Jeep Articles / Technical and Installation (Tuffy Series II Console)

Tuffy Series II Console

Article written by Adventure Bob

Date Added: 07/24/2006

Security is one of the biggest drawbacks to using a Wrangler as a daily driver. We look at how to make one more practical and secure.

Everyone we know that owns a Jeep Wrangler lives with the fear of having stuff stolen out of it. Face it, the factory center console offers no hope that your valuables will stay where you put them, and several expensive aftermarket consoles use the same inadequate lock mechanism. How bad is the problem of theft from a Wrangler? According to the FBI Crime Statistics, a vehicle larceny is commited every 4.5 seconds in America. According to the National Insurance Institute, Jeeps are 33 percent more likely than the average vehicle to have larceny committed on them.

Jeeps are such easy targets for several reasons. First there?s the soft top, or in many cases, no top. On average when a vehicle larceny is committed, the loss is around $350. That figure is usually comprised of your CDs, your stereo, and anything else you shoved in that plastic console with the cheesy lock on it.

To make the Turtle more of a practical source of transportation, we turned to Tuffy Security Products for a locking center console. By having a reliable way of securing our stuff, the Jeep becomes a more practical daily driver. Tuffy offers a multitude of security solutions and is bound to have one that fits your needs. The solution for us was a Series 2 locking console with cup holders and the padded arm rest.

Installation

1. Install the seal tape around the inner edge of the lid.

2. Install the mount bracket.

3. Attach the cup holder.

4. Test fit the console in the Jeep

The console will fit firmly in several positions. We chose to install it as far forward as possible without it being on the arch of the transmission tunnel.

5. Mark and drill the three mounting holes.

The rear holes in the console sit a long way from the floor and are hard to mark. We dipped the eraser of a pencil in a little paint and fed it through the holes to the floor to get a good mark.

6. Install the bolts and nuts.

You?ll need to coax a friend or significant other into holding the tops of the bolts while you crawl under and attach the nuts.

7. Enjoy your new arm rest/lockbox/cupholders!

Installation Issues

The instructions call for 9 each 10-32 nuts, but the kit only requires 5. We received an old style bracket that did not clear the arch in the floor pan. Tuffy immediately corrected this and purged their inventory of the outdated parts. The mounting holes in our console placed the driver?s side rear bolt directly on the curve of the floor pan. To compensate, we moved the bolt 1 inch inboard. This change required a shorter bolt. To Tuffy?s defense, there are so many different floor pan stampings for Wranglers that one set of holes cannot possibly cover them all. Finally, the cup holders don?t hold a Red Bull secure enough for wheeling. Just kidding, Jeff.

Final Thoughts

The Series 2 security console is a stout beast and took a beating with all the stuff we had packed inside it for EJS. Don?t even think about getting one of these without the arm rest. It made all day trail rides much more comfortable for me and my various passengers. The freedom of locking the box and forgetting about it is great. No more worrying about our stuff, and no more unloading valuables every time we lose site of the Jeep. The Series 2 retails for about $260. Compared to the cost of a single break-in claim, it?s well worth it.

Purchase / Vendor Info

Vendor Name:	Tuffy Security Products
Address:	25733 Road H Cortez, CO 81321
Phone:	1-800-348-8339
Contact Person:	Jeff Fox
E-Mail Address:
Website:	http://www.tuffyproducts.com/index.asp

Our Thank You's!

We'd like to thank Jeff Fox at Tuffy for working with us and fielding all of our silly phone calls. Jeff's response to issues, no matter how small, was immediate.