14. We then removed the factory...
14. We then removed the factory driving lights from the stock bumper and attached them to ARB's brackets, and then mounted them to the new bumper.
15. Lastly, the auxiliary...
15. Lastly, the auxiliary light tabs were attached to the bumper.
16. With the front bumper...
16. With the front bumper fully assembled, we lifted it into place and mounted it to the JK.
17. We then mounted the supplied...
17. We then mounted the supplied braces to strengthen the corner of the bumper against side impacts.
18. The next step of our install...
18. The next step of our install was to get the rear bumper mounted to the Jeep. Once the rear bumper was lifted in place, it was leveled and the frame was marked; then the rear bumper was removed.
19. ARB's bumper uses the...
19. ARB's bumper uses the factory mounting holes, in addition to this bracket that requires drilling in to the frame.
20. With the rear bumper in...
20. With the rear bumper in place, we mounted the IPF 900XS lights to the front bumper. These lights are built with a heavy gauge steel housing, can be submersed for up to 2-minutes, and have a hardened glass lens. Waterproof connectors on the wiring harness are also pluses.
21. ARB also includes this...
21. ARB also includes this flip-up license plate mounting bracket to clear a winch line.
22. The last stage of the...
22. The last stage of the bumper install was to wire the turn signals and the IPF auxiliary lights.
23. The owner of this JK had...
23. The owner of this JK had aftermarket wheels on order, so he decided to temporarily use the factory wheels with these wheel spacers.
24. With the JK back on the...
24. With the JK back on the ground, we installed ARB's Rock Sliders, which was a straightforward process but did require an ample amount of drilling.
25. One unique feature of...
25. One unique feature of ARB's sliders are these sill covers that visually clean up the pinch weld.
26. The completed look of...
26. The completed look of the front bumper is stylish and functional, looking well integrated in to the JK's design and giving the Jeep a much more aggressive and purposeful look.
27. The rear bumper complements...
27. The rear bumper complements the JK and the front bumper well, and allows use of a larger spare on the stock spare tire carrier.
28. ARB's Rock Sliders are...
28. ARB's Rock Sliders are solidly built and by sticking out slightly from the body, give the JK better protection than the stock sliders that come on the Rubicon.
Tire Choice
The owner of this JK was looking for an aggressive-looking mud tire with excellent street manners. We recommended Toyo's Open Country M/T, which we have had extensive experience in all types of terrain, including Moab. Thanks to an aggressive design that includes scalloped shoulder blocks and sidewall lugs, the Open Country M/T features great traction on the trail and has the added benefit of siping for wet pavement performance and with three plies, it is plenty tough. Because this Jeep's main purpose was a daily driver that can hit the trails on the weekend, we decided to only go up in size slightly to Toyo's LT295/70R17, which works out to be a narrow 33 at 33x11.50, perfect for a Wrangler running stock wheels.
How It Works
While the ARB-equipped JK now sports a much improved stance and looks like it should have from the factory, we were concerned that the flex of the ARB kit would be compromised because it doesn't have extended sway bar endlinks, but we were surprised to see that on Off Road Evolution's 30-degree RTI ramp, it actually scored over 11-percent better than stock with a 20-degree equivalent score of 577 for the ARB modifications versus 517 for the stock Jeep.
The owner has reported that the Jeep ride is a bit firmer and overall better than stock. He says he couldn't love the upgrades any more and would recommend them without hesitation to anyone. With this setup, we gained 1 inche of ground clearance, and approximately 3 inches in overall lift. We think it is impressive that you get this kind of performance from a suspension upgrade that goes for less than $800.
ARB's front Deluxe bumper retails for $995.96, the rear bumper for $745.45, the Rock Sliders for $593.95 ($538.30 two-door), and the IPF 900SX lights for $285.88.