MaineJeeper
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Central Maine
This past weekend I needed a replacement door handle and came across a “factory” power slide moonroof that looked in A1 condition inside and out. The donor XJ head liner is spotless clean so I know it didn't leak and he vehicle looked well cared for. The donor is a 2000 limited XJ and mine is a 2001 sport XJ. I do have the factory tow package and heated mirrors accessories but no fog lights.
I ended up purchasing the power moonroof, head liner, drain tubes, body plugs, wiring and lots of little bits for $100. My intention is to take my time in planning the swap to do it the best way possible in the spring for my 40th birthday.
The junk yard is going to pull the unit for me and soon I'll be able to post pics. Normally I'd pull the unit myself for the experience but were under 4 feet of snow and today's high was -2 with blizzard conditions. I might regret it later but for now it's money well spent and I can get planning right away without freezing.
My initial concern is if I will need to swap in some of the power wiring. Over all the unit's controls look very basic. I'm hoping it's going to be just a positive and negative 12V type set up and not anything like a wiring loom that I'm going to have to possibly chase through the fire wall. I'll do it, just hoping to not have to. The reason I worry is the donor vehicle is a limited and mine is a sport. Does anyone know what the power connections for a moonroof look like on a late XJ? I'e been able to find surprisingly little about the moonroof set up on the web.
The donor headliner is the wrong color but I figured it would be great to use as a stencil to cut the hole on both my jeep and it's head liner. That way every thing should line up fairly well with little guess work or measuring. And yes I will be measuring to, I really don't want this done half ass on my daily driver. As far as roof ridges go i plan to pound/cut/weld or what need be to make it flat for a good seal. I'll have to take another look at the donor to see what it is unless someone has a picture of theirs on the interwebs already to help out.
My skills are advanced DIY with lots of time and manpower to waste figuring this out properly. I've owned my XJ for 14 years and always wished it had this option. Sorry for the long post but this is a big undertaking to cut a gaping hole in top my most prized possession. Jeep on my friends and thank you for the help and positive conversation.
I ended up purchasing the power moonroof, head liner, drain tubes, body plugs, wiring and lots of little bits for $100. My intention is to take my time in planning the swap to do it the best way possible in the spring for my 40th birthday.
The junk yard is going to pull the unit for me and soon I'll be able to post pics. Normally I'd pull the unit myself for the experience but were under 4 feet of snow and today's high was -2 with blizzard conditions. I might regret it later but for now it's money well spent and I can get planning right away without freezing.
My initial concern is if I will need to swap in some of the power wiring. Over all the unit's controls look very basic. I'm hoping it's going to be just a positive and negative 12V type set up and not anything like a wiring loom that I'm going to have to possibly chase through the fire wall. I'll do it, just hoping to not have to. The reason I worry is the donor vehicle is a limited and mine is a sport. Does anyone know what the power connections for a moonroof look like on a late XJ? I'e been able to find surprisingly little about the moonroof set up on the web.
The donor headliner is the wrong color but I figured it would be great to use as a stencil to cut the hole on both my jeep and it's head liner. That way every thing should line up fairly well with little guess work or measuring. And yes I will be measuring to, I really don't want this done half ass on my daily driver. As far as roof ridges go i plan to pound/cut/weld or what need be to make it flat for a good seal. I'll have to take another look at the donor to see what it is unless someone has a picture of theirs on the interwebs already to help out.
My skills are advanced DIY with lots of time and manpower to waste figuring this out properly. I've owned my XJ for 14 years and always wished it had this option. Sorry for the long post but this is a big undertaking to cut a gaping hole in top my most prized possession. Jeep on my friends and thank you for the help and positive conversation.
I am actually looking at similar mod. I have a manual slide sun roof I'd like to install on mine. Pics of cut will be very helpful.
