Seat of the Pants Opinion

[Harvo]

I have wheeled a CJ for years and loved it. I have owned an XJ for years and now I get to wheel it (Thanks to a new addition to the family). I'm about to lift it 5.5 inches, mount 33's, change gears and get an explorer 8.8 and so forth. I am ready to make it more trail worthy and reliable, but I wanted to ask this question of the experienced XJ drivers.

I know all the mods make the XJ awesome offroad, but do you still enjoy driving your XJ? Is it still fun to drive every day and to the trails and on the trails fast or slow?

I bought an old 4 runner a year ago and built it to the hilt because I thought they were cool. I sold it a month ago because I hated it. I enjoy driving the XJ now... and I hope I'll enjoy it after the build... but I would like to hear from the forum crowd. Still enjoyable? or do you just put up with it because you sank so much cash into it?

Thanks!

 

[Kejtar]

If it wasn't for the cost of gas I would have kept it as a DD (60 miles to work kind of hits you in the pocket). Anyways I still drive my XJ as much as I can and given the choice I prefer driving it over the civic hybrid that's doing the DD duty.

If you do your lift right you can keep it as a DD which still will be enjoyable to drive around town and the ride shouldn't be any harsher then when it was stock.

 

[Rough 01]

I've put on 4.5" RE Superflex with OME shocks and 31" MT's. My only complaint is that I will not be putting on MT's for the next tire. I don't use it enough off road and it's my daily driver. I will put on 31 BFG AT's (I had 30" on before the lift) as my next set.

I love driving it every day but the MT's are just too noisy at 70mph (er, I mean 55) on the freeway.

Later,
Rough

 

[Eagle]

I bought an MJ (Comanche) with a lift and I hated it. Broke down the corner of the seat getting in and out, "ride quality" was an oxymoron. I took the lift out a couple of months back, and after I put it back on the road at stock height I wished I had not waited 4 years to do it.

Got an '86 XJ 4-banger to use for a dedicated trail rig. I come from a sports car background, and for me the compromises you have to accept using a trail rig for a daily driver are not acceptable. I can live with a trail rig to drive 2 miles to the corner store for a lottery ticket, but that's about as far as it was "comfortable."

YMMV

 

[xjaddiction]

I've had mine for almost 5 years (lifted the entire time) and love it. I daily drove it with my daughters to school and work for 4 years ( I daily drive a Baby Grand Cherokee now because I need more room). For 2 years I drove it with 7+ inches of lift and 35's. I would often beat the thing on some dificult trails (like stagecoach in Montegle TN.), drive it home at 70 mph on the interstate, and get up and drive it to work the next morning. I still love driving it. I can tow a boat, my 16 foot trailer, horse trailers, you name it. On the interstate it's smooth, and still fast.

They key to keeping a daily driven off-road beast is;

Pick coils with good spring rates like Tereflex or RE. and leaf springs to match (I've got Rusty's)

go with long arms or RE drop brackets to get rid of DW and rid yourself of the jarring lifted ride of short arms alone.

Get all adj CA's and adj. Trac-bar

Gearing is very important for a dd, I run 4:56's with an auto and the 4.0L and 35's

Rancho adj. shocks work very well

I also think that the Warn hub kit is worth the bucks, as you can disconnect the front driveline. This gets rid of vibs from high angle front drive-line, and reduces wear. You will also get a few more MPG

Steering is VERY IMPORTANT. switch to something heavy duty like Curries set-up (I'm using).

I would also get rid of the rear drum brakes and go with discs.

Tire choice is very important as well. BFG AT KO's are great for dual purpose except mud, they will get you into trouble there. I'm using Trxus MT's which at 30,000 miles still have a bunch of tread and are quiet for a Mud Tire.

You'll need some good rocker protection and under skid plating to protect the things that will get you home and to work the next day,


That's what has kept the XJ a joy to drive for me. I absolutely love the thing. I've had alot of cars and trucks (including 4x4's) over the years. I never kept anything over 2 to 2.5 years as boredom set-in. The XJ continually amazes me, and will be with me for a long time. If I ever wreck this one, I'll do it again.


Spend the money to do it right for a dd.

Greddy

 

[Harvo]

Geddy... I assume you are in the southeast if you ride at Monteagle? We may have ridden with you before. You ever heard of axletwisters.com?

Anyway... thanks for the advice. I plan on using the RE 5.5 kit with the drops. The sye and CV shaft and an 8.8... all of which hopefully will keep it riding decent on the road.

 

[redyouch]

it is not enjoyable. driving my dads auto ford ranger is more enjoyable. the jeep bangs around, is slow, always have to shift, handles badly. it realy depends on what you like

 

[old_man]

I loved driving my XJ as a DD, but I got frustrated because I had to work every mod around getting to work 5 days a week. It is so much nicer to not have to get it back together if something isn't working right. I really miss not driving it everyday now.

 

[xj92]

My last truck I had I built it to be good for the trails with total disregard to street manners and then sold it cause I hated driving it after a while. Half of the mods on my Jeep now are to make it ride nicer and half are for the trail. I've personally found that the shocks (Rancho 9000's), the control arm angles (less than 3.5" on short arms), and the chassis stiffness gave the biggest difference in the feel of the vehicle for me. Heavy duty bumpers made it ride nicer too, I'm guessing because of the additional weight on the same springs? Mine has a 3.5" lift on short arms right now with 33's, 4.10's, and a 5-speed. I love driving it.

 

[junkxj]

In my opinion. Any hobby gets to the point where it can't be your ride to work. I drove my jeep for a while every day. Fun and all, but then it gets old. You have to work on it alot to keep it on the road every day, and that takes alot of time. Plus, wheeling hard, only to think about having to get to work the next day takes away from the fun for me. I would suggest if you want to have a really good time, then buy a good dd. I thought for a long time I could wheel a xj ,locked with long arms and 35's and still drive it every day. It can be done, butt stuff breaks, and it is very stressfull to find out when you have to be some where in 5 minutes.