Christian Hazel, tech editor at JP magazine, gave his son and his friends rides in his rad M715 for his sons birthday. Look at those kids, the only way they'd be happier is if there was a pto cotton candy machine in the back.

The best birthday ride I ever had was when my buddies dad drank a bunch of Adult Sodas and did donuts in the baseball field by our house in his beat up trans-am. We used to hide his cigarettes then eat candy till our baby teeth fell out. I spent a lot of time at his house and ended up losing a lot of  teeth there. Maybe I would have played at home more if my dad could have given us rides in an M715?  Instead of Adult Sodas and old tetanus trucks we had books and talks on responsibility. GAY.

M715's are on my "I will have one before I die" list, and Hazel's looks just as ugly and awesome as they come.  I shall have one, oh yes, I shalt.  Oops, I just shalted.

Link to the Blog post on JP's blog

Advance Adaptors is getting ready to roll out a rad new product for Jeep TJ & JK Wranglers with the 42RLE auto tranny. It replaces the tailshaft portion of the 42RLE with a 2.72:1 planetary low range box. It looks like its designed to keep your drivetrain the same length as stock, minimizing any changes to driveshafts and tranny mounts. No word on the exact release date other than "Winter 2008". Theres also no word on pricing, but I'd imagine they'd set it below the atlas to make it an attractive option.
Here's what AA has to say about it....

"Jeep TJ & JK owners with the 42RLE, 4 speed overdrive automatic listen up! Do you dream of having multiple 4wd low ranges just like the latest and greatest after market transfer cases without having to sacrifice your bank account or prep your Jeep for some major retro-fit surgery?
Advance Adapters is proud to release the Rubi-Crawler. This new reduction unit replaces the stock 42RLE tailhousing with a 6 pinion planetary assembly featuring a 2.72:1 low range. This is a true bolt-in doubler that couples to the stock Jeep transfer case or an existing Atlas 2 speed."

Here's an artists rendition of what it may look like when installed and operating.....

More Pictures, links, and info after the jump
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Official Website Here: http://atlas-tc.com/rubicrawler/

Here's more from Advance Adaptors...

RubiCrawler Update
The Rubicrawler is still progressing as planned; we have finished the new input gear, gear selector slider and output shaft. The prototype housings and the planetary components are ready to be installed. The last piece of the puzzle is the shifter mechanism and the shifting linkage. Once the shifter is finished, we plan on running one of these units in our Jeep JK. If all goes well in this vehicle production will begin with having permanent molds made for the RubiCrawler housing. This should be around the time of January 2009.


RubiCrawler facts:
We still are planning on having one of these units at the S.E.M.A. show this year in Las Vegas.


We still do not have a complete price as of yet; however, we are taking orders for these units to hold your place in line. The order is just a way for us to determine how many components to make for the first run of parts. We will advise you of the price when available and allow you the option to keep the order active or to cancel the order. No money is required to initiate an order.




We plan on offering two types of shifters for the RubiCrawler. One will be a simple single handle cable shifter, and the second will be a cable shifter integrated into the TJ and JK consoles. This second style shifter will be released mid to late 2009.


The RubiCrawler part numbers are 42R023 for Jeep TJ’s and 42R023JK for JK’s

I was browsing over on Pirate4x4 and came across this buildup of a Rubicon by Trent from Trentfabrication.com. Its a cool buildup, but he adds a couple pieces that really set it apart. The one that really grabbed me was the headlights with integrated turn signals. Rockcrawlers have been using various methods to relocate their turn signals every since modifying front fenders became the rage. Commonly, a stout "flat fender" is used to replace the thin gauge and easily damaged factory fenders. The problem with this is that it usually eliminates the side turn signal. I don't know if having these signals in the headlight would satisfy the legal turn signal requirements for all states, but it's a cool product either way

Trent fabrication sells these for $89.99 to $79.99 each if you buy them with tube fenders, though I couldn't find them on his site. Here is a site provided by another pirate that sells simliar (same?) lights for $175/pair:
http://www.chevsofthe40s.com/browse.lasso?&search=headlight%207

More pictures after the jump...
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Welcome to the best 4x4 Blog of all time. This is the first post. Years later you'll look back at this post with the fondness and cheer reserved mostly for holiday memories. In the same way you think of christmas when the smell of apple cider and cinnamon waft through the air, we want you to think of us when the gentle tickle of gear oil or mud on hot exhaust greets your nose. Check back often for rad buildups, product reviews, Jeep and 4x4 News, shotguns, and sharks.