Chop Top using ZJ hatch?

So, I have been planning to chop my XJ for about a year. I have the frame stiffeners ready to go in, plus a cage getting made.

I can't seem to find a suitable rear hatch, though.

The one that I have is fiber glass, and the 97-01 are steel. I just can't seem to locate one that has the glass intact for cheap. I found a couple around here, but they want upwards of $350.

The question is, how close would a Grand Cherokee hatch be to an XJ?

There are a couple of red ZJ's in the JY here and they only want $40 for one. And all of the glass is intact. Plus, the one I am looking at, has the glass being able to be opened, also. I don't know if all ZJ's came that way, but I would like to retain something that can still open.

I would search different forums, but :: is the only one that isn't blocked right now.

Thanks for the help

i have the front half of a zj in the yard and it looks like it has more curvature on the sides than the xj. i measured the width of the roof behind the front doors (all that's left) and it was aout 51", similar to the xj. however the width near the bottom of the door windows was about 63", so about 2 inches wider than the xj. i do not know if the zj gets narrower or wider towards the rear, but i assume it might be close to that. I personally don't think the body lines are close enough to make it work without some heavy fab work. as for the rear window, will the glass from your fiberglass hatch work in the metal hatch from a newer xj?

I can do body work. As long as the it is with a couple of inches or so. I know the ZJ hatch is a little more rounded, but not enough to bother me.

As for the glass, no, I can't. 84-96 use a gasket type to hold the glass in. The 97-01 use glue, just like the front windshied. I could try to find a way to make a bracket to hold a 96- into the 97+ hatch, but then I would have to worry about sealing issues and would just like to find one with it installed already.

EDIT: I have seen one done. It was a 96-, just like mine. And he had a ZJ hatch on it. In the pictures, it was primer gray/bluish. But, I can't seem to find it now.

you should be ok then. wider is probably better than too narrow anyways... you can always cut a sliver out, bend the side in an inch and reweld. easier than adding metal.

Why not use the hatch you have? Check out Cal's jeep for how it looks

souske said:

Why not use the hatch you have? Check out Cal's jeep for how it looks

Click to expand...

the expansion rate of fiberglass and metal are different enough where it typically leads to cracking. usually lasts a little while then the spiderweb cracks begin...
not saying it cant be done, but that's my experience as well as others.

I would rather have an all metal hatch to weld to. I wouldn't want to just do a bunch of filler where the welds should be. I don't think it would be as stong either.

I have a metal hatch with good glass if you can find a way to get it to you without shipping. $30 - It's dark blue and has the usual paint cracking under the bottom handle. It's also slightly bowed in by the wiper motor. It's posted in the Intermountain for sale section.

i don't see why you wouldn't be able to use a zj hatch to graft in. if it's too big just cut it until it fits, then add some plates to weld it to the body.

only way i can see it not working is if the glass itself is too large and you wouldn't have enough metal left. but i don't believe the zj's are that much wider than the an xj.

if you can find one cheap i'd say go for it and make it work. you may need to cut more of the body out so you can make the lines somewhat flow.

I saw the one you have for sale, but I have no way to get it out here or else I would.

Like is said, I have no problem doing body work, but within reason. If it is going to cause me to pretty much butcher the hatch and pretty much be a custom job then I'll find another way.

Like I said, I know there is someone on here that has done it, I just can't find it.

looking at pictures of zj rear hatches i don't think you'll have to hack much out of it to make it fit. it looks like the body lines will just be off, which you said wasn't a big deal for you.

i think you can just trim up some of the side of the body and maybe the bottom of the hatch and angle it in unless you want the steeper angle back.

here's a link to how i grafted in a hatch from a 97+ xj. i know it's not the same but i think the size is, just not the body lines. you'll want to check out pages 4 and 5

possible hatch grafting idea