School me on Jeeps

Skins_Brew · Sep 18, 2015

I use to have a 92 YJ 4 banger. That thing was so easy and simple to work on, it wasn't even funny. You could almost climb into the engine bay to work on things

I threw 31" mud tires on it, but never put a lift on. I use to take it off roading on a routine basis, and while I wasn't climbing boulders or anything, it held it's on. Most of the times I got stuck were my fault and lack of experience. Still fun as hell though.

Dieselfool · Sep 18, 2015

I know i'm missing lots here... feel free to add your own...

1. Lube anything aluminum on steel, early and often...

2 Use lots of Anti seize!

3. Change the lug nuts Immediately!

4. BUY LOTS OF TORX BITS

5. The top two bolts holding the trans to the engine are an external torx socket, NOT A 10MM,

6. DO NO PRESSURE WASH THE ENGINE! (if you use a hose, try to avoid sensors) the water with fry the TPS right quick!

7. 4.0's run almost forever, (unless you let your mom drive it, and she runs it low on oil, then it starts knocking, then banging, then runs like shit, then you take the motor apart to rebuild, until you notice a broken piston skirt, and a few severely scored main bearings and a trashed cam...so then you just get a motor on CL, then you sell the jeep.)

8. Motor mounts on early yj, and xj are garbage, and most should have been replaced from the factory...

9. RUST!, mostly the rear frame sections near the shackles but it's all cheap metal anymore so...

10. AX15 will most likely lock up 3rd gear when the synchos go out,

11. Trans swaps get easy after you do it several times...

12. You'll never find one cheap, why... because it a JEEP!

13. Just Empty Every Pocket

14.

Dieselfool · Sep 18, 2015

i'm not trying to scare you off, I love jeeps... but when you own jeeps, and you take care of them, these are the kind of things you deal with...

Boats · Sep 18, 2015

omegared24 said:
So you don't like how it looks...you didn't have to waste all that time just to say that.

The basic suspension setup is old school. If you need a lesson I'm happy to help. Jeeps had character until some progressive engineer tried to make them a lifted convertible. You want comfort then get an FJ Cruiser.

How is the addition of swaybars and trackbars, anti-lock brakes on the front, and throttle body injection, which is what happened between the CJ and YJ, "old school"?

On the YJ, some "progressive engineer" decided to widen the leaf springs and lower the ground clearance to enhance comfort. Yeah, super old school.

Hell, until the early 90s the YJ wasnt even made in the US, it was made in Canada.

If you need a lesson, I am more than happy to educate you. But I'm pretty sure I've built and owned more Jeeps than you have. Notice that I owned a YJ at one (brief) point:

1962 Willy's CJ-3A (sold)
1976 Jeep CJ-5 V8 (sold
1979 Jeep DJ-5G (sold, but I wish I still had it)
1993 Jeep YJ Renegade (sold, and Im glad)
2000 Jeep Cherokee XJ (gave to my brother)
2006 Jeep Liberty Sport (traded)
2006 Jeep LJ Rubicon (totalled)
2006 Jeep LJ Rubicon (Currently owned)
2009 Jeep JK Rubicon (Currently owned)

Dieselfool · Sep 18, 2015

I tried to change the brakes on my wifes 2008 Jeep Liberty a few weeks back... they have the cheap factory 2 piece lugs nuts, it's a 3/4 until the cap falls off. (the first time you touch them with a socket or lug wrench) then they become an 18MM,... well the wheels are aluminum, the studs are steel, and the lug nuts are cheap... that is the proper recipe for disaster... so after work I figured I would knock it out right quick... HA :lol2:

I started at 6PM, I finally got the wheel off a 10PM

the cheap caps fell off, the cheap nuts broke and stripped, so i'm stuck with 2 lugs that came off, 1 lug that broke off and 2 lugs that are stripped...

so I try knocking on a smaller socket, just twisted the nut,... then the air chisel, then tried a 6x6 block and maul hammer, then the wheel started to get messed up then i just gave up, beat the shit out of it, tried using a cut off wheel the split the nuts, then just wound up using a 1/2" drill and a hole saw to drill around the lugs... SO now I need a new wheel... wife's pissed, i'm furious, and sore as hell... :mad54:

Dieselfool · Sep 18, 2015

YAY JEEPS!! :rolleyes:

Boats · Sep 18, 2015

Dieselfool said:
1. Lube anything aluminum on steel, early and often...

2 Use lots of Anti seize!

3. Change the lug nuts Immediately!

4. BUY LOTS OF TORX BITS

5. The top two bolts holding the trans to the engine are an external torx socket, NOT A 10MM,

6. DO NO PRESSURE WASH THE ENGINE! (if you use a hose, try to avoid sensors) the water with fry the TPS right quick!

7. 4.0's run almost forever, (unless you let your mom drive it, and she runs it low on oil, then it starts knocking, then banging, then runs like shit, then you take the motor apart to rebuild, until you notice a broken piston skirt, and a few severely scored main bearings and a trashed cam...so then you just get a motor on CL, then you sell the jeep.)

8. Motor mounts on early yj, and xj are garbage, and most should have been replaced from the factory...

9. RUST!, mostly the rear frame sections near the shackles but it's all cheap metal anymore so...

10. AX15 will most likely lock up 3rd gear when the synchos go out,

11. Trans swaps get easy after you do it several times...

12. You'll never find one cheap, why... because it a JEEP!

13. Just Empty Every Pocket

14.

Solid points!

Penetrating Oil and a heatgun or MAPP torch will become your new best friend.

Everything is connected. When lifting it dont overlook trackbar angles, driveshaft lengths, bumpstop lengths and pinion angles. Bigger tires? watch out for wheel backspacing.

Doobie · Sep 18, 2015

Never owned a Wrangler but the wife and I each owned Grand Cherokees with 4.7 V8s. Mine was 2007, hers 2005. Engines ran smooth and strong. That being said, we had more problems with both of them than any other vehicle either of us have ever owned. Hers..manifold gaskets, egr, fan clutch, belt tensioner, universal joints in rear drive shaft(which by the way are NOT serviceable and the whole drive shaft must be replaced), water leaking inside during/after rain & snow, and the transmission went out. Had the trans replaced with an updated one from Chrysler and 11months/12,000 miles later it was going out. We service our vehicles every 3,000 miles and did not do any type of off roading or anything to neglect them. The 2007...leaked inside during/after rain or snow, transmission started giving me trouble. If I can help it, I will never own another Jeep. YMMV

thanatron · Sep 18, 2015

I bought my wife a 2015 Jeep Wrangler sport in August for her birthday.. she wanted the hard top since we have a 1 year old.

So far my biggest issue is every damn person that drives past you w/ a jeep waves at you.. I find this annoying. Other than that it is fun to drive and there is a lot of room.

Biggfoot44 · Sep 18, 2015

It really is a Jeep Thing, and lots of people really don't understand.

Real Jeeps are supposed to bounce, buck, whine and leak .

At the time the YJ was derrided as the "Yuppie Jeep" . Looking back now, it is 75 or 80% old school-ish by comparison. If the OP is looking to get into a Jeep-Jeep for comaparitive reasonable $ , then '91-'95 YJ is the way ( '88-'90 had 258 w/ electronic carbourator - lots of trouble). Jeeps are NOT (supposed to) be judged by drag racing ricers. With reasonable sized tires, the 4cyl will work fine on the sorta trails , and get you from point A to Point B on the road.

For the mild wheeling the OP describes 31-ish inch A/T tires , maybe shock upgrade will both : 1. Do what he wishes 2. Not start down the slippery slope of having to upgrade each part of drive train and suspension. ( And be suprisingly capable with a decent driver.)

CJ's are great. They are also more valuable/ expensive than the YJ's . Yes CJ's had available hard tops, but they are charitably , primative. The best of different worlds is a YJ hard top and doors mounted on a CJ ( yes, they fit ).

If you are flexable in your parameters , the XJ Cherokee is also very capable, and you can get into one for less than half of a YJ .

protegeV · Sep 18, 2015

thanatron said:
I bought my wife a 2015 Jeep Wrangler sport in August for her birthday.. she wanted the hard top since we have a 1 year old.

So far my biggest issue is every damn person that drives past you w/ a jeep waves at you.. I find this annoying. Other than that it is fun to drive and there is a lot of room.

Oh you're one of those huh?

Whenever I have a subie I wave at them too

Biggfoot44 · Sep 18, 2015

There is a hirearchy of whom is entitled to wave at whom. A 2015 would have to be covered in mud , with trail scars to recieve.

protegeV · Sep 18, 2015

Biggfoot44 said:
There is a hirearchy of whom is entitled to wave at whom. A 2015 would have to be covered in mud , with trail scars to recieve.

Oh god. Hierarchy of waving. ... :rolleyes:

USAFRavenR6 · Sep 18, 2015

I own a 2014 Rubicon, which I bought after driving an Audi for 5 years. I can honestly say that I will never be without my Jeep again. Nothing beats pulling the doors and taking the top down, it makes commuting to work enjoyable. The thing also off roads like a mother! I intend to lift it up 2.5 inches and get 35's under it as soon as my funds permit. I recomend getting a 4 door if you do get one, the space compared to a 2 door is night and day. Buy a Jeep, you will not regret it!

Antarctica · Sep 18, 2015

I've owned 5 jeeps. In order of purchase

86 CJ7 (bought in 1992)
2 CJ2A's
81 CJ7 w/305 and aTH350
82 CJ8 (bought in 1997?)

I sold the 86 three years ago, the 2A's and 81 several years after I had them back in the 90's, and I still have the CJ8.

I'll probably be buried in the CJ8. That said, I bought an older 4Runner two years ago for the 'creature comforts' and reliability.

Older jeeps are what they are - not perfect, but damn good vehicles when maintained and not abused. The straight 6 is a bulletproof motor when you value its torque and drive as such (ain't a race car so don't try to drive it like one). I religiously calculated mileage on the 86 and routinely got over 18mpg. I would avoid the 4cyl.

Don't know much about anything beyond the YJ's (hate them - square headlights are so ugly), but the TJ's suspension was a vast improvement. YJ's were basically CY's with some new sheet metal, and a nicer interior. I think they also got EFI, which is a vast improvement.

Rust can and will be a major problem if you don't address it and watch out for it.

I've run 31's on the 86 with no need to change gears, but have 33's on the 82 CJ8 and its a bit of a dog, but it also has a full length hard top on it.

If you can stand the look of the YJ, they can be had very cheap. CJ's have become more desirable over time. The best year for the CJ was 86 because most had a dana 44 rear installed.

The scrambler (CJ8) though, is the bomb...

Brent

Antarctica · Sep 18, 2015

Oh yeah - someone said CJ's only came with soft-tops - that is not correct.. Many came with hardtop's and doors. I would try to get a hardtop, because you can always add a soft-top cheaply later.

Brent

Dieselfool · Sep 18, 2015

It's funny, it's one of those things... i just can't quite grasp... jeepers are a special breed of people... we're all one in the same... but we're NOT!... there are echelons to this jeep thing... see.. there's old school jeepers... like the willys guys, then the die hard CJers split 5/7 ... the yj/tj group is a close one. the XJ guy's can't stand the ZJ/WJ guys... and everone's jeep is better than the other guys... don't get me started on the MOM jeeps,... like my wifes KK, POS, "but honey... it's trail rated"... my ass... then the 4 door luxed out cookie cutter bought "JEEP" ugh. Nice looking.. sure. comfy... sure... but I think the real JEEP is lost. I get that times change... but seriously... how many of these things will never see a rock or sand, or dirt in their entire lives. Just because you own a jeep don't make you a jeeper. cool you can take the top down, and you can take the doors off. congratulations... you're just another nobody... (with a JEEP) : :rolleyes:

and I only wave to jeep people that wave first, so I'm not "that guy"... just like i get it with some Cummins guys, and when we had the vette... my wife thinks it's stupid, says i have no life, and hates when I do... all in all... It's A JEEP thing... ROCK ON! :party29:

acwatkins · Sep 18, 2015

I love wranglers, but since its not my wallet id say get yourself a 2013 Grand Cherokee SRT8 . Hard to beat a jeep with 470hp :party29:

Boats · Sep 18, 2015

thanatron said:
So far my biggest issue is every damn person that drives past you w/ a jeep waves at you.. I find this annoying. Other than that it is fun to drive and there is a lot of room.

Please tell me you're joking. Don't be one of "those" Jeep owners. Wave back. What does it hurt?

The Jeep wave is a time honored tradition that simply means "I know how you feel, the lousy handling, the bad gas mileage, the questionable transmissions, the leaks, the sqeaks, the rattles, the unbridled awesome of pulling the roof off on a nice day and having 10 million mile of head room"

If it bothers you that much, buy a Suburban or an Explorer, ya yuppie. :mad54:

Boats · Sep 18, 2015

Dieselfool said:
It's funny, it's one of those things... i just can't quite grasp... jeepers are a special breed of people... we're all one in the same... but we're NOT!... there are echelons to this jeep thing... see.. there's old school jeepers... like the willys guys, then the die hard CJers split 5/7 ... the yj/tj group is a close one. the XJ guy's can't stand the ZJ/WJ guys... and everone's jeep is better than the other guys... don't get me started on the MOM jeeps,... like my wifes KK, POS, "but honey... it's trail rated"... my ass... then the 4 door luxed out cookie cutter bought "JEEP" ugh. Nice looking.. sure. comfy... sure... but I think the real JEEP is lost. I get that times change... but seriously... how many of these things will never see a rock or sand, or dirt in their entire lives. Just because you own a jeep don't make you a jeeper. cool you can take the top down, and you can take the doors off. congratulations... you're just another nobody... (with a JEEP) : and I only wave to jeep people that wave first, so I'm not "that guy"... just like i get it with some Cummins guys, and when we had the vette... my wife thinks it's stupid, says i have no life, and hates when I do... all in all... It's A JEEP thing... ROCK ON!

A little pretentious but I agree. Hell, I dislike YJs but I still wave to em. I also wave to XJs and FSJs, prob one of the only Wrangler guys who does (basically the solid axle ones). I dont really subscribe to the "echelon" of who initiates the wave, thats some elitist ********. I see a Jeep, I wave, even though mine is usually the more built of the two. I have noticed that the 4-door JKs are the worst at returning the wave.

That being said, I don't wave at Libertys, Compasses, New Cherokees, Grand Cherokees, or Patriots. I gotta draw the line somewhere.

acwatkins said:
I love wranglers, but since its not my wallet id say get yourself a 2013 Grand Cherokee SRT8 . Hard to beat a jeep with 470hp

Sure it is, just wait for it to break down. Everyone, without exception, that I know with a Grand Cherokee has had problems with it.

Biggfoot44 said:
For the mild wheeling the OP describes 31-ish inch A/T tires , maybe shock upgrade will both : 1. Do what he wishes 2. Not start down the slippery slope of having to upgrade each part of drive train and suspension. ( And be suprisingly capable with a decent driver.)

CJ's are great. They are also more valuable/ expensive than the YJ's . Yes CJ's had available hard tops, but they are charitably , primative. The best of different worlds is a YJ hard top and doors mounted on a CJ ( yes, they fit ).

If you are flexable in your parameters , the XJ Cherokee is also very capable, and you can get into one for less than half of a YJ .

Yeah, he should only need an inch or two of lift. Some new leaf shackles and maybe shocks will fit 31s easy.

Agree, a YJ will be much cheaper than a CJ or TJ.

XJs are awesome. Couldn't agree more.

School me on Jeeps

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