Big Blue's Transformation

[Gary Lewis]

I have that floor console in my Bronco, I like it. Those spacers as you call them are handy, and I’ve found some people toss them or lose them, I guard them pretty closely.

I don’t use my armrests much. I feel when I get in traffic or more challenging parts of the road that they are in the way. But nice on long straights on longer trips.

I do like that my truck has two, the Bronco only has the inside one.

The Yeti travel mug doesn’t fit the truck or Bronco console holes too well, so my son got me the Stanley Admiral’s Mug for Christmas. I set it on the console or on the dash, working pretty good so far.

https://www.stanley1913.com/products/adventure-tough-to-tip-admirals-mug-20-oz?variant=39681641119803

Man, I'd be upset if I lost one of the spacers. They are just the right size for the normal soft drinks we get as well as our travel coffee mugs, so I'll make sure to put them away carefully if we take them out.

And I can see how the arm rests might seem like they are in the way in traffic or challenging times. But I'm not sure they really are as I drove with them most of the time yesterday and had no problems. However, when I first put them down it seemed like they might be in the way.

As for that Stanley mug, 20 ounces is a lot of liquid. I'd have to take rest stops quite frequently if I was drinking from that thing!

[grumpin]

Man, I'd be upset if I lost one of the spacers. They are just the right size for the normal soft drinks we get as well as our travel coffee mugs, so I'll make sure to put them away carefully if we take them out.

And I can see how the arm rests might seem like they are in the way in traffic or challenging times. But I'm not sure they really are as I drove with them most of the time yesterday and had no problems. However, when I first put them down it seemed like they might be in the way.

As for that Stanley mug, 20 ounces is a lot of liquid. I'd have to take rest stops quite frequently if I was drinking from that thing!

Yup!

 

[Gary Lewis]

Man, I'd be upset if I lost one of the spacers. They are just the right size for the normal soft drinks we get as well as our travel coffee mugs, so I'll make sure to put them away carefully if we take them out.

And I can see how the arm rests might seem like they are in the way in traffic or challenging times. But I'm not sure they really are as I drove with them most of the time yesterday and had no problems. However, when I first put them down it seemed like they might be in the way.

As for that Stanley mug, 20 ounces is a lot of liquid. I'd have to take rest stops quite frequently if I was drinking from that thing!

Yup!

Thought so, Dane.

On the inboard sleeves for the seat belts, I got responses from both companies and updated the previous post, but will put it here as well since others may not see it:

• SeatBeltsPlus: They have the whole belt set, but they are $320 and don't come in blue. But I asked them if the inboard belts are available and their response was "Thank you for your question. We sell those buckle sleeves separately from the seat belt, but the seat belt itself can not be sold as separate buckle/clip side. Here are links to the sleeves. They say "Jeep", but they are the same sleeves used in the Truck kits. Left Side Right Side"

• SeatBeltPlanet: They have the whole belt set which is $253 and does come in blue. But I asked them if the inboard belts are available and their response was "Buckles and tongues are designed and built as matched parts. The tolerances and engineering specs are very specific which requires that they be used with their matching part from the same manufacturer and same batch. Non-matched parts may latch together and even stay together under light loads but are likely to separate in an accident. For this reason, Federal Motor Vehicle Standards require that we only sell complete seatbelts. Keeping you and your family safe is our #1 goal!"

So, what I take from that is neither manufacturer sells the inboard belt with the sleeve, apparently due to safety concerns. But Seat Belts Plus sells the sleeves for $25/ea.

[Gary Lewis]

Thought so, Dane.

On the inboard sleeves for the seat belts, I got responses from both companies and updated the previous post, but will put it here as well since others may not see it:

• SeatBeltsPlus: They have the whole belt set, but they are $320 and don't come in blue. But I asked them if the inboard belts are available and their response was "Thank you for your question. We sell those buckle sleeves separately from the seat belt, but the seat belt itself can not be sold as separate buckle/clip side. Here are links to the sleeves. They say "Jeep", but they are the same sleeves used in the Truck kits. Left Side Right Side"

• SeatBeltPlanet: They have the whole belt set which is $253 and does come in blue. But I asked them if the inboard belts are available and their response was "Buckles and tongues are designed and built as matched parts. The tolerances and engineering specs are very specific which requires that they be used with their matching part from the same manufacturer and same batch. Non-matched parts may latch together and even stay together under light loads but are likely to separate in an accident. For this reason, Federal Motor Vehicle Standards require that we only sell complete seatbelts. Keeping you and your family safe is our #1 goal!"

So, what I take from that is neither manufacturer sells the inboard belt with the sleeve, apparently due to safety concerns. But Seat Belts Plus sells the sleeves for $25/ea.

Picked Big Blue up from the window tinting guy this morning. Don't yet have any pictures of the tint as the wind is whistling from the north and the temperature is plummeting. But we went with a 30% tint on the side windows and 20% on the rear. However, he ran out of his 5% tint while trying to get the stripe across the top of the windshield, so he'll have to finish that later.

And while it was very overcast today, the tint seemed to really help on the mirror's display. But the proof will be when the sun comes out.

Then I installed the Rockford Fosgate speakers in the doors. Man, that took some doing as I had to use a carbide burr in a die grinder to make the speaker opening about 1" larger to let the speakers sit into the door properly. But they sound sooooo much better than the Sony speakers! I'd been hearing a sharp, high-pitched sound on some recordings and couldn't seem to get rid of it. But it is gone now. Plus, the bass is much stronger. So I'm a happy camper.

Then I turned to the tires. I'd seen some damage on the LF that caused me to look them over closely. As you can see in the picture it looks more like a crack from getting old than damage from rocks in Colorado. But I'd bet it was hastened by airing down to 15 psi, which caused all kinds of flex.

I checked the code and these tires will be 10 years old in May. So it looks like new tire time. Gonna have to think about what I want to replace them with. Suggestions?

Anyway, I put the spare on and think we are good to go for the upcoming trip. But, before a longer trip BB will need new shoes.

[grumpin]

Picked Big Blue up from the window tinting guy this morning. Don't yet have any pictures of the tint as the wind is whistling from the north and the temperature is plummeting. But we went with a 30% tint on the side windows and 20% on the rear. However, he ran out of his 5% tint while trying to get the stripe across the top of the windshield, so he'll have to finish that later.

And while it was very overcast today, the tint seemed to really help on the mirror's display. But the proof will be when the sun comes out.

Then I installed the Rockford Fosgate speakers in the doors. Man, that took some doing as I had to use a carbide burr in a die grinder to make the speaker opening about 1" larger to let the speakers sit into the door properly. But they sound sooooo much better than the Sony speakers! I'd been hearing a sharp, high-pitched sound on some recordings and couldn't seem to get rid of it. But it is gone now. Plus, the bass is much stronger. So I'm a happy camper.

Then I turned to the tires. I'd seen some damage on the LF that caused me to look them over closely. As you can see in the picture it looks more like a crack from getting old than damage from rocks in Colorado. But I'd bet it was hastened by airing down to 15 psi, which caused all kinds of flex.

I checked the code and these tires will be 10 years old in May. So it looks like new tire time. Gonna have to think about what I want to replace them with. Suggestions?

Anyway, I put the spare on and think we are good to go for the upcoming trip. But, before a longer trip BB will need new shoes.

That tinting sounds neat. I would like something on the upper windshield.

I run BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A KO2’s on my Bronco and Suburban. And will put them on my truck when the time comes. I like them in snow and ice, particularly on black ice.

I have Cooper Discoverer AT3 on my Xterra because BFG doesn’t make KO2’s in that size. I like them better than the BFG Long Trails that I had on there before. They’ve done well in ice and snow.

[Gary Lewis]

That tinting sounds neat. I would like something on the upper windshield.

I run BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A KO2’s on my Bronco and Suburban. And will put them on my truck when the time comes. I like them in snow and ice, particularly on black ice.

I have Cooper Discoverer AT3 on my Xterra because BFG doesn’t make KO2’s in that size. I like them better than the BFG Long Trails that I had on there before. They’ve done well in ice and snow.

Dane - I think I'm going to like the tint. Shame he couldn't get the strip on the windshield, but he will later.

Supposed to be clearing off over the next few days so I'll have a good chance of seeing how the tint helps the mirror, but I'm pretty sure it'll be a big help.

As for the tires, thanks for the recommendation. I have a bit of time to figure this out as I don't think I'll be taking the truck on another trip until the fall, so will be exploring. But Tirerack provides a handy tool to compare tires, so in the snags below I'm comparing your K02's to the General Grabber X3 and my Discoverer S/T Maxx's.

And both of those appear to be better than mine. For me the Offroad Performance and Comfort Performance, and particularly Noise are keys. And mine comes in a distant last in all cases.

Also, I'm wondering about going with 35's. The extra 1" of ground clearance might be nice, but I don't think I want the taller gearing as 2nd gear starts require slipping the clutch a bit already.

[grumpin]

Dane - I think I'm going to like the tint. Shame he couldn't get the strip on the windshield, but he will later.

Supposed to be clearing off over the next few days so I'll have a good chance of seeing how the tint helps the mirror, but I'm pretty sure it'll be a big help.

As for the tires, thanks for the recommendation. I have a bit of time to figure this out as I don't think I'll be taking the truck on another trip until the fall, so will be exploring. But Tirerack provides a handy tool to compare tires, so in the snags below I'm comparing your K02's to the General Grabber X3 and my Discoverer S/T Maxx's.

And both of those appear to be better than mine. For me the Offroad Performance and Comfort Performance, and particularly Noise are keys. And mine comes in a distant last in all cases.

Also, I'm wondering about going with 35's. The extra 1" of ground clearance might be nice, but I don't think I want the taller gearing as 2nd gear starts require slipping the clutch a bit already.

I noticed my Bronco has the privacy glass option on my Marti report. I got one for the truck and Bronco. And that’s in the back side windows only I believe.

Taller tires are great for what you’re doing off road. An old mechanic with a 4WD shop here in town was checking out a problem on my truck, the 88 F250, 7.3, ZF5 that I used to own. He wanted me to drive and see what it did. He asked why I was taking off in second, I said I always do, first is a crawler or granny gear. He recommended not doing that, said my clutch would appreciate it! And that he didn’t think the ZF had that tall of a first gear.

Started using first gear unless I was pulling out and had to get going, then I would use second. Took some getting used to.

I can’t speak for off road on the BFG’s, maybe Bob has used them.

My son’s BMW has a 4 or 5 inch pretty dark strip across the top of his front windshield. At first I didn’t like it. Then when I drove at the right time of day, I thought it was nice. I didn’t tell him what I thought and asked if he liked it, and he said the same thing. Didn’t like it at first but really likes it now.

[Gary Lewis]

I noticed my Bronco has the privacy glass option on my Marti report. I got one for the truck and Bronco. And that’s in the back side windows only I believe.

Taller tires are great for what you’re doing off road. An old mechanic with a 4WD shop here in town was checking out a problem on my truck, the 88 F250, 7.3, ZF5 that I used to own. He wanted me to drive and see what it did. He asked why I was taking off in second, I said I always do, first is a crawler or granny gear. He recommended not doing that, said my clutch would appreciate it! And that he didn’t think the ZF had that tall of a first gear.

Started using first gear unless I was pulling out and had to get going, then I would use second. Took some getting used to.

I can’t speak for off road on the BFG’s, maybe Bob has used them.

My son’s BMW has a 4 or 5 inch pretty dark strip across the top of his front windshield. At first I didn’t like it. Then when I drove at the right time of day, I thought it was nice. I didn’t tell him what I thought and asked if he liked it, and he said the same thing. Didn’t like it at first but really likes it now.

The close-ratio ZF on the diesel has a 4.14 first and 2.37 second. The wide-ratio on the gas engines has a 5.72 first and 2.94 second. So I can see why he said start in first on yours. But I wind out before getting across the intersection. Still, I’ll think about the 35’s.

Perhaps with the EFI on it’ll pull better at low RPM and taking off will be easier. And since that’s on the agenda soon, maybe I’ll do it before worrying about tires.

[mat in tn]

The close-ratio ZF on the diesel has a 4.14 first and 2.37 second. The wide-ratio on the gas engines has a 5.72 first and 2.94 second. So I can see why he said start in first on yours. But I wind out before getting across the intersection. Still, I’ll think about the 35’s.

Perhaps with the EFI on it’ll pull better at low RPM and taking off will be easier. And since that’s on the agenda soon, maybe I’ll do it before worrying about tires.

just my personal experience. the Falken Wild peaks at3 I have on bubba are the quietest all terrains I have ever had 32x11.5 15 and best all-around on that truck for the 31 years I have been driving it. I have the bfg ko2 on my expedition. loudest, roughest and I have considered getting rid of them early. probably great off road but it's more of a travel vehicle for me and my wife and the most off roading we do in it would be crawling the trailer across a field at an art festival trying to tread lightly. that's her thing.

[grumpin]

The close-ratio ZF on the diesel has a 4.14 first and 2.37 second. The wide-ratio on the gas engines has a 5.72 first and 2.94 second. So I can see why he said start in first on yours. But I wind out before getting across the intersection. Still, I’ll think about the 35’s.

Perhaps with the EFI on it’ll pull better at low RPM and taking off will be easier. And since that’s on the agenda soon, maybe I’ll do it before worrying about tires.

Gary, interesting, I didn’t know the ratios were different.

Matt, I’m not having noise problems or rough rides with the BFG’s. Our Suburban is a lead sled and I noticed a big difference with the KO2’s on black ice.