.6L, but i think my next attempt to improve it will be a Mishimoto extra capacity radiator - but not till this Mopar one dies probably. Edited July 1 by theksmith 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Curly 1,317 Posted June 30 I expect you mean 235* degrees. 🙂 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theksmith 5,778 Posted June 30 2 minutes ago, Curly said: I expect you mean 235* degrees. 🙂 fixed it! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theksmith 5,778 Posted July 6 (edited) fudge me it's hot out! finally added some 3/4" front coil spacers to reduce the rake i got when i installed new rear coils back in January. i had been waiting to see how those coils would settle out, and i was avoiding the project because it's a lot of work for a minor aesthetic choice. i still have around 1" of rake depending on how full the gas tank is, but it looks much more level to me now. i also replaced the front Metalcloak Duro Spring bump-stops. i'd changed out the rear ones a while back but hadn't gotten to the front till now. IMO, those are a good value at under $100 for all 4... they work much better than the soft factory bumps on our heavy rigs - and i've been getting several years out of a set. final maintenance item today was to replace the extremely old stem bushings in my front Falcon Shocks while i had everything apart. Edited July 6 by theksmith 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theksmith 5,778 Posted July 18 (edited) was back at on Friday, this time working on Gadget's booty side... when i originally installed Evo Rockstar skids ("high clearance" shock/sway bar mounts), i customized the location to be lower than they were designed for so i wouldn't over compress the shocks... i recently had to add more bump-stop spacers to get the pinion to clear my new Clayton fuel tank skid - causing me to have a wasted bit of up-travel. but that meant i was able to raise the Rockstar skids/mounts up to where they were meant to be, giving me back the shock travel in the form of more droop. this also gave me an inch more clearance under the mounts. before: after: i also replaced the bushings in the rear lower control arms (frame side) while i was back there. Teraflex started shipping their newer Alpine bushings instead of the traditional Clevite rubber bushings that were there before. finally, after all that was buttoned up (and i had a much needed shower) - i took a little stroll in the desert to make sure everything was still copasetic. Edited July 18 by theksmith 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theksmith 5,778 Posted July 20 (edited) On 6/30/2026 at 7:52 AM, theksmith said: but i think my next attempt to improve it will be a Mishimoto extra capacity radiator - but not till this Mopar one dies probably. well scratch my previous statement - i decided to go ahead and put in a Mishimoto "V2 Performance" radiator and see if it lets Gadget stay a little cooler getting up those long grades! Brady wanted to earn some extra summer spending money, so we paid him to install it this morning for me - hooray for child labor! this expensive new hunk of aluminum supposedly features an "18-percent increase in core volume, fin area, and external tube area" and a "13-percent increase in coolant capacity". hopefully it makes a very noticeable difference in how much heat the cooling system can actually shed. and here's an unrelated photo of Gadget being Gadget... Edited July 20 by theksmith 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theksmith 5,778 Posted July 27 did my 195,000 mile oil change last week! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shellback91 2,305 Posted July 27 Gadget's still a baby at that mileage. 😁 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
4WLNRN 774 Posted August 1 49 minutes ago, theksmith said: I feel like this picture should be in an ad trying to sell me upgraded steering/front end components or new tires! 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
