I used to own a Rubicon some time ago, if I remember correctly it was a 2004 Billet Silver 2 door. I am thinking about buying a 4-Door unlimited. It will be used mostly for on road driving, but I want to look into some off-road trails in Western MA that I can have a little fun with the kids on, nothing serious though.

I really like the JK350 and it gets great reviews for on road, that is one of the draws for me, many say it rides better then stock on roads. I did a search and never saw a breakdown so I thought I would provide it and get some feedback. I am aware most frown upon the AEV built Jeeps, many here build their own and I respect that, but I also think there is a place for them in the industry, possibly for people like me. My time is very valuable, I do not have time to do mods every weekend, I would much rather spend time with my family. I do not mind something that takes a few hours, that I can do with the kids and they would enjoy it, but anything more then a few hours I would have it done for me.

So here is the breakdown of what is included on the JK-350 package-
3.5 Lift- $1800
Hood- $875
Front Bumper- #1320
Winch- $1399
Front Skid Plate- $330
Off Road Lighting- $320
Rear Bumper/Tire Carrier- $1760
3rd Brake Light- $51
Wheels- $1200
Tires- $1400
Pro-cal- $170
Windshield banner/Badges- $200 Rough Estimate
Jack Base- $60
Headrests- $55
Instrument Cluster- $300 estimate
Lug Wrench Extension- $8.50

This all equals $11,250 on the AEV website (Tires were from Tire Rack)

The package costs $15,878 PLUS $1100 shipping so out of pocket $16,978

That equals $5728 for labor and the Badge. In addition they keep all of the take off parts, the wheels/tires alone I would guess are worth $1000 off the Rubicon.

So here are my questions-

1. How much do you think this would cost to install through a competent shop?
2. Out of these products what, besides the lift, is not a few hour project that I could do with the kids?
3. What is the resale value of an AEV compared to your own build? I know many times your own build can lower the value, this is where I think the AEV might make more sense then building it yourself, it you get it all back on resale and you like everything about the build why go through the hassle of doing it yourself to save money short term only to break even long term when you sell. This is obviously a debatable question, but to me it is also the most important factor.

Any AEV owners want to chime in? Or possibly folks that were in the same situation? I am either going to buy an AEV Jk350 or buy a hard rock and mod a little at a time, the good thing about the hard rock is the bumpers and hood are already good.

 

Hardrock imo. whats the fun in having a jeep if someone else is doing all the mods : p
" my time is very valuable" so your time is some how more valuable then the rest of ours ?

 

You may get 'better' or more direct answers about your AEV related questions on aev forums.

I'd save the money and do the modifications myself, particularly after seeing the prices you've got listed. Checking out the prices, you could build the jeep twice over.....if you've got the time and space.

 

Read it again- "My time is very valuable, I do not have time to do mods every weekend, I would much rather spend time with my family. I do not mind something that takes a few hours, that I can do with the kids and they would enjoy it, but anything more then a few hours I would have it done for me."

How can you interpret that as me thinking my time is more valuable then anyone else? My point is 12 years ago before I had kids I would wrench every weekend, I enjoyed it. Now my time is spent coaching sports and hanging out with the family, I also have a very busy work schedule, my priorities have changed. Everyone is different.

 

because thats the way it sounded. A better wording would of been that you very little free time, imo

 

Maybe you need a safe place on this forum where you can hide from all the rude & insulting comments

 

No thanks. ill leave that for you. I did get a little bent unessarily tho. if i took it wrong my bad. ive just seen similar posts on other foums by people with a lot of money to throw around who all seem to think their time is just so valuable that they cant possibly be bothered to take the time to do their own mods. Like they are the only ones trying to juggle work / friends / kids and other things while trying to squeeze in time to work on their jeep / car w/e.

so again if i took it wrong my bad.

 

Kind of how it came across, too much going on to make my jeep look how I want. Easier to pay for upgrades everyone has, with more money than it would take to build a unique, more capable rig to drive to the mall.

Man for 10k you could do way better than AEV. The lift is the only thing worth it on a dd.

The other mods can be done in time with better stuff.

 

As an AEV fanboy I have to say do what feels right for you. I couldn't afford an AEV built jeep up front and have spent the last 2 years saving every spare penny I have in order to build mine the way I want it, but also keeping in line with what they do. The lift, tire and wheel mounting, and hood are really something I would consider having an installer do. The bumpers are both fairly simple and shouldn't take but a few hours each. Look for an AEV licensed dealership in your area. When I bought my Jeep I had them do the hood and wheels in with the loan. I should have done the lift at the time but didn't. They only had my jeep for a day to do the install, you're probably looking at another day for the lift. But it's cheaper than having AEV do the build and you won't have to wait a month for them to build it.

 

Thank you!!! Great looking Jeep!!!