|
It
only took one good hit to snap the mounting bolts on our driver-side
Mopar nerf bar, bend it in half, and then bend it
up into the rocker panel, creating a nice big dent... We hammered the
rocker panel out as much as possible so it didn't look quite so bad
and started researching serious rocker protection for the TJ. We needed
something to cover the damage of course and we wanted something that
would offer a setup to aid in getting in and out of the TJ. Eventually
we narrowed the choices down to the guards from the FourXDoctor
and AEV Conversions. The
designs of both are nearly identical, and both received high praise
by those running them, but in the end I liked AEV's overall design a
bit better, despite their higher price tag.
The
workmanship on these guards is incredible, it looks better than most
OEM parts. Every attention to detail has been made. The instructions
that AEV includes are very good, so I won't go into tons of detail here,
I'll just give an overview of the process and how the guards are working
out for us. The guards make extensive use of pop rivits, so make sure
you've got a pop-rivit gun with a long nose handy.
The
first things to do are remove the short side flare extension piece or
plastic rocker cladding if you've got a Sahara, and clean the rocker
area.
|
|
Now it's
time to position and mark where the guards will go. I used a pair
of jackstands to hold the guards up initially, then I used a ratchet
trap hooked to our Garvin safari rack to pull them up tight against
the tub. This worked out great for me since I was doing the install
solo - having an extra set of hands would have made the process
quicker and easier, but it's still not bad to do yourself. The
indent for the AEV logo goes to the front.
As you can
see, the guards fit right between the flares, with a little gap
on either side.
|
|
After
marking the bolt holes you can remove the guards and set them
aside. The instructions say to drill all 6 holes in the rocker
to 1/4", but then later you drill out the second and last
holes to 7/16". If you use bullet-tip bits like I do, reaming
out holes is a PITA, so read ahead and drill out holes #2 and
#6 to 7/16" to begin with. Why they don't tell you this in
the first place is beyond me...
The photo
to the right shows the little tab that had to be cut off in order
to position the guards where I wanted them.
|
|
|
|
Since our
Jeep is yellow, the small gap on either side of the guards was
rather noticeable, so I decided to do something about it. I pulled
the flares, masked off the body, and painted the area with some
semi-flat black Krylon.
This adds
some time and trouble to the install, but IMHO it makes for a
cleaner and nicer looking final product.
|
|
With all
that done it was time to install the jack-nuts in the holes that
got drilled out to 7/16". These are funky little things that
allow you to use bolts in places were you can't easily get to
the back to use a regular nut. We had trouble installing one of
ours
(there are four total), so be very careful when installing them.
The instructions go over exactly how to use them and AEV includes
the special tool you'll need to work with them.
|
|
|
|
Now it's
time to start bolting it all up. You'll need to pull back the
carpet from the seat crossmember to position the inside brace.
This bracket is unique to AEV's guards and ties the rocker panel
and guard into the interior seat crossmember, strengthening the
whole system.
The brace
uses the center three bolts of the rocker guard. Once you've got
it all bolted in, drill the four holes in the cross member and
secure the brace using the regular pop-rivits included with the
guards. You'll need to trim the carpet a bit to get it to lay
back flat around the brace.
|
|
Now it's
time to drill the 11 (yes, 11) holes in the bottom of the tub
for the pop-rivits, using the guard as a guide. The photo shows
the front mounting points on the left, and the rear mounting points
on the right. Here is where you'll use the special closed-end
pop-rivits that are including with the guards.
|
|
|
|
Just do it
all again for the other side and you're ready to hit the trails!
As I said
above, the quality of these guards is impressive, I have no doubt
they'll hold up to anything we throw at them, and so far they
have. The side bar also works great as a jacking point for a hi-lift.
You'll probably
want to run a bead of clean silicon along the top of the guards
to help prevent sand and dirt from getting down there and causing
damage.
|
I honest can't
recommend these things enough, I only wish they made them for XJ's!
At about $365, they're probably the most expensive guards on the market,
but they should last as long as the Jeep, and they fulfilled everything
we were looking for, so in my book they've been money well spent.
| For
more information, contact: |
|
|
American
Expedition Vehicles
PO Box 621
Missoula, MT 59806
(406) 251-2100
FAX: (406) 251-3005
http://www.aev-conversions.com
|
|
Return
to Jeep Tech | Return
to Jeepin'
|
