Back in a Jeep

[Ephry73]

It has been a few since I've owned a Jeep. Recently acquired this 1997 Wrangler Sport 4.0 I6 and 5 spd manual. Came with a lift and 33" tires as well as some work done. Have been tackling the standard maintenance and correcting rust issues and patches here and there. New brake system fluid and flush as well as the parking brake adjuster clasp thingy. Rides well and picks up very well as well.

Have new seats coming(front and back) as well as rear seat belts and other things I want to change. Would not be myself if I didn't change something on it. I have read as many posts around here as I could search just to get myself up to speed with the Tjs. Only owned a CJ7, YJ and JKU at different times in my life.

I keep daily driving it to work as much as I can and making it more "me" as I go along. I'm in NY, just north of the City.


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[RobertJ]

Welcome back to the addiction.

 

[Ephry73]

Ordered up and received:

-Rock sliders from EAG (eBay pricing was too good with free shipping) Coated them with POR15 and bed liner and will be installing them this weekend. DONE
-New Corbeau Sport GT seats look amazing Brackets installed just need to drill and tap the rear bolts
-The Smittybilt rear seat is black denim for easy cleanup and no vinyl cracking in our cold winters-Needs to tap bolt locations
-Rear seat belts and anchors Done
-Rear tailgate HD hinges(the stock ones had seen better days) What a PITA to fix Done
-New e-brake thingymajiggy to secure the parking brake and replace the rusted stock one. Installed and so much better. Now I can trust putting in on a slant with the e-brake on.
-Advance Adapters 4wd cable shifter and assembly. For ease of use and preventative maintenance. The stock one is rusted and extremely difficult to operate. Will be coating that area with Fluid Film to prevent rust and corrosion. - Got the package in the mail finally and will be putting the assembly Done. Installing on 01/01/2020 see how she goes
-KBS rust converter and wire brushes as well as POR15 top coat. Will be tackling the frame and tub before they start spraying the roads with salt. Depending on the snow I may get the underside completely covered this weekend.
-Repair the Latch for the tail gate. Seems to get stuck open. DONE
-New Walker tail section for the exhaust(after the muffler joint) painted with POR15 High heat to prevent rust. The current one is Swiss cheese and barely doing anything. DONE

I will tackle some other issues after the weekend, but this will allow me to drive it without worries for a bit. Maybe paint the interior door panels black and go with the stealth black interior.

On the to order later list:

-Smittybilt bow-less combo soft top. This way I can use it as an extended bikini top when I want and not have too much bulk to worry about Decided to stick with the stock setup. New top with tinted windows installed.
-Locksmith work or order lock cylinders to make sure I don't have three different keys to lock things up lol. Done.
All keys work with all of the locks. So much better to know I can lock it, even if just to slow down bad people at the supermarket, or mall.

 

[lowranger]

Welcome back!

 

[Ephry73]

May be sourcing some full doors for the winter. I don't mind the half doors with the sliders, but with the little one possibly riding in it, I may want to make it more cozy.

Glad to be back

 

[Ephry73]

Some aftermarket aluminum grab bars installed. Seats have been removed and have to re-tap the rear seat bracket bolts on both sides (the Torx bolt on both sides was sheered off and the 13mm ones even after a night of PB Blaster and heat still snapped)

Corbeau seat brackets were modified and man I like the seats. Cannot wait to install them.

The side steps/Rock slider went in without much fuzz. Still have to weld a body mount that was missing.

 

[Ephry73]

Progress is a great thing. Still need to tackle the rear bolts as my drill bits were not the correct ones to eat through the stock bolts. The seats are amazingly comfortable and so much easier to get in and out of the jeep with them on. Managed to get everything on and only 1/2" higher than stock. Full tilt and recline.

I was looking at the wiring and trying to make sure things are where they should be as I got a P0301 code recently. Wanted to know if anyone has any idea of what these two plugs connect to. Near the alternator coming of f the same wire loom.

This doo-hickey was a pain in the butt to remove but I finally have a trustworthy parking brake

 

[Ephry73]

This is how she sits now. New seats, so much better.

 

[Ephry73]

My list is almost done. Except for the door locks and certain things here and there and a pesky P0301 code that keeps coming up. Having a parking brake is such a nice thing to have.

Got some shocks in the mail and will be upgrading to those over the weekend. New H4 Sylvania bulbs to replace the worn ones in the KC H4 buckets.

 

[Ephry73]

Radio install done as well as a few other things.

Finally got the new head unit and speakers installed. Had to deal with this mess from the PO(wire harness adapters, use them, don't hack)

Head unit is an XA AVX3000 Sony and puts out very decent power. With the now back to 4x6" Polk speakers up front and the boom mat enclosures, as well as the four speaker and dual tweeter rear overhead sound bar, the sound is much fuller and crisper. May not need to go subwoofer for a while. Now I find myself lowering the volume to hear the motor lol

Cleaned everything up up front and taped over any exposed wires plus added the mic for the hands free. Easy.

 

[Ephry73]

Got the transfer case oil flushed as well as I fially got the right tap and drill combos to put in the rear seat. A Smittybilt fold and tumble rear in black denim.

The PO decided that the factory stock hardware was to be messed with and I don’t even know what could have possibly been done, but between a broken tap, broken bolts and tons of Bedliner material, the stock holes were barely there.

Now I have to wait for a bit more warmth in the air to get the rear area cleaned up and bedlined. The seat fit very well and has a few features I like The seat is comfortable, the kiddo loves it and he’ll be safe which what I was looking for. Waterhose and brush washable is always a plus.

The driver’s seat and passenger are secured as well using grade 8 7/16-20 and locking washers.

next on the agenda is the front dana30 cover to something not banged up to hell and a fluid change. Got the lubelocker gasket for the front and will tackle that.
Getting the front bumper finished for the weekend and will be mocking up the fog lights to finish it off. Not crazy about the spotters that we’re on it and NY can be funny with that. I’ll leave the brackets there as I could probably use them for rear view mirror locations when the doors are off. May become the stock mirror locations if all goes well.

 

[Ephry73]

Got my tube fenders from EAG on Saturday and super excited to start chopping the rusty ones. Have to paint the EAG units with good ol’ POR. Went with the 3” flares as this is a daily driver.
Lube changed on the Dana30 and upgraded the cover to a nodular steel one. Will keep it and just upgrade the axle for longevity and maybe a Detroit locker, maybe.

sye kit and gathering a list for a stroker build.

 

[Ephry73]

Tube fenders are on. What a PITA it was to remove the rusted bolts and follow the more than vague instructions. Should have purchased new bolts for the body-to-fender area. Note to self for later.
The fenders are on. Aligned as best as I could and will remove them in the summer to apply some body sealer to all of the areas that meat the body or are metal to metal. Just do that I can sleep better is all

next to do on the fender install is the LED lights and flasher relay for LED. Decided to just buy a relay and save the stock one just in case.
Every has been painted with POR rust converter flat black and then followed with gloss black. Painted the inside of the wheel well as well because it just looks better and will protect the paint against rust and such. Yes, the four bolts for the inner lower arch aren’t on, but I’m waiting for the paint to cure in that area.
Metal brushed off and sanded as much of the rust as I could prior to painting didn’t have to cut much from the passenger side batter tray, but the driver’s side needed a good 3/4” trim. Two bolts snapped their heads in protest but it will be fine as the fenders are held in by three body to fender bolts plus the bolt for the frame sliders on the side(still need to drill those)

All in all I’m very happy with the finish of the fenders and looks, as well as not having to worry about pieces of rust falling everywhere I park.

 

[Ephry73]

Just have to finish up the lights. Looks a whole lot better and it’s all secured. We shall see how long it will last.

 

[Ephry73]

The hazard lights are finally wired in and tucked away.
Spotters from Rugged Ridge wired and working perfectly using the pre-installed KCLites loom. Had to change the KC Lites relay for a newer one from amazon

Next I will get the Rugged Ridge Fogs installed with the stock loom and coat the lenses yellow using LaminX

 

[Ephry73]

To do list completed. She drives well and stops well as well as handles daily driving without too much hassle at all.

Will probably update the headlights for the Trucklites or Knockoffs, but for now she feels good.

The Advance Adapters 4wd shifter is sooooo nice compared to the stock setup. No I itch to go on 4wd all the time, but alas, no place for it yet.

Have Bilstein 5100 in the garage waiting to be installed.

 

[Sea Cot]

Very cool, keep up the good work!

 

[Ephry73]

It has been a good 10.5 months thus far. Lots of maintenance and lots of undoing what the PO did.

Need to redo some welds in the safetycap installed on the driver's side and patch torque boxes.
So far I have been daily driving it and my 6yo loves riding in it.

Don't miss the Audi at all.

Still to finish, SYE kit and #1 cylinder valve springs(have been neglecting to do it but it is time)