rhinolined interior inputs?

So im currently in the process of rhinolining my interior in my xj and i was wondering if anyone has any advice or inputs for a heatshield or cover for over the trans tunnel? after a day of driving with the interior stripped out i noticed the tunnel gets extremely hot. any tips or pics you guys have would be much appreciated. i tryed searching for a thread on it but no luck.

heres the pics i got so far. im doing the front half today and then the rear half tuesday. by the way i just got finished installing both front floor pans and seat brackets (pain in the a**). :banghead::smsoap:

I would leav the stock heat tile there and go around it and put the carpet back in, running an XJ carpetless is B.S.

At the very least put the passenger compartment carpet back in. Cargo area can be left out.

i put thick rubber floormats back in my old jeep after herculing the inside. it wasn't bad until my a/c stopped working... to say it got hot on long drives would be an understatement.

when I flooded my jeeps interior I thought about doing it but decided to wait until after mid stiffeners so I didn't burn up the liner on the floorboards..

I added a few drain plugs and ran with a bare floor for a bit and I hated it it was loud and the trans hump gets crazy hot.

I replaced the carpet by swapping it from a parts 'rokee we had . I cut it into sections and trimmed it so it just tucks under the trim. The idea was that I would run the carpet for my DD duties and it would be easily removable before a wheeling trip. It's 5 peices with no visible seams.

I think I've had the carpets out like twice to get them nice and clean (even with husky liners)
And only once for a wheeling trip. Haha I usually avoid mud and deep water so I don't pull it usually.

I'll probably use durabak smooth and do mine at some point after I'm done welding anywhere near the floor like for mid stiffeners or 2x6 rockers and cage tie ins..

even then my carpet will be in there for most uses and pulled only for swampy weekends of wheeling.

I remember seeing a few threads with people talking about trying to fit heat shields like maybe those cookie pan type sheets with the air gap in the middle. But can't remember specifics on that

I herculined my interior few years ago, its loud and gets hot (a/c works good though)but its better then wet nasty carpet due to my leaking windshield...

whitexj98 said:

I herculined my interior few years ago, its loud and gets hot (a/c works good though)but its better then wet nasty carpet due to my leaking windshield...

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Lol! Does everyone's windshield leak? I did the same thing. I ripped out my carpet cause of a leaky windshield and small heater core leak. I can't remember what I used exactly but it's the bedliner with kevlar. I laid down roof patch everywhere then laid on the bedliner over that. I didn't have smells for very long and it has worked out well with the leaky windshield! I also live in the Pacific Northwest so it never really gets hot here for long and I have no A/C!

whitexj98 said:

I herculined my interior few years ago, its loud and gets hot (a/c works good though)but its better then wet nasty carpet due to my leaking windshield...

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so the puddle on my pass. side floor after big rainstorms is my windshield?
cause ever since i got my jeep even before i ever wheeled it big rainstorms would cause puddle in pass. floor

and i run carpetless and am not lined yet and its not that bad the noise level is barely increased and its not that hot what are you guys driving barefoot...lol

Install a trans cooler and change the fluid.

side of leg touches trans hump when in shorts ('rokees are tiny)
not shure how I would drive with my foot way over there so no not barefoot haha .

I had a drunk girl in sandals cry after touching the side of her foot to the hot metal one time a while back

this was before my trans cooler was installed so maybe it's not that bad currently. I'll know later today because I'm pulling them to be cleaned (spilled some diff fluid)

and I've run with and without in the same day more than 3 or 4 times there is a pretty obvious noise difference. At least I.M.O.

What about a reflective heat shielding underneath, inside the tunnel?

mine is stripped and rhino lined and with 35" BFG mud terrains and highway speeds drown out pretty much everything in the jeep ....not horrible with the windows down but noisy as hell with them up (surprisingly) ...i plan on installing some decent 6x9's to help with the stereo volume ....BUT the fiance isnt a huge fan of the jeep but after a 200 mile round trip to PA. for easter she didnt complain too much,which to me makes it all O.K. ...lmao

Buy the Husky heavy duty plastic floormats. You'll get a lot of heat in the cabin without the heat insulation, and on long drives the soles of your shoes can melt to the floor. Not really badly but they definitely get sticky without the floor mats. I think you could install some dynamat and then rhinoline that though.

I'm in the same boat right now. My main concern is the wet carpet holding moisture. I'm thinking about cutting out the carpet (floors only) and leaving the trans tunnel part intact. Exposed floor will be Herculined. If noise is an issue I'll experiment with my wife's thick yoga mat.

Install a trans cooler and change the fluid.

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^^
Thats my next step once i get everything reassembled (center counsole, panels and seats).

i just finished the rhino-liner on the floors yesterday (will have pics up later on after work) but overall im very pleased with how everything turned out. i still have to touch up on a few spots around the tunnel and back wheelwell humps. ive been searching around and i came across this style heatshield. http://www.autozone.com/autozone/ac...F660.diyprod4-b2c14?itemIdentifier=398808_0_0_
it seems fairly simple, has anyone used or tryed this on anything before? i was thinking i could just cover the areas around the tunnel and in the center where the counsel would cover then just lay a quick coat of rhinoliner down to cover any exposed areas once my center counsels back in.

thanks for all the info and inputs everyone, i cant wait to see how it all looks once it get everything all put back in and finally get some decent floormats. if anyone has any pics of theirs or anyone elses feel free to share.

Did you coat where that will go? Or is it still just bare metal?

Did you coat where that will go? Or is it still just bare metal?

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No, i only rhinolined about half way up on the tunnel, i wasnt sure how high i needed to go so the counsole would cover and i assumed if i put the heatshield down it would have to be bare metal.

Even with my trans cooler and full carpet, it gets hot and loud. I would not want to take the carpet out unless it was a trail rig. Any cool factor is going to be heavily outweighed by the PITA factor. My .02...

Porch951 said:

Even with my trans cooler and full carpet, it gets hot and loud. I would not want to take the carpet out unless it was a trail rig. Any cool factor is going to be heavily outweighed by the PITA factor. My .02...

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^ someone knows..

Okay so i had to work later than expected but overtimes always nice.:clap:

Here's what i did tuesday on my day off. i finished putting a second coat on the front section that i did sunday and rolled two coats on the rear/cargo area. still needs some touch up but ill do that prolly tomorrow or friday.




Overall turned out way better than expected. i just finished up laying some heat shield all around the tunnel a few minutes ago but didn't quite get all the heat shielding done due to me running out lol, so ill pick up some more on my lunch break tomorrow and post the pics of what i did tomorrow night. i found a different kind of heat shielding then what i had in the link i posted (i believe its made by the same brand) but worked just as good (i'll also have a pic of what i used up tomorrow). Cant wait till its all done and put back together.

by the way the xj is currently a DD but im in the process of getting a second car/gas saver/DD. my plan is to have the xj for a trail rig/ occasional weekend driver.