Stock XJ - where to start?

[SWbySWesty]

Hi Guys! Here's my Jeep as it stands right now.

My questions is where to start? I've recently done a lot to it to bring it up to spec:
1. Full fluid changes (diffs, tranny, xfer case, oil, rad)
2. New tires
3. Rebuilt front driveshaft
4. New U-joints (front and rear d-shafts)
5. Gangster home-brew roof rack which is for light duty only

My thoughts were this: Wait on lifting the XJ because with new tires, I'd have to get another set of larger new tires AGAIN...So i'm thinking lift will be the last thing I do.

My current idea (as some have probably noticed) is to get a rooftop tent and possibly awning (but I'll probably wait on the awning since without a lift, it would be too short). Since I don't even have a tent to start with, but have all the camping supplies I need for generic camping, I'd like to do this right, and yes, cost is a factor, but I'd rather buy stuff I can rely on rather than cheap stuff just to have it now.

Also please note that while I am mechanically inclined, I don't have a work shop (just my driveway and garage), no welding skills, or any cutting tools like big saws and blowtorches...just maintenance skills...

How did you guys decide where to start with a stock vehicle? All recommendations and pics welcome!

 

[XJBANKER]

Once you start with the modifications you are opening a can of worms. Dont be impatient. Sit down and think of what you want and be willing to wait for it. I started with my jeep stock and the first modification was the lift and tires. Then came fender flares because I kept getting pulled over and then gears were the next big ticket item. If you are going to do lockers I recommend doing them at the same time do to installation costs unless you are planning on installing them yourself.

Just remember it is less expensive to do it right the first time rather than doing it multiple times because you are not happy with it.

 

[ExpoMike]

Welcome to ExPo. Very clean XJ you have. You're on the right track by taking care of the maintance items first. Make sure it is reliable in stock form, helps to keep from chasing your tail once you start modifying it. Keep in mind, once you start to modify it, things can kind of domino effect on you. One mod leads to the next and so on. One of the first things I would do is to pick up this book, http://www.amazon.com/High-Performance-Cherokee-Builders-1984-2001-Design/dp/1932494146/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236286575&sr=8-1

Read it before you really start buying things. Second, figure out your short and long term goals for the XJ. Then start collecting parts until you have what is needed to complete the modifacation. Things like a lift will include not only the lift part but tires, longer brake lines, regearing the axles to match the new tire size, changing the speedo gear so the speedo reads correctly, etc., etc.

Think everything out first. It took me a year of collecting my parts before I did a 3" lift but in doing so, it went smoothly and I am very happy with the results. On 31" tall tires and still pull 21-22 mpg highway and 16-19 mpg towing our trailer. Read up on www.naxja.org as there is a TON of great info that is XJ specific. That site not only helped me find the right parts, it saved me TONS of money by not buying the wrong parts to start with. Don't rush into anything but research it first.

Here is a pic of our XJ (man I love this pic),

Good luck and don't be afraid to ask questions.

 

[SWbySWesty]

The flex is strong with you, isn't it? Looks more like a rock crawler though...man, yea, I know I'm opening a can of worms, but I did that with my motorcycle already LOL...between the two I'll always be broke!

 

[SWbySWesty]

oh, forgot to mention that I'm active on JeepSpeed forum, Cherokee forum, and NAXJA

 

[ExpoMike]

Hey XJBANKER, what roof rack is that one? I like how low profile it is. :ylsmoke:

 

[XJBANKER]

I want my jeep tp be set up for whatever I come across. It is actually still my daily driver . I still get good gas mileage and it rides great around town and is comfortable at 75mph on the freeway. I totally agree with MT_Mike on the book suggestion. Erik did a great job at writing it. Also there is a lot of help on NAXJA so I would reccomoned looking there as well. We would love to see you there.

www.naxja.org

 

[Momrocks]

Welcome to the forum. Good advice has been provided above. Take a measured approach. Your XJ is very capable as it sits, no rush (and no need) to mod the civility out of it right out of the box. As stated before, keep up with the PMs, repair any of those little nagging things that are wrong with it. (I spent last weekend putting in a new headliner on my 99 XJ) Get out and explore/camp with it as is. You will find 97.3% of the worthwile places to go and see are easily accessable with your stock XJ. I found 99.6% of places I went and wanted to go were easy to access bone stock. That said, you will certainly secumb to the mod bug. Add upgrades and updates as your rigs shortcomings reveal themselves through your experiences. What I thought I would do to my XJ when I bought it is not what I ended up doing to it. I found that it was more important to my travel experiences to add camp/travel comfort and safety items before lift, winch and meaty tires. I eventually added, and continue to add all of the aforementioned items. I guess as much as we try not to make the rig itself a journey, it often happens anyway.

Those of us that own XJs are lucky in the fact that parts are cheap and readily accessable, weaknesses in the platform are known and well addressed in an ample and reasonable priced aftermarket and bargains on all manner of Jeep accessories can be found on Craigslist, classifieds and message boards. My never out of the box M8000 winch for $400 came with a TJ winch plate that I traded for 5, 16x8 aluminium rims which I traded for 4 new BFG MTs on Jeep steelies all on Craigslist over a 2 week period. Okay, now I am just rambling....welcome!

 

[IH8RDS]

Welcome to the portal and the XJ world!

I tell everyone that will listen to know what your end goal and stick to it. If you only plan on max 31" tires, down the road, get the best 4" lift you can afford.Preferably long arm. Don't 2" budget boost it just to later buy a whole new lift to gain a couple more inches.

There is some good info on the above posts. Do the gears and lockers (if desired) ant the same time. For a stock rig that will stay stock for a while, I would first recommend armouring up the under belly (transfer case and gas tank for starters) and getting rock sliders to protect the vulnerable area under the doors.

I didn't catch what tires you bought, but a decent set of all terrain tires would be a wise investment. You can always trade your street tires for a set of BFG A/Ts on craigslist.

One again welcome and glad to see another XJ!

 

[XJBANKER]

Hey XJBANKER, what roof rack is that one? I like how low profile it is. :ylsmoke:

It is a xjbanker special. I build all of my sliders, bumpers and roof rack myself. I am actually thinking about doing the rack over again to make it a little longer but I cant decide.

 

[ExpoMike]

It is a xjbanker special. I build all of my sliders, bumpers and roof rack myself. I am actually thinking about doing the rack over again to make it a little longer but I cant decide.

Nice! Definitely one of the better ones I have seen. Do you have any pics from a top view or looking from above (like when you were building it)? I may have to take some ideas from yours, if I build mine. I picked up a Conferr rack but not sure I want to use it because it's much taller then was I was after. I like the low profile of yours, which has to help with being less drag.

 

[SWbySWesty]

Thanks for the advice guys! I've had the car for 8 years now and I've always wanted to do something to it. So I finally decided that an expo rig would be the way to go so that I can do a little of each, but mainly TRAVEL which is the best.

So I know my way around this Jeep reasonably well and know what it's capable of being stock (I've bent/broken a lot of parts underneath by underestimating the obstacle LOL ). Keep these tips coming!

 

[Root Moose]

Lots of good advice in this thread. I'll throw out my two cents.

Consider who, what and how the Jeep will be used versus optimizing to an all out crawling machine or JeepSpeeder or mud mahcine or whatever.

Given where we are discussing this I'm guess a very day-in day-out friendly setup is the top of your list.

To me that means easy to get in and out (relatively speaking, for the whole family at that), easy to maneuver in traffic, easy to blend into the background, easy to drive for long distances, and no handling quirks to scare the p!ss out of your spousal unit.

As a result I ended up building somewhere in the middle (~5") and settled on 265/75R16 or 255/85R16 depending on the tire brand. I'm going for the "military contractor" or "expedition" look; purposeful but not over built if you know what I mean. Not something that will attract a lot of attention from the wrong elements.

We also have a bit of a crutch in the design of our Jeeps: the unibody. I figured it would be prudent to reinforce the unibody as much as is practical before taking it off-road a lot. Keep the fatigue cracks at bay, at least that is my theory.

Ride quality is the big thing if you are going to be driving these things many hours per day for days on end. To me that meant figuring out the best riding suspension I could get. I started with a drop bracket lift (RE) because I figured it would be best to keep the control arms at stockish angles for the best ride quality. At the time I bought the lift there wasn't much around in the way of long arm suspensions. Along the way I fluked into a used (NIB) TNT long arm lift and am installing that.

Obviously the choice of lift sort of forced me to a certain lift height. It's ok though, I figure ~5" is reasonable on an XJ. It wasn't much of an arm twister though.

In addition to that, gears, armour, etc., etc. Blend to taste.

I've tried to use a combination of parts that are easy to source where possible. No odd ball brake rotors, calipers or maintenance/wear parts that need to be modified to install. Case in point, the front hub conversion uses a standard CJ7 rotor; nothing needs to be enlarged or bolt patterns re-drilled or whatever. If something should happen and I need to replace a warped rotor on the road it isn't a big deal - standard part.

Probably some other stuff I'm forgetting. I'll add if I think of anything.

 

[Waytec]

The Big thing to remember is where you want to go with it and what is the terrain like. If you only ever plane on going down dirt roads and camping build to that. If you want a mud machine then you have to build to that. Here in central Alberta there everything for terrain so when you talk to a guy that is into mudding and extreme hills, high horse power V 8’s and 44’s are a must and think if you are under 38’s in size then you cant go anywhere. I do it trail running (sometime the trail is noticeable and sometimes it is not.) The inline 6 and 31’s are a good start. I have learned a lot in a year. And want to go to 33’s.
Another example of build to the aria is; around hear plastic flares in my opinion are a waste of time. I collect then on the trails all the time. The trees and rocks ripe them off so most people with TJ’s go start to the flat fenders. No one builds them for us so I will be going with custom flat fenders on my XJ.
The big thing is get out their and go. You will lurn what you need and don’t very quickly.

 

[XXXpedition]

well, the xj is great for opening a can of worms :sombrero:
you'll have a lot of fun!
and because others did too, i'll through something in as well.......