MJS_Jeep_888

So, yesterday I successfully attempted the most complex and extensive "mechanical" work on any vehicle I've ever owned... I installed the Airaid CAI.

At my wife's insistance, I had my mechanically-gifted friend Dave over; he "supervised" while I did all the work... and I got to learn a lot by doing it first-hand, and he was able to share some tips and tricks with me. At the end of the install, I called up to my wife (she was staying nice and warm in the living room, far away from the unheated garage) and yelled to her for help - she came down looking all concerned, and that's when I let her affix the Airaid sticker, so that she could say she helped.

I know that to some (or even most) of you, you're thinking: so what - this is child's play!? Well, to someone that's never even changed his own oil, it was quite a feeling of accomplishment. Here's the highlight: I didn't break the temperature sensor! I've read a lot of posts from owners that are obviously more mechanically-experienced than me, and they broke the plastic or housing of the temperature sensor... well, it was HARD [read: damn near impossible] to get it out properly, but I finally did it, without "breaking" anything. I'm really proud of that - it was a really clean install, and went really smoothly (until I dropped the threaded nut that mounts the CAD to the L bracket down into the depths of the engine... luckily, my friend was able to catch a glimpse of it with a spotlight, and I was able to retrieve it with a magnetic extension...)

All told, going VERY slowly, it took me the better part of 2 hours - but this is something else to love about Jeep ownership: it's slowly turning me into a very basic mechanic. I'm far from confident or a pro: like I've said before in other posts, I'm still trying to figure out where the headlight fluid goes , but I'm really glad that I did this myself. Learning about your Jeep through slow and basic mechanical projects: priceless.

And for anyone considering an Airaid, I give it a BIG thumbs up - the hardware was very well designed, the instructions are clear (although I found "better" ways than some of their instructions), and the change in throttle sound alone justifies the price, IMHO, not to mention the mildly-increased power (by seat-of-the-pants measurement, at least).

So last night, I got to improve my Jeep, learn something about it and engine mechanics in general in the process, and hang out with a good friend in a cold garage. To repay him, the wife and I took him out for pizza and beer afterwards - can you get more American that that?

Life is good. |||||||

Jeff

That is the way to learn. Good Job!
So what is your next project going to be?

Robar

Congrats on your intake. It is always more fun to do your own work and gives a greater sense of accomplishment, pride, and bragging rights.

superboo

are you experiencing this dreaded CAI squeal i keep reading about?

MJS_Jeep_888

Well, next up, once the pieces arrive, I'll be doing more "accessorizing" than anything mechanical. My grab handles, receiver plug, and sill guards shouldn't take too much mechanical know-how. But all of that's on back-order. My very next job will be trimming some good-looking "Rubbermaid" floor mats my wife bought for me, to fit in the footwells. They seem pretty damn sturdy, and match the interior nicely (gray).

Eventually, I WOULD like to change my oil myself, just to be able to say I've done it, but my dealership is giving me free oil changes for life... so maybe once the weather's warmer, I'll give that a shot sometime. After all that "little stuff," I'm either going to consider a small lift (2" - 3") or an exhaust. If go with the lift, I'll DEFINITELY need help, because as I've said, I never learned anything about mechanical jobs... If I go with the exhaust, I'll pay someone to do it, for the simple fact that I don't have access to the tools necessary. Time will tell!

Thanks for the positive feedback folks - I'll let you know more about the CAI squeal once I get some more road time... this weekend's pretty hectic for me, but I'm hoping to go for a nice ride tomorrow morning. More to follow on that.

kaffeene

Cool... Hey thats how I learned. Reading and doing. I have no friends or family that can really help or show me how to do it. You never know.. you may be able to install your lift & exhaust. When I got a YJ a few years ago I didn't know too much but eventually learned. Mostly from forums like this one and did almost all the work on it.

Rubimon

I know you can drill the mirrors yourself! Then you can give us another jumping pic when you're done.

MJS_Jeep_888

That's right! I totally forgot about drilling the mirrors! That was going to be my first mod... well, that'll be my next mod, and will happen either tomorrow or next weekend. I may spare you the action poses, though, and just give a couple shots of the Airaid installed, or the mirrors drilled.

round eyes

Your dealership will give you oil changes for life??? WOW!!! I am impressed. I think that oil changes are one of the easiest things to keep an engine working in top shape but is often neglected. I think that it is great that the dealership will change your oil for free.... I guess that is one way they will know that the engine is cared for when it comes to resell.

Yup it DOES give you a warm cozy feeling when you do it yourself.

MJS_Jeep_888

Well, I got the oil changes for life as part of a deeply-discounted 7 year Chrysler extended warranty package that I purchased - the dealership "lost" my Jeep while it was in transit from the factory, and had to make it up to me somehow! So, as part of that warranty package, I get free oil changes every 3K (except for the first one: I demanded that they be willing to change the oil around 1,000 miles for break-in purposes).