2000-->2008 Cherokee Overhaul

[xjaddiction]

Sounds good except for a few things. I can only guess at what you really want, but what your about to build aint quite it.

Mud, 17" wheels and Yoko tires will suck in the mud... Pun intended. A 12,000 dollar budget is plenty to make a rig like the one that you want.

I don't understand why your taking the motor and d-trane out, unless it's just shot. If it is might be cheaper to start with a XJ in better shape...??

My new rig is a little like what your trying to accomplish. It has ZJ interior, front power leather seats, and rear split 60/40 with head rests, in leather as well. The overhead console is also from a Grand Cherokee and houses plenty of personal lighting, and the CB radios speaker. I'll be pulling the interior this summer and adding some sound proofing.

Outside you need to add some real off-roadable stuff. I would run 35's for mud, and they would be a Trxus MT. I've got the Rubicon (Moab) wheels with some 35's on my rig, and love them.

Lift; 6" RE, RK, Tereflex, LA's or ADJ. SA's with DB's (Now you need to search to figure out what the heck I just said. Plenty of info on here...

Sway bar DC's, ADJ trac-bar, ARB lockers or some kind of selectable locker. Gears 4:88's if yu can find a rear XJ dana 44, assuming you have the rear 8.25 in your Jeep you can only go to 4:56's, I would leave the axles alone, don't need to exchange them for a HD set-up. Change those rear drums out for some discs.

Since your into mud... TheSnorkel that DPG off-road sells is a necessity, and some BushWacker fender flares too.

Wheels I like the Moab's and will bore the center hole out if I keep my axles and go with Warn's 5 on 4.5 lock-out hubs. I also like the DC black 16x10's. Don't go above a 16" wheel.

I love the C-Rok rear bumper and tire carrier. I would go with an ARB front bumper with a 9000 lb Warn XDi winch.

Shocks are Rancho 9000's, adjustable and perfect for a dual purpose rig that sees a lot of road driving.

SOOOOOO many people are upgrading and chopping up there rigs now, that finding good used parts for pennies on the dollar is getting easier.

I've built one very off road/ on-road capable XJ a few years ago. This time I really know what I want in my rig. The XJ is fantastic, I love the thing. I also have a 3" lifted Toyota FJ-80 Land Cruiser that right now is resting while I enjoy having an XJ once again.

Search on here before you start your project. I would really recommend 35" tires, and a 6" lift with some fender trimming. 31's will be a disappointment in a hurry.

Go easy on the money you spend on paint. This rig can be built, you just need to really plan things out.

a Pic of my old XJ, and the new one;

OLD '96

NEW '98, work in progress

 

[redrider]

back when i was in high school. most kids that smoked mary jane were more realistic about what they should do to their ride. livin in the swamp that new carpet is going smell like bong water fast. as far as the noise goes crank up the tunes.

 

[XJSlater]

I give you props for having such big dreams (and a dad with a big wallet), but if you are just going to dick around in the mud, save yourself a waste of 12,000 dollars to make the jeep look fancy and just use your dakota.

But.... If you are so inclined to continue with this, re-think your parts list. Ditch the Toyo's with bling wheels and get some much cheaper swampers and black steelies, if all you intend to encounter is mud. With the kind of money you are talking about spending, you could eliminate half of the "visual ugrades" your are looking in to, and build yourself one hell of a trail rig. Plus I just don't see how a RE 3.5 and some 31's is going to get you anywhere in any substantial amount of mud.

My .02

-Adam

 

[IXNAYXJ]

But its not going to be as expensive as you think (about $12,000) including the jeep.

I'm not sure how to approach this. I don't want to offend you, because you seem like a nice guy. But if you think $12,000 is a reasonable budget for an XJ, you need to seek help. Buying a rig for $1700 and throwing another $10,000 in parts that don't improve the performance is like pouring money down a black hole.

For $12,000, you could build a really amazing rig, one that would do everything well, including rock-crawling, being comfortable on the road, and looking cool. That's more than most folks have in their rigs here on ; find one you think looks good and copy it. :dunno:

If you want to play in mud, 31's are going to be terrible. If you want to be a king of the mud, buy a full size truck and run 54" Boggers.

Here's my rig stuck in the mud...running 35" new aggressive Interco Mud Tires, lockers front and back, Claytons long arms, and about 6" of lift and 4.88 deep gears. I'm running 1/2 ton axles (custom HP D44, etc), alloy shafts, big joints, a full cage with exo hybrid, tube flares and custom rocker replacements. I'm in mine much less than $12k.

If you're going to blow $12k of your Dad's money on an XJ, at least make it really cool! Please!

-----Matt Adair-----
Contirbuting Editor
JPFreek Magazine
www.jpfreek.com

P.S. If you're serious about you budget, I'd love to feature your project (done properly, with good parts) in our magazine as a "no limits" build. Let me know.

 

[Mc2KXJ]

:laugh2: :laugh2:

I'm not sure how to approach this. I don't want to offend you, because you seem like a nice guy. If you're going to blow your Dad for money, at least make it really cool! Please!

:laugh2: :laugh2:

 

[Ba-Riedo]

Oh dang, this poor kid from Florida is getting clowned on by the good ol PNW boys.

-Alex

 

[redneckguy0404]

for 12,000 that could be one sick XJ, rhino line it, lift, lockers the works and get one comfortable seat screw the passengers they are there to dig you out. ability over luxury any day.

 

[Harry_f]

but i have to drive it back and forth from college, so if it rides like shit then its gonna suck.

 

[BIGSLVRXJ]

but i have to drive it back and forth from college, so if it rides like shit then its gonna suck.

If you're going to be driving it on the road a lot, I would really suggest an all terrain tire. If you feel so inclined, get two sets of rims, one for the Toyos and one for the BFG A/T KOs (in my opinion). I'm was once in somewhat of the same situation as you are. When I was 14, my dad gave me my 90 XJ and he helped me financially with a lot of repairs and parts for it. The problem now is I depleted what my dad wanted to help me with and now I'm on my own for almost everything Jeep related (although living at home still helps). I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you're doing it now, do it right so you don't have to keep hitting your dad up for money down the road.

 

[alwaysready]

everyone has their opinion... do what You want.
i had people tell me not to get moabs because theyll get screwed up on the rocks and stuff.
i had people tell me get 4.5" lift and 33's dont get 3.5 and 31's.
i drove a 4.5 on 32's too tall for me for a DD
i had people tell me to paint my chrome grille black.
most of the guys here will cut fenders strip interiors run black steel wheels and make a trail only toy. There is a line between a trail only toy and a daily driver one that can go on a vacation 2 states away
im am happy with mine the way it is for now.
3.5 re superride 31 mtr's warn bumper with winch and ill get some sliders but thats it.

So if you want to do it just do it.
Mine rides on the road 60 miles a day usually
and will be on the road 98% of the time.
And realize it is a trail truck not a mud pit truck so stay away from deep water and mud pits, enjoy

 

[KSXJ]

With 12k I would buy this and make it highway worthy with the extra 2k or 4k if you sell your current XJ.

http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=946371

 

[alwaysready]

hes trying to build a hmm (chrysler terms) chrsyler 300/ jeep XJ.
rides Nice, very clean, show worthy possibly, able to hit a trail without a problem.
Just picture an AEV jeep XJ at an auto show that would be about it.
gps bumpin system etc..

 

[Indertdxj]

so are you saying you suggest vinyl floors, cause i thought about that, is it really a huge problem, i'm not trying to cross the nile in my jeep, just mess around.

The only problem I see is that when (and you will) get stuck, or even have to get out and look at a trail your not sure of you drag all that mud/dust/wetness back in!?

 

[FlexdXJ]

lol i can understand the skepticism and i won't lie I'm definately not funding this my generous dad is. But its not going to be as expensive as you think (about $12,000) including the jeep. cause i know the owner of the shop doing most all the work on it, and i'm doing some of the work myself. and as for the detailing... i kinda enjoy cleaning my car so it won't be too bad.

yeah you say that til you have to clean that mucky florida mud off of that shiny new paint. :nono:

 

[FlexdXJ]

I am glad to see that you aren't a little punk who doesn't acknowledge that his dad is generous.There are a lot of those around here. I would say if it is mainly a street vehicle 3.5 RE superride kit, 31 bfg A/Ts or goodyear MT/Rs. you don't need a 5000 dollar paint job you can rebuild the motor and tranny and get a 1000 dollar paint job especially if you are driving from FL to LA. my .02 do what you want man.

 

[Harry_f]

i really appreaciate all the good imput and i as for the jeep i'll probobably be shooting some pics friday or saturday when i'm in the process of stripping it. I think i'm sticking with the RE 3.5 maybe i'll go with 32s and 1.5 inch shackles, but it seems like some of you guys are getting the idea that its not going to be a trail machine, oh well.

 

[ingrain]

Ok. I understand what you are wanting, I drive two hours (120 miles) to school and the same back. You have the right idea as far as what you do for off road capabilities. A 3"ish lift will allow you plenty of room to hit up some trails/dirt/muddy roads, and the occasional shallow mud pit without too much worry. I do caution you however that once you get it dirty, it is very very hard to get it back to the way it was again, especially in mud because it gets everywhere. I dont know how much offroad experience you have, but if you dont have very much you will be surprised that you are still dropping mud clods out of your undercarraige two weeks after you went offroad. I would also recommend to you as a good tire for general offroad use and light mud the Dick Cepek FC-2. It is aggressive looking and handles the mud fairly well if you know what you are doing, and it still has I would estimate 75% tread left after almost 10k miles. What you do to your interior is up to you and I understand that you want to have a nice looking ride, but some people have made a good point about tracking mud and whatnot back into your jeep. I would look into some thick heavy duty rubber floor mats that are ridged and have a lip on the edge to hold water and keep mud off your nice carpets, and also into keeping some old towels or something in the back to throw over your seat if you happen to get muddy or have to put something muddy back in your jeep. In other words, prevention will save you trouble trying to clean it up later.

One final thing, a jeep especially a lifted jeep rides like a jeep. With three inches of lift and any kind of mud tire, you will feel every bump in the road, it will bounce around all over the place, anything at all that is loose will rattle like crazy, you will be lucky not to have any vibrations...you will have body roll and all that jazz. In other words if you expect your lifted mud tire equipped jeep to ride like a caddy you will probably be sorely dissapointed. Mine is tolerable especially on a nice smooth highway, but if you hit a rough bumpy patch of road it will just about rattle your teeth. If you feel like you can live with all that, then by all means go for it, it sounds like you would have a pretty bad ass ride.

 

[PurpleCherokee]

What you're goin for isn't TOO far fetched. Especially w/12k to use I'd say go for the RE 3.5 super-ride kit w/whatever all-terrains ya want. Mud tires no matter what kind or how much people say you can't hear them hummin down the highway, are always loud on the road and vibrate quite a bit. People who say they're quite are just used to bias ply super swampers lol. But with a front and rear locker and 31's you'd be VERY suprised w/where your XJ'll go. Dynamat or whatever ya wanna use is a must for what you're goin for. Somethin else I'd recommend since ya got the money is Rancho 9000sx shocks w/the in-cab controller. It'll just allow you that much more flexibility when it comes to having good off-road ability and on-road manners. Other than that, there's not much you can do suspension wise to improve ride quality. However, for what it is (a very capable lifted jeep) it will ride wonderfully which is I think what you're goin for. The other thing is, just make sure everything's maintained well (all your bushings are in good shape and everything's greased). Also, consider weather-stripping all your doors. It can get some of the wind noise out. I dunno what you're gunna do w/the other 5k though lol. I'd say put it into the motor. For that amount you can have a stroked screamer that gets pretty good mileage.