suspension swap 2001 xj to a FREE 1998

[sartor]

Hi all,
I've been driving my 2001 with a 4 1/2 Rubicon lift for some time now, and have been considering a suspension swap to a cherokee with fewer miles.
Here are the stats:

Mine:
2001
4 door
automatic transmission
automatic locks/windows
180,000 miles
4x4 used lots. Lift installed at about 60,000K
body condition = poor
interior condition = so-so

His (I haven't seen the vehicle in person)
1998
4 door
automatic transmission
MANUAL locks/windows
150,000 miles
4x4 RARELY used
body condition = reportedly quite good
interior condition = showing signs of wear


I've got the Rubicon 4 1/2 lift, short arm, though not sure what the other details of my lift are. SYE yes, fairly new rear driveshaft, brand new front drive shaft, and many new other suspension parts installed.

The kicker is that my friend was going to donate his Cherokee to an organization and buy a newer vehicle (sadly, not a Jeep. ). He said that if I want the jeep he would just give it to me, and the only string attached would be to make a donation to the charity of his choice. A close friend, and a very generous friend.

I am mechanically inclined and have done work on my cars in past years, but I may be lacking in some of the tools needed, but I'd like to save $$ and do the swap on my own with a another friend that has tools.

Can anyone shed some light on doing such a suspension swap?
Of course I'd like a jeep with fewer miles than 150,000, but since this jeep would be of minimal upfront cost, I have to at least consider it.

Ideas?

 

[the_midwesterner]

Do you have any specific questions about the swap? Also, what all are you wanting to actually swap? The lift and arms are pretty straight forward, just takes time, space, regular set of tools, and an extra couple hands helps. Drive shafts are straight forward, but the SYE might get hairy. You can either swap the whole t case, if it's the same or venture into actually swapping it from one Tcase to the other.

 

[sartor]

actually, any and all information is welcome.

The mileage thing has me questioning whether its the right jeep to swap stuff over to. Maybe should wait for a lower mileage vehicle to come along. I dunno. Just thinking out loud. Clean body, nicer interior, manual windows/locks - is that really enough for me to go to all the trouble to transfer things over? Likely will eventually have to do some of the same projects I've done to my current jeep, ie HVAC behind-the-dash replacement. Yeehaw!


As to what would be transferred over, I'm thinking the following:

rear spring pack and any other related rear suspension lift hardware
front springs and any other related lift hardware

driveshafts
SYE
shocks
lift arms
sway bar and disconnect components
Not sure what else. I haven't done all the homework quite yet, but this post and answers will likely help clarify.

 

[Kittrell]

Of course I'd like a jeep with fewer miles than 150,000......

Think long and hard about this. If the mileage is enough to make you stop and think now, you absolutely will not be happy with it down the road. Wait until what you really want comes along before you spend the time and energy swapping parts to something else.

 

[831_xj]

Lol 150k is barely broken in...

 

[josh9mile]

honestly i think it would be a waste of time to swap it. 180k is not high miles, especially when its only 30k differenve in miles between the 2. my cherokee has a 1/4 million miles and my brothers has close to 350k on it, both still rocking original engines and trannys.

 

[donthelegend]

Not worth swapping to drop 30K miles off the drivetrain.

But it may be worth swapping for a combination of the following reasons, you'll have to decide for yourself:
-HP D30 (assuming you didn't swap one into your '01)
-Get rid of the 0331 head which may or may not fail
-Manual locks/windows don't have electrical issues
-Better condition body (this is really the single biggest factor. You can fix or swap everything else around to end up with what you want, but at the end of the day, the body is what it is... choose whichever is best for you and build around that)


As noted, 150K vs 180K... no real difference and would be basically a non-issue for me if I were in your situation.