Figured I would put my experiences from having a JK up here through the winters. I know i was very curious as to what I should do to get ready for being up here coming from Florida.

Soft Top and Half Doors - I seen a few soft tops up here and I have half doors from the factory. Its nothing the heater cant over come even at -50. Be careful and have a plan for if the top rips or breaks and DO NOT TRY TO BEND OR OPEN ANY ZIPS. The plastic gets very stiff and weak at low temps. I can see how tight my windows are and i get scared to even poke them sometimes.

Block Heaters, Oil pan heaters, battery blankets, transmission heater - Yes to all of them. When it gets real cold those fluids get real thick and anything that keeps them warmer will help keep your picky JK healthy.

Battery - Get a good battery. Cheap batteries are always going dead up here. I wont praise any brand in particular but a good quality sealed battery is worth it.

Power Steering - Pumps and boxes are very prone to leaking. The cold really messes up the seals. I think its GMC make a extreme cold PS Fluid I wish I had known about before I killed my gear box. THE PS fluid gets very thick when cold and it does not warm up well at idle. It felt like I had lost power steering a few mornings, now my box is leaking bad and getting replaced when its warmer out.

Sector Brace - Wish I had invested in one before I killed my box. The cold is already putting stress on the seals. Big tires and turning in snow is like kicking a broken leg on a man.

Tires - Mud tires do not grip ice and packed snow very well. I have KM2 Siped and studded in an effort to get some traction. I now "control" slide around most corners with out traction bags. Everyone I have talked to with Goodyear Duratracs seems happy. If you can get Blizacs in the size you run they are amazing. They kept my ex wife on the road and she has hit pedestrians so that's saying something.

Traction bags - Gravel Sand etc. Jeeps are very light in the rear. Light does not push down and grip on packed ice and snow very well. Put a more weight in the back as close to the rear axle as possible makes a world of difference. Plus if you get stuck you have something to throw under the tires to try and drive out.

Auto-start - Get a decent auto-start it can take 15min or longer to get everything warmed up enough to drive. You can walk out and start but that will get old quick or just drive off cold but as anyone can tell you that is not very good on your engine. Also JK loses heat in the cab quick so you may like to keep it running while in the store.

Supercharger - Works fine no problems but you will not find premium out side of the 3 or 4 larger towns if making any long drives you will need lots of gas cans.

Snow shovel tow strap jumper cables etc. should live in your Jeep during the winter as well as an emergency kit.

My spelling/grammer sucks. Sorry

 

This is really good stuff! Just what I was looking for. I have subscribe due to the Army is moving me from Fort Bragg, NC all the way up to Alaska. I will be driving (cross countries) and have lots of things to do before I leave so any more advice you may have about living there/ the trip up would be great really feel like I'm going blind into this next adventure and that's not always a great feeling.

 

Where I'm AK are you? I live in Kodiak. I didn't do any off that, I just park in the garage. But we do have a "tropical" climate. I will say my mud tires are not good on the ice.

 

I will be moving to Fairbanks in June

 

I am up in Fairbanks. If you can keep your jeep inside you can get away without some of that stuff (heaters auto-start etc.) but if it ends up having to spend a long time outside when its real cold it wont be happy. I tend to plug it in when its -20 or below if I am going to be gone for a few hours or more. If you can only do one thing I would say good tires for the winter would be the most important as its winter 8 months of the year here. Also make sure your 4wd is working well. Once moving its not as important but all the stops and lights are pretty much just giant patches of ice from exhaust freezing on the ground. In 2wd I tend to just spin unless i have the back weighed down a bit. If you can bring a trailer up with you. You will be able to sell it for more than you buy it in the lower 48 same goes for ATVs and flat bottomed boats.

 

Yeah I've been told about the trailer thing, again great info thanks a lot what would you recommend as far as rust proofing

 

I was very worried when I first found out I was coming up here too. The jeep held up to the winter better than I thought it would. Apart from the steering box and sliding around on the roads its been fine. Also may as well accept getting in a few fender benders if you drive around town a lot. I got hit 4 times this winter, 2 rear ends at stop signs and 2 times in a parking lots while i was in the store. Steel bumpers and winch plate took it like a champ and did nothing to me only thing broken was my trailer plug :( If you are planing on doing bumpers or anything involving large heavy parts to your jeep do it before you get here shipping will kill you. It was going to be over $300 to get a lift kit shipped.

 

Yeah I have a front bumper plan on getting new rear bumper/tire carrier and side rails for protection. Do you have any idea about gun laws as far as carrying through Canada? And if you drove up is there any places you recommend me to stop or places I should avoid? I'm only "allowed" to drive 300 miles per day so I could have some time to kill.

 

Very difficult to bring a gun through. Google the gun laws and look at the Canadian rules. You can carry certain revolvers through but you have to do a lot of paper work to do so and even then it has to be secured in the trunk, unloaded and cleared through every jurisdiction. Best to ship them with your HHG or ship them to through a dealer. I loaded my gun safe up and filled it with padding so the guns couldnt move. The movers inventoried it, i sealed it and they moved it.

Do not try to sneak it over the border. I did take a revolver with me, it took about 2 months to get the paper work sorted out and at the border took about an hour to get through with it. I asked about how many people they bust and they said Lots especially military moving to Alaska.