- We have made it to the turnaround point, Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada. Tuktoyaktuk is a word in the language of the local Inuvialuit people. It means resembling a caribou. In the waters close to the shore of the Arctic Ocean all around me, there's said to be rocks shaped like caribou, a story that comes from an Inuvialuit legend.
Now I'm going to stumble through this. There could be a few cuts because it's been a long two days. Part of the reason it's been a long two days is because of-- well, it has to do with this thing here, the spare tire cover. I haven't been in a Jeep in a while, but I was told that JL owners and tenders were excited about getting a cut-out in the spare tire cover for the rear view camera that mounts in the center of the spare tire.
3:45 AM Saturday morning, Dempster Highway, I got a flat. Big piece of rock goes all the way through the BFG. Boom, I'm toast. I've got to change it. To do that, I have to get this off. Now, it's 19 degrees outside. 3:45 AM, middle of nowhere, just me and the northern lights. Well, what Jeep has done, for some reason, is they mounted the hole on a sleeve.
The sleeve is affixed to the actual camera housing. Hole here and a bolt. So once you get down on your knees and see the bolt, and then get your tiny hex wrench to get the bolt out, the sleeve-- this sleeve here-- still won't come off because there's an elastic ring around the sleeve and it's two layers where the bolt is. And when you pull the bolt out, there is still a small plastic sleeve around the bolt that goes through here and up into the actual camera housing. I have no idea why they needed all that.
But what happened was you can't pull the elastic tab far enough to get the plastic sleeve out from the camera housing. This was frustrating and it took me so long to get sorted out. In fact, in the beginning, I couldn't figure it out at all and I was just going to cut off the whole cover. But I thought, no, Jeep must have a way for you to get this off without destroying your property. Let me really figure out what that is.
Well, I found it. But even when I realized the plastic sleeve had to come out, I couldn't pull the tab far enough to get the sleeve all the way out. If I were in my garage in California, this would have been, oh, hey. Look at this. It's kind of crazy. At 3:45 AM on a Dempster Highway with caribou, and bears, and moose watching me, being an idiot on the road, that's a murderable offense.
So I did have to get the knife out, but I only had to cut this plastic tab so I could pull it back far enough to get the plastic sleeve out. I pulled this off and then got the tire changed. It took me two hours. And the issue with this for me is that the Jeep, otherwise-- the broad strokes are all so good, so when frustrating little things like this happen-- and did I mention it was 19 degrees outside, 3:45 AM on the Dempster Highway? Yeah, not pleased.
But otherwise, Jeep's been great. I do have a cracked windshield, as well, from the Dempster Highway, because of course. But I made it, and that's what matters. I have met some fantastic people here. John and Joanna Steen, and their daughter, Shelby Steen, have shown me incredible hospitality and fed me delicious food. In fact, John asked his friend, Kevin, to patch my tire, because the hole was so big, we couldn't plug it. And Kevin, bless his soul, patched it for no more than a ride home, which was 1.8 miles.
Now I turn around. I'm gonna head back to British Columbia. I'm gonna hook up with the fine, fine folks that I met online from Mud Buds Wheeling. And there are two MacKenzie trails. Christine and Dwayne at Mud Buds told me they're gonna take me on the MacKenzie that won't kill me. Because I have done 12,000 miles already, 13,000 miles, this 14,000-mile cannonball is gonna be a lot longer than 14,000 miles. But I'm OK with that. Jeep, I just want you to know.
Oh, and if you're wondering what I'm wearing, this is a local Inuvialuit parka. It is, without a doubt, the finest piece of winter wear I have ever put on in my entire life. And I don't mean the finest parka, or the finest top, or the best whatever. I mean, the finest piece of any kind of winter wear that I've ever put on in my entire life. Joanna sewed it for her husband, John. They use it to go hunting when they go hunting caribou and traveling in the winter.
This, I was told, is a commander material. Underneath is a thick layer of arctic goose down. And this is wolverine-- actual wolverine, which the locals also hunt. In fact, these are the claws. I have already ordered one. I recommend you drive up here and order one yourself because it's amazing. Oh, and one last note for Jeep. If you find feathers here all throughout over there, it's because ptarmigans are idiots.
At CES 2024, John Deere showed off its new autonomous tractor technology, which allows farmers to till their fields without being in the cab or paying much attention at all, really. By utilizing an app, the farmer can stop and start the tractor, respond to potential hindrances ahead, adjust speeds …
BMW Remote Valet is an experimental system that allows for your car to be remotely operated by a driver using video screens and remote controls not unlike those used for racing simulators. It uses existing hardware in the car, including forward and reverse cameras, as well as those for the …
Autoblog rode shotgun in Subaru Motorsports’ new American Rally Association (ARA) car, team driver Brandon Semenuk testing the new entry before the Ojibwe Forests Rally in Minnesota. Based on the latest WRX chassis, the turbocharged 2.0-liter boxer four “only” makes about 320 horsepower and 380 pound-feet of torque, but packs …
A spy photographer managed to capture video of a Ram TRX prototype with light camouflage. Unlike the one that's winding up production, this one has an exhaust note that suggests it has a version of the Hurricane twin-turbo inline-6 under the hood. The Hurricane engines are already found in the …
The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 ZR2 is new for 2023, and so is the AEV Bison package from American Expedition Vehicles. The ZR2 off-road trim starts with features like 33-inch Goodyear Wrangler tires, 11.2 inches of ground clearance, and Multimatic DSSV dampers. The Bison adds even more rugged equipment to the …
The new Porsche 718 Spyder RS has a unique roof design designed to be light as possible for performance purposes and compact as possible since something bigger wouldn't fit on top of the taller Spyder RS engine. The solution, demonstrated by senior editor James Riswick, is complicated to say the …
Bring earplugs! Seriously. Have a listen to the screaming 4.0-liter flat-six in the 2024 Porsche 718 Spyder RS, which has an extra set of air intakes located just over the driver and passengers’ shoulders. It’s even louder than it seems in this video, with our meter showing a peak of …
The new Porsche 718 Spyder RS has a unique roof design designed to be light as possible for performance purposes and compact as possible since something bigger wouldn't fit on top of the taller Spyder RS engine. The solution, demonstrated by senior editor James Riswick, is complicated to say the …
Bring earplugs! Seriously. Have a listen to the screaming 4.0-liter flat-six in the 2024 Porsche 718 Spyder RS, which has an extra set of air intakes located just over the driver and passengers’ shoulders. It’s even louder than it seems in this video, with our meter showing a peak of …
The 2024 Mercedes GLE 63 S Coupe is a hot luxury crossover, with its twin-turbocharged V8 producing a hearty 603 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque. It’ll do 0-60 in just 3.7 seconds. Though it’s also quite comfortable, you’ll still work up a mighty thirst piloting it down your favorite …
The 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander is the brand’s newer, bigger three-row crossover. It has a lot of space for passengers, their cargo and their beverages. It’s got a near-excessive amount of cupholders, but can any of them hold an oversized water bottle like a 32-ounce Nalgene? Take a look inside …
Want an affordable small crossover that looks and feels good, might even impress your passengers, and won’t make your eyes go cross while configuring one online? Buick’s got a new one for you, and it’s pretty slick. The 2024 Buick Envista starts below $25,000, and in a world of rampant …
We have before us the 2024 Chevy Silverado EV RST, which is expected to release later this year with 754 horsepower and 785 pound-feet of torque, and a range of 400 miles. That’s a lot of time between stops at the charging station, and we’re going to get mighty thirsty …
