Would you buy your Jeep again?

I would, it wasn't the perfect Jeep at the time but my expectations are changing too. My idea of the perfect Jeep has changed since owning it. I think I will be happier building and learning rather than buying a fully spec'd out Jeep to start with. It's also pushing me to learn more about suspension set up and tuning. I think it helps that I started with a solid, rust free, low mileage Jeep. It just had some shitty mods that I am working through.

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My first TJ - No. It was a bone stock 02 sport with 125K miles I purchased from the original owner. It had lived in FL its entire life so the frame was clean. P/O only took it off road once a year for a family trip. On the drive home I had to pull over multiple times due to misfires and over heating. Like others have said, I didn’t do enough research on what to look for and didn’t know about this site until after the purchase. I think I ended up pulling over 20 codes the first day with lots of other “non-fix” fixes he did over the years. I took care of almost everything myself. Would I purchase that EXACT TJ again, no. I spent too many days working from home working on it to fix silly issues that should have been corrected years ago. But as someone that didn’t have much of a mechanic background it was a great learning experience.

I’ve only had my LJ a few months but so far it would be a yes!
 
Absolutely yes. I had a YJ for a couple years that I really knew nothing about, never even checked the frame or knew there was a 2.5 (which I had) and a 4.0 when I bought it. Then I bought my first TJ, which I still knew nothing about. Made sure it ran and shifted good and again, never even checked the frame. It was immaculate and I’m lucky the PO took such good care of it.
I joined the forum a few months after I bought it, and never had any issues.

Which set me up for the TJ that I own now. I took at least ten minutes inspecting everything top to bottom like ujoints, grease fittings, and especially the frame. Took it for a quick drive and knew it was the one.

So yes, I would buy both TJs again.
 
I would have waited for a manual trans knowing what I know now. Other than that, happy with my jeep.
 
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I've owned 4 jeeps now, and if I had a do over I would buy 3 of the 4 again. I've had a 99 TJ Sport(first car), 03 TJ Sport, 11 JKU Rubicon, and my current 06 LJ Rubicon. The one I wouldn't buy again is the JK. It wasn't bad but it felt sluggish, the ride was mediocre, the freedom top leaked, and for it being the Call of Duty Black Ops Rubicon edition there was nothing special besides a small badge. Wasn't too heart broken when my dad's coworker bought it for his daughter from the dealer I traded it to and I found out 6 months later she blew the engine somehow🤷‍♂️
 
Assuming I was in the same financial situation as when I first bought it then absolutely.

If I was buying again today I'd save enough money until I could convince @mrblaine to sell me his TJ-6 and have him build it.
 
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Yes! it was in unusually good condition when I bought it 3 years ago. It still had the factory assembly labels on the springs and e brake cables. It had 120K miles on it but no dings, or scratches on the TC skid, carpet was new looking, seats were too. and I only handed over 8K for it.
 
Absolutely! I found a 2003 Sahara with 100K on the clock that was sold and driven in the LV area. Virtually no rust anywhere other than some light surface rust on the diffs and axles. Doing a shock replacement last weekend was a piece of cake. The rig was all stock other than the 31" tires. I was looking for an auto with cruise and AC and this one fits the bill perfectly. Only thing better would have been a Rubi.
 
I would absolutely buy this ugly duckling again. However, I would 100% build it differently.

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I'd probably would have bought one closer to stock. The PO cut a lot of corners (RC bolt on crap, EAG "armor") that I would have simply not done. I would have had a simpler, but less capable Jeep. I would have rather built the one I want versus being stuck working from old mods.

But with the configuration and condition...I'm not mad. Eventually, I'll have a much more capable Jeep than I planned, but also a more expensive one.
 
Lucked out with mine . Knew nothing of the rust issues ,and never even looked under the jeep when i traded my 07 tundra for it . ( sold my camper and had no use for the truck any more i was asking 10 he was looking for 10.5 ). Joined this form and everything was brought to my attention . Brought it to my guy to get checked out , and everything was good . Love the jeep so yes would do it again.
 
Oh, yeah, no doubt.
Even though it had 140K miles on it, it was a 1 owner, and was sold and lived it's entire life in SoCal. It has zero, I mean zero, rust. All of the maintenance was documented. It was and still is 95% stock and original.
I've had it just over 2 years now, and haven't made any major changes, but do have plans for it once the wife's car is paid off next year.
 
I looked for close to two years for a silver LJR with manual transmission. Found one in Houston with 23,xxx miles on it. In the mean time I bought a VERY nice TJ. It will be sad to see the TJ go but I'm glad I bough it.

Theoretically, if I hadn't just put a lift on mine, I could have driven out to CO with a stone white LJ and returned from CO with a stone white LJ and my wife may not have noticed the Rubicon sticker. 🤭
 
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I actually didn't buy but traded a 95 Dodge Ram 3500 (5.9 - 170,000 Miles) for my now 97 TJ Sport (114,000 Miles). If you ever won't to be entertained put something on CL for trade and see what offers you receive. That is what i did with this 95 Dodge looking to trade for a Jeep. So ended up signing titles over and no $$ changing hands (except with DMV to pay tax's).

I'm VERY Happy with my TJ. I was fortunate to have no rust issues.

Since the trade I have done a significant amount of upgrades with a goal of a safe reliable rig on the trail.

An another note, i owned a CJ7 5 years ago and it was fun to wheel (Detroit Locker rear and I think a truetrac front) but was not my ideal jeep so it went to a good home.

95 Dodge Ram 3550 (Front).JPG


97 TJ Sport Before.JPG


97 TJ Now.JPG


97 TJ Now (Side).jpg
 
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I actually didn't buy but traded a 95 Dodge Ram 3500 (5.9 - 170,000 Miles) for my now 97 TJ Sport (114,000 Miles). If you ever won't to be entertained put something on CL for trade and see what offers you receive. That is what i did with this 95 Dodge looking to trade for a Jeep. So ended up signing titles over and no $$ changing hands (except with DMV to pay tax's).

I'm VERY Happy with my TJ. I was fortunate to have no rust issues.

Since the trade I have done a significant amount of upgrades with a goal of a safe reliable rig on the trail.

An another note, i owned a CJ7 5 years ago and it was fun to wheel (Detroit Locker rear and I think a truetrac front) but was not my ideal jeep so it went to a good home.


I think you made out better than the other guy in that Craigslist trade 👍
 
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The TJ to the left is my 5th Jeep I've owned. A CJ5, two CJ 7's, a YJ and this TJ.

Yes, I'd do it again. That said, in the future I'll probably not look beyond the TJ when I do it again.