78 SEPTEMBER 2019 FOUR WHEELER fourwheeler.com
Techline
death wobble, I’m finally ready to lift the truck.
I’ve been looking at going with a 6-inch full
suspension.
It appears that I can either go with a radius
arm drop kit or a four-link conversion for the
front suspension. The four-link option is more
money and work. Since I am doing the work
myself, I don’t mind the extra labor if it’s worth
it. My question for you—do you think I’ll notice
the difference or will a radius arm kit work just
as good? This truck isn’t going to be a hardcore
off-roader by any means. However, it will see
plenty of dirt roads and rough country roads
(that can send your truck into death wobble!).
STEVE GREENBERG
VIA EMAILA
First, it’s good to hear that you got your
death wobble sorted out. That’s no fun.
Both Ford and Ram have moved to radius arms
on their^3 ⁄ 4 - and 1-ton trucks. The reason for this
largely has to do with the towing and handling
attributes. Both of the aforementioned truck
manufacturers are more concerned about cus-
tomers hauling safely down the road than articu-
lating on the trail. The type of four-link you are
referring to attaches the arms at the stock radius
arm mounts at the axle and gives you separation
at the frame side via a drop bracket. This will
allow a bit more give over the stock-style radius
arm, but it might not be as free-flowing as a
more traditional four-link that you might find on
something such as a Jeep Wrangler. That being
said, we’ve driven trucks with both setups and
will say that the link version tends to ride slightly
better. Does that equate to the increased invest-
ment? That’s hard to say. We believe a quality
set of shocks and springs can make a bigger
difference over the actual arms in your case.
However, the link system isn’t going to hurt you.
So, if optimal ride quality is what you’re after,
the four-link would be our go-to over the radius
arm drop.UNLIMITED OVERHEATING
Q
I’m having a bit of an overheating prob-
lem. Hopefully, you can give me a good
solution. First off, here’s a quick overview of my
Jeep. It’s a ’16 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited with
37-inch-tall tires and stock 3.73 gears. It has a
Rock Hard 4x4 cage, Warn Zeon winch, under-
belly skidplates, rocker guards, bigger brakes,
and so on. Essentially, it’s a pretty heavy Jeep.
I have a Superchips F5 tuner for adjusting tire
size and my coolant is good and full. I live in
Colorado Springs, Colorado, and even on days
when the temperature doesn’t go above 50
degrees F, I can sometimes see 235 degrees F
on my gauge. This usually happens when I’m in
stop-and-go traffic, from stoplight to stoplight,
or going up bigger hills. As soon as I crest a hill,
or traffic moves nicely and smoothly, the temp
will quickly drop down to 200-210 degrees F
(what I believe is normal operating temp).
Here are my theories on why I get such high
temps:- My Warn Zeon is mounted on a Crawler
Conceptz bumper and blocks airflow. - The stock gears are really making the
engine push hard in uphill or quick stop-and-
go traffic. - The altitude (6,000-plus feet) has some-
thing to do with it.
I’d love to hear what you think.
JAKE LEWIS
VIA EMAIL
A
The good news is that your Jeep isn’t tech-
nically overheating. That actually happens
above 250 degrees F and can cause serious
engine damage. We would start with the basics.
First, give the radiator a thorough cleaning and
make sure that the fins are not packed with
dirt. Wash it carefully from the front and back
(inside of the engine compartment). We know it
sounds like a duh-huh thing to do, but you’d be
surprised how easily the radiator can hoard dirt.
Second, check the electric fan. If it wasn’t
working at all, you’d have serious overheating is-
sues, so we’ll assume that it’s probably OK. Just
double-check that none of the blades are dam-
aged or the housing isn’t cracked. If the fan and
radiator are in good condition, take a quick look
at the coolant level.
You mentioned the coolant is good and full.
Have you changed it recently or did you just
give it a once-over? Your Jeep uses a specific
OAT (Organic Additive Technology) fluid type. If
mixed with the wrong type of coolant, it could
create a blockage or buildup in the coolant
jacket, or worse, on the water pump itself. Now
that those are out of the way, we can get to your
three points.
Yes, blocking the grille can most certainly
contribute to overheating. Obviously, an easy
way to check if this is the culprit is to remove
the front bumper. It’s a little bit of a time com-
mitment, but it can take that factor out of the
equation. After checking out the bumper online
and looking at your specific setup, we’re doubt-
ful that it would be your sole culprit.
The stock 3.73 gears coupled with 37s are
putting more strain on your Wrangler than any-
thing else. Your Jeep came with a pretty modest
30-inch-tall tire from the factory. A 37-inch-tall
tire is not only taller but also much heavier. This
equates to a tremendous amount of strain on
your powertain. This is going to cause your JK to
work harder, which equates to more heat being
generated.
Factoring in the stock gears with the eleva-
tion, we’d say these two items are likely the
biggest factors in your temperature issues. No
matter if it’s the root cause of your overheating
or not, we would suggest re-gearing your Jeep.
It will reduce strain on your transmission and
engine significantly. Typically, we like 5.13 gears
with 37s.
Another quick note about programmers: Some
actually allow you to modify your electric fan set-
tings, so it will come on at a lower temperature.
This can help with low-speed cooling. FWstart the vehicle. In the information center on
the dash you will have a warning message that
pops up, stating that stop-start is unavailable
and needs servicing. This will go away, but
you will be left with a yellow “A” that is circled
with an exclamation point. That’s going to
stay illuminated. The good news is that your
stop-start system is now defeated and will not
activate again unless you reconnect the hood
sensor.
DIY KING SHOCK REBUILD
Q
I’m thinking about tackling rebuilding my
King 2.0 remote-reservoir shocks my-
self. I have a bad seal in one and have never
checked the nitrogen in any of them. It appears
the process is pretty straightforward from what
I am watching online. Am I fooling myself or is
this something that I can do at home?
CARL B.
VIA EMAIL
A
The nice
thing about
investing in a
premium set of
performance series
shocks is the fact
that they are
completely rebuild-
able. You can even
change the valving
in them if you’re
unhappy with the
compression or
rebound settings.
As far as rebuilding
them yourself, it’s
definitely some-
thing that you can
do at home if you
are up for the chal-
lenge. We would
put it somewhere
between changing
a water pump
and changing your differential oil. It’s not overly
difficult; you just have to make sure to take
your time.
You’ll need to get the specific shock fluid
from King, along with the correct seals for your
shocks. You can buy nitrogen refill kits online,
so that’s not an issue. We would also touch base
with King on the recommended nitrogen pres-
sure amount. It’s typically between 180 and
200 psi. As you may have found, there are many
excellent tutorials on YouTube that can walk you
through this process, along with step-by-step
articles that you can find on our website. Take
your time, and you’ll find that it really isn’t that
difficult of a job.
RADIUS ARM VS. FOUR-LINK
Q
I am torn and hoping you guys can help
me out. I have a ’15 Ford F-250 Super
Duty. After working through a little spell of