CJ owner converting to XJ, mod help

I am new the board due to the fact that I am a CJ owner who needs to move towards a more family friendly Jeep. My CJ runs 35, fully locked, and Rubicon tested, so an XJ will be a change for me. By the way, its for sale if anyone is interested.

After I find an XJ for the price I want, I plan on these mods, but I could really use some input and suggestions:

RE Super-flex 3.5" lift
Rock Crawler 15x8 on 4.5bs
32X10.50R15 Super Swamper Radial TSLs (But I really like and have tested the TrXus Muds but they only come in 31's, I usually run 35's so any tire smaller will be a change).
Lock Right in the rear (for ease of installation and I have found a soft spot in my heart for them)

My overall goal is to make a trail worthy rig that DOES NOT RUB and has good flex. Cutting fenders is of no concern. I know I will be limited compared to the CJ, but that is something I am willing to do for the safty of my son and wife.

My concern is with the tire selection (read no rub). I plan on sticking with the 3.5" lift b/c I won't need to put in new drive lines. But, I am open to any other companies kit, the RE is just a good name. Of course I will disconnect the sawy bar off road.

Suggestions?

Thanks, Dan

well welcome to the forum Dan!.

I already see a problem with the wheel choice, the 32x10.5 will rub on the inside with that back spacing Id shift to 3" BS, and some trimming will be required even with the 32". I ran 33x9.5 big o xt's with 3.5" for a bit.

The RE kit is a very good choice

You will be surprized on the performance of the XJ off road. Many trails I walk through stuff that cj's and wranglers have problems with. Its a wheelbase thing. also the XJ has a much tighter turning radius than the cj. It is surprizingly nimble. (and ac on the trail is nice too!)

also if u buy an older xj you can go to 4 1/2 inches without problems like you said.
the newer ones have that problem though. Im at 4 1/2 (sagged probably to 4 though) with no vibes whatsoever

then 32's should fit no problem. But if you are going with a newer xj i would stick to the 3.5 inch lift kit. although 32's will rub with that.

i put a RE 3.5 superflex kit in a few months ago....it gave me almost 5" of lift....so u might want to keep that in mind...maybe need a sye and drive shaft

I ran the RE 5.5 inch kit on my 98, with very little vibes. I used a transfer case drop kit, and 4* shims on the rear.

I plan on an older XJ for pricing. As long as it is a straight six and fuel injected, I am happy.

If I were you I would consider the RE 5.5. Go ahead and get the SYE and cv driveshaft and throw some 35's on it. You will wheel every bit as good as the CJ and then some. It will cost a bit more, but well worth it in the long run if you really like to wheel. Might even consider throwing a d44 in the rear. You can pick them up very cheap from time to time. If you don't want to go that route, try to find an XJ with the 8.25 and you'll be good to go.

Kevin

Welcome to the club. I had 2 CJ-7's before the wife & kids came along. One 83 & the other, my baby, was an 80 with the 304 & dana 300 t-case behind the T999 auto. After struggling with trying to camp with the wife & 2 boys in the 7, I finally relized it was time to get something that is better sized for the family. Although I loved my 7's & still miss them, I couldn't be happier with the choice of getting an XJ.

Lift options depend upon what your ultimate goals are with the rig. RE is good stuff & what you have outlined for a lift should treat you well, but for west coast wheeling & overall trail riding I would be temted to just go with a 4.5" or 5.5" lift & run 33's. This combo will get you through just about any trail you'd want to try & the 33's won't be too hard on the drive train. As I said, it all depends on what you're going to do with the rig. You mentioned Rubicon, but do you have any plans to challenge harder trails in the future? If so than do it right the first time & don't spend money twice. Also swing over & check out 's Sierra chapter. Most of the guys are based out of Sac., but there are a few of us down in Fresno area. Sierra

Matt

what does your CJ have in it? In addition to my cherokee (my owngoing project) i'm also getting one of my grandma's jeeps (75 cj5) which will undoubtedly be my major trail runner, and my weekend rig at my folks house in eastern WA. Just on the off chance, what you are asking for as far as your cj?

Kris

dandecicco said:

I am new the board due to the fact that I am a CJ owner who needs to move towards a more family friendly Jeep. My CJ runs 35, fully locked, and Rubicon tested, so an XJ will be a change for me. By the way, its for sale if anyone is interested.

After I find an XJ for the price I want, I plan on these mods, but I could really use some input and suggestions:

RE Super-flex 3.5" lift
Rock Crawler 15x8 on 4.5bs
32X10.50R15 Super Swamper Radial TSLs (But I really like and have tested the TrXus Muds but they only come in 31's, I usually run 35's so any tire smaller will be a change).
Lock Right in the rear (for ease of installation and I have found a soft spot in my heart for them)

My overall goal is to make a trail worthy rig that DOES NOT RUB and has good flex. Cutting fenders is of no concern. I know I will be limited compared to the CJ, but that is something I am willing to do for the safty of my son and wife.

My concern is with the tire selection (read no rub). I plan on sticking with the 3.5" lift b/c I won't need to put in new drive lines. But, I am open to any other companies kit, the RE is just a good name. Of course I will disconnect the sawy bar off road.

Suggestions?

Thanks, Dan

Click to expand...

Another welcome, Dan. If you enjoy the wheeling you did with your CJ, don't sell yourself and your XJ short. Similarly equiped, the XJ is capable of outperforming the CJ. The extra sheetmetal and windows cause you to be a better driver, but that can add to the fun if a good challenge is part of why you like wheeling. I won't recomend that you go into this thinking that you're going to be limited with the XJ compared to the CJ.

I agree that you can't go wrong with the RE lift, overall probably the best lift available. I also agree with the other comments that you'd be happier with the 4.5" lift, which you can easily upgrade to 6" down the road. Some guys are running 35's with 5-5.5" of lift and a lot of trimming, so 33's (or 32's) can easily be run on 4.5" of lift. I ran 32's with 5.5" of lift and no driveline mods for a few years (with a t-case drop), but then got an SYE and CV rear driveline when I went to 6-6.5" and 33's. I ran both 32's and 33's on 8" rims with 4.75" of backspacing, and I think the 4.5" BS is a good choice. I don't know what tires you ran on your CJ, but we've found that for CA trails there are a lot of tires that perform better than the Swampers, both off road and especially on road. I'd recomend doing some more thinking on that one, unless you're just a Swamper kind of guy. The majority of us west coast guys that run the rock crawling trails run MT/R's, in fact we've shown up to runs where every CA guy had MT/R's. There are other good tires, but you definitely can't go wrong with the Goodyears.

Don't want to get too far off topic, but here are some pics of XJ's with 33" tires doing hard trails. Like I said, your CJ has nothing on a properly built XJ.

Sean on Outer Limits, Johnson Valley.....ex CJ guy who now has a family


Mil in AZ, Predator Trail, Black Canyon City area


Andy on Wrecking Ball, Johnson Valley


Erik on Die Trying, Montrose, CO.......his daily driver is a TJ


Jeff on Die Trying


Jes at Avalanche Ranch, CO


Jes in True Big Sluice, Rubicon


Rick on Outer Limits, Johnson Valley


FarmerMatt on Sledgehammer......OK, he has 35's, but he used to drive a CJ

I am asking 7,000 for it here is a list of mods
Rebuilt engine (in 2000) less then 3,000 miles on rebuild
New T4, 4 speed transmission (1998)
Weber Carb. (have stock BBD for emissions in CA)
Dana 300 with twin stick conversion
2.5” Pro Comp Suspension lift
2” body lift
Hand Throttle
MSD 6A ignition
MSD adjustable timing unit
Extended front brake lines
Wheel spacers (2”) for stability
Rock Crawler Steel 15x10 Wheels
35” mud terrain tires
One Piece Superior Axel for the AMC 20
Lock-Rite rear locker
Lock-Rite front Locker
Warn Hubs for the Dana 30
On-board air compressor and Viair 2.5 Gal. tank with external air chuck
Dual Battery setup
Gas tank converted to Jegs racing fuel cell (15 Gal) placed in rear (where seat was)
External rear storage + deck
Carbeau Driver Seat belt
Full Roll Cage
Gauges work (except Spedo cluster, but have the original in a box for replacement)
Undercarriage lights
Rear Rubicon Rack with 2 five gallon tanks and rear lighting
CB
Tuffy center consol
Tachometer
Tow Bar

OK, Since I can take apart the CJ blindfolded and yet have no idea about an XJ, does everyone agree that I can go with an RE 4.5 lift, run 32s and/or 33's without new drive lines as long as I drop the T-case (I will get longer shafts and a CV later). If I can do that without the xtra cash right now, I will go witht the 4.5 or even 5.5 if everyone agrees.

Thanks for all the help and glad to have joined the board!
Dan

There were hints in this thread, but nobody came right out and said it. When buying a lift from RE, expect an inch to 1-1/2 inch more than their nominal lift height. Apparently, RE assumes that everyone who buys a lift will run a heavy aftermarket bumper and winch in front and a heavy aftermarket bumper, external spare, and Gerry can in the rear. Their lift springs seem to be sized on how much lift you'll get WITH all that equipment. Slap a 4.5" RE lift on a stock XJ with stock bumpers, and you get more than expected. Some people regard this as an unexpected bunus, some have seen it as a problem because it then led to unanticipated money spent on the drive line.

With the older (95 and older) transfer case, the limit for the stock drive shaft is somewhere around 4 to 5 inches. Wish I could be more precise, but each Jeep seems to be different. I use that as the limit because of what happened to a friend here in CT with a 95. He was fine running Rusty's 3" lift and 31s, but he decided he "needed" 33s so he slapped in a pair of coil spacers in the front and a pair of 2" lift blocks in the back. Took it for a test drive and the driveshaft fell out less than a quarter mile down the road.

Shooting at 4.5" you should (ideally) be budgeting for a SYE, but a transfer casedrop and maybe a YJ slip yoke may get you going. Just remember that RE's 4.5" lift probably won't give you 4-1/2 inches of lift -- it'll likely give you more, so be prepared, and try to stash a bit of contingency money to address drive line issues after the lift.

That is interesting news. So in following your assumption, if I do a RE 3.5" I should net a 4.5" and running 32s won't be a problem b/c me and the saw zaw would enjoy cutting out some fender space. 33s are ideal, but I would be totally happy with 32s and the rear locked. I can keep up with my club (www.jeepcoop.com) and not have a problem getting to where ever I want to go.

If anyone disagrees with an RE 3.5 let me know for runing 32's and cutting the heck out of the fenders. Thanks again for the info!
Dan
(of course I would go with some Rock Crawler 15X8 on a bs of 4.5 to correct any tire rub)

Oh Yeah, this leads me to the other issue, winch mounts on an XJ? I don't want to go with a ARB or a Warn, just something to hold the winch on that won't break my son's college money.

Cheapest winch mount I have seen is C4x4 Winch bumper for $340, bumper with winch mounts, and that's about it.

- Kevin

Eagle said:

When buying a lift from RE, expect an inch to 1-1/2 inch more than their nominal lift height. Apparently, RE assumes that everyone who buys a lift will run a heavy aftermarket bumper and winch in front and a heavy aftermarket bumper, external spare, and Gerry can in the rear. Their lift springs seem to be sized on how much lift you'll get WITH all that equipment. Slap a 4.5" RE lift on a stock XJ with stock bumpers, and you get more than expected. Some people regard this as an unexpected bunus, some have seen it as a problem because it then led to unanticipated money spent on the drive line.

Click to expand...

Of course, if the lift gave even 1/4" less than advertised, people would be screaming bloody murder at not getting their advertised height...When lifting that far, my advice is to budget for the SYE especially if you have the 96+ NP231 that will vibrate if you look at it crosseyed.

In answer to the question about the 32s, I run an RE6130 4.5" lift and 32" Mud Rovers, I also had 32" BFG ATs on here and it clears everything nicely with 15x7 rims and 4" backspace - you'll need to do some trimming to get a 3.5" and the same tires.

How 'bout getting a front receiver hitch and adding a winch plate? Removable, not that expensive.......just an idea.
DF7

Welcome to XJ land... I just sold my '78 CJ-5 this past December in favor of an '88 XJ. I now own three XJ's. I'm loving the XJ over the CJ so far, but I have yet to take the XJ wheeling. The only potential drawbacks I'm seeing is the extra sheetmetal and the unibody. There wasn't a body panel on that CJ when I sold it that didn't have a dent or scrape on it (it was clean when I bought it...) I'm doing my best to cut all of the extra sheetmetal on the XJ before taking it out, heh, heh. I think the unibody makes it a bit more delicate when coming down and scraping it over rocks

I've actually found the XJ much easier to work on than my CJ because of the availabilty of junkyard parts. Around here, XJ's are a dime a dozen at the Pick N' Pulls, so on half price days I've gotten so excellent deals on axle shafts (with the larger U-joints), spare drivelines, tie rod and draglinks, brake boosters, etc. I was always ordering parts for the CJ. In addition, there's as much fabrication potential for the XJ as there was for my CJ. Meaning, I thought that the XJ would not lend itself for allowing me to make my own parts, and that I would be forced to have to buy professionally made stuff because of the complexity of the XJ's unibody and overall newer body styling. Fortunatley, I was wrong and I've started making my own stuff already.

Overall, I think you've made the right choice, and I hope your able to unload your CJ for a decent price.
-Eric-

Here's my old CJ-



Here's the "new" XJ-