South Carolina 1998 TJ Fix / Sell / Trade

[JAM]

Price

$8500

Location

Anderson SC

‘98 Jeep Wrangler Sahara
In-line 6 cylinder 4.0L 5 speed Manual
170k Miles
Condition: Great / Bad
Great – see the list below
Bad – frame is gone and 100 % needs to be replaced
General info – my TJ runs and looks great. Very good power, no check engine lights but does have the ABS light on (not sure why and was told to ignore it). AC and Heat work, the interior/inside look great with now leaks and in very good condition considering the age.
The issue – I purchased this Jeep and failed to inspect it the proper way due to a broken foot and just trusting the person selling it too much. Long story short, we have invested a lot of money into this jeep to find out today the frame is a total loss – can’t be repaired and needs to be replaced – just a rust bucket with too many cracks and holes.
Options:

• Get a new frame and have a good reputable place swap it out ($1800 + $2500)
• Sell the jeep – looking for good offers and please understand what we have in it below
• Trade the jeep for a better Jeep – this would be if someone was looking for a project and has a nice jeep to trade. We would of course come out of pocket to make the deal fair to both parties.

Looking for suggestions or advice on what to do. The jeep is at Krawl Off-Road now with the intent to do the swap so if anyone interested in #2 or 3 above, please message me ASAP. Regardless of the direction we go, the guys at Krawl have been great to deal with and treated us with honest advice and seem to really care about us vs. just getting the business.
Here is all the work I did over the last 2 months:
All leaks fixed – front, center and back —- you can park in your clean garage and not get a single drop of any fluids on the floor – all new seals and done professionally
4 NEW Mickey Thompson Baja MTZP3 Mud Terrain Radial Tire - 35X12.50R15LT 113Q
95' x 3/8” Synthetic Winch Rope Kit w/Snap Hook and Rubber Stopper
New Banks Performance Header / full down pipe and muffler w/ tip
New 4” lift components that replaced worn out stuff
Rough Country 7572 Front Adjustable Track Bar
Rough Country Lower Adjustable Control Arms
Rancho Shocks RS500X Shocks – all around
NEW Rear Drive Shaft w/ 4-6" Lift Rear CV Drive Shaft
Zone Offroad Front and Rear Sway Bar Links for 4-5 in. Lift
Rough Country 8731730 Steering Stabilizer
New Pitman Arm
Back Window Struts Rear Hatch Lift Support Set of 2
2 newer front fenders (not installed yet) from same year and make jeep w/ original smaller fender flares color matched. These are in great condition and came off a jeep with only 70K miles on it. Also have the rear color matched fender flares.
Rugged Ridge Rectangular Stubby Trail Mirror – used for when doors are off
New Pioneer MVH-S310BT Single Din Built-in Bluetooth, MIXTRAX, USB, Auxiliary, Pandora, Spotify, iPhone, Android and Smart Sync App Compatibility Car Digital Media Receiver
(4) 96W Side Shooter LED PODS
New Wipers
Completed from previous owner:
Rear axle replaced
Rear Ring and pinion replaced
Re-geared to 4:56
New Master/Slave cylinder
New air filter
~10,000 miles ago:
Spark Plugs replaced
Alternator/serpentine belt replaced
Entire clutch rebuilt (Oct. 2017)
Mickey Thompson rims
Dana 30 front/rear axle – has the 456 gears for the 35” tires
Hi-lift Jack included
Smitty Built XRC front and rear bumpers
Jeep People Halo LED lights (Bluetooth)
Best Top Trek Top (purchased March 2018)
Original Soft Top, No Leaks
Bimini Top

 

[Irun]

Your second and third options aren't really options. With a rusted frame, you won't get half of what you're asking and someone wouldn't likely trade you. That really leaves these options:

1. Replace the frame - $3.5 - $4.5K, depending on the shop
2. Sell it whole for whatever you can get
3. Part it out
4. Buy another Jeep and swap over the parts you want to keep, then sell the rest

It really boils down to what attachment do you have to the Jeep, and are funds an issue. If you like the Jeep and have the money, fix it. However, if you've wanted something different, say an automatic, different color, lower miles, later model, etc. then get something else and start swapping parts. If it were me, assuming the body isn't rusted, I'd lean towards option #1. However, before doing anything have a reputable shop inspect the vehicle for other rust and mechanical issues. It's best to have a complete picture of what you getting into before you take that leap!