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Savvy JK Test Mule

105K views 294 replies 55 participants last post by  awinski 
#1 ·
So in August 2011 we pickup one of the first 2012 JKUs. I was sold the moment I got on the freeway. It has been used to test fit a bunch of new parts from Dynomax , Rancho, Currie and of course Savvy.

Now I can document it's life and am finally starting its build. Most everything we do you'll be able to order and install yourself.

These are some of the products that are going to be installed, Sorry for the small pix!

Savvy JK Under Armor
Savvy JK Bumpers
Savvy JK Tail Lights
Savvy/Currie 4" Suspension Front and Rear Antirocks
Currie F9 front axle with HP9 4.88 gears
Currie RockJock 60 Rear Axle 4.88 gears
Fox Racing 12" Reservoir Shocks
PSC hydro assist steering
Warn Winch
Viking Off Road Synthetic rope
Raceline RT233 Monster Bead locks
Falken 37" Wildpeak AT Tires
Dynomax exhaust and 2012 cross over pipe
Tom Wood drives shafts
AFE Air Intake Kit
Powertank 10lbs CO2 Bottle

The day I brought it home



Rancho put a 3" lift on to test their parts, I had some 35" Goodyears MTRs sitting around so they went on. Raceline RT233 Monsters of course!

 
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#74 ·
Savvy said:
Still working on ours. But for the Rubicon next month i'll either retrofit some of our TJ bumpers or just put on a PSC stubby front and undecided on the rear. Whatever they are they need to be light!
I would love to see you guys put together a lightweight, high clearance bumper like PSCs BFH...love the design and concept, dislike the company with a passion, so I haven't bought a front to match my BFH rear.
 
#75 ·
Don't be so hard on them. Everyone makes a mistake Larry's Company is trying. PSC is relatively new under Larry's management as he started the Company when he purchased the rights to PSC from Clifton.

I actually like the Brawler series and plan to bolt one on for now.
 
#76 ·
Got the hydro assist ram installed. Just need to plumb the ram to the box. Single shear but it works great like this on our race LJ and it is so easy to do on a Currie axle with their brackets. You just drill a 1" hole and weld in a Chromo sleeve tapped to the 5/8" -18 bolt. Weld in a few gussets to make sure the bracket is secure and your done.

PSC supplies everything you need to add the hydro assist to your JK.


Fox Shocks came in and were installed.



 
#78 ·
So busy with everything now just trying to get this JK trail ready for the 60th Jeeper's Jamboree (Rubicon) and the LJ Unlimited ready for Glen Helen Race the week before.

We are doing a full race prep on the LJ which means tearing it all down and touching just about everything.

Soon can't come quick enough! :D
 
#82 ·
I've driven and followed the Currie JKU and the 4" lift is all that a JK will ever need. It can go anywhere I need my JKU to go. We won't take these on the Hammer trails as we have buggies for them.

I went to JV today with John Currie and were discussing the hydro assist setup he designed for the my JKU (which actually was developed on the Race LJ). It is one of the easiest to setup. It is easier if you use the Currie HD tie rod as the kit is nearly bolt on.

You must get a aftermarket air intake as the PSC reservoir needs the space to be installed. I got the AFE kit which was easy to install. I haven't run the engine yet so I'm looking forward to seeing the performance gains. The intake and 4.88 gears are should make the JKU really peppy!

I should have pix tomorrow.
 
#83 ·
Just have to put the wheels on and tie up the loose wires and we can test drive.
I still have to wire the ARB compressor. The CEL came on but didn't have my ODB II scanner with me so I could check it out.

Here is the AFE intake and PSC reservoir mounting. The AFE box just needed to be trim a little for the reservoir hose routing. To mount the reservoir only a couple of tabs were needed. I will put a 90 degrees fitting on top of the lid.


Finished ram mounting and hose routing. Don't forget to red Loctite the 5/8" bolt on the ram!


Currie HD drag link and tie rod. They are super beefy and the ram mount is supplied by Currie as well. What is nice is we get rid of the low hanging OEM stabilizer mount. A bolt on mount is the prefer method in order to be able to set the toe without having to remove the TREs every time you want to do an alignment.
 
#85 ·
geiman said:
So the Currie steering for the JK uses jamb nuts huh? How's Blaine liking that?
Obviously I'm not Blaine, but having used both the old design with thread clamps and the new with jam nuts...the jam nuts are way more user friendly, and the rubbing issues that came along with the clamps (they were big clamps that interfered with track bar bracketry if you had flipped your drag link) if they weren't turned to just the right angle, are now non existent. When you did get them to the right angle, getting a wrench to them was a pita. Have not yet had an issue with the jam nuts loosening.
 
#88 ·
I don't think Blaine ever ventures over here. He has no interest. This steering is pure beef for sure. I put a large crescent wrench on ithe Jams and still felt like I could tighten it a bit more. I wasn't going to put the drag link on but John Currie came over and said I needed the drag link so he gave me one. :thumbsup::D

What would make the CEL light come on? Right now the diffs and swaybar wires are disconnected. I can't think of anything else that would make it light up.

Thanks,

Gerald
 
#89 ·
Savvy said:
I don't think Blaine ever ventures over here. He has no interest. This steering is pure beef for sure. I put a large crescent wrench on ithe Jams and still felt like I could tighten it a bit more. I wasn't going to put the drag link on but John Currie came over and said I needed the drag link so he gave me one. :thumbsup::D

What would make the CEL light come on? Right now the diffs and swaybar wires are disconnected. I can't think of anything else that would make it light up.

Thanks,

Gerald
I have never had a CEL come on, and have had the locker wires, sway bar wires, abs all disconnected on more than a few occasions...

Could it have something to do with the cold air intake you installed?

Edit: what about your exhaust, was it only rear of the cat or a full system?
 
#94 ·
geiman said:
Are all of the JK steering setups 4340, or was yours special? I was looking at it on Currie's site and there they claim it's 4130; we're looking at getting a JK in the somewhat near future, so I'm just curious. It's probably just nitpicking, but I certainly won't claim to be an expert in metallurgy.
Ill verify with John but that is what I thought he told me after the first batch proven too brittle.
 
#96 ·
Just finished programming the JKU with the AEV Procal and I really like the performance! I had to drive home from the shop to get the Procal and it ran like poop! Once I programmed the 4.88s it has fantastic performance again! :D

I've noticed the tranny takes a little bit to fluid up. So i'm watching this closely. I don't think I touch anything to do with that.
 
#98 ·
No need for 5.13 in the 2012. The new 5 speed auto and new motor that provides plenty of power to be able to keep the 2012 in the right gear most of the time. We also like the larger pinion gear as we feel it is a stronger gear set.

PSC is working on a new bracket so we can replace the OEM pump with a higher performance one. A better pump is recommended as the OEM is a little bit slower than what i'm use to. Still the OEM pump works fine when off road and being able to turn makes navigating the rocks and obstacles much more fun!

I opted to send my steering box to PSC to be ported for hydro assist. It save $600-700 doing it this way. They put a new rear section the the OEM box.

The Currie axle is really close to ready for hydro assist. The brackets are alot stronger than stock so not as much work needs to be done to add hydro assist. The Currie HD steering is ready for HA with a bolt ram mount that makes to alignments a snap.
 
#99 ·
No need for 5.13 in the 2012? I wholeheartedly disagree, but won't argue with you. Surprising, given the rest of this build, unless this is planed to be a show rig only? But then pinion size wouldn't matter...which I wouldn't think to be an issue with a deeper gear set in a custom currie axle, in the first place...
 
#100 ·
Agreed in a 2007-2011 you need the deeper gears but on 2012 you don't.

Unless you've driven a 12 with gearing you can't understand how much better these drive then the early JKs. This thing just peels out and we still like to drive 80mph. This rig will do everything but the Hammer trails. It is not a show queen. This is my only trail Jeep now. Everything is gone! :(

With a hi-pinion rear, you want the larger pinion and since this motor puts out 285 hp, it can break stuff. Unlike the anemic early models.
 
#102 ·
Okay, I'm more likely to fold to someone who knows their biz...so I'll woefully accept your explanation.

However - I do own a '12 Sahara with 3.73 and auto, and I'm not beside myself with the improvement. Plus, I really like that deep granny first gear in the rocks

Edit - looks awesome...perhaps I overlooked this, but what tires do you have on there now? Temp loaners from another rig?
 
#105 ·
Okay, I'm more likely to fold to someone who knows their biz...so I'll woefully accept your explanation.

However - I do own a '12 Sahara with 3.73 and auto, and I'm not beside myself with the improvement. Plus, I really like that deep granny first gear in the rocks

Edit - looks awesome...perhaps I overlooked this, but what tires do you have on there now? Temp loaners from another rig?
Alright, I believe you as well. I had the 4.10s and they were fine with the 35's. So, today I was driving out to the shop at 80mph and doing around 3200 rpm. I don't want to going any higher than that!

I'm looking forward to putting on the 37s and seeing where I am. Currently 35s.
 
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