Se7en62's '97 Cherokee XJ "GROOT" Overland Build

[cdn_xj]

Picked up an almost brand new set of 285/75R16 (33x11.5R16) Firestone Destination M/T's on TJ Rubicon wheels today. Then went by O'Reilly's and bought all of the fluids and filters I'll need for a couple services.

Now re-gearing has been added to the list, since's I have the abominable 3.07's coupled with 33's. Considering I plan to Overland and not necessarily rock-crawl, I'll probably be going with something between 4.11 and 4.56. Any suggestions?

Since it does not look as if you've re-geared yet, I'm going to throw in my $ 0.02.

I'm running 33x10.50-15 BFG KO All Terrains and I had previously re-geared to 4.11s. Mathematically the 4.11's are bang-on for upgrading from stock tires and 3.55s to 33s.

BUT I failed to take into consideration the additional weight of the larger tires, ARB bullbar and roof rack, winch, rear bumper and tire carrier, additional armor, and gear. I haven't scaled my XJ yet but I would conservatively estimate the weight at 300-400 lbs above stock. And that's not even fully loaded, nor is it with all of my armor, chassis stiffeners, or sliders mounted yet.

Bottom line: with 33s, If you have a 5-speed, you could possibly get by with 4.11s. But if you have an automatic, you'll want to go to 4.56s. 4.11s are just not enough unless you live somewhere flat. I live in British Columbia so there are hills EVERYwhere. I wish I had gone to 4.56s.

 

[JandDGreens]

I have a 5 spd. and same tires. I am glad to hear what you have found out as I have some axles loaded with 4.55 gears I will be installing soon. My XJ will be loaded with a lot of stuff and I'll be towing a trailer up many mountain passes. I know I could get away with 4.10's but I think even better these axles where loaded with the others.

 

[Se7en62]

That's good to know. I had originally figured that 4.56 gears would be the best route, but wasn't sure if the extra weight might warrant shorter gears. I've kept talking myself back into the 4.56's.

EDIT - Since this comment, I've found that the most cost effective solution is to swap in a ZJ LP D30 (3.73) and a '99 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer's 8.8". The latter has 3.73's and includes a Ford Trac-Lok LSD as well. Since I have a manual, I had begun to lean towards 4.11's, but now 3.73's make some sense with all the additional weight and highway time my Jeep will see.

 

[Se7en62]

To take one more step into the rabbit hole, I've ordered a Monstaliner 40-Color Chip Set to help decide on color schemes. I have some ideas in mind, now that I'm cutting the rear door out. The door is jammed and no amount of pushing/pulling, or PB Blaster and working the lock inside the door frame will loosen the door. - My solution: Use my angle grinder or cut-saw to cut the 'lock loop' that the door latch is hung up on.

Regardless though, I've decided to plan on coating the entire Jeep inside-and-out. The inside with a cheaper 'Rust-o-leum liner' and the outside with Monstaliner. I'm thinking some level of two-tone on the exterior. The OEM grey carpet will be steam-cleaned, re-dyed (if necessary), and reinstalled over the Monstaliner. Then Weathertech mats will go in over top of the carpet.

 

[Se7en62]

Finally had another free day to knock out the new battery bracket and battery install.

This is Dirtbound Offroad's Group 34 Battery Tray that allows XJ owners to upgrade from the tiny Group 54 to a much larger Group34. They also make it in reverse for dual battery layouts, which I plan on doing in the future.

The battery is an Interstate Mega-Tron II Group 34 with 700CCA and 875CA.

I started by removing the factory battery tray, cleaning the area, and giving it a few coats of rustoleum to prevent rust from spreading.

Then it was a just a bit of test fitting, trimming the tie-down rods, and fitting the battery. Easy peasy.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[Whaler]

battery tray looks like a nice piece of kit

 

[Se7en62]

battery tray looks like a nice piece of kit

I thought so too. - Especially when you consider Dirtbound Offroad has them on sale for under $60 and they offer a $20 reverse mount for a symmetrical dual battery setup. If you're running Optima's they also have a specific mount of those as well that's only $40.

Optima's aren't what they used to be, so I've decided to use a quality lead-acid for my primary systems. Then, I'll relocate my intake and use another tray with the aforementioned reversed mount to install an Odyssey.

 

[Whaler]

I want to install a second battery under the hood and I like that reverse mount option a lot. My only reluctance is how to rework the intake. I don't want to do a snorkel (aesthetic reasons) and the cowl intake seems too noisy. Are there any better alternatives?

 

[JSwanson]

I want to install a second battery under the hood and I like that reverse mount option a lot. My only reluctance is how to rework the intake. I don't want to do a snorkel (aesthetic reasons) and the cowl intake seems too noisy. Are there any better alternatives?

No other alternatives that I know of. I have dual batteries under the hood and made a cowl snorkel and it is noisy when windows are up and downshifting( like to pass a car) not horrible since an XJ isn't the quietest vehicle anyway. I also had to relocate my ecm I just made a quick bracket and attached it to one of the master cylinder bolts. I used factory battery trays but the DBO unit looks like a nice mount. The driver side is tight with the ps pump and upper radiator hose.

edit:
In case you XJ guys didn't know they are making a kit again https://store9974117.ecwid.com/Cherokee-XJ-Cowl-Intake-91-01-gen3-p69940670 I don't have this but it looks pretty good to me if you don't want to build you own.

 

[JandDGreens]

Sometimes I wonder if I made a cowl hood and used a filter like you would use for the old small block that old kind that just would sit on top of the carburetor with the round paper filter. It would be higher than the stock location and you could make it so that the hood would isolate the filter from the engine bay so that all the hot air would not circulate into the intake. But that could be just as noisy but would allow for the extra battery.

(I really like the cowl intake system the above poster linked).

 

[Se7en62]

I'm on the fence between buying a SPECTRE cowl intake or building the Bleepin'Jeep M35A2 intake. I like the simplicity of the cowl intake, but the noise may be an issue on long drives from TX to CO, etc. I also like the Bleepin'Jeep M35A2 intake design, but the piece of flex-pipe between the intake pipe and hood makes me a little nervous as it could wear. - If I can come up with a different material to use there, then I'm sold.

Spectre's cowl kit is DISCONTINUED

 

[JSwanson]

I was under the impression the spectra intake was no longer available. If you can actually get 1 I would go that route.

 

[Se7en62]

I was under the impression the spectra intake was no longer available. If you can actually get 1 I would go that route.

Yep, I was about to place an order for one, but found it to be DISCONTINUED.

 

[jswift716]

I'm on the fence between buying a SPECTRE cowl intake or building the Bleepin'Jeep M35A2 intake. I like the simplicity of the cowl intake, but the noise may be an issue on long drives from TX to CO, etc. I also like the Bleepin'Jeep M35A2 intake design, but the piece of flex-pipe between the intake pipe and hood makes me a little nervous as it could wear. - If I can come up with a different material to use there, then I'm sold.

Here's the Spectre kit that's DISCONTINUED that was probably the best looking cowl intake available for the XJ:
https://autoplicity.com/3672703-spe...-intake-kits?gclid=CPyAz9GB6NMCFQmKaQodwiYItA

Here's the How-To video for the M35A2 intake:

Specter did discontinue the kit BUT still sell all the components separately.
And if I were to build one like bjs I would use something solid to cross the engine and only use the flex tube between the last 90 and the top so that it's compresses when the hoods closes to minimize the wear

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[Cottontail]

I love my Destination MTs. Good tire!!!

I have a cowl induction in my XJ. I got a second airbox from the junkyard and closed up all the gaps and make it air and water tight. I use the original lid and then bought about $10 worth of accordion tubing, $5 on a mount, and then drilled a hole in the cowl face just above the brake booster/master cylinder. That way I can use either the stock or the cowl set up. I toss the stock in for around town, and then when I hit the trails I put the modified one in. The picture shows the factory set up installed, with the modified cowl set up along side it.

http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af173/Cottontail85/96BC4116-0345-41EC-9CA0-D9F4B28C46CE_zpsdwvzd2cl.jpg