An XJ build thread!

[GordoSmasho]

Originally Posted by madmax

Build threads are great. Forums are great. Having to third part host pictures.......total buzz kill

I just use tapatalk. It hosts everything for me. Have been using it for almost ten years. Paid 10bucks for premium one time and done. Every pic i have ever posted is still there.
No links to copy and paste. All right from my phone. Actually easier than posting to ig or facebook. Gives you sizing options. It doesn’t host video though. So ill give you that. But youtube will do that for free.

[madmax]

That's some solid info. Gonna have to look in to it

[upsidedownxj]

Total ****in buzzkill. But sometimes you gotta sacrifice the ol' buzz for the greater good. Gotta get Tapatalk, been putting that one off for years.

Passenger side fender is trimmed. Progress is slow this week due to education

[upsidedownxj]

Some headway made this week. After much violence, swearing and victory beers, I replaced my upper control arm bushings. They were SHOT. Had been putting this one off but due to this crisis, i ran out of excuses.





For anyone considering doing this, I highly recommend it. Very much worth the effort. But a total PITA if you dont own proper air tools like myself.

[upsidedownxj]

I then finished trimming the front fenders and threw the basket and spare on.







So much work to be done still. But this is a very rewarding stage. I planned on just making this Jeep an overland style rig but I am quickly realizing the tables are going to turn and it will become a crawler.. Happy Earth day fellas. Hope you all are well.

[upsidedownxj]

Headliner replaced over the weekend. Was PAST due. The sag was serious and the P/O apparently had a greasy dome.








I initially was going to go with factory grey but i forgot how much i love a good flannel.

[upsidedownxj]

With the heat returning here in the entrance to the valley, I quickly realized I need to address my transmission heat issues. I had installed this temp gauge shortly after I had the aw4 rebuilt last June. I tapped the factory port on the trans. Pretty sure Toyota had the right idea by utilizing this

[sdspearo]

Pretty cool. And good job getting the stripes to line up.

[GordoSmasho]

Headliner looks awesome man. Nice work.

[upsidedownxj]

Decided on going the cheap route as far as an actual trans cooler. Nipped this off of a Mercury Mountaineer today at the junkyard.



Anybody have experience with this cooler? Pick n Pull is not as affordable as it once was, but after pulling the damn thing i was committed. Might take it back and go with a legit stacked plate cooler.

[upsidedownxj]

Originally Posted by sdspearo

Pretty cool. And good job getting the stripes to line up.

Thanks man, tried my best. Not sure if the limited trim level is a blessing or a curse here 30 years later. Haha

[BigNuge]

Originally Posted by upsidedownxj

Decided on going the cheap route as far as an actual trans cooler. Nipped this off of a Mercury Mountaineer today at the junkyard.







Anybody have experience with this cooler? Pick n Pull is not as affordable as it once was, but after pulling the damn thing i was committed. Might take it back and go with a legit stacked plate cooler.

I don’t have experience with that cooler, but I did add an external cooler to my XJ. Not sure what you paid, but a general purpose cooler I picked up was $50ish shipped. Pretty cheap for improved cooling for the trans.

Originally Posted by upsidedownxj

With the heat returning here in the entrance to the valley, I quickly realized I need to address my transmission heat issues. I had installed this temp gauge shortly after I had the aw4 rebuilt last June. I tapped the factory port on the trans. Pretty sure Toyota had the right idea by utilizing this

I’m going to be doing a trans gauge myself. Unfortunately that port isn’t open on the 99’s. I’m going to have to cut into the steel lines and add mine.

Originally Posted by upsidedownxj

Headliner replaced over the weekend. Was PAST due. The sag was serious and the P/O apparently had a greasy dome.








I initially was going to go with factory grey but i forgot how much i love a good flannel.

Ok, please tell me where you got the fabric. All I find online are kits with solid color.

Oh, and I’m jealous of your overhead console. I would love to find one to add to mine.

Nice rig!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[upsidedownxj]

Originally Posted by BigNuge

I don’t have experience with that cooler, but I did add an external cooler to my XJ. Not sure what you paid, but a general purpose cooler I picked up was $50ish shipped. Pretty cheap for improved cooling for the trans.


I’m going to be doing a trans gauge myself. Unfortunately that port isn’t open on the 99’s. I’m going to have to cut into the steel lines and add mine.


Ok, please tell me where you got the fabric. All I find online are kits with solid color.

Oh, and I’m jealous of your overhead console. I would love to find one to add to mine.

Nice rig!

Thanks man! The trans gauge is super nice to have. But pushing 33s with 3.55 gears right now , mine is definitely warmer than it should be.

I paid 20 for the cooler. Should do the job though. Made in Canada.

I got the fabric off http://fabric.com. Not many patterns that are wide enough for headliners but this one i got is great.

[upsidedownxj]

After some trimming and fitting this Ford cooler was tits; as far as fitment. Bypassed the radiator for now. This car wont see many cold temps for a while. I have a quattro to get me to Tahoe in the winter.

[upsidedownxj]

Also scored a Drop bracket kit to fix my nasty short arm angle. I swore I wouldnt put any RC parts on this thing but its hard to pass up a really good deal.