Logan, Utah, resident Ron "Dawg" Barr is a stucco contractor by day and a Jeeper any other time. Ron Dawg's '91 YJ has been built for extreme 'wheeling and it doesn't disappoint. The Jeep even spends some if its time 'wheeling on its top or sides. We've run a few features on Ron’s friends and you may have noticed they all have "Ron Dawg Recovery Unit" stickers on their Jeeps. Ron Dawg's YJ not only rocks, it rolls.
Ron's not afraid to push the limits every time he goes out. Over the years, his YJ had been built, rebuilt, repaired, rebuilt, added to, etc. It was finally time to clean it up and change some things, so the Jeep was delivered to the crew at Rockworx in Montrose, Colorado.
Rockworx is known for its hard-core vehicle buildups. They boat-tailed the body, left the stroked Chevrolet V-8 and Tera CRD60R front and rear axles alone, and addressed the frame and suspension. Check out the photos to see what they did.
Ron Barr is an excellent driver. During the photo shoot, he was controlled and careful, tackling (and surmounting) some of the hardest obstacles on our photography trail. We never saw the other Ron Dawg, the one that requires his friends to drive recovery units and makes his Jeep do spectacular and legendary things. His YJ is used, used hard, and works.
Rock and roll.
Remember the Chevrolet L98?...
Remember the Chevrolet L98? It had plenty of low-end torque and great driveability. Ron's has been stroked to 383 and has been warmed up a bit. Some of Ron’s friends think it’s a bit too much, as it’s the Chevy V-8 and Ron's foot that sometimes gets him into "situations." Two Predator sealed batteries are mounted cleanly on the firewall. The aluminum radiator is frenched into the grille shell for clearance and could probably be just a bit larger.
Rockworx installed a PSC full-hydraulic...
Rockworx installed a PSC full-hydraulic steering system. Ron Dawg's able to steer, no matter where the Jeep is.
The front Tera CRD60R has...
The front Tera CRD60R has 35-spline axles in and out, 4.88 gears, and an Eaton Detroit Locker. The Tera front and rearends are proven and reliable. Rockworx built the custom four-link (three plus track bar) front and four-link rear long arm suspension, using aluminum control arms from Summit Machine. Ron Dawg's Jeep is no hangar queen, as attested to by the gouges in the skidplate.
A trusty 4.3:1 low-range Atlas...
A trusty 4.3:1 low-range Atlas transfer case sits above the flat crossmember.
Rockworx is noted for its...
Rockworx is noted for its clean work. Here you can see its trademark long triangulated upper/lower control arm geometry. The front and rear CV driveshafts have been built and rebuilt by Six States Distributers.
Rockworx front frame crossmember...
Rockworx front frame crossmember doubles as a clean stubby bumper and sits in front of the Ramsey Patriot 9500UT winch. The grille hoop gets a workout every so often.
A fuel cell carries gas safely...
A fuel cell carries gas safely up out of the way. You can see Ron's PowerTank mounted forward between the seats. Look closely and you can see the Rockworx boat tail bodywork.