Project Rambler: Jeep ZJ

[Boogey]

ram·bler
ˈramb(ə)lər/Submit
noun
1.
a person who walks for pleasure, especially in the countryside.
synonyms: walker, hiker, backpacker, wanderer, rover; literary wayfarer

So to begin with I would like to explain the name and purpose of this humble ZJ build. I've been interested in overlanding and expeditions for a while as I have a natural sense for exploration. Offroading has always had my interest as some of my earliest memories are in the front seat of my uncles YJ (yes I am young :******** exploring grandparents farm. I do not intend on doing extreme offroading with this jeep. I simply plan to build a capable exploration vehicle and daily driver that will get me where I want to go. So with that being said I do believe that the name Rambler suits this Jeep as that is what it will likely be doing for the rest of its life. Just rambling. Going no faster than necessary as to not miss a moment.

 

[Boogey]

Background on me

So a little background on me. I am 20 years old and about to graduate from college with a Associates of Applied Science in Automotive Technology. I am a mechanic so I do know how to work on cars and have worked on a few jeeps in my limited time in the field. This is my first four wheel drive vehicle even though I've wanted on since long before I could drive as you could tell from my last post.


"My" first vehicle that i drove was actually my dads 2001 Ford F-150 4.6L 2WD. I did things and went places in that truck that I definitely shouldn't have and will never admit to anyone eepwall:.


Next I got a 1999 Honda Accord 5 speed. I loved this car and to date it is probably my favorite and most fun car I've ever owned. I put this car through the ringer and it really never quit ticking and never let me down. I took this car places that I probably shouldn't have and probably shouldn't have been able to. I drove this car through fields, down some rough paths, through 1.5ft snow banks, through snow that got a Jeep TJ stuck (this was just to say that I circled a stuck Jeep in a old beat up accord :sombrero, and drove it like it was a rally car.


Then I idiotically got rid of that for a lowered 1996 Chevrolet Pickup 5.7L 2WD w/ Eaton locker. I actually still have this truck and have had a love hate relationship with it since i got it. It has been nothing but a pain in my butt since the day I brought it home. But it has taken me on at least one camping trip and countless fishing trips and has never actually left me stranded.

Took the truck camping at the Mid-Ohio Vintage Races. Had a pretty good set up with stadium seating overlooking Thunder Valley.

The view from the bed of the truck.

And of course the obligatory flexing picture. :xxrotflma:

 

[Boogey]

Jeep Time!

So now I'm a proud owner of a fairly clean(for Ohio) Jeep ZJ. It is completely stock right down to the factory stereo. It only has 128000 miles on the 5.2L. It has the np249 transfer case. I got it for a decent deal as it need tires and the front CV axles replaced. Those and anything else I may find will hopefully be done by the end of the week so I can start daily driving it as it is about time for us to see snow here in SW Ohio. It will remain bone stock until probably the summer when I have some free time and its not freezing cold . This won't stop me from taking it on adventures come spring though. This will be a slow build as I am still in school and quite busy as of now. However, I will keep this updated as I do things to the Jeep whether it be an adventure, upgrades, or basic maintenance.

 

[Boogey]

Pictures fail to upload?

Well I tried to add pictures to the above post but they won't upload. Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Mitch502]

Host the photos with Flikr or Photobucket and upload them.

Welcome to another ZJ owner. The more the merrier. Check my link to see my build. Looking forward to seeing another ZJ build. There are some far more respectable builds on this forum than mine, Littlefoot has a good build, and there is a very nice white one out here.

 

[Boogey]

Thanks Mitch! I'll probably do that today after work. I may also be getting my tires today so hopefully I'll also have an update!:wings:

 

[Boogey]

I got some pictures added to the previous posts.

 

[Boogey]

New Tires and an Oil Change

Today I got the Jeep on the rack at work for the first time. I am very fortunate to have a boss that allows me to utilize the shop to work on my stuff. Which I am extremely grateful for since today it was 30F and snowed about four inches today.

This is the first time I've had the Jeep on a rack and am really able to give it a once over. Everything looks pretty sound underneath. It has a slight oil leak and a rear pinion seal leak.

The 5.2L (or 318 cu in for you old school guys) in all of its gas guzzling, bald eagle screeching glory!!!!:smiley_drive:
***Also a quick and simple pro tip: when doing an oil change always remove the oil fill cap before draining the oil and put it in the hood latch as I did. This prevents any possibility of closing the hood and starting the engine with no oil in it.***

I did a quick synthetic oil change. This oil filter is in a horrid place. When you remove it oil soaks the starter and exhaust.

I decided to get a set of stock size (225/70R16) Cooper AT3's. They seem to get pretty great reviews online and appear to have a decent tread pattern for daily driving and some light offroading but only time will tell.


That is all for now as I had a bit of equipment issues with the tire machine so I don't have any pictures with the tires on it. I should be getting that done tomorrow.

 

[Boogey]

Lift Options?

Ok I want you guys' input. I've been looking and doing research on lifts for the ole ZJ and I'm not sure what to get. I've looked at the OME lift which is supposed to be great for on road driving and decent offroad. However, I have yet to talk to anyone who has one on their ZJ. Or I could hold out and save for a while and drop the big bucks on something like the Rubicon Express LA 4.5" kit. Any input would be greatly appreciated.


Also do any of you ZJ guys run frame stiffeners? I'm not entirely sure if they are necessary on a ZJ. I do know that they are pretty necessary on a XJ and not necessary on a WJ. It sort of seems like the ZJ is a gray zone.

 

[PGW]

I have the OME heavy duty coils on my ZJ. The springs gave me an inch or two of lift (I have aftermarket bumpers front and rear) and I used some short spacers to get up about 3" total lift. They are a good all around spring, not too stiff and not too soft. The 5.2 is a great motor, my 95 ZJ with the 5.2 has 226,000 miles and counting.

 

[BigDaveZJ]

I bought my ZJ at roughly the same age as you, and have had it now for almost 17 years. Fun rigs that don't get as much respect as they should.

Biggest drawback is the unibody. Couple other areas to keep an eye on with a 98 as well. Your front driveshaft is likely a rezeppa style cv joint at the pinion end. If you lift it and/or disconnect your front swaybar, you WILL destroy the joint. Basically all of the slip in the shaft is built into that joint, and there's not enough slip there to keep up with a front axle that articulates more than stock with a connected swaybar. It also has a Dana 44 that's a bit different than others, in that it's an aluminum housing. The differential housing is shared between the 96-98 V8 ZJ's, V8 WJ's, and if memory serves some Vipers as well. Everything else on those other axles is different though. It's a relatively strong axle, but tends to eat bearings faster than iron housing axles. Also has limited aftermarket support. The transfer case works relatively well for mild builds. The full time 4wd is a beast in the snow, and the low range in the 96-98 249 is substantially better than the earlier 93-95 249. I would hold off on a t-case swap until you need to, when the viscous coupler in the t-case goes out or some other issue with the case. On the motor, keep an eye on oil consumption, as a bad intake plenum gasket is pretty common on these motors, although it's a pretty easy fix.

To start, I'd do a cheap spacer lift or a front to rear swap. Both can be done pretty cheap, and allow you to progress your driving skills along with the rig's capabilities. You can easily run 31's with those setups, or if you don't mind some healthy trimming 32's can be done as well. You'll probably want new shocks, but with the shorter lifts you don't need to mess much with control arms and trackbars. My ZJ was on a 2" BB and 32's for several years and I was always impressed with where it would take me. Also invest in some good armor, skid plates, rock sliders, etc. The ZJ is pretty long and low, need to protect the under carriage.

As you gain more wheel time, and get more comfortable with the vehicle, THEN start looking at the pricier modifications. I wheeled my ZJ heavily for 6 or 7 years before making the jump to long arms. Keep an eye on where the control arms, particularly the uppers, mount to the unibody, major weak point that has led many to upgrade to long arms. Then you can also start looking at axle swaps, re-gearing, lockers, etc.

My particular build includes a high pinion D30 from an XJ, an 8.8 with an Aussie Locker from an Explorer, 4.56 gears, Clayton's long arms (best on the market IMO), 4.5" coils and 35's. It takes me just about anywhere I'd want to take a full bodied unibody rig.

There's a few vendors out there that really cater to the ZJ crowd as well, and I have done business with just about all of them. Kevin's Off Road, Clayton Off Road, and Iron Rock Off Road are the first 3 that come to mind.

One other note I'll leave based on some of your comments in your previous posts is to read up on Tread Lightly! and their principles. Responsible recreation is key to the continuation of our sport. I can't see your pics from work, and not making any accusations, but educating ourselves on how to enjoy wheeling is just as important, if not more important, than building our rigs.

 

[Boogey]

Your front driveshaft is likely a rezeppa style cv joint at the pinion end.

It also has a Dana 44 that's a bit different than others, in that it's an aluminum housing. The differential housing is shared between the 96-98 V8 ZJ's, V8 WJ's, and if memory serves some Vipers as well. Everything else on those other axles is different though. It's a relatively strong axle, but tends to eat bearings faster than iron housing axles.

One other note I'll leave based on some of your comments in your previous posts is to read up on Tread Lightly! and their principles. Responsible recreation is key to the continuation of our sport. I can't see your pics from work, and not making any accusations, but educating ourselves on how to enjoy wheeling is just as important, if not more important, than building our rigs.

Thanks for the input Dave! I greatly appreciate it.

My driveshaft has normal u joints on both sides.

I think i may already have a bearing issue in the D44. There is a constant humming will driving coming from the rear end. Ill have to investigate that further when I get the chance.

I wouldn't call myself a true outdoors man but I have spent most of my life hiking, camping, and fishing and I can say without a shadow of a doubt that I do and always will Tread Lightly. One of my biggest pet peeves is when people don't. When I go on adventures I attempt to the best of my ability to leave as though I was never there if not better than it was when i arrived (i.e. picking up trash, fishing line, ect.).

 

[BigDaveZJ]

Sounds like the carrier bearings, usually pinion bearing noise changes with throttle load.

And good to hear on you taking care of the trails. Your comments about not admitting to where you took vehicles made me wonder a bit, so I just wanted to make sure everything was good!

Looking forward to your build!

 

[Boogey]

The New Tires Are On!

So today I got to work a bit early and got moving on the tires. I got them all mounted, balanced, and installed and they look great!

I took it on a test drive to check the balance and found some snow and ice covered roads to test the tires. They performed flawlessly and I am very impressed with their performance even on ice.

I even got a chance to test its pulling capability. A Jasper delivery truck dropped off a transmission at the shop and wouldn't start afterward. It was blocking three of our bay doors and needed to be moved. So I hooked the tow rope up to the back of it and pulled it out of the way even while on snow and ice! I was very impressed the traction the tires made. It pulled the big rig with ease. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of this as I was behind on work and needed to get back to work quick. But here is a picture of a truck very similar to the one that I pulled.

One issue I did find was that the selector seems to be stuck in full time 4WD and will not go into neutral or 4LO. It seems like it is just a stuck actuator lever at the transfer case from a quick search on JeepForum. It seems to be a very common issue on ZJ's with the np249 as most people never need to put them in 4LO so the lever rusts up and gets stuck. It seems like an easy fix but I'll know for sure next time I get the Jeep on the rack.

I believe my next update will probably be when I replace the front CV shafts. Hopefully I'll get that done by the end of this week. If anyone on here wants me to do a walk through of how to replace the front CV shafts I will. However, there are some pretty great walk through's on JeepForum.

 

[Boogey]

And good to hear on you taking care of the trails. Your comments about not admitting to where you took vehicles made me wonder a bit, so I just wanted to make sure everything was good!

I understand your concern.
Most of that was in high school when I felt i had something to prove. :yikes: The main reason that I won't admit is because most of it was trespassing in hay fields or running private gravel and dirt roads at Mach 1. That itch has eased and my priorities have changed more in the direction of self and vehicle preservation and enjoying the journey. Looking back on it now I did a lot of stupid things in cars but I truly believe it has made me a better driver for what it is worth.