New VX owner, where do I start!

[mbeach]

I'm having trouble pulling up photos of exactly what I was talking about, but all I did was crawl under the truck and lube every connector that I could get my hands on. Paying special attention to the ones in the vicinity of the front and rear axles as well as the transfer case.

[transio]

I think you should look into getting forged internals made up for our engine !!!

That would totally rock!

[Heraclid]

To anyone starting out with a VX who is curious about its capabilities, I would refer you to two things...

Here...

http://www.fourwheeler.com/roadtests/5034/index.html

and this site's galleries. Spend a little time looking at what some of us are doing in these things.

The only thing wrong with the article is what they say about the rear door. There's even a photo in it of the guy using the handle, yet they say there isn't one. LOL!

And, it only placed second because
A.) They don't know a handle when it's in the palm of their hands
B.) They can't use their mirrors
C.) They didn't like the interior so much (but rave about the Recaros)

You will note that otherwise (meaning where actual performance is concerned) it owned the competition! :-) It shouldn't have lost due to aesthetics because that's not what the test is supposed to be about.

Let's recap shall we? VehiCross earned the following distinctions...

Best acceleration of the group
Best mpg of the group
Best braking in the group (in their 55-0 test, 111 ft.!!!)
Best ramp articulation EVER tested for an IFS-equipped truck
Best turning radius of the group
Won mechanical category, edging out Tahoe
Won highway category "easily"
Won trail performance category "by a good margin"

What more is there to say? The VX got robbed. I mean please... they heap praise on the Tahoe for having tow hooks? Like we don't?

This quote really gets me...

At Four Wheeler, as you may suspect, we focus on the off-road capabilities of a sport/ute's personality. However, even though 30 percent of our scoring is done off-pavement, the remaining 70 percent is done on-pavement. To win our award, a sport/utility has to do everything well.

Oh really? By their own words, the VX won for trail performance "by a good margin" AND highway manners "easily". Clearly it did "everything well" better than anything else tested. So what exactly happened here? Hmmm?

[transio]

Clearly it did "everything well" better than anything else tested. So what exactly happened here? Hmmm?

Didn't do "everything" well. It didn't sell well.

[mbeach]

Didn't do "everything" well. It didn't sell well.

LOL, too funny. True, but still funny.

[Chef]

Well that was a semi-confidence inspiring article. Apparently I shouldn't worry about my friends stock chev truck that tells me he'll whoop my trash in the mud, but what about the other fellow with a lifted grand cherokee? Is the quadra-trac that scary?

I've got skid plates on the way this week as well as some BFG all-terrains. Hopefully this will help a bit since I'll be taking on these guys in a week or so.

Thanks for all the input guys! I can read all day about the VX's equipment but as to what it can really do is a matter of posting what you all have done with it. We'll see what the little VX is made of in the weeks to follow!

[hump]

I would suggest to start with some wheels and tires. Maybe some 18 inch chrome wheels and 285/60/18 tires. Although you will have to do some trimming, but it is worth it!

[mbeach]

... but what about the other fellow with a lifted grand cherokee? Is the quadra-trac that scary?

As the former owner of a lifted ZJ, I have to give the nod to it, especially if it has the 5.2 and Q-trac.

But the Jeep was boring in almost every other respect. Since I do 95% of my driving on road, why compromise comfort for 10 minutes of off-highway ability. Advantage, VX.

[BigJoe]

Didn't do "everything" well. It didn't sell well.

I don't fully aggree with this statement. It didn't sell well in all areas. When I first looked far a Vx. I was told that the complete allotment (1999) was sold out. Non of the dealers in the area had them and no other dealer would part with them (outside NJ/NY).

[ScottinMA]

With respect to the tire mod issue. The Scorpion Zero 285/50/18 do not require tearing into your cladding and will fit your stock 01 VX wheels. I've been running them and it's a VERY significant improvement over the stock tires...OMG!

Scott

[Chef]

Well I've already gotten another set of wheels in 16 inch, larger variety of tires and this way I can have the meats and the streets for all times of year.

Well I'll try a couple bolt ons and see how it does. The supercharger will come next year. Thanks for the help!