In reply to Toyman01 (Moderately Supportive Dude) :
excellent, thanks!
In reply to Toyman01 (Moderately Supportive Dude) :
excellent, thanks!
More progress. The new spare came in so it's mounted and balanced.
The tire rack is pretty much done. The latch is fabbed up and installed. I also incorporated a shelf to secure the traction boards and a I may still add a fuel can mount but if I do that it will be in the future. Tomorrow I'll pull it all back apart for paint. I'm just going to shoot this with black spray instead of bed liner so I can change it easily if needed.
I am going to have to do some reinforcing to the bumper mounts on the XJ. The body where the bumper bolts up is flexing. I think I'll tie the bumper into the old trailer hitch mounts. I'll get it up in the air while the paint is drying and check that out while I'm installing the rear springs and shocks.
More to come.
Rear rack is complete and installed. Rear lift springs installed with the new Fox shocks. Man what a difference they made in the ride quality.
So how do you see out of your rear view mirror?
In reply to docwyte :
I've spent the majority of my driving career driving vans so I seldom use rear view mirror when driving, I mostly use the side mirrors.
Love this thing. *Searches marketplace for a xj
In reply to Professor_Brap (Forum Supporter) :
Some of them are pretty cheap. My middle son just bought this one to replace his blown up Xterra. $1200. It needed tires and a bent tie rod replaced. We will be putting a 2" lift on it some time soon.
In reply to Toyman01 (Moderately Supportive Dude) :
I keep seeing cheap Cherokees listed nearby & think it's a vehicle I should probably own someday, despite having zero use for one. Then I also consider fixing up whatever needs it has & dragging it up north to sell as a winter beater, but that starts to sound like too much work really quick, so I just keep browsing.
Headed out to my parents for the weekend with the RV. Wanted to take the XJ as well.
I foresee some camping trips in the futures using the RV as base camp and the XJ to explore the area.
I need to get started on the double deck trailer so I can carry the jet boat too.
Big want. They are crazy expensive here for crappy ones.
In reply to Professor_Brap (Forum Supporter) :
The green one above was $1200. It needed tires, a tie rod, and a oil pan gasket. Zero rust and the engine sounds better than mine does.
You don't find those out here in Colorado for $1200 in that condition
I love XJ content. We had a first run ZJ as a kid, 2WD, and a lemon, but I loved that styling.
Hoping to someday grab another ZJ, and maybe get my hands on an XJ. My TJ has the 4.0 with the AX-15, so finding an XJ with the same drivetrain would be nice.
I'd like a ZJ with a 5.2 or 5.9, and after I've completed the manual swap on the Durango, I'll be primed to undertake the same thing on a ZJ with a magnum V8.
New toys showed up over the weekend. I've been super impressed with how the rears worked. I'm looking forward to installing these.
I shot a couple of updated pictures while I was out and about on the island. The old thing is turning out fairly well.
We have spent the last couple of evenings working on my son's XJ. Oil pan gasket replaced, 2" lift kit installed. He's pretty happy with it so far.
I had a Rubicon Express lift on my old XJ, it was an old police Jeep that I got cheap and fixed up. Really liked that thing
More shiny bits. The front shocks aren't as impressive as the rears were but they do work very well.
I just finished up a resurrection on this 01 XJ for a buddy of mine. They've had it for several years but it had been sitting for about a year due to a blown head gasket and a cracked head. We junked the 285k mile engine and did a 4x4 conversion using a 188k mile wrecked 99 XJ donor that I got from insurance auction.
Had to tow it home with SWMBO's WK since I was rebuilding the front end of my truck at the time.
Today's project was some rocker protection. I'm not planning any major rock crawling but I also don't want to smash a rocker while on the trail.
I love this generation of Cherokee anyway, but you've really done a great job on yours! What a nice rig! Wanted to ask about the rocker guards, how do they work as a step? I have an 02 Ranger and want to change the factory step rails. Haven't been real excited about anything, but your rocker guards look sweet. Since Mrs HikerDan is 5'2", a step is important.
In reply to HikerDan (Forum Supporter) :
Thanks for the compliments.
I bought these rock rails because they are wide enough that I could stand on them to make it easier to reach the roof rack. As steps to get in the vehicle, they are probably borderline. They are mounted almost as high as the floorboards. For me they actually make it a little harder to get in and out of the vehicle due to the sill being 4" wider.
Today's project was lighting. The heeadlights in it were fair but not the brightest thing out there.
Since Keith nailed the shocks so well, I followed his lead on the headlights as well.
One set of Truck Lite 5x7s installed.
Also installed last week is one of those really annoying brodozer light bars. I got the wiring for the switch done today.
And a set of shovel mounts. Not sure they will be staying here but this is good enough for tomorrows trip.
Tomorrow's plan is to run as much of the northeastern side of the South Carolina Adventure Route as I can in 10-12 hours. It rained for most of Thursday and Friday so I'm hoping some of the mud dried up today. We shall find out.
Link to the SCAR route for the interested. SCAR I'll be starting at Goose Creek down near the coast and hope to make it to around Spartanburg before the end of the day. Then I'll burn up the interstate back home.
10 hours and about 300 miles done today.
It was a fun day.
The suspension is working very well.
Found a couple of really cool places.
SC red clay will suck you in. I damn near got it stuck. It's a good thing I gave the roads a extra day to dry out.
I've been chasing a driveline vibration. It starts at about 65 mph and gets worse as the speeds increase. I was going to take the driveshaft in and have it rebuilt and balanced but it turns out a new shaft is cheaper. Today that got installed. It took care of about 60% of the vibration.
Next up is the front driveshaft, which should be in next week. Hopefully, that will take care of the rest of it.
In reply to Toyman01 (Moderately Supportive Dude) :
Continue to be jellous.
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