2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland on 2040-cars

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Jeep Rubicon Alaska Cannonball overlanding trip, part 6 | Mucking with the Mudbudz

Our man Jonathon Ramsey is driving a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon on a 14-week, 14,000-mile journey across North America. Check out his first, second, third, and fourth, and fifth installments. GREAT FALLS, Montana — This is not the last time I'll write this: No stock vehicle on sale in the U.S. today can match the capabilities of the 2018 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. I discovered that during the first here-goes-nothing off-road excursion on my Rubicon Alaska Cannonball run, two days of crashing around Cadomin in Alberta, Canada. This adventure is also where I discovered muskeg, a bog muck I prefer to call "swamp guts." That's a picture, above, of our first meeting. Getting high-centered was my fault, not the Wrangler's. You'd get hung up on things, too, if you were carrying 800 pounds in your rear. But we'll get to that. We left off in Tuktoytaktuk. I departed the Arctic on a Sunday afternoon with my patched spare tire, headed for a meet-up with the MudBudz Wheelin' crew in Hinton, Alberta. Turning back from boreal climes, the whole ball of Earth welcomes all who return. Sparkling lakes and mossy tundra framed Yellow Brick Roads made of dirt. This time I'd drive slow enough to avoid another unfortunate meeting with volcanic shard, if possible. E-load-rated BFGs, the equivalent of a 10-ply tire, were stock fitment on the JK Wrangler. On the JL, Jeep switched to a C load rating, the equivalent of a six-ply tire. The thinner construction means lower rolling resistance, a softer sidewall for a better ride, and better gas mileage. For 2.5 hours, I bounded and rebounded over 90 miles of pulverized highway to Inuvik. I filled the tank, then hit the Dempster at the onset of another drawn-out Arctic twilight. A hazy moon hung above the spruce as I descended to the MacKenzie River ferry crossing. As on the drive up, a million times I wanted to stop for photos, but I had to get across the Peel River further down the road before the ferry stopped. I never got to see the southern stretch of the Dempster in daylight. On the run north, I'd arrived at the Peel at dawn. I did get to see the Northern Lights again, the fifth straight night of " Star Trek" interludes. The lights were so bright I could shoot them with my phone. I also saw two bright yellowish dots glowing down the road, reflecting the wave of illumination thrown by the Mopar five-inchers. Eyes. Around 50 yards away, I made out a massive moose. I crept closer. Moose are crazy.

Winter storm got you down? Try snowboarding through Manhattan

Two filmmakers decided to make the best of this weekend's historic snowstorm by turning New York City into a winter sports enthusiast's wonderland. Popular YouTube based filmmakers Casey Neistat and Jesse Wellens uploaded this video of Neistat snowboarding through the empty streets of Manhattan yesterday. While officials were warning motorists to avoid driving in the blizzard, Neistat and his buddy were being pulled by a Jeep Wrangler through Times Square. It goes without saying that this stunt is suicidally dangerous. There are several moments in the video where Neistat gets pretty close to wiping out on the back of parked, snow covered cars or on the cornerstones of buildings. All to the soundtrack of Frank Sinatra's New York, New York, no less. The police do make a cameo, but NY's finest admit to merely wanting to watch the escapades. "Someone complained about you, so we're going to act like we're talking to you," the unnamed officer can be heard saying on video. The original video has since gone viral, and currently stands at over 6.2 million views in just 24 hours. Despite the virality of their tricks, please do not attempt this in your own snowbound metropolis.

100,000 Jeep Cherokee models subject to further 9-speed recalibration

It seems that the software problems with the nine-speed automatic gearbox in the Jeep Cherokee continue to mount. The programming already caused multiple development delays and even postponed the Cherokee's market launch by roughly two months. Now, Jeep has issued another recalibration to hopefully assuage unhappy drivers.
According to Automotive News, this reflash for the allegedly jerky transmission covers over 100,000 Cherokees built before May 5, but it's not technically a recall. If owners are having problems and complain to the dealer, they get the new software. Otherwise, they continue with the current version. New vehicles on dealer lots also receive the latest revision to the programming. It takes only around five minutes to install, but technicians need to take the Cherokee on a test drive to adapt the gearbox to the changes.
The Cherokee's transmission software has been problematic practically since the beginning. The Jeep plant in Toledo, OH, briefly idled its second-shift workers last year to take care of the issue. Since the launch issues for the crossover, demand has been strong. Jeep added another 1,000 temporary workers to the Toledo factory to keep up, and sales were on par with the Wrangler in just its first two months.