What improvements can I make to drive my JK on the beach sand?

Cici

Cici

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I have a 2018 wrangler Sport JK and want to be able to pull my skiff up the beach with it, can’t do it as is. What improvements can I make to it. I first thought about wider tires with low air pressure, then possibly putting electric lockers in front and back. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks
 
Are you asking about driving on the sand, and what kind of tires are the best for that?
 
I guess tires would help on the sand, but I don’t think the Open differentials I have will give enough traction. Looking for someone that has tried different things on sand.
Thanks
 
 
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Thanks for the information. Do you know if Eaton Electric Lockers can be installed on a 2018 Sport JK?
 
Cici said:
Thanks for the information. Do you know if Eaton Electric Lockers can be installed on a 2018 Sport JK?
Click to expand...

I'm sure they can but before buying lockers you should decide if your going to be installing taller tires. Depending on what gears you have now you might need a gear change so you'll want to get lockers for the new gears.
 
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You need good tires that are aired down to the right psi. You also need to keep and maintain speed as much as possible. Also, lockers would be highly advisable. You're going to have a much higher chance of getting stuck without lockers.

You'd also be wise to have a winch, traction mats, and a shovel.
 
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Cici said:
Thanks for the information. Do you know if Eaton Electric Lockers can be installed on a 2018 Sport JK?
Click to expand...
while youre looking at eaton lockers, look at the eaton detroit truetrac. some wheelers run'em front and rear, others run'em with locker in back and truetrac up front. truetrac uses helical gears so no clutch plates to wear out. have one in my tacoma and love it. when my trac lok wears out in the jeep, im going truetrac front and rear. dont rock crawl so no need for full lockers. truetrac has great street manners, dont even know its back there in my truck.
 
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I (re)open the topic as I'm planning to Install a TrueTrac on my 2016 JKU Sahara (front axle) and would need some help please :)

Front Axle is Dana 30 (open diff) and rear is Dana 44 with limited slip (stock). I have ~31.5' tires (265x70R17) and my offroading is mainly (not to say exclusively) in the sand (I go often overlanding in the Sahara). So no rocks crawling, no mud and no all that hard offroad stuff.

I'll likely go with the Eaton 912A585 model which is the one that suits my front axle obviously. Would you agree with that ?

Do you guys know if there's any installation kit I could get? Or would it be enough if I go only with new bearings and new shims?
(such like these ones for instance: https://www.yukongear.com/shop/ck-d30)

Thanks!
 
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Jeep_fr said:
I (re)open the topic as I'm planning to Install a TrueTrac on my 2016 JKU Sahara (front axle) and would need some help please :)

Front Axle is Dana 30 (open diff) and rear is Dana 44 with limited slip (stock). I have ~31.5' tires (265x70R17) and my offroading is mainly (not to say exclusively) in the sand (I go often overlanding in the Sahara). So no rocks crawling, no mud and no all that hard offroad stuff.

I'll likely go with the Eaton 912A585 model which is the one that suits my front axle obviously. Would you agree with that ?

Do you guys know if there's any installation kit I could get? Or would it be enough if I go only with new bearings and new shims?
(such like these ones for instance: https://www.yukongear.com/shop/ck-d30)

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I had Trutracs installed on my '07 front and rear D30/D44 just like you.....although mine is a 3.8 engine with automatic. They're great on snow/sand/gravel etc.

They replace the existing carrier you have, and you could re-use your gears or get new ones. Shouldn't cost more in labor if a shop is doing them for you to put in new gears....just the cost of the gears themselves.

Would be a great time to put on larger tires if you're thinking about doing that.

As far as kits, you can get what is called a master overhaul/rebuild kit that contains new bearings, shims, bolts, oil seals etc

Just make sure you get the right kit for your model. Most places you can search by the year of the vehicle and the trim level (Rubicon would be different than the Sport model because it has two Dana 44's, for example).

You'll need more than just new bearings and shims.

You don't want to reuse the gear to carrier bolts, you'll need the new oil seals and new crush sleeves as well. This is not a modification you want to try and cut corners on.
 
Thanks Vman!

I'm planning actually to stick with my stock gears for the moment (changing them would be part of a future project probably :) )

Diffs and axles are quite new to me so I'm trying to undertsand/learn while searching.

But when looking at overhaul/rebuld kits I'm kind of lost actually... Especially when I see sometimes kits for "Dana 30 reverse rotation differentiel". Does it mean JK's Dana 30 have reverse rotation ? (compared to other Dana 30s)

Could that overhaul kit make the job ? https://www.yukongear.com/shop/yk-d30-jk

(I already have few brand new parts : Synergy oil seals, Lubelocker diff gasket and ARB diff cover)
 
Jeep_fr said:
Thanks Vman!

I'm planning actually to stick with my stock gears for the moment (changing them would be part of a future project probably :) )

Diffs and axles are quite new to me so I'm trying to undertsand/learn while searching.

But when looking at overhaul/rebuld kits I'm kind of lost actually... Especially when I see sometimes kits for "Dana 30 reverse rotation differentiel". Does it mean JK's Dana 30 have reverse rotation ? (compared to other Dana 30s)

Could that overhaul kit make the job ? https://www.yukongear.com/shop/yk-d30-jk

(I already have few brand new parts : Synergy oil seals, Lubelocker diff gasket and ARB diff cover)
Click to expand...

Sure, glad to help.

Most sites make it pretty easy. You can just search by make/model/year.

I think the D30 for all JK's are the same. If a shop is doing the install for you I'm sure they can figure out the parts you need.
 
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