Chili pepper build

In August of 2020 life changed dramatically for me. My wife and I had our first child, a girl. I had a problem that needed a solution… I needed to find a way to be able to go wheeling as a family, I needed a seat for the baby and space for a 90lb German Shepard, Rosco.

I ended up buying a matching PRP daily driver series seat. Mounted behind the passenger seat, I was able to line up the mounting holes into the cross member bracing in the tub that the factory rear seat is bolted through. There is surprisingly a lot of space, enough for me to sit comfortably.

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2021- Not much building on the TJ. I traded in my Tacoma for a 2021 Gladiator Mojave. I Absolutely LOVE it! I haven’t done a bunch to it, but changed the wheels, added a brake controller, and was given an ARB compressor, that I installed under the hood. The pic of it towing the TJ was just to test the brake controller, no trips with it yet.

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The last couple weeks I have made it a point to take the daughter and dog out in the TJ, the weather on the coast has been awesome for it. We went driving around logging roads and spur trails, nothing extreme just getting my daughter (1YO) acclimated to being in the jeep, so far she loves it!

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I was surprised how much my daughter loves the jeep. I figured my boy would, and he does like it, but it turns out my girl LOVES it and is the one always asking to go on drives!
 
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Craigslist score! AX15 and Tcase for free. I plan to separate and rebuild the AX15 this winter. Mine has the infamous 2nd gear stubbornness when cold. I figured for free, it was worth it even if it turns into scrap.

Only other update for today was the conversion into winter mode.

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Not a lot more progress on the build, I tend to spend more time on other stuff then the TJ lately. In the past year or so all I’ve really accomplished is swapping out the old smittybilt winch for a Warn.

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I spent a bunch of time cleaning up old wiring that I had done years ago, adding proper connections and using shrink tubing to make things look nice.

I ended up buying a 99 XJ to build for my wife to try to get into wheeling. It was too good of a deal to pass up and not sink some money into. I got it stock and added a 3” lift, some Gladiator Rubicon take off 33s and bushwhacker flat flares.
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Today I spent some time adding seat heaters to the TJ, as a practice run before I add them to the XJ for my wife. I got the Dorman kit on Amazon for $40 a set, and for $80 I was super impressed with how complete the kit was. Easy and straight forward install.

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I ended up using a fuse tap in #19 for switched power. I kept the wiring under the center console and then behind the dash to the fuse box.

The covers on the PRP’s come off and on really easy, hence why I chose to practice with these seats before I tackle the factory upholstery of the XJ.
 
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Also love the 3rd PRP seat, ive got one turning two, would be great for the extra storage and more secure option for when he gets a little older.
 
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Installed an on board battery charger/maintainer. Last week I went to start it for the first time in far too long and the battery didn’t have enough to turn over. The battery is still good, it just sits in the garage for too long in these wet winter months on the coast.
 
Today I spent some time adding seat heaters to the TJ, as a practice run before I add them to the XJ for my wife. I got the Dorman kit on Amazon for $40 a set, and for $80 I was super impressed with how complete the kit was. Easy and straight forward install.

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I ended up using a fuse tap in #19 for switched power. I kept the wiring under the center console and then behind the dash to the fuse box.

The covers on the PRP’s come off and on really easy, hence why I chose to practice with these seats before I tackle the factory upholstery of the XJ.

I just picked up some similar Amazon heaters. Thanks for the write up! Do you know what kind of knot prp put in the seat covers? Haha
 
Great idea on the 3rd seat for your toddler. May have to do something similar for my LJ. I have a bestop rear bench seat now, but a single seat would be better for gf granddaughter and our pups to be in the back at the same time. Thanks for helping me spend more money. lol