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Life expectancy of XJ unibody?

S

stephenspann27

NAXJA Forum User
Location
College Station, Tx
My '87 XJ with 270k has no kind of bracing.. and I'm getting some new pops and creaks when wheeling.

I'm looking for some info on how important bracing and trussing is, and what to look for to know if your frame is in danger of "taco'ing"

I know doors not closing correctly is a sign. I also have some cracks near my hatch hinges and under my gutter just above my doors..

My never wheeled '86 s-10 Blazer had cracks in the same place..

I know its hard to guess how long a unibody will last, because it depends on how much you wheel, how hard you wheel, and what your XJ has been through.

I guess what would be helpful is some stories about how long your XJ's have lasted through different amounts of wheeling..
 
mine is completely destroyed, bracing is extremely important. most of the spot welds around the hatch have pulled out, there are places around the rear fenderwells that have completely torn the sheet metal in half. i beat hard on mine though. :D
 
even for a mild wheeler things like a steering box brace and brackets like JCR's bumper tie in brackets will help quite a bit.
 
stephenspann27 said:
FJ cruisers apparently have some major crack/tearing issues even though they have a frame..
http://www.fjcruiserforums.com/forums/problems-dealer-service/33440-engine-bay-body-rips.html
Click to expand...

wheeling the way most of us do, its probable that any factory frame set up will need re-inforcing, unless you start out with a one ton frame. That'll probably do, we just started out with the ones needing more re-inforcing than most. My next build will certainly not be an xj.
 
stephenspann27 said:
Yea.. I think I'm going to keep my XJ more DD oriented... with only accasional wheeling.. and if I get more hard core into wheeling get a TJ..
Click to expand...

stephenspann27 said:
Do the ZJ's or WJ's hold up any better? What about SJ (Grand Waggy) ?

Wonder how the Commanders will hold up..
Click to expand...

is that some kind of troll?

any and all stock production vehicles are designed for just that, driving down a road. all vehicles will need to be modified for hardcore offroading.

the idea that a vehicle is godly, just because it has a frame is laughable. go look at the frames on old ford trucks, or even a newer ranger edge.

pull off the pink panties, and dig in, youve got work to do.
if you're building an all-out rig, youve got a lot of work to do. if youre building an occasional dd'able weekend warrior, forget the cracks and go have fun. you're kids wont fall out of the cracks untill they get real bad.
turn up the radio if you dont like hearing it.
 
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