Rolling the Dice on a Sting Gray JLR

en480c4

en480c4

Well-known member
So, I?m just over an hour from delivery of my new-to-me Jeep, so I figured it was time to start a build thread. Hoping Jeep #16 is the keeper I?ve been looking for.

2018 JLR with the 3.6 and the 6 speed
8,200 miles
Premium soft top, steel bumper group, LED package, cold weather package and a Warn winch.

A new job means a longer commute, and the LJ just wasn?t going to cut it. Plus, I wanted to focus on the Willys build, so I was looking for something that checked all the boxes and didn?t need anything? Well, right away, anyway. This was all that and more.

I bought it through Vroom. Experience was good. I?ll take delivery just under 2 weeks from when I finalized the order. I still haven?t driven a JL, so driving one for the first time with I met the 18 wheeler will be fun.

Plans are mild for now? A wireless CarPlay adapter, a satin black grille, a tow hitch and harness, and I?ll keep an eye out for a hard top. I?m planning on limiting it to that for the next year or so. After that, I?m looking forward to a mild lift and 35?s (or 37?s).

Needless to say, I?m pretty excited.

Obligatory pic from the ad:
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And it?s home! It?s by far the cleanest I?ve ever seen an undercarriage. It only has 8,200 miles, but you?d think it was brand new.  The other plus is that it?s a Warn Zeon 10-S. I wasn?t sure which winch was in there, but I certainly could?ve done worse!

Initial impressions are very positive. The manual and clutch feel are dramatically improved from my last JK. The 7? screen is fine, so I don?t feel a need to immediately hunt down an 8.4? and it rides great, even with 37 psi in the tires. I?ll definitely have to address a programmer sooner rather than later so I can lower the TPMS threshold.
 
I have the 7".  It occasionally has issues but not enough to worry about it to me.

I like the color and welcome to the small family of manual owners.  The dealership owes you a new new clutch, pressure plate and so on (recall). 
 
Many thanks for the input in my other thread. Just over a week with the new Jeep and I couldn?t be happier. Definitely impressed with the improvements over the JK and glad I went with the JL. A test drive before buying it probably would?ve been wise, but it all seems to have worked out. And averaging just over 20 mpg with mixed driving (V6, 6 speed), significantly better than the 13 mpg I was getting in the LJ.
 
I drove a friends 4cylinder JL today and it was shockingly fast! I still prefer the 3.6 though just for it?s proven long term durability. The 4 cylinder may prove to be just as solid once folks start rolling the miles on them.
 
G Beasley said:
I drove a friends 4cylinder JL today and it was shockingly fast! I still prefer the 3.6 though just for it?s proven long term durability. The 4 cylinder may prove to be just as solid once folks start rolling the miles on them.
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I wasn?t opposed to the 4 cylinder as much as I wanted to get a manual again. That said, I also continue to hear great things about the 8 speed.
 
We?re into the hard core mods now.

Swapped the stock grille for a satin black one from Mopar.  About 15 minutes start to finish.

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Coming from the LJ, the JL just seems so big. The black grille definitely helps make it feel a little smaller. And I like it with the Sting Gray trim. I?ll call it a win.
 
Jeep continues to be great. As easy as the soft top is to operate with the elimination of the zippers, it?s a little louder than I expected. Between that and winter coming, I decided to keep an eye out for a hard top.  I kept missing out on them when the came up, which wasn?t often? Harder to find than JLU tops around here for sure.

So last weekend I picked up three hard tops. I got a JL top with a smashed back window and a split seam for $200 and a smashed JL top with good glass (and a JK hard top shell) for $100. Today I swapped in the good rear window and added some 3M panel adhesive for SMC and some paint and I?m good to go.

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Not bad for $340 total, and I?ll sell the spare freedom panels and should end up with less than $300 into it.

Edit: Got it on and am very pleased. Only (minor) issue is unlike JKs, there are brackets on the windshield frame and roll bar that the freedom panels latch against that don?t come on soft top only JLs. Mopar parts are ridiculous but DV8 makes a set that are reasonable.

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I like the two doors , they just look more purposefully built? Maybe its the tradition/throwback thing? Either way the hard top looks great on your JL.
 
I sold the extra set of Freedom Panels that came with the smashed top for $150.  So I?m into the top for $190 as it sits now, and I?ll need a can of Mopar hard top touch-up paint. I should end right around $200 when all is said and done.

 
So, one thing I hadn?t been aware of with the JL is that the soft-top only models don?t come with the brackets on the windshield frame or roll bar for the center Freedom Panel latches. I investigated pending together the parts form Mopar, and it was cost prohibitive. DV8 makes a nice set of brackets with stainless hardware for $99. Got them installed today. No instructions, but they?re included in their hard tops, so the install is buried in their hardtop install instructions. Everything went together well.

Also did some more work on my father?s Willys. The rear cab mounts weren?t just junk? They were gone completely. The body had been resting on its floor on a frame crossmember. We l got the body positioned on the frame at the right height and started moving up how we?re going to put continuing together. Since the corners we?re going to get replaced anyway, we opened up some access to be able to tie everything together.  Not much progress, but a little.

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Well, everything you hear bad about a Vroom (and by extension, Carvana) and their ability to get vehicles registered is sadly turning out to be true.

Bought the Jeep 8/22. Received 9/2 with a 45 day TX temp plate. Received a new 30 day temp plate just before the first expired. Finally got word from town hall that they received my paperwork on 11/3, but there were issues and authorization for additional money was required. Got my third temp plate on 11/20, and it expired last Monday, 12/20. It?s been parked since.

I?ve spent hours on hold trying to get this sorted. I called two weeks early to make sure I?d get either the final revised paperwork or a new temp tag. Additionally, the last request for a new temp tag didn?t go on until after the expiration date on my last insurance card they had a copy of, despite that falling a week after the previous tags expired, so it got rejected by the TX DMV, restarting the whole time line.  And they?ve said they sent the required paperwork back out via FedEx almost two weeks ago, but it hasn?t been received and nobody can provide a tracking number.

TL:DR. Vroom - Zero stars, do not recommend. At the very least, line up your own financing so you can manage the registration yourself. They only do it if you finance through them.

Fuck these guys.
 
en480c4 said:
Well, everything you hear bad about a Vroom (and by extension, Carvana) and their ability to get vehicles registered is sadly turning out to be true.

Bought the Jeep 8/22. Received 9/2 with a 45 day TX temp plate. Received a new 30 day temp plate just before the first expired. Finally got word from town hall that they received my paperwork on 11/3, but there were issues and authorization for additional money was required. Got my third temp plate on 11/20, and it expired last Monday, 12/20. It?s been parked since.

I?ve spent hours on hold trying to get this sorted. I called two weeks early to make sure I?d get either the final revised paperwork or a new temp tag. Additionally, the last request for a new temp tag didn?t go on until after the expiration date on my last insurance card they had a copy of, despite that falling a week after the previous tags expired, so it got rejected by the TX DMV, restarting the whole time line.  And they?ve said they sent the required paperwork back out via FedEx almost two weeks ago, but it hasn?t been received and nobody can provide a tracking number.

TL:DR. Vroom - Zero stars, do not recommend. At the very least, line up your own financing so you can manage the registration yourself. They only do it if you finance through them.

Fuck these guys.
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Sorry to hear it's going poorly with the vroom purchase. I ended up selling my vehicle to carvana because of their higher offer and could care less on whether they handled the title properly after it was paid off. Although, I knew for a fact I wouldn't be purchasing from them since the local store in raleigh had been shut down for 6 months due to this exact issue. I'd say either are still a great option for the $$$ for selling, but purchasing is quite the opposite. Good luck to you!
 

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