Just got a '99. suggestions?

Ok so im 16 and got a 1999 xj 4x4 and i want to get a lift for it. Right now its completely stock and personally i think it looks girly, so im gonna man it up a bit. The only problem is since im 16 i dont have that much money to spend. Evenyually i want a rack, lift, better tires and rims, lights, etc.

I really wanna do something to it now and save up for the more expensive things later. I was thinking about like a 2" lift for now or should i just save up for like a 3.5" or 4"? With a lift what else do i have to get? Should i get the lift first or something else first?

thanks
-evan

Dude, just wait till you have the cash to go all out. Believe me.

Depends, if you must do it now, you can get a 2" boost for around $100. And then later when you want to go bigger, you can reuse the boost on that lift. Say you get a 1.5" boost (like I did), and you want to go up to 6" later, you can buy a 4.5" lift, saves you a couple hundred dollars there. But when you do go all out, be patient (like I wasn't). If you want to go with one system, for me it was the T&T Y-link with DPG 5" leaves, be latient and wait for it. I ended up just getting a full kit from DPG, but really wish I had been patient enough to wait for the T&T kit to be sent. Get a little goin for now if you want, then get used to wheeling it like that. Then go bigger. As your familiarity grows, so does the Jeep.

P.S: Pretty nice rig for 16... I drove a 94 Tracker until I was 19. Didn't get my XJ til 21. Best vehicle I've ever owned

1. recovery points front and rear
2. armor
3. suspension, tires
4. traction aids
5. and on and on and on :looney:

Put a "plan" together if you can't get it all at once so you don't end of doing things twice and wasting money. Just about everyone hear can attest to the dreaded "inchitis"

BlackSport96 said:

Depends, if you must do it now, you can get a 2" boost for around $100. And then later when you want to go bigger, you can reuse the boost on that lift. Say you get a 1.5" boost (like I did), and you want to go up to 6" later, you can buy a 4.5" lift, saves you a couple hundred dollars there. But when you do go all out, be patient (like I wasn't). If you want to go with one system, for me it was the T&T Y-link with DPG 5" leaves, be latient and wait for it. I ended up just getting a full kit from DPG, but really wish I had been patient enough to wait for the T&T kit to be sent. Get a little goin for now if you want, then get used to wheeling it like that. Then go bigger. As your familiarity grows, so does the Jeep.

Click to expand...

X2 (word for word)
Wheel it for a while and figure out what you need to do to it to go to that next trail.

honestly what is your budget: from there we can help... hopefully you can afford front tow hook brackets and perhaps a rear hitch for recovery points and get a tow strap - loop ends not metal hooks...get the strap, rear hitch and tow hooks - go wheel and look at your budget and go from there... u might want to check all the maintenace records and make sure everything is up to date i.e. oil, fluids etc...

You also might be surprised just how capable your Jeep already is without a lift and larger tires. With that being said. Tow points and recovery equipment.

Not much money, then get real acquainted with your local parts yard. I can browse free on Fridays and then pay the required admission on Saturday and grab what I saw the day before.

To "de-fem" your Jeep, you can do a few simple things that wont bust the bank until you save enough cash for the real stuff.

Grab a firestick CB antenna and mount. Remove all of your plastic trim crap from your '99 and go with a more natural steel look. You'll love the rugged look and it does not cost a thing. If you like a little plastic trim, add the bumper end caps from an older junked XJ. It reduces the overall cheapness and still gives you a finished wrap look.

Add a used off road rack for the top. I paid 20 bucks for a Conn Ferr rack. A little paint and it looks like new.

Take off the mud flaps. Those are worthless. Next, find a big puddle and make a few runs through it. Leave the mud on for a while. Looks good and it is free.

Rinse. Repeat. Enjoy.

I'm 17 and am/have been in pretty much the same situation as you for the past 2 or 3 monts or so. The first thing I did was offroad it a couple times and I was absolutely amazed at how much it can do. After that, I bought a 3" Rough Country add-a-leaf (yes I know wrong thing to do) kit for right about $300. About 2 or 3 weeks after that I bought 4 Cragar Soft 8 rims and 31x10.5x15 BFG Mud Terrainsfor about $800 combined price. Another 3 or so weeks after that I bought a Carr light bar and 4 Hella 500's, a Cobra 19 Ultra 3 CB radio and a 4 foot fiberglass whip antenna and JKS quicker disconnects. All in all I've spent about $1400 dollars the last 2 or so months and this is how it has turned out:


I hope that will give you some ideas on what you can look for.

Edit: I forgot to mention that I also repainted the fender flares flat black which, by far, has been the best cosmetic-wise mod I've done and I would highly, highly suggest it if you have a body color that it would go well with.

I'm 18 and this is my cherokee with 31s and a 2" BB.

wow thanks for the input so fast. Right now i had like $150 but i just broke a rib so i cant do any sports for like two months so im just gonna try and make as much money i can in that time. I can probably get like $300- $400 dollars as a budget for all this.

i think i might get a 2" BB and add later down the road. where should i look for a used rack? parts yard? i think im gonna take the plasic off but how did you guys get all that sticky mess off? and whats the easiest and cheapest way to get tow points?

oh yeah i have like pretty much brand new tires so what would be the easiest way to get some 30s or 31s? Cause my parents wont let me go out and get brand new tires when i already have new tires. or would a 2" BB look ok with like some stock size tires

nobody asked this question..
are you going to mall Crawl or are you actually going to wheel it on some trail rides and stuff?
if your just daily driving it and mall crawling then do the Budget boost (BB) so you get some height and some bigger tires can be in your future the stockers will work for now..
i just sold my stockers for 250.00 so that would give you an idea of what they are worht.
so hang on to them for now till you need new ones. you can also find used ones on craigslist too for cheap then sell yours keeping your current rims..in the mean time
as mentioned above if your going to wheel it recovery, skids, recovery points. lockers..
a rack you can keep an eye on craigslist and on your section of for a used one. everynow and then they come up but your prolly better just getting the cheap one form summit and the rail brackets etc...

probably more trails than crawling but i might. What do you have to say about the rocky road 2" boost or rustys 3" lift kit aal? This is deffiately my daily driver and im not gonna be off roading that much, maybe 1 a month.

I have a '99 too.

Take some time and read a lot of threads.

Once you start lifting the jeep you will run into countless problems. Drivetain angle for one, steering angles and track bar length for another. I learned the hard way, I put lift shackles and blocks, coil spacers, longer coils and new leafs. I put stuff on as soon as I could afford one part. STUPID. Figure out how high you want to go, and what size tire you want, then SEARCH, read and read and read. It sounds boring and lame, but you will save so much money and brain damage by doing so.

I know your young and excited about tricking out the jeep, but take it slow, save up your cash and buy all the parts you will need first. Lifting past 2" requires some planning.

Some things I learned I wish I knew before I touched the jeep;

1. To do anything to the coils you have to remove the lower control arms, and thats a pain in the ass. Once you undo those bolts, you have opened pandorahs box and death wobble is soon to come. Read about Death Wobble.

2. Put some sort of liquid wrench / penetrant on any nut or bolt the night before you plan to do anything. And get a little butane torch to put some heat on stubborn nuts and bolts.

The truck will never be as smooth and quiet as it is today. As soon as you start changing things, be prepared for a number of other seemingly unrelated problems poping up.

I'm not trying to discourage you , I just want you to know what you are getting into BEFORE you send yourself up the creek. Good luck and have a blast!!!!!!

One last thing, first thing should be recovery points, hooks or hitches front and rear. And upgrade brakes BEFORE bigger wheels and more power. And try and get a FSM (factory service manual), you can get a used one on ebay for 50-70 bucks. The best money you will spend on the jeep.

how should i upgrade the brakes?

Wear heavy soled shoes and cut a hole in the floor boards. Flintstone that shit.

X2 on the flinstone shit
LMAO

Im 19 and was also in your position for a while. What I would say is if its gonna be a while before you can save up to go all out, buy a bb and some mud tires and wheel it like that while saving for the big one. Like others said, just be patient and keep working at it.

Here's how mine started out.


and 2 years later.

Im kinda in the same situation as you. I got my 99XJ a year ago when I was 16. I have been working 20 hours a week since then and now my jeep is quite well done up. It took me about 6 months from getting the jeep untill I got my lift installed but im glad I waited it out and got a RE 5.5 lift. A member on here named XJslater goes to my school and he has a 3.5" lift and 33's and it looks awesome and is pretty cost effective as well. Just research alot and decide what you idealy want and save up to get it. Dont blow your money on a 2" BB and 30's and then have buyers remores a month later. Just my 2 dozen cents.

Go rob a bank or jewelry store what ever it takes to sink money into that thing. Buy the most overpriced, overrated equipment you can find. Then crash it and start over. Hell when I was 16 my truck was $400 it was an '89 S-10.
Honestly, I would suggest wheeling it stock for a bit. Especially if your only wheeling once a month or so. Learn how to drive it, learn what's important, learn what needs to be upgraded first. I would take a stock jeep with good tires and lockers over a jacked up beast with no lockers "personal preference". Being that it's a DD I would suggest going with a 3.5" lift "with new springs, not AAL", 33's, and a auto locker in the back should be plenty and cost effective. If I had a 99 with 3.5" lift, 33's, and a locker I would be ecstatic. It'll look great, have awesome offroad capability, and since it's a 99 you'll have that nice interior. :clap: