So some of you may have seen my threads. I am a teenager without a car right now. I am looking to build up a daily driver and offroading vehicle.. So far im looking at pretty much any model of jeep XJ, wrangler, CJ, more?? and maybe an old Toyota Tacoma or something. My budget for the actual vehicle itself without any offroading equipment or accesories is about 5,000 dollars max, hopefully less. Is there anything before buying one of these cars that i should definatly avoid or look for? For example i was recently told to look for a Dana 44 rear axle or a Chrysler 8.25 rear axle in a XJ. Are there any really important things the car should have before i get it?? How many miles do you think i the car i buy should have to stay in my budget?
What to definitely look for?
- Thread starter gooseboy
- Start date
BigAl
Expedition Leader
I don't know where you are, but my buddy bought a 95XJ, 130K, no rust, in very good condition from the PA State auction. It was a park ranger jeep. This one was primo and went for $1100. Several others that had rusty rockers went for $400-900. All we looked at were mechanically sound. Maybe check and see what your state does.
Z O O R O P A
Explorer
is Mom and Dad loaded?
if not .......
buy a Harley Sportster, insurance is cheap, good on gas, chicks will stand in line to ride on the back! anyone can fix it and it will go very well on back roads, get some good tires, small lift new springs, big luggage rack, good to go baby!
save your money - you're going to need it!
when you are in school keep the Harley, its easier to park on campus with than a car
besides it's a classic and you'll never worry about gas......until you buy a car
if not .......
buy a Harley Sportster, insurance is cheap, good on gas, chicks will stand in line to ride on the back! anyone can fix it and it will go very well on back roads, get some good tires, small lift new springs, big luggage rack, good to go baby!
save your money - you're going to need it!
when you are in school keep the Harley, its easier to park on campus with than a car
besides it's a classic and you'll never worry about gas......until you buy a car
IronSmiles
Observer
Look for something..
1) That is mechanically sound and has been kept up
2) Something that does NOT have rust damage or frame warping
3) Something that doesn't look like it's had the crap knocked out of it
And you should be ok..
1) That is mechanically sound and has been kept up
2) Something that does NOT have rust damage or frame warping
3) Something that doesn't look like it's had the crap knocked out of it
And you should be ok..
IronSmiles said:Look for something..
1) That is mechanically sound and has been kept up
2) Something that does NOT have rust damage or frame warping
3) Something that doesn't look like it's had the crap knocked out of it
And you should be ok..
I believe you were the one that told me about the axles.. Is there anything else like that i should look for?
No mom and dad arent loaded.. If they were they wouldnt buy something great anyway lol. Motorcycle probably wont work either.. My dad knows people that have been injured or died on them.. Dont trust me with one.
IronSmiles
Observer
gooseboy said:
Yeah that was me, haha. Actually.. I do have a really good suggestion, something that REALLY helped me. Once I had decided to buy an XJ, I started looking for some sort of guide that would give me ideas and avenues for the best way to build it for what I wanted it for.. and at the same time teach me about axles, gearing, tires, upgrades.. and what it all meant. Eric Zappe wrote a build up guide for the XJ with pretty good write up's on A LOT of things having to do with XJ. Here is his website..
http://www.ericsxj.com/index.htm
From there you can explore his site, and there are links to get his book.. If an XJ is the way you want to go, and you wanna know what all is involved I would HIGHLY recommend getting it and reading it cover to cover. Once you do you will have a MUCH better grasp on what you want, the direction you should take.. and how to get there.
IronSmiles said:Yeah that was me, haha. Actually.. I do have a really good suggestion, something that REALLY helped me. Once I had decided to buy an XJ, I started looking for some sort of guide that would give me ideas and avenues for the best way to build it for what I wanted it for.. and at the same time teach me about axles, gearing, tires, upgrades.. and what it all meant. Eric Zappe wrote a build up guide for the XJ with pretty good write up's on A LOT of things having to do with XJ. Here is his website..
http://www.ericsxj.com/index.htm
From there you can explore his site, and there are links to get his book.. If an XJ is the way you want to go, and you wanna know what all is involved I would HIGHLY recommend getting it and reading it cover to cover. Once you do you will have a MUCH better grasp on what you want, the direction you should take.. and how to get there.
WOW.. I just read that if you get a lift on your truck you have to go back and tune the engine and everything else! Is this true? Is it hard?
IXNAYXJ
Adventurer
No. Just stop, please.gooseboy said:
Check out www.NAXJA.org There is more info there than you could possibly need. Do some reading, do some research, spend some time figuring out what it is you want your rig to do.
An XJ with a 3.5" lift and a TAD is a very impressive and reliable package. I bought my first one, a '94, for $1400 and my second one, a '98 for $2600. The deals are out there, just take your time before you rush into anything.
FWIW, the D44 only came in the XJ in 1987. The 8.25 is much more common and nearly as strong. The AW4 auto tranny that came with H.O. motors ('91+) is nearly bullet-proof, as is the NP-231 transfer case.
-----Matt-----
4Rescue
Expedition Leader
I know you only have 5k (and actualy that's quite a lot) but if it's an XJ you want get as new a model as possible. The interiors, while never really luxry, are alot nicer in the 97+ (I belive) models. The color coded body clading is nice looking as well IMO. Another thing, is if you find a nice newer cream puff it'll be ALOT less likely to have the usual squeeks and rattles my XJ's will always be remembered for. Sometime around I belive 97? They went to the High output I6 as well.
the unfortunate thing about going the toyota route is that for 5k you're looking at a pretty old truck(or you eat up your entire budget on a bone stocker) in Toyota land (although I still maintain they have a longer shelf life). That's fine if you want that (I did) and if you have the ability to re-furbish an older rig (I need to stop putting things in parentheces), but you'll get a newer/cleaner truck if you go the Jeep route. Personaly I'm most partial to CJ-6 and 8's in the Jeep flavor, but as a solid daily driver and a first car/truck, I don't know that I'd suggest one. But hey, maybe you'd love'm, I know I do.
good luck on your purchase mate, and be picky. Personaly, I know of nothing worse than falling in love with a rig, buying it and then 2 days latter fin ding an even better one. go look at as many trucks as you can and drive them all. figure out what you like best. For example, if you're slightly to very tall and like to sit relatively upright while driving, the XJ might not be for you. The roof line is low and can cramp taller drivers unless you lean it out "gangsta" style.
YJ wranglers are a great choice because they're tough, have TONS of aftermarket support and there are tons of them. Look for one with a hard-top and then get your self a nice soft top for the warmer months. the simple leaf-spring suspension makes them easy to lift and alot cheaper than radius arm kits for TJ/ZJ/XJ(the front half anyway). Not to mention they're pretty cheap as of late, and that just means more money for a nice OME suspension and some other goodies ...
Cheers
Dave
the unfortunate thing about going the toyota route is that for 5k you're looking at a pretty old truck(or you eat up your entire budget on a bone stocker) in Toyota land (although I still maintain they have a longer shelf life). That's fine if you want that (I did) and if you have the ability to re-furbish an older rig (I need to stop putting things in parentheces), but you'll get a newer/cleaner truck if you go the Jeep route. Personaly I'm most partial to CJ-6 and 8's in the Jeep flavor, but as a solid daily driver and a first car/truck, I don't know that I'd suggest one. But hey, maybe you'd love'm, I know I do.
good luck on your purchase mate, and be picky. Personaly, I know of nothing worse than falling in love with a rig, buying it and then 2 days latter fin ding an even better one. go look at as many trucks as you can and drive them all. figure out what you like best. For example, if you're slightly to very tall and like to sit relatively upright while driving, the XJ might not be for you. The roof line is low and can cramp taller drivers unless you lean it out "gangsta" style.
YJ wranglers are a great choice because they're tough, have TONS of aftermarket support and there are tons of them. Look for one with a hard-top and then get your self a nice soft top for the warmer months. the simple leaf-spring suspension makes them easy to lift and alot cheaper than radius arm kits for TJ/ZJ/XJ(the front half anyway). Not to mention they're pretty cheap as of late, and that just means more money for a nice OME suspension and some other goodies
...Cheers
Dave
Purple People Eater
Explorer
When I bought my XJ about three years ago, all I wanted to do was lift it. Cuz it looks cool and I can go places I couldn't when it was stock. I quickly put an add-a-leaf 3" lift and 31x10.5 ProComp X-terrains on it and at first, I was proud. After about three months, the springs were shot, my tires weren't wearing evenly and were noisy as all-get-out, lost tons of power, and my gas mileage plummeted.
I thought the gas mileage problem and lack of power were related and was to be fixed via adding horsepower, so I popped on a cold air intake, throttlebody spacer, and cat-back system.
Doing all this, I'd say I wasted... probably close to $2000. I wish now I had spent that money on lower gearing, and a better, lower profile suspension.
Like XNAYXJ said, do your homework. I absolutely love my Cherokee, and an XJ would probably suit you well if you take your time to figure out what you need... er... want for sure. I'm young as well, but I couldn't even start to tell you how many mistakes I've made because I didn't know what I was doing and didn't bother to find out. This is an expensive sport, but if you save your money and do it right you'll be comfortable, proud, and best of all, knowledgeable.
Good luck and take care.
I thought the gas mileage problem and lack of power were related and was to be fixed via adding horsepower, so I popped on a cold air intake, throttlebody spacer, and cat-back system.
Doing all this, I'd say I wasted... probably close to $2000. I wish now I had spent that money on lower gearing, and a better, lower profile suspension.
Like XNAYXJ said, do your homework. I absolutely love my Cherokee, and an XJ would probably suit you well if you take your time to figure out what you need... er... want for sure. I'm young as well, but I couldn't even start to tell you how many mistakes I've made because I didn't know what I was doing and didn't bother to find out. This is an expensive sport, but if you save your money and do it right you'll be comfortable, proud, and best of all, knowledgeable.
Good luck and take care.
Thanks for all the help guys.. The 5k budget is just for the actual vehicle itself, i plan to spend more money on tires, armor, wench, lift, and lights, and eventually maybe a rear locker and after that a front.
So you dont have to re tune your engine after you have a lift kit installed? I read that from a guide on 4wheelparts.com
Heres a piece of it.
Additional Modifications: Upgrading to truck lift kits with taller tires also means that a number of components may require part upgrades or some tuning to compensate. For instance, a truck’s engine is tuned at specific gear ratios to propel the vehicle. When adding taller tires, the gear ratios must be tweaked accordingly, since the engine has to spin much larger, heavier tires. Again, consult with more experienced individuals for further insight.
So that not true?
I have done a little bit of reading on naxja.
So you dont have to re tune your engine after you have a lift kit installed? I read that from a guide on 4wheelparts.com
Heres a piece of it.
Additional Modifications: Upgrading to truck lift kits with taller tires also means that a number of components may require part upgrades or some tuning to compensate. For instance, a truck’s engine is tuned at specific gear ratios to propel the vehicle. When adding taller tires, the gear ratios must be tweaked accordingly, since the engine has to spin much larger, heavier tires. Again, consult with more experienced individuals for further insight.
So that not true?
I have done a little bit of reading on naxja.
Purple People Eater
Explorer
gooseboy said:
This is true, but "tweaking" isn't in the engine. You tune the gear ratio in the differentials. It's a matter of how many times the driveshaft turns over to how many times the wheels turn.
BorregoWrangler
Rendezvous Conspiracy
4Rescue said:go look at as many trucks as you can and drive them all. figure out what you like best. YJ wranglers are a great choice because they're tough, have TONS of aftermarket support and there are tons of them. Look for one with a hard-top and then get your self a nice soft top for the warmer months. the simple leaf-spring suspension makes them easy to lift and alot cheaper than radius arm kits for TJ/ZJ/XJ(the front half anyway). Not to mention they're pretty cheap as of late, and that just means more money for a nice OME suspension and some other goodies
This fellow knows what he's talkin' about.
I got my YJ for $1800. I put in a new rear axle and was good to go. For sure, don't rush into anything. Happy hunting.