"Water Tight Drivetrain" - Does the 4R have?

westwind77

westwind77

New member
The other night I saw a 11' Cherokee commercial saying they have a "water tight drivetrain', then shows it running through some deep water. There has been a lot of threads here about the rear diff breather and people possibly getting water/mud into it, is this what Jeep is talking about? Is theirs sealed somehow and does not have this problem? Just curious.
 
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They could only be referring to the breathers on the differentials, I'd think. But even then, if you get the breathers under water, it will take on water.
 
Jeep says 20" of water fording depth is the maximum for the new Grand Cherokee. I know they have triple sealed doors to protect from water getting into the cabin. I also know they have a high air intake to prevent hydrostatic lockup. I'm not sure what they mean by a sealed drivetrain. Unless they have differential tubes on their breathers, I doubt that the entire drivetrain is truly sealed.

Then again, Toyota installs breather tubes in front of the 4Runner, just not on the rear differential for whatever reason... so maybe Jeep does?
 
Found the commercial you were talking about....

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Yes...that is the commercial. Don't get me wrong, I love my new 4R, would never trade it for the new GC, but I am curious about their statements. *I'm not trying to start a GC is better than 4R competition*
 
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That was a "cute" puddle the Jeep drove through.

I know Toyota Advertises that the FJ Cruiser can ford water up to 27.5 inches deep, I would think that since the 4Runner is basically based on the same platform now, that the 4Runner could ford the same amount. Not sure about water not getting into the cabin, but as far as drive-train goes, Toyota took care of everything except that rear diff breather. All the electrical seems to have waterproof connections and etc.

Toyota's Demo for FJ Cruisers Water Fording....FJ Cruiser | Limits + Capacities | Water Fording
 
iDRiVaT4R said:
That was a "cute" puddle the Jeep drove through.

I know Toyota Advertises that the FJ Cruiser can ford water up to 27.5 inches deep, I would think that since the 4Runner is basically based on the same platform now, that the 4Runner could ford the same amount. Not sure about water not getting into the cabin, but as far as drive-train goes, Toyota took care of everything except that rear diff breather. All the electrical seems to have waterproof connections and etc.

Toyota's Demo for FJ Cruisers Water Fording....FJ Cruiser | Limits + Capacities | Water Fording
Click to expand...

I always take manufacturer's numbers with a grain of salt. Think about it---they don't even put an extension tube on the rear differential breather. And everybody know that you don't want to submerge your rear diff without an extension tube in place. So why wouldn't they make them that way? They come with extended breathers up front!

I do find Jeep's commercial funny though because their own literature states 20" as maximum fording depth, but the commercial makes it seem like you can drive under water or something.
 
Ive done a ton of research over the years regarding FJ Cruisers, as long as you do the rear breather mod, you should be OK. There have been a few instances where people were having issue with the pulleys going bad after getting them submerged in water and mud but that's it.

I'm gonna do the breather mod within the next couple weeks, and I plan on going out the the desert. There is this one trail, Coyote Canyon that's gonna reopen in a few days. There is usually about 2 feet of water right at the beginning. It's a stream that's roughly 100-200ft long that we have to drive through to continue on the trail.
 
Just looked at Jeeps "Trail Rated Certification" and they say don't attempt anything more than 19" deep.

However, I do know someone who toasted the FJC transmission due to water. Also know that the 2009 Jeep Rubicon's with manual transmissions have two 1/4"x2 1/2" opening on the bottom that allow muddy water in and will kill the clutch and pressure plate.

It was from this puddle before Reiter closed.
joel_and_jon.jpg


Hit that riverbed with confidence. Trail Rated® Jeep® 4x4s feature additional electrical and body sealing, along with a high air intake location for optimum water fording capability. Note: Do not attempt water fording unless depth is known to be less than 19 inches
Click to expand...
 
iDRiVaT4R said:
Ive done a ton of research over the years regarding FJ Cruisers, as long as you do the rear breather mod, you should be OK. There have been a few instances where people were having issue with the pulleys going bad after getting them submerged in water and mud but that's it.

I'm gonna do the breather mod within the next couple weeks, and I plan on going out the the desert. There is this one trail, Coyote Canyon that's gonna reopen in a few days. There is usually about 2 feet of water right at the beginning. It's a stream that's roughly 100-200ft long that we have to drive through to continue on the trail.
Click to expand...

Call me crazy, but I avoid deep water simply because I don't want to soak my interior with water. All the breather extensions in the world won't help me with that! I'll leave the deep water stuff for the guys who don't mind getting water inside.
 
i've driven to the headlights with mine and didnt have any problems with water entering the cabin.

had the rear diff breather mod done and located up to a high point in the engine bay and havent had issues.
 
Since someone here already has doen the leg work.. what parts did you buy and where to do the breather mod?

I'm interested in going the route of adding the breather end under the air filter in the airbox. that places it high and protected.

- 20ft rubber fuel line
- fuel line barb for rear diff (part? cost?)
- Barb adapter to connect to breather (female/female adapter and a 90 degree barb?)
- rubber lined hose clamps to mount to factory frame rail points.
- hand full of black zipties.

Has anyone rerouted the remaining breathers and tied them all into a single line?

Okki
 
iDRiVaT4R said:
Ive done a ton of research over the years regarding FJ Cruisers, as long as you do the rear breather mod, you should be OK. There have been a few instances where people were having issue with the pulleys going bad after getting them submerged in water and mud but that's it.

I'm gonna do the breather mod within the next couple weeks, and I plan on going out the the desert. There is this one trail, Coyote Canyon that's gonna reopen in a few days. There is usually about 2 feet of water right at the beginning. It's a stream that's roughly 100-200ft long that we have to drive through to continue on the trail.
Click to expand...


That's a great spot... went camping out there last memorial day, but didn't have the balls to go past that deep part of running water you are referring too. I took a hike up there and it's got a long rocky hill to climb after that which looks like fun. Maybe I'll try it in my new 4Runner, but I guess I'd need to modify the breather from what I've read around here. Hopefully it's not too hard to do...
 
I was with a 05 Hemi Heep that was trail rated for 20" of water and when the day was done, on the highway home, the Heep died (I have a nice cell phone pic of the Heep on the flatbed). Turns out the alternator was fried and not covered under warranty. We both went in the same mud and water, both brand new and stock.

Trail Rated my A$$!

Koz
 
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