by "450X_FTW" (mistermic)
Published 08/04/2017 at 12:44
by "450X_FTW" (mistermic)
Published 08/04/2017 at 12:44
No Tags
STARS: 4
Back in May my wife and I talked about buying a YJ (1987-1995 Wrangler) as a our weekend toy and project vehicle. Requirements were it had to be a 4.0L and had to be a 5 speed. We were lucky enough to find a 1994 with only 63,000 miles on it and for $5,000. Being this is a 23 year old Michigan jeep, the amount of corrosion build up on the underside was way beyond what I was prepared for. BUT, it ran great, drove great, didn’t leak fluids, which for me was the important part and everything after that is cosmetic.
As purchased
First thing right off the bat was lift kit. Went with a Rough Country 2.5" which came with new leaf springs and shocks for just over $500. The most important lesson I learned when doing this lift kit is ANY nut or bolt that you plan to remove on the underside of a 23 year old Michigan Jeep, plan on replacing it. My cutoff wheel put in a lot of hours removing the original hardware.
The more we went through the more we had to replace. Was able to sell the hard top and upper doors for $700, plus the original wheels and tires for $200, which helped a lot. Depending on how it handles the larger tires, an axle swap may be in order with a 4.10 gear ratio, which I’ve found locally for only $250.
And the end result? Yeah I’m damn happy.
Also for those that don’t like seeing JK wheels on a YJ:
"Wacko" (wacko--)
08/04/2017 at 12:55, STARS: 1
My friends with YJs all went SOA
needs longer pitman arm, and lowering the transfer case. But they all went with 35s
"450X_FTW" (mistermic)
08/04/2017 at 12:58, STARS: 1
I did look into that at first, but looked like a lot more work and time than I had available.
"Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero" (sampsonite24)
08/04/2017 at 13:05, STARS: 1
i love the discoverer ATPs, ive had them for about 2 years now on my explorer and they havent let me down yet
"Wacko" (wacko--)
08/04/2017 at 13:06, STARS: 1
I miss my 97TJ, it didn’t fit the my family anymore
both were mine for 2 weeks, had the white 97 with the 2.5 on 31s and a hockey puck body lift boy was it slow
then replaced it with the black 97 sahara with a 4 inch lift riding on 35s.
4 seat belts with 3 kids.... the black 97 was my dream jeep when they were new. Too poor back then to own a new car.
"450X_FTW" (mistermic)
08/04/2017 at 13:15, STARS: 1
Have not used them yet, but hoping to give the YJ a proper mud baptizing soon
"450X_FTW" (mistermic)
08/04/2017 at 13:16, STARS: 0
I was trying to convince her to go with TJ, but she was partial to the square headlights as she had YJ in high school
"Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero" (sampsonite24)
08/04/2017 at 13:17, STARS: 1
haha havent taken the explorer mudding but in snow and dirt/gravel they work extremely well
"Wacko" (wacko--)
08/04/2017 at 13:19, STARS: 1
when i was a kid my dad had a CJ renegade. then the YJs came out...
the TJs came out when I was 16-17 and fell in love with the Black Sahara the dealer had. wanted one ever since....
"450X_FTW" (mistermic)
08/04/2017 at 13:24, STARS: 0
CJ was another one I loved, just that body style was so old school, plus they sold them with a V8. Downside was a 3 spd transmission that doesn’t like over 60 mph on the freeway
"Nothing" (nothingatalluseful)
08/04/2017 at 13:38, STARS: 1
I really like that, it looks great. I’ve thought a Jeep would also be a fun vehicle to mess around with. I’m just not willing to part with the Cougar to do so.
"450X_FTW" (mistermic)
08/04/2017 at 14:16, STARS: 0
What’s nice is there are a ton of spare parts out there, people parting out jeeps to make into their own dedicated off road vehicles makes it nice for spares