Dear Mr. Crappa

I keep reading these dreadful things being said about Rubicon owners so I thought I would tell you about my offroading and why I have a Rubicon.

I needed transportation to polo club and since it rains alot in Seattle I just knew 4 wheel drive was the answer.  The Bently kept spinning out.  I saw a picture of that attractive actress with the huge lips. She was driving a Jeep. Right then I sent my personal secretary out to pick one up for me.

He came back with a Rubicon Jeep. Red it is, primitive in a manly sort of way. Strange in that there is no power window between me and the chauffeur and the back seat is a bit tight but I like it.

The 4 wheel drive has been a God send. The other night I was at the opera. My diverticulitis started to flare its ugly head during the first act as it often does after a dinner of fois gras. My chaffaur was in the lobby as I ran through. He knew by the look on my face and the smell in my pants I needed to get home with all due alacrity.

We searched high and low for the valet, in the parking area for season ticket holders, no where could the lad be found. We made a run for the Rubicon. We got to it and immediately noted we were hemmed in by a the blooming concrete curbing. Well I swear if James did not power up those lackers and wanch us over the curb. Great fun indeed and I made it back to the estate without soiling myself again.

I hope this explains to Mr. Crappa why my posterior will never inhabit any other form of locomotion.    You see we Rubicon owners are all alike aren't we Crappa.

Nice. Now you can get hate mail like me.

John

Actually the letter is for all jP editors.  How dumb can you be to insult your readers? 

I still read your magazine as I set in Barnes and Noble and drink coffee.  However now I put it back on the rack.

Ohh, I don'no. I'm pretty dumb.

John 

John,

    You are one witty guy.  I see why the "How to pick up girls" article was so funny with clever guys with you on staff.

"Ohh, I don'no. I'm pretty dumb." -cappa

I can vouch for that, why just the other day John asked me if cows could bite and kill people. 

Cappa, Don't change a thing in your mag.  I love it just the way it is, I think it got better after you guys took over, I have subscribed since the second issue.  

Hell yeah now thats what i like to hear someone actually supporting the mag.  

I don't know about the issue of whether or not a RUBICON would keep you from soiling your pants or not but why has it been made such a big deal about it since day one in this and all other magazines (especially this one) only to have it listed on the "bad" list in the latest issue.  I am sure most of the creators of the rest of the jeeps you picked on are long gone but I must say how bold of you to let the Rubicon get bashed on that list as I am sure your magazine gets a lot of green paper stuff to run those adds of it all over your pages. I dare you to say Skyjacker or some other major advertisers doesn't fit the bill.  I don't have a rubicon nor will I for a few years. I would if it would have came out before I bought my XJ and I would have had a capable vehicle and a warranty to go along with it.

I think you missed the point on the 'bad list' read it again.  

I am new to the jeep scene. My 4x4 truck was involved in a car accident and I am now buying a 2004 jeep Rubicon. I think all of the disgust with the Rubicon comes from the bought not built idea.  I do not have the knowledge to do major mods myself.  I was a little surprised to see my jeep as one of the garbage trucks, but if you read it carefully it was all tongue in cheek. I read some other off road rags and I like JP the best!

you said you dont have the knowledge to do it yourself. read jp and 4 wheel and off road, throw the other mags in the trash.regardless of what jeep says, the rubicon isn't the most capable 4x4. if it was it would come from the factory with steered pro rock 60's fore and aft, but 90 % of the fun is building a rig, but, each to their own :>

Mr. Cappa,

I'm doing a frame-up restoration on my '77 CJ-7. I've kept every issue of JP since 1998 and the Tech articles have been my guide during this project. After reading your article about the Spicer 18 t/case ( Best Ever?) I ditched my Dana 20 and found a '71 Spicer 18 with the 1 1/4 intermediate shaft and I believe 4'' hole. This t/case also has the Warn overdrive. I'm mating this to a Ford truck T-18 and AMC 304. The reason for my letter is I'm hoping you can answer a couple of questions for me. 1. I have the opportunity to buy the Dana 44 rear axle out of the same vehicle I got the t/case from and other than spring locations will this work in my narrow-trac CJ, i.e. is it the same width?

2. Is it possible to convert my single stick D/18 to a dual stick setup? It seems like I would be able to use the twin stick setup off an older D/18 and install it on mine. I know you get a ton of mail, but any help would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Kurt Culver

e-mail   kjc2260@yahoo.com 

The axle should work just fine. You'll need to replace the 13/4-inch wide spring perches with some 2-inch wide ones that match your springs. The axle is about the same width as yours. Brakes should be super easy to hook up, the e-brake cable may take some work to get hooked up to the drum on the back of the transfer case if it has the e-brake in this location.

Yep, just get your hands on the front half of a Spicer 18 that has dual shifters and remove the interlock pill between the shift rails. This will allow rear-wheel-drive low range. If you do this make sure you put some fresh detent springs in the transfer case. It will sometimes want to jump out of gear if you don't.

John