JulioCesar
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Venezuela
I live in Venezuela and many people prefer toyota because the cherokee doesn´t have shassis, and the frame is not strong, what are the limits of the frame?? what could someone do to fix this problem??
sleeve the frame railsJulioCesar said:I live in Venezuela and many people prefer toyota because the cherokee doesn´t have shassis, and the frame is not strong, what are the limits of the frame?? what could someone do to fix this problem??
shimmy said:sleeve the frame rails
brandon
PS, do a search before ya post... many of these issues have been covered
RedBluffBoy said:Buy a Toyota?
You sure do ask some hokie questions.
Does a good set of rock rails help with frame rigidness, or are they just for protection? The ones I have attach to the pinch seam and the frame rail, so it seems it would add SOME stiffness.Goatman said:It's best to add some stiffeners to the rig right away if you're doing a build up. I ran mine without any stiffeners for about six years of very hard use with no signs of cracking. But, when the cracks did start to happen I got all kinds of them. It's much easier to do some reinforcing up front than it is to weld up cracks, repaint, and then also add reinforcement.
BillR said:Does a good set of rock rails help with frame rigidness, or are they just for protection? The ones I have attach to the pinch seam and the frame rail, so it seems it would add SOME stiffness.
Goatman said:Damn, guys, give him a break. He's asking a very legitimate question. I hate the "do a search" reply. This isn't a bad topic to cover now and then. What, is there some rule that if something has been discussed a few times it has no right to be discussed again?
Goatman said:Damn, guys, give him a break. He's asking a very legitimate question. I hate the "do a search" reply. This isn't a bad topic to cover now and then. What, is there some rule that if something has been discussed a few times it has no right to be discussed again?
Like Bender said, a unibody is usually stiffer than a framed vehicle, especially the older C channel frames. The XJ does have a few weak points where cracking will occur over a good period of time of hard use. The first thing is to try and have a flexy suspension so most of the articulation is absorbed by the suspension rather than the frame. This includes control arms with flexible joints, like Johnny Joints or heim joints, and not poly bushings. It also helps to not wheel with the front sway bar hooked up, which transfers twisting force to the frame when it is hooked up.
It seems that stiffening between the front and rear suspension points is a good thing. You can sleeve the frame rails, or box in next to the frame rails running from the leaf spring hanger to the lower control arm mount. You can also get the frame stiffeners from T&J Performance. The ultimate way to stiffen the body is by installing a cage, but not everyone has the capability to do that. There are more pre-fab cages on the market now, including a nice one from T&J.
It's best to add some stiffeners to the rig right away if you're doing a build up. I ran mine without any stiffeners for about six years of very hard use with no signs of cracking. But, when the cracks did start to happen I got all kinds of them. It's much easier to do some reinforcing up front than it is to weld up cracks, repaint, and then also add reinforcement.
If you're curious, here's a list of all the places I've had cracks. At the top of the front crossmember on both sides where it attaches to the top of the frame. Around the steering box, outside, top, and bottom of the frame. About 4" back on the frame from the track bar mount, where the frame begins to flare wider....V shaped crack from the bottom up both inside and outside. At the top of the front frame section where it meets the firewall. On the A pillar just above the upper door hinge...both sides. On the A pillar about 4" up from the bottom of the windshield. At the top of the A pillar, almost all the way around from the drip rail to the inside lip.....both sides, multiple times. On the floor under the back seat in multiple places. Between the mounting holes for the rear bumper on the rear crossmember. I've also seen the latch plate on the bottom of the rear hatch rip out of a couple of rigs. I cut out some simple strips of sheetmetal, bent it to form next to the plate, and riveted them in on both sides, and never had a problem.
Frame cracking, and ripping steering boxes off the frame, occures in nearly all framed vehicles as well. Hard use causes metal fatigue no matter what you're driving.
Bender said:A unibody chassis is actually a lott stiffer and quite a bit lighter than any framed vehicle.
xj_punk said:sorry it just bugs me when people use this example.
a complete unibody is a lot stronger when it comes to twisting than any old style channel frame.
but, are you trying to tell me that the same channel frame is weaker when you bolt the body to it? lets just use an old chebby truck as an example, back when the sheetmetal was thick. an old beefy truck like that is like a unibody with a frame bolted to it imo.
basically what i am trying to say is that the xj unibody is stronger than some frames, but not complete body+frames.
p.s. how can there be limits for something that doesn't exist?????? :laugh3:
That's what I would tell you.xj_punk said:sorry it just bugs me when people use this example.
a complete unibody is a lot stronger when it comes to twisting than any old style channel frame.
but, are you trying to tell me that the same channel frame is weaker when you bolt the body to it?