Now that all the toys are winterized and ready for winter it's time to get back on the build.. I sandblasted a ZJ transfer case skid plate and coated it with three coats of all weather epoxy..I installed it using the original attachment holes... It fit like it belonged there..Nice and level with the crossmember and much better than the original XJ piece.......

 

Did you get that from the salvage yard ??? Looks better than factory!!!!!!!

 

Yes, there were actually 2 at the local pick and pull but the first one had a nutsert break free and I couldn't get it off without too much of a damage report.. So I passed on it with ONE bolt holding it... Someone with a metal blade will have an easy pick on that one.. Keep in mind I did sandblast this one and coat it to get it looking that good...

 

The ZJ transfer case skid is far and away the best option if you have a 242 transfer case. Finding a junkyard Jeep with the skid plate package is hard enough. Finding one with both the skid plates and the Selec-Trac system? It's almost impossible. Even if you had an XJ 242 skid, the ZJ one provides better protection anyways. I didn't even have to remove mine at the JY. Someone had thrown it in the back of the ZJ they pulled it off. I took it over to an XJ, slapped it under there to check the fit, and paid a whopping $15 for it.

Fantastic work you're doing.

 

Thanks.. Yes there's no comparison to the XJ pieces...
More items going on the Jeep for the last time... I ended up coating the side rock guards with Raptor liner...Now there's a nice, non slip coating on there.. Some of my other projects were simply powder coated and it was real easy to slip off the bar if used as a step..We'll see how this holds up...Anyhow IMO it looks great ...Here's the final install pics....

 

Wow excellent work! I like how you started with a mint condition vehicle and followed suit with every mod. All super clean and followed through to perfection.

 

I just read your build, it took a few days. Man your attention to detail and engineering to make things right, makes this one of the best builds I have ever seen. Unfortunately for me, I have a '96 and I can't use a lot of your ideas for modification but it gives me ideas. Do you have any mods planned for the engine? Stroker?
I didn't see your spare tire mount. Did you use the stock tire or go with the larger one to match the other 4? I was able to fit a 33" spare in the stock location. This was only possible by cutting away a portion of the plastic on the rear hatch and unlatching the rear seat on that side. The seat is a little crooked by no one really sits back there except for the dog.
I live in AZ and the engine temps as we all know get extremely hot. When I was a kid I had a VW Bug and we installed a full flow oil pump that ran to an external finned oil cooler. It sure kept the temps down. I plan on running one of these on my XJ. I also installed a new exhaust manifold and had it Jet Hot coated to help with engine bay temps. I wonder if your thermal battery cover would help here in AZ. I am guessing it would dry rot before I noticed it working.
Great job overall! I hope to see more from you!

 

Just like the last few posters, i recently read through this entire thread. Amazing job! Sub'd for more updates.

 

Hey Guys I appreciate the kind words and I'm glad to give some inspiration with your projects... As you can tell I enjoy building vehicles and it's much more fun when I'm not in a rush to get the project back on the road...
I've been going over all kinds of spare tire carriers... I do have the fifth HELO wheel and the Mickey Thompson MTZ P3 33x12.50 just as the other 4.. I REALLY would have liked a Detours backbone carrier so I could somewhat keep the factory bumper intact... I actually spoke with him on the phone a while back and he was more interested in buying my XJ than helping me..LOL.. But he was very nice and up front about his situation with not making more items to sell...
If this was strictly an offroad rig you'd already see a JCR front and rear bumper and tire carrier on there but for now it's just my winter weather/light offroading vehicle with no need for that style bumper on it...
That leads me to where I'm at with the thinking process...I don't really want it in the back taking up valuable space inside.... The "easy" way out for me would be to build a hitch receiver style rear tire carrier...I've actually got a new rear axle laying around to use as the spare's fastening hub{all 5 lugs and a lock so it doesn't vanish from the rear of the vehicle}.. I'd probably reinforce the upright inside with that size tire back there.. But I really haven't seen much feedback on the longevity of that style carrier...To me it seems to get the job done but it's not as robust as other style carriers...Any thoughts about this style carrier would be appreciated...



With only 67,000 original miles on the clock I'm probably going to run it basically stock for a while and see how happy I am with it..{although I do enjoy reading the supercharged 4.0 threads}..
I've had exhaust parts JET HOT coated and it's a great coating not just for appearance but keeping the temps down as well..Now there's even heat reflective coatings for the piston tops and combustion chamber to keep the heat moving out the exhaust to enhance the header coatings... So many avenues to take with each upgrade for sure...
It's funny you mentioned an old VW engine for the oil cooler I built an airboat years ago with a VW engine and a remote oil cooler as well....The biggest issue for any engine's external oil cooler is making sure the new lines and cooler don't have too much restriction and you'll strain the oil pump into an early death..I'm right at the limit with my oil cooler line length on my current airboat with straining the system... There's a fine line between extra engine oil cooling and overtaxing the system on certain engines and their applications..
I bet the Arizona heat really puts a strain on the XJs cooling system in the summer.. It seems to be one of the biggest issues with the XJ.. I probably go for a newer style jute mat battery cover than the plastic "bubble wrap" style originally on the XJ.. One option, Like I said before, my new Ram truck has the battery thermal cover as a jute style cover I bet that would fit right on an XJ battery and would get the job done in the AZ heat..
And speaking of heat reduction...
I was looking at the Omix Ada formed hood insulation and it magically tripled in price since I was investigating them... ...I got a chance to see one in person and it's so darn thin, almost like a felt style material...As you know by now the price doesn't phase me much .. Like the old saying if you want to play you've gotta pay...lol.. But it just seemed like a rip off for what you actually got..So I ended up going with REMs offering for the XJ.. It's NOT a formed insulation but it is 1/2 inch thick fiberglass and precut... And holes punched with all the attaching hardware...REM's factory is very close to me but they don't sell to the public...So the liner went for a ride at my expense to get to me...Here's what it looks like..They're all ugly to me but it's better than nothing..

 

The hitch style tire carrier is great for mild wheeling. Two downfalls: It sticks out of your hitch a bit so it will scrape on departure angles. #2, You have to pull the pin and hinge it up and down to access the rear hatch. Mine was fabbed from heavy duty steel and is extra beefy for offroading. I dont' hear it while driving and it doesn't give me any problems. It has held up well off-roading with some scrapes on the bottom of the hitch. The one above does allow for another trailer hitch to slide in it. I just bought a new rear bumper that eliminates the stock trailer hitch so the tire carrier will be about 3-4 inches higher, but I haven't been able to get it on the jeep yet. With the price and weight of most of the swing out tire carriers on the market this is your best option. I mean even the Rigid tire swing out that goes into the hitch is like $1K or more. JCR, if you add all the pieces together and get it powder coated black, its close to $2K.

P.S. I am the owner of the silver jeep above @jeepinpete on instagram.

 

Thanks for giving me an update on your tire carrier Pete !! ... I was hoping for a real world review and that's the best possible outcome with a review of the actual carrier I posted...I never thought that would happen...LOL... That's a beautiful XJ...Well balanced with all the upgrades..Great Job !! Your XJ and carrier stuck in my mind and I've had pics of your ride for a while now...
So it's a receiver hitch tire carrier for my build...

 

Installed the Orvis rear spoiler... The rear back up camera ended up with the third brake light in the center of the spoiler.. I needed it high and centered considering the rear tire carrier will cover anything down low...I also installed the last few decals in the rear hatch/upper quarter panel areas to finish off the graphics...

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Looks like it's all coming together! I can definitely see your "vision" of what you're working towards now, which is cool. Are you looking to get this thing on the road this coming new year?

 

Yes.. Technically it's ready for the road now mechanically... But I have a few things I want to get done before I hit the road with it.. I want everything to be done with no loose ends to finish up... Mostly wiring the circuits/accessories for the switch panel and new relays.. Then some road test time if the weather cooperates...... I'm getting ready to submit for a custom license plate...Still trying to come up with a good one for on it...It may just get a "pass" on this winter's duty and stay clean to hit a few shows with it next year with the way it seems to be turning out...

 

Well, I'm all about showing the fun stuff and occasionally the not so fun stuff...lol... As I was going over {and over} the suspension for proper angles, torques, etc... I had my wife run the steering from lock to lock.. I had her stop when she ran it to the passenger side and as it got close to the stop.. I noticed the sway bar quick disconnect link pin got hit by the steering... It slightly bent the pin and initially I thought the pin was hanging down past center...As it turned out the ZJ steering set-up came VERY close to the passenger side sway bar link mount on the front spring perch...Here's a pic showing the ZJ drag link and the quick disconnect pin before it slid down into harms way... Bringing the bigger picture of the problem into play...


As the steering gets turned to the passenger side it also gets closer to the axle which makes things worse... Now, I'm pretty good at reading up on things and try to avoid any potential problems but this one caught me by surprise...And a quick site search revealed this to be a common problem when the lift goes above 4 inches...Wow I'm not sure how I didn't run into this before it bit me considering all the info I've come across on here...
It was close enough that I first thought about simply grinding the bottom of the mount to clear the drag link...But I didn't like how it would still end up so close to each other...Not to mention what the steering geometry does when one tire gets stuffed in the fender ...So I solved the problem by getting Zone's sway bar mount relocation kit.. This kit raises the mount up and out of any potential problems ....

You cut the original mount off at the spring perch and weld this new {and higher} mount on.. Then weld in the reinforcement the whole length of the mount...So it's a done deal and I'm out of trouble with plenty of room between the components now.. So that was my side track for the week...lol.. But it wasn't too bad ...