My Grand Cherokee 3.0 CRD

[Blocky10]

[/QUOTE]

Ebay.... There are a few different types, Aluminium, plastic, and Stainless, but I have only found one place selling the shallow ones[/QUOTE]

Perfect. I've just ordered a pair. Thanks:thumbs

 

[jims-terrano]

Nice you are back helping out, I was always under the impression that at least a foot sq ground plane was required to pull the wave, ie if your antenna was on say a gutter mount then the wave would be predominantly pulled to the roof direction and much less transmittance to the opposite side and this would apply to reception as well, however in my experience even with a 100 amp burner I might not be able to chat with a mate that I could see in front of me only say 500 mtrs but some times able to correspond with a guy in Birmingham when I was in a services around Coventry, have to add all this was on 27 am in the 70's, Rick

Sorry Rick, I get your meaning now I was think SWR and a good earthing point. Yes you are quite correct that the very best location for an antenna would be dead centre of the whole vehicle looking at it from above. So corners in theory would have weaker transmission patterns.

Often as with many things in life we have to compromise though I think using PMR it’s going to be relatively short range so probably not much noticeable effects. A different kettle of fish to long distance.

Yes Rick, I’m back at home now but on strong painkillers but enough about me.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

They are stainless steel rivnuts, had issues with steel and aluminium ones rusting/corroding in the past, especially if you use them as a ground contact. The ones for my light bar were solid in about a month. Mind you, I did commit the cardinal sin of mixing metals, using Stainless bolts, through a mild steel mount, into an aluminium rivnut, which was fixed into the mild steel of the car... :doh You live and learn.

I am actually not too fussed about the overall range, as most times we would only be using this over a couple of miles or so. We use "Zello" for longer distances, as long as there is phone coverage, and in the near future we will be changing over to an all digital network, which has a tiny aerial, with a GPS receiver built into the base, and will easily fit on to the roof.

I believe the ideal ground plane is a ratio of the wavelength, so as this is a much higher frequency than CB, the ground plane would need to be less, having said that, mounting it lower down as I have, and the car might be acting as a screen cancelling out the effects of the ground plane on that side.:doh

The ground plane shouldn't have any impact on reception, again, apart from the car acting as a screen. As the old adage goes, you can pick a radio signal up on a bit of wet string... The main effects of an aerial has on reception is band width, e.g, a thicker aerial has a wider bandwidth, which means it is more likely to suffer from bleed over, and harmonics, where it can become tuned to a double or half frequency of the one you are listening too. It's not limited to just half or double either, any direct multiplication can cause an issue.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Ebay.... There are a few different types, Aluminium, plastic, and Stainless, but I have only found one place selling the shallow ones

Perfect. I've just ordered a pair. Thanks:thumbs

Are you using them for the towing socket as well?

 

[solarman216]

Nice to know my old brain is not so bad, thanks for that, and as for you, well you are surmounting the obstacles very well and I congratulate you, but at the end of the day what choice did you have, so well done mate and look forward to a rewarding life in the future, this is real life not the stuff of politics, Rick

 

[solarman216]

Oh just one last post re radio, I remember talking to a guy on a boat once and I queried the size of the cable that went to the mast antenna, it was like 25mm diameter at least, he told me it was copper tube as radio signals only travel on the outside of a cable so why provide a core that was not used!!! Rick

 

[macabethiel]

Jeep Commander a Sheep in Wolf's Clothing I think.

How would you compare the GC with the Commander, a neighbour has the
latter and must say there is something about its boxyness.

Am quite tempted if strayed from Nissan to at least have some 4x4 heritage.

The Jeep Commander is no doubt a substantial / rugged looking vehicle, the suspension design is quite dated compared with the Grand Cherokee WK be it a Mk1 or Mk 2. Due to its sheer size & weight they are pretty thirsty - I could probably live with that but they are quite cheap on the used market for a reason.

I test drove one before we bought the WJ as they were of a similar price at that time for the same year of Grand Cherokee. I found the drive very disappointing it did not seem to live up to the visual appearance. That said the WJ takes some getting used to behind the wheel whereas the WK is very similar to the Mercedes ML in terms of grunt & car like ride but without the hefty price tag that a used ML (W164 series) commands.

What finally put me off the Commander was when I started to look at the availability & prices of not just genuine Jeep spares but also the lack of aftermarket spares in the UK, this is reflected in more expensive Insurance. Stuff like rear lights & headlights seem to be genuine Jeep only spares. The specialist Jeep Spares importers such as Jeep Monkey seem to offer little for the Commander probably due to the lack of any volume of sales in the UK for this model.

That said it does make them look good value if you find one with FSH etc, I can understand the attraction but for me my common sense chip tripped in and I went for the Grand Cherokee after quite a bit of soul searching - that chunky boxyness is appealing.

Hey but who am I to talk I still like the G Wagon and its exclusivity North of Watford Gap Services !

The G Wagon drives like something from the 1960's (up until 2016 variants) the shape gives new meaning to "Sit up and Beg" driving but if I won the Lotto I would have one on my drive like a shot.

I am sure a member here had an early SWB G Wagon on their drive ?

 

[Blocky10]

Are you using them for the towing socket as well?

Yes. I'm currently painting up another towbar and the sockets have been through the mud a few times so will be moving them :thumb2

 

[jonny]

Enjoyed reading through this. Great work on the Jeep :thumb2 I've had 3 Cherokee's in the past, petrol and diesel, great vehicles and ace off road

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

The Jeep Commander is no doubt a substantial / rugged looking vehicle, the suspension design is quite dated compared with the Grand Cherokee WK be it a Mk1 or Mk 2. Due to its sheer size & weight they are pretty thirsty - I could probably live with that but they are quite cheap on the used market for a reason.

I test drove one before we bought the WJ as they were of a similar price at that time for the same year of Grand Cherokee. I found the drive very disappointing it did not seem to live up to the visual appearance. That said the WJ takes some getting used to behind the wheel whereas the WK is very similar to the Mercedes ML in terms of grunt & car like ride but without the hefty price tag that a used ML (W164 series) commands.

What finally put me off the Commander was when I started to look at the availability & prices of not just genuine Jeep spares but also the lack of aftermarket spares in the UK, this is reflected in more expensive Insurance. Stuff like rear lights & headlights seem to be genuine Jeep only spares. The specialist Jeep Spares importers such as Jeep Monkey seem to offer little for the Commander probably due to the lack of any volume of sales in the UK for this model.

That said it does make them look good value if you find one with FSH etc, I can understand the attraction but for me my common sense chip tripped in and I went for the Grand Cherokee after quite a bit of soul searching - that chunky boxyness is appealing.

Hey but who am I to talk I still like the G Wagon and its exclusivity North of Watford Gap Services !

The G Wagon drives like something from the 1960's (up until 2016 variants) the shape gives new meaning to "Sit up and Beg" driving but if I won the Lotto I would have one on my drive like a shot.

I am sure a member here had an early SWB G Wagon on their drive ?

I must confess that if money was no object, the "G wagon" and a Unimog would both be sitting in my barn... (which I would also have if money was no object) :lol

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Yes. I'm currently painting up another towbar and the sockets have been through the mud a few times so will be moving them :thumb2

Did you see the post I did in Suz's Jiggly thread, I fitted them behind the number plate, which I fitted to a stainless piano hinge. It lifts up, to get to the sockets, as while towing you don't need the number plate on the back to be visible. Makes them nice and clear of the dirt as well.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Enjoyed reading through this. Great work on the Jeep :thumb2 I've had 3 Cherokee's in the past, petrol and diesel, great vehicles and ace off road

Thank you. I had never looked at them before, it was Ted's (macabethiel) keenness that made me start looking at them after deciding that my T2 is getting a bit long in the tooth for what I used her for.

 

[Blocky10]

Did you see the post I did in Suz's Jiggly thread, I fitted them behind the number plate, which I fitted to a stainless piano hinge. It lifts up, to get to the sockets, as while towing you don't need the number plate on the back to be visible. Makes them nice and clear of the dirt as well.

Yes, I've borrowed several ideas of yours :lol:thumbs

 

[macabethiel]

Come back Q all is forgiven !

Did you see the post I did in Suz's Jiggly thread, I fitted them behind the number plate, which I fitted to a stainless piano hinge. It lifts up, to get to the sockets, as while towing you don't need the number plate on the back to be visible. Makes them nice and clear of the dirt as well.

It sounds a bit 007 the hinged number plate though it's a really neat solution.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Been busy again...

I have taken the plunge, and drilled 2 holes in the roof... One for the socket for the roof light, and the second for another socket for the amber beacons. This entailed having the roof lining down, and running the cables to the back of the car, when I have my Relays.

Next I had to find a Main Beam feed trigger for the spot lights.. Not so easy on the Jeep as it has HID head lamps, and uses CanBus, so it's not just a case of tapping into the main beam feed like all the cars I have had up to now. Had to take a lot of the shielding out of the engine bay to get to bits, but finally picked up a feed, and ran it back into the car through the fire wall, using an existing grommet. I then had to put all the shielding back...

Once inside the car I will use a bypass relay to clean the signal to drive a proper relay, but waiting for the bypass relay to arrive.

So, as that was a stop, I set to work getting it ready for a second battery.

The main battery is in a well under the drivers seat, and there is a second well on the passenger side, which is taken up with a big bit of plastic to allow jeep to put various control modules in. In my cars case, this consists, of 2 relays and a small module to control the transfer box.

So, I cut out the plastic insert with a dremil, moved the modules/relays over to one side, and end up with a nice big well to put the battery in.

I forgot to take a picture of the plastic insert, I will take one of the bit I cut out tomorrow as it is unbelievable how much work they took to waste such a great bit of space.

Edited to add the plastic insert.

End of edit

So this is the hole as cut out.

I then tucked the module and relays off to one side, and cleaned up the sharp edges on the plastic.

The bottom of the hole had an epoxy sound proofing, but as you can see it is very rough and quite thick.

I cleaned this all out, and sanded it all smooth. By removing this, not only do I gain a bit of room, but also protect the bottom of the battery from rubbing, and possibly rupturing.

Once it was all cleaned up, I Hammerite'd it, to protect it and left it to dry.
I will take more pictures as this progresses.

Edited to add the pictures of it painted.

It's a bit bright, but that was the only colour I had. Once covered with the rubber sheet, it's not so bad.

End of Edit

I managed to pick up a Waeco dc40 which is a 40amp DC battery to DC battery charger, for a great price on Ebay, so in the spirit of keeping all of my wiring isolated from the Jeeps wiring, using Bypass relays for triggers, and everything I fit will be on the second battery, which will
be charged from the first battery via this unit. I hope to fit this under the rear seats, but have not measured this up yet.

The next job was to fit the PMR.
I have a Tait 8200 unit, which can be used as a stand alone unit, or the facia can be removed, and used remotely, allowing you to hide the main unit.

First job was to mount the main unit in the back wing, behind the plastic trim.
To do this, I made a small pedestal to make it clear all the wiring looms.

Onto this I put the PMR mount.

And then the radio mounts like this.

I didn't want to drill any holes in the dash board, as I am not sure how long we will be using analogue radio, so may need to change to digital in the future.

I removed the centre of the dash, and made up 2 stainless steel brackets, which use the existing radio screw to fix to the dash, and the bracket then passes out through the gap between the trim panels.

Finishing up looking like this.

 

[Banshee]

Nice one

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

I managed to get the Waeco DC40 installed today.

First job was to lift the rear seats... Nice and easy on the Jeep, just undo 2 bolts, and 2 nuts, then hinge up out the way, exposing the carpet underneath.

For some reason, the carpet is moulded and raised about an inch from the floor, but once lifted, it was to clear some studs welded to the floor. I cut the area where the DC40 was to go.

I then removed the studs, and also trimmed the mount for the DC40, to fit into the space. The seats on the jeep move forward, and also lower when folded, to make the loading area flat. By putting the DC40 right back, means as the seats fold down and move forward, it leaves the DC40 in the gap behind.

Once the studs were cut off, I painted the area to protect it from rust. I used a touch up paint, which dried a lot lighter than the photo shows.

All mounted in position.

I used 50amp Anderson connectors to connect it all up, and ran the cables between the battery locations. These are then all hidden under the carpet, the seats all bolted back down, and everything hidden away and safe.

There is a remote control cable for the DC40, which will be run up to a switch on the dashboard, so I can choose to switch it off, if the main battery is low, and I want all the charge to go into that.

Next job is the install the battery.

 

[jims-terrano]

Clive, I’m so loving your workmanship. I thought that I can be OCD about my wiring and things but yours is so neat, I doubt even a professional installer would go to the effort that you are going to.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Clive, I’m so loving your workmanship. I thought that I can be OCD about my wiring and things but yours is so neat, I doubt even a professional installer would go to the effort that you are going to.

Thanks Jim... The problem is, if you paid a pro to do it, you would not want to pay what it would cost for the time it takes to run the conduit etc, and worse still get all the cables through it.

Just trying to find a way to get a cable from the head lights through to the cabin probably took me over an hour, by the time I had worked out the route, and then spent an age trying to do it on my own, where the cable got half way through, and then came unstuck from the fish, until I finally got Suz's help, doing a "Push me Pull me" effort.

I have so many times seen the results of where a pro has fitted a towbar socket (or two), and I have never yet been impressed by the install, often appalled though.

The other thing is, I know the sort of things I will be installing in the future, so I also try and pull a few spare wires through, for "Just in case".

 

[macabethiel]

That's some serious work going on !

That's an impressive set of pictures the thought of drilling a hoe in the roof fill me with fear!

Last time I did that was when I fitted a swept back roof aerial on a Mini back in the 1960's you could not drill the hole where you wanted due to a reinforcing ridge it had to be a couple of inches further back.