anyone update to the new hatch?

I have been curious to find out if this is possible. of course the body is the same for the most part, but the hinges on mine are on the roof and on the top of the hatch. one poster on here had made a ladder for the hatch of his 97+, and in his postings i thought i saw that the hinges on the new hatches actually reach into the body through holes. looks more complicated than i expected. does anyone have a close up picture of the hinge assembly on a 97-01? i'm expecting that this is not a simple task and of course would require other body parts to be updated also. thanks.

Depends on how much money and effort you really want to throw at it. The hinges are the major difference, as you would have to convert your older style body to accept the newer style hinges. Also, the cut out area around the rear tail lights is also different somewhat.

Though these differences may appear to be subtile, they are significant none the less. This would not be an easy bolt on project...

I've got a '98... you're always welcome to check mine out as it appears you live in the area.

Ivan

yeah, i have seen your rig around town. very sweet ride.
this of course isn't a huge priority, but i will be replacing my front clip, unfortunatly because i smashed it. i was thinking of updating because it only requires parts i have to replace anyhow, and i will be going to an aftermarket bumper. but i was thinking after i did some other more priority things (oh, like, suspension and tires, etc), i would like the rear end to match. it is a big project, and most people would say it isnt worth it, and it may not be. i am weird like that though. i've seen a complete tinted, defrost/wiper hatch go for $150 on ebay, and that is why i became so interested. that and tailights would do it, as i will buy an aftermarket bumper one year too. the only major concern is about the hinges and maybe the latch is different too. i may want to check yours out one day if i ever go through with this.
thanks,
mike

That would be a cool project if you ever did it. Might not look quite right...but the steel sure would be better than fiberglass. Fiberglass and rocks don't get along well...

Why dont you just convert the new hatch to the old hinge style? I haven't looked at on at detail but it seems that would be easier. You will need new tail lights too, I don't know if the new style will bolt up or not but thats a matter of drilling and tapping new holes most likely.

that's probably a better way to do it. i wonder if the steel hatch is a lot heavier. that would make it a metter of stress around the hinge mounting holes bending the metal.

I have considered doing this swap because my rear hatch is toast. Initially I thought it would be cool to promote our new aftermarket lights. But after looking into it, i found it would be REALLY way to difficult to accomplish. Just stick with the stock one. IIRC the steel one wieghs less.

Matt

You could always spend a few days with a sander and a glass kit and smooth out the older hatch and maybe incorporate the newer style taillights.

CW said:

You could always spend a few days with a sander and a glass kit and smooth out the older hatch and maybe incorporate the newer style taillights.

Click to expand...

Yeah no. that would be not good. the two hatches are similar in... well no aspects. Not even the same locking mechanism. Like some people say, and some people live by! "K.I.S.S" (keep it simple, stupid!) :wave:
MAtt

PapaPump said:

i wonder if the steel hatch is a lot heavier.

Click to expand...

Reports are that it's actually a pound or two lighter than the earlier fiberglass hatches because it's thinner material than the layers of 'glass required to maintain that strength.

Scrappy said:

Yeah no. that would be not good. the two hatches are similar in... well no aspects. Not even the same locking mechanism. Like some people say, and some people live by! "K.I.S.S" (keep it simple, stupid!) :wave:
MAtt

Click to expand...

Did I say "attempt to make a carbon copy of the new hatch"? No, I said smooth it out and maybe use new tail lights. He stated that he was changing the front clip to the newer style and wanted them to match a little. I gaurantee if I spent a weekend working on a hatch I could come out with a good looking hatch that would still follow the older lines but be smoother and look newer.

Boy sounds like a daunting goal. I have yet to get into my suspension where the real fun stuff is, so like I said this isn't priority. having a fab guy tell me it is too complicated sounds like maybe i found the wrong project. haha, i guess i cout cut the entire rear roof off the donor...I could say I was the first
yeah, no.

go cheromanchie it seems to be the only logical idea if your going to mess with the rear hatch

(yes im making a joke)

eeew dude. not to be a jerk to those that have done it, but sorry, that is butt (hahahaha) ugly.

oh yeah:
this is the image that made me wonder about the feasability of it all:
do those hinges fold into the body or are they just bolted there with the hinge at the end?
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/2/web/242000-242999/242380_379_full.jpg