How did you start wheeling??

[Eric85]

When i was in the market for my first 4x4 my dad told me to buy a cherokee because there cheap, plentiful, and no ifs BS.

 

[CherBear]

When i was in the market for my first 4x4 my dad told me to buy a cherokee because there cheap, plentiful, and no ifs BS.

Amen to that :soapbox:

 

[MetViper]

I practically grew up in the back of a Ford Bronco. First a 1979 (Ol' Blue) then a 1988 (POS), and later a 1970 (Rusty). We went hunting, fishing, camping, christmas tree hunting, just driving to work (logging) and everything else in between in those 4x4s. A lot of the "roads" were non-maintained two track ranch roads. I loved the "go anywhere" feeling of riding around in a 4x4. When I got old enough to drive (11-12) Dad let me drive the 1970 out in the hills to our saw mill. I loved it. It was also a necessity to have 4x4 just to get to work some days and many of the steep draws we logged in required 4x4. I bought my first 4x4 for $300 in 1997 (a 1978 Bronco). I moved on to a 1993 Explorer, then made the ultimate upgrade to a 1991 XJ. The XJ is the first 4x4 I lifted and put bigger tires on. Started out mudding, but once I hit the rocks, I never looked back!! (kind of like my crack cocaine addiction!!) lol

 

[jeepfreak1020]

When i was around 14 i got ahold of some 4-wheeling mags and loved reading the articals and looking at the pics and knew thats what i wanted for my first car. Then my brother got a 98 wrangler when i was 15 and thats what got me hooked. We would go wheeling every chance we got and i becase the worlds best 15yr old spotter lol. And then once i turned 16 i got a 98 cherokee sport and have been wheeling it since. Still read the same 4-wheeling mags i did and i get four different ones every month now lol

 

[msrorysddad]

I started because I couldn't take my daughter on my motorcycle, not the way I ride. I wanted a "sport" that my child could enjoy with me. I camp and trail ride. I think the xj is the perfect platform for a family wheelin rig.

 

[XCastleXJ]

how did i start wheeling?

my daddy raised me right!

its a jeep thing, its always been a jeep thing.

 

[billyjp2]

my buddy had a lifted YJ, so my parents bought me an 01 TJ back in 03. a hydrolocked motor and a tree later it was totaled. i wheeled a 93 f-150 and a 94YJ before owning 4 XJs and an MJ.

 

[Rob Mayercik]

Bought my '92 in December of 1997 as a replacement DD, found the XJ forum (pre-) a few months later.

Lurked there till it petered out and followed the crowd to , finally took the plunge and hit the trails for the first time at Paragon at a BMJA Jeep 101 event (took a while to build up the nerve to wheel my DD). It's been all downhill (and uphill, and around trees, and over rocks, and through rivers, and....) ever since.

Went red in 04 and have been tiling my glove box lid with NACFest plaques ever since.

Rob

Oh, and the date of that Jeep 101? Sunday, 09-Sep-2001.

 

[Smittty9785]

I started off with a 88 cherokee. put a 4.5" RC lift on it with some 31's, sliders, and a rear locker. Was taking my buddies uncle dumpster diving and saw this guy working on his stock xj. he took me to his garage where he had a wrangler set up for everything you can think of. He ended up swapping d60's in it and he didnt have a rig to go wheeling. Met up with the Jeeps-r-us crew in so cal and caravan up to the rubicon and thats where it all began. another jeep and lots of money later, im still not done.

 

[Darky]

I got my first car, a 94 Geo Tracker 4x4 from my Mom. She upgraded to something larger and more comfy. I loved it. 2000-maybe 2500lbs with a 65 hp (choked down from 70 by CA emissions - on a NY bought vehicle!) 1.6L 4-squirrel engine. It had a wheelbase of like 3" and climbed places it never should've. I lived in Tucson at the time and would play down in the Rillito River (misleading name, it's dry 363 days a year) and in the open areas off of it down by Silverbell Rd. Then a friend took me up to Cheeva Falls for my first experience "rock-crawling". We climbed a pretty nice trail, got to the falls at the top, swam, had lunch, went home. I got hooked by making my stock little "Barbie"-Jeep, as my wife calls it now, climb obstacles that guys in lifted rigs were afraid of. One even stopped my buddy on his dirt bike to tell him I wouldn't make it up there. They had just turned around in their lifted and locked Nissan. He said, oh no problem, we've been up there many times. And they watched slack-jawed as my Tracker clawed its way up. Fast forward to returning from overseas, and after my first date with my future wife, I'm going home and totaled it on an errant Kia Spectra. Bought a 90 Samurai to replace it for $500. Big mistake. It needed serious work on the engine (ran on 3 cylinders and leaked oil like a sieve), new starter (big dead spot), transfer case (4wd didn't work), transmission/clutch (clutch never fully disengaged so it stalled any time I stopped practically. That coupled with the bad starter was loads of fun. ANd it had trouble going into 2nd, 3rd, and 4th), and new tires. But it lasted me until I could get my XJ. Traded it in for $500 with no title and left with my 96 XJ. I won't mention the 92 Trooper that appeared for 5 months before killing itself...Out of all of them, the XJ has been the best wheeler, and 2nd most reliable. The Tracker never had any problems except for what I specifically caused except for one sparkplug wire...

 

[Fourxfour79]

I was gioing insane in camp lejeune. A good friend pulled me to a crazier all be it happier nuttiness. First project at the auto shop was his yj(sprin over lift) then my yj(2" springs and other accoutrements). Sold it cause I didn't like getting rained on w the top up(although it did come in handy as an excuse to get a girl back to my place and stripped..."we can just put your clothes in the dryer sweetheart;-).

 

[Fourxfour79]

I was gioing insane in camp lejeune. A good friend pulled me to a crazier all be it happier nuttiness. First project at the auto shop was his yj(sprin over lift) then my yj(2" springs and other accoutrements). Sold it cause I didn't like getting rained on w the top up(although it did come in handy as an excuse to get a girl back to my place and stripped..."we can just put your clothes in the dryer sweetheart;-). Bought my xj and playin w that.

 

[kujito]

Blastin' NM sand in my '74 Honda Civic (pre-CVCC even)! Looked like a pregnant roller skate w/12" rims. Getting stuck was never a problem as long as I had a buddy or two with me to lift it out of the hole or whatever. After about 60mph it ceased getting faster and only got louder. Could only seat 3 almost comfortably, but squeezed 7 in once. I think that car cost me $250. I kinda miss that thing.

 

[Super mud]

Sorry to bring back an old thread. Wrecked my 00' Grand am like every 16 year old last year, got a 87 xj on 4in lift fixed and still fixing all kinds of shit and been wheelin it locally for the past few months. I got into rc crawlers first so I was already lookin at getting into full scale wheelin.

 

[xjtrailrider]

I grew up on a farm, we raised beef cattle. We always had some old iron sitting around. Dad had a half cab Scout, a 69 Jeep Commando and plenty of 4wd trucks.

My first time I locked in the hubs and pulled the T-case into 4-low was when I was 9 or 10 (1976). I was in our Commando (Duantless V-6/Auto). Dad had me haul a crate of freshly dug potatoes across the creek from our garden and to our cellar. It had been raining hard and I couldn't resist the fun of goosing the throttle and letting the old "Co-Op" snow tires sling a little mud on the way through. I got chewed out but it was worth it!

At age 12, I bought a 1941 Chevy ton and a half military truck with my allowance money. Inline six, dual wheels in the back 4wd, it was a beast! Dad would say, "Son, go get some fire wood", so I would just drive out into the woods and knock a tree over with that beast and then drag it home.

I wish I still had that truck, I had a blast tearing stuff up with it. Great memories!!!

 

[OverlandZJ]

In 88 i realized i needed a 4wd rig to get into the more remote areas i liked to camp in Northern Maine.. bought a ScoutII.

SIL's BF and his friends had Yota's, i ended up buying my first of three FJ-40's to wheel with them. Got the bug and had two of them swapped to SBC's in a few years.

Bought an XJ as a Daily driver in 95, then got hurt at work and sold the FJ's after just purchasing a home. Built the XJ and here i am today..

 

[WB9YZU]

I've owned a few 4WDs over the years. My 1st was a F150 which I bought as a work truck so I could get around in the winter. Where I was living, 6" at a time was not that unusual and rural plows don't always get to your driveway. The Renault LeCar was not making it

Over the years, I've owned a 61' Scout (My 1st experience with DW!), a FS Bronco, a few Suzuki Siekick/ Geo Trackers, a Samurai, and so far 4 XJs.

I got into Off-Roading because one of the fellows I worked with finally persuaded me to. He had joined an internet Group, and found a few legal places to "play" so I tried it. I had a Tracker at the time, and even though it was a small vehicle, I had fun. I bought a Jeep because I figured that if I ever broke something, parts were available; sometimes I even regret it

Ron

 

[xjtrailrider]

I just realized that I have answered this thread twice in 2 years!:doh:

 

[Cottontail]

I was into sports cars...had a 1988 Cavalier Z-24 and then a 1995 Grand Prix GTP.

My brother signed a contract with the Texas Rangers and went out and paid cash for a 1996 Grand Cherokee with the 5.2 L and full time 4.

I helped him move from Mississippi to Georgia one summer, he drove his girlfriend's car and I drove his ZJ with the U-Haul on it. Loved the way the ZJ drove and I couldn't even feel the trailer behind it.

Couple weeks later I bought a 1996 ZJ, then 10 months later an '85 XJ, eventually a 1990 XJ, a 1994 ZJ, a 2004 WJ, and a 2001 XJ joined the fleet.

 

[pawaggiegirl]

so here goes.. my aunt calls me says she has this suv thing for me and she wants 500$ for it and she'll take payments awesome....(got two small kids too car seat that kinda stuff) so.. i get there and its a red 88 4 door XJ 5 speed...i'm in love...drive that for few years..jeeps cant stay on road only......then she falls into disrepair and sits in the back yard too this day...waiting long arms now within her reach....then i get my waggie its love all over...looking up parts and repair questions and found naxja...and well that pretty much says it all....lol