Project ZJ "my first jeep and I'm a cheap azz build"

[ElCaminoManT]

hey yall, this is my first post in this area now that i finally have a jeep. i have a build thread in the 'fullsize domestic' area for the GMC Jimmy straight axle conversion ive been helping my brother with for the last 10 months. been wanting my own exploration vehicle for a long while and this one seems to fit the bill for me pretty well. dont have a lot of extra $$ to work with so is gonna be a slow build im sure. im going to try to use 2nd hand/j-yard parts when able, with the exception of the lift and tires. ill try to keep regular updates on this thread

picked this lil gem up today for next to nothing thanks to the front end being all torn apart and a not quite working right transmission. its a 94 laredo that has been on non-op for several years and hasnt been run in prolly 3-4 months. i put a jumper box on it today when i picked it up and it damn near fired right up! the 4.0L engine seems to run awesome for 161K miles and has very minimal oil leakage! the 42RE transmission wont shift and slips in forward gears but i was able to drive the jeep onto the trailer for the ride home so it at least still moves and was able to verify the 4wd does work. also, thankfully it does not have the crappy quadra-trac 4wd, just has the more normal 4x4 system and u-joints in the front axle system (not the worthless cv joints). the front end was taken apart by a shop that it sat at when the transmission died, guess they were scrounging for parts or something. fortunately, the guy i bought it from has purchased all the stuff, minus a hood, to put the front end back together. after i took these pics, i ended up throwing the missing fender back on and tinkering with some other stuff. the interior is pretty rad, all power and leather! and it works!!

anyway, my plans are pretty mellow; 3.5" rough country suspension lift (short arm style), 15" oem 'canyon' wheels with 31x10.50 treadwright tires. will also replace the stock trac bar with an adjustable aftermarket unit as well as freshen up the steering system. will deal with the super sad white paint by covering over it with plasti-dip white color as well as shoot all the grey cladding and bumper covers with black plasti-dip. eventually id like to put a plated winch bumper on the front and a plated tire carrier bumper out back so then the black side cladding will tie into those things too. gonna have to replace the cat (its rattling, thankfully the truck is OBD 1 so its cheaper) and will also do something exhaust wise all the way back since the stock system is DINKY! gonna have to do something about the awesomely poor sounding factory Jensen sound system, havent decided what yet tho. also want to do a roof carrier basket of some kind with a couple low-pro aux lights for night time stuff. oh ya cant forget subframe connectors and rock sliders to protect the rockers just in case

i want to have a nice driver that can go exploring off road pretty much anywhere and still be nice and comfy and reliable on the road.

heres some pics of the ZJ when i brought it back to the shop after picking it up today

heres a couple pics of ZJs with the rough country 3.5" lift on 31s. part of me is a little torn whether i want to run OEM wheels like the 'canyon' wheels in the first pic or some good ol eagles like the second pic. most likely way cheaper to get the oems from the j-yards so prolly the route ill end up

 

[xjman88]

As a zj convert I want to say welcome to the jeep family and to the portal. Nice project u have there. I will be following your build up of the zj. If u have any questions feel free to ask. There are a few of us zj owners on here. We don't get much love from non zj owners but we hod our own. Lol. And feel free to check out my zj expo build.

 

[88Xj]

This is going to be a fun watch! I can't wait to see what you do to the thing! I've thought about grabbing a Zj in similar condition (seems to be hundreds sitting like that out here) and swapping my 5speed & everything over lol.

It appears to be an inline6 right? Also for wheels idk what your looking at spending but they pop up on jeepforum from time-time fairly cheap. Also check ebay possibly? Or local craigslist.

 

[ElCaminoManT]

As a zj convert I want to say welcome to the jeep family and to the portal. Nice project u have there. I will be following your build up of the zj. If u have any questions feel free to ask. There are a few of us zj owners on here. We don't get much love from non zj owners but we hod our own. Lol. And feel free to check out my zj expo build.

thanks for the welcome here. ive been on the portal for a few months now, just never ventured in this section since we didnt have a jeep. although we dabbled with jeep stuff since the bros straight axle swap on his lil jimmy is using a high pinion dana 30 from a 95 XJ, 6.5" front XJ lift coils, rugged ridge XJ steering and an XJ pitman arm. i like your build, mine prolly wont be setup so much for extended camping like yours, more of a daily exploration vehicle that can be slept in overnight if need be. i have my 5th wheel toy hauler to sleep in on trips hopefully the jeep will actually fit in the trailer, would be a huge plus!

This is going to be a fun watch! I can't wait to see what you do to the thing! I've thought about grabbing a Zj in similar condition (seems to be hundreds sitting like that out here) and swapping my 5speed & everything over lol.

It appears to be an inline6 right? Also for wheels idk what your looking at spending but they pop up on jeepforum from time-time fairly cheap. Also check ebay possibly? Or local craigslist.

she is a 4.0L that runs great. the 242 transfer case seems to function nicely as well. anyone have an idea how difficult it might be to try to rebuild the 42RE trans thats in it or should i just look for another transmission?

i have a couple leads on the 'canyon' wheels but dont know what they are going for. hopefully find out next week. before i spend any money, im going to get the title sorted and into my name. if turns out to be a disaster then another route may be taken

I used to have a zj and I gotta say that most of the short arm kits are garbage and make alot of noise. They are pretty much a waste of money unless you buy short arms with adjustable hem joints. I had mine with a 2"spacer kit and it performed almost as well as the 4" short arm kit I spent $1200 on. There is alot of stuff you can do for cheap. If you remove the front coil springs and put them in the back it gives you a 3.5" lift in the rear. You then only have to buy one set of springs for the front, an adjustable track bar, and lower short arms to correct the axle angles. If you are going to spend any money lifting it I would buy the rough country long arm suspension, otherwise you won't be too happy with the results.

the 3.5" kit from rough country is $399 and comes with lower arms front and rear, front coils, nec brackets and spacers as well as 4 nitrogen shocks. rear lift is via the stock front coils moved to the back. what was noisy about the short arms? also, any recs on what track bar to get? will i need to get one for the rear as well? long arm stuff isnt really an option unless i could get it used for uber cheap. to buy new is way out of my price range...

 

[88Xj]

the 3.5" kit from rough country is $399 and comes with lower arms front and rear, front coils, nec brackets and spacers as well as 4 nitrogen shocks. rear lift is via the stock front coils moved to the back. what was noisy about the short arms? also, any recs on what track bar to get? will i need to get one for the rear as well? long arm stuff isnt really an option unless i could get it used for uber cheap. to buy new is way out of my price range...

Hey brother why not keep it cheap & simple for now? A budget boost with new shocks & some 31's. Then get everything else sorted..such as lighting, trans, axles, maybe a locker or 2..ect ect. Then save up for a long arm setup! A budget boost consist of 2 spacers..will raise you up about 2-2.5"..get new shocks & your good, expect about 200 max & thats if you do all new. You can buy spacers new for around 50 & a set of shocks should be cheap as well. You will clear 31's, may need to trim very very little to avoid rubbing! Or trim a little more & clear 32's..heres some pics for you.

my old zj with a 2" bb and 31"

my new zj with a 2.5 bb and 32"

Personally I'd grab the spacers, and a extra set of isolators. Isolators can be stacked & give roughly .5". So a 2" spacer plus 2 isolators should give 2.5-2.75" of lift..It'll look good, be cheap enough to not worry about & give you a chance to get a feel for it without going to crazy! Then if you feel the need spend for the long arms At 3.5" You will need a rear track bar & a front is recomended but I'm at 3" on my Xj with the stock bar.
A good solid track bar is gonna run you 200. If you cheap now you will respend later, and if you go short arms now..chances are you will upgrade to longs arm anyway. The suspension isn't something to go cheap with! I would say budget boost it..then wheel it..find the issues, fix those issues, upgrade your axles if you want..ditch that cruddy low pinion d30 with CV's for a XJ d30. Then spend for a good long arm lift!
I would put more priority to that! Also there's little things to help it run/flex betetr offroad..so do a BB, figure it all out then decide if you wanna spend more cash! Personally 3" is the most I'd go so I can keep it semi-stock ish..I have coils & a spacer front, OME leafs rear, no SYE, stock track bar, simple simple setup thats very easy too get replacement parts for!


You can adapt a aw4 from a cherokee inplace..they are incredibly stout & are very very similar to the transmissions from the Toyota supras, actually only minor differences. Issue is if you don't do the whole TCU then then trans won't shift on its own, meaning you will need to shift it yourself! Heres a very useful link. I would deffinetly spend for the swap vs rebuilding a 42re..fresh fluid & filter & you will be good in the aw4! Ditch the 42RE..and aw4's are everywhere, so if one takes a crap rebuilt it or grab another..80% of XJ's have them
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f13/aw4-swap-into-obdii-zj-382739/

Your front axle is ok but I would upgrade! IDK your gearing but you can grab a D30 from a Xj in a junkyard & it will be a HP30 with U joint axles vs cv shafts. Hp's are 84-99. ITs stronger all together & you get ujoint axles vs the crappy CV's. Very cheap but good upgrade!

 

[ElCaminoManT]

Hey brother why not keep it cheap & simple for now? A budget boost with new shocks & some 31's. Then get everything else sorted..such as lighting, trans, axles, maybe a locker or 2..ect ect. Then save up for a long arm setup! A budget boost consist of 2 spacers..will raise you up about 2-2.5"..get new shocks & your good, expect about 200 max & thats if you do all new. You can buy spacers new for around 50 & a set of shocks should be cheap as well. You will clear 31's, may need to trim very very little to avoid rubbing! Or trim a little more & clear 32's..heres some pics for you.


Personally I'd grab the spacers, and a extra set of isolators. Isolators can be stacked & give roughly .5". So a 2" spacer plus 2 isolators should give 2.5-2.75" of lift..It'll look good, be cheap enough to not worry about & give you a chance to get a feel for it without going to crazy! Then if you feel the need spend for the long arms At 3.5" You will need a rear track bar & a front is recomended but I'm at 3" on my Xj with the stock bar.
A good solid track bar is gonna run you 200. If you cheap now you will respend later, and if you go short arms now..chances are you will upgrade to longs arm anyway. The suspension isn't something to go cheap with! I would say budget boost it..then wheel it..find the issues, fix those issues, upgrade your axles if you want..ditch that cruddy low pinion d30 with CV's for a XJ d30. Then spend for a good long arm lift!
I would put more priority to that! Also there's little things to help it run/flex betetr offroad..so do a BB, figure it all out then decide if you wanna spend more cash! Personally 3" is the most I'd go so I can keep it semi-stock ish..I have coils & a spacer front, OME leafs rear, no SYE, stock track bar, simple simple setup thats very easy too get replacement parts for!


You can adapt a aw4 from a cherokee inplace..they are incredibly stout & are very very similar to the transmissions from the Toyota supras, actually only minor differences. Issue is if you don't do the whole TCU then then trans won't shift on its own, meaning you will need to shift it yourself! Heres a very useful link. I would deffinetly spend for the swap vs rebuilding a 42re..fresh fluid & filter & you will be good in the aw4! Ditch the 42RE..and aw4's are everywhere, so if one takes a crap rebuilt it or grab another..80% of XJ's have them
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f13/aw4-swap-into-obdii-zj-382739/

Your front axle is ok but I would upgrade! IDK your gearing but you can grab a D30 from a Xj in a junkyard & it will be a HP30 with U joint axles vs cv shafts. Hp's are 84-99. ITs stronger all together & you get ujoint axles vs the crappy CV's. Very cheap but good upgrade!

hmmm......you do have a point there....

im going to look into the AW4 swap too, thanks for the link

my zj does not have the crap-tacular all wheel drive system fortunately, it has the 242 transfer case and u-jointed low pinion D30 with a double cardon u-joint front drive shaft as well

 

[88Xj]

hmmm......you do have a point there....

im going to look into the AW4 swap too, thanks for the link

my zj does not have the crap-tacular all wheel drive system fortunately, it has the 242 transfer case and u-jointed low pinion D30 with a double cardon u-joint front drive shaft as well

did someone swap ujoints in it? I thought all Zj's had cv shafts. Well if you got Ujoints that a plus
Deffinetly look at a AW4 swap its very very simple! And think about that suspension as well. You can pick up shocks either new or used. I have some that will work for you up front, they will work for 3-4" so no worries. You can find cheap rears or just by new. I would deffinetly only do a BB to get you by for now, then upgrade to a long arm setup when you can! Cause at 3" you really should be doing track bars & thats at least another 350 if you do cheap-ish ones front and rear, plus the 400 for the actual lift. So now it would be 700-800. At that point I'd spend money for lockers ect that help more than 1" more of lift
Then save for a good long arm and have some fun!

 

[88Xj]

here you gobrother..deal foryou

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/pts/3315217978.html

I can check it locally in person ifyouwant but thats cheap...now may be the time to upgrade

 

[ElCaminoManT]

did someone swap ujoints in it? I thought all Zj's had cv shafts. Well if you got Ujoints that a plus
Deffinetly look at a AW4 swap its very very simple! And think about that suspension as well. You can pick up shocks either new or used. I have some that will work for you up front, they will work for 3-4" so no worries. You can find cheap rears or just by new. I would deffinetly only do a BB to get you by for now, then upgrade to a long arm setup when you can! Cause at 3" you really should be doing track bars & thats at least another 350 if you do cheap-ish ones front and rear, plus the 400 for the actual lift. So now it would be 700-800. At that point I'd spend money for lockers ect that help more than 1" more of lift
Then save for a good long arm and have some fun!

no sir, all original. i think the zjs that had full time 4wd had the cv axles. did find out my jeep has 3.73 gears today. kind of rare for a 6cyl but info i found says thats what came with the factory tow package/hitch. LSD i doubt but who knows. also has drum brakes out back.

first order of business tho is to make it drivable and pass smog. that means transmission replacement, get a hood and put body back together and replace the shot catalytic converter.

oh yea, found out today as well that its a 93, not a 94 as advertised. no biggie

here you gobrother..deal foryou

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/pts/3315217978.html

I can check it locally in person ifyouwant but thats cheap...now may be the time to upgrade

i saw that the other day. thanks for the offer but i gotta take care of other stuff first

 

[88Xj]

no sir, all original. i think the zjs that had full time 4wd had the cv axles. did find out my jeep has 3.73 gears today. kind of rare for a 6cyl but info i found says thats what came with the factory tow package/hitch. LSD i doubt but who knows. also has drum brakes out back.

first order of business tho is to make it drivable and pass smog. that means transmission replacement, get a hood and put body back together and replace the shot catalytic converter.

oh yea, found out today as well that its a 93, not a 94 as advertised. no biggie



i saw that the other day. thanks for the offer but i gotta take care of other stuff first

hey brother if you can make it to the high desert onthrusday I'll help ya pull a trans from our yards. 4 of us jeep guys are doing a small work party & hittingthe yards. If you want we can get you a aw4 outta there

 

[ElCaminoManT]

wouldnt be able to get up there till the wknd at earliest, thanks for the offer tho! going to hit the yards down here on saturday morning now that the jeep is officially mine as my name is on the title. was able to get that sorted out at AAA today thankfully. car was never actually on non-op and the original owners paid close to $600 in back fees back in january, i was able to get out of there for a lil over $100 for registration, transfer fee and sales tax!

oh yea, found the lil tag on the rear axle that tells me that it has a factory limited slip in the leaky *** D35!! no need regear just yet, i can at least get along for a bit on these gears and limited slip for 31" tires till i can save some $$ and upgrade axles later with the long arms. this thing is turning out to be one very weirdly optioned ZJ....

front axle tag

rear axle tag and limited slip additive req tag

 

[88Xj]

With 3.73's and a aw4 it will run better down the highway compared to the 42re.! Remember Xj's had 3.55's with the aw4.
With 31's & a aw4 your at 1970rpm give or take. With the 42re your at 1800rpm. You will actually get some decent mileage..no need to regear if you stay on 31's. Best mileage outta the 4.0s is at 2000-2200rpm.
Oh thats at 65mph btw. So at 70-75 you will be higher..or right in the meat of the rpm band for mileage if your going AW4. So if you stay 31's don't even regear..stick to what you got!
I'm also at 2000rpm give or take..5speed (ax15) 3.55's and 31's. I'm getting 21mpg at 65..not to shabby when most can bearly pull 18highway lol.

for reference.
http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html

 

[ElCaminoManT]

had time to mess with the z tonight after work. somewhat put the front end parts on to check fitment since the left front corner had been replaced. the body shop that did the work did a very good job as everything seems to fit very well. hopefully will find a hood this weekend and also going to look for another white fender to replace the red one so ill have less to paint over later. seeing as the left lights are missing and the right lights are so discolored and cracked, im going to just order a whole replacement set off ebay to replace all 6 parts unless i can find good replacements at the yards. also found the ends of the under structure for the grille and lights are broken so i might even just see about getting the whole shebang with lights and all if the price isnt too crazy. bumper cover fits right on, just have to get the little push clips to hold everything in place

looks like i might be fixing the transmission without even pulling it out! i chatted with a friend of mine today who owns a transmission shop and as soon as i mentioned the symptoms, he already had an idea what could be going on. ive read online that the 42REs have problems with the solenoids and he confirmed this to be the most common problem with them. so much so that he has quite a few sets on the shelf at the ready. he had me disconnect the elec connector going into the transmission to put it into limp mode thus causing the line pressure to hit max pressure and try driving it around, if the solenoids are the culprit causing low line pressure, the z should drive in 3rd gear. before i could not drive the z forward in D range, had to put the shifter in 1 to go forward. well, with the connector unplugged, the jeep actually moves around in D range now! its in 3rd gear but it seems to get along pretty well considering. im going to have him send me the solenoid set, hopefully i can drop the valve body and change those out next week. stoked!

took some random pics of the underside in current condition...

outer axle joints on the front low pinion D30

front driveshaft and axle

double cardon joint at the t-case

t-case tag

revised exhaust manifold. also looks the engine mounts have been replaced as well

front end

rear drum brakes

the rear main seal is really starting to leak bad now that its getting run for a little bit every day moving in and out of the shop. had worldpac drop off a new rear main seal (mopar part no less), an oil pan gasket, oil filter and drain plug today. hope to get that thing replaced soon

 

[ElCaminoManT]

replaced the rear main seal and oil pan gasket this afternoon/evening. i gotta say that i waaaaaaay underestimated that ordeal! i work on german autos for a living, this pig is a whole different animal! took a bit of effort to get the upper half of the new seal installed above the crankshaft but it eventually cooperated. only thing in the back of my mind is whether or not the oil pan gasket seated properly in the groove of the rear bearing cap. im pretty sure its in its home but not being able to look and see if its in there is driving me nuts!! will find out tomorrow when i fill er up with oil and run it for a bit....

 

[ElCaminoManT]

so far so good, no leaking from the pan or rear main! j-yards tomorrow morn, hoping for success!