Did I buy a unicorn?

[WallyWest]

Seeing all these rust threads made me wonder about the history of my 147k mile TJ that I bought last year. Looked into it and found that it had several owners, but has lived it's entire life in NJ and PA. This is what the frame looks like.

Looks like that, front to back. Some surface rust underneath on things like the driveshaft, but nothing on the frame. Even hardware, like the rear shock bolts look fairly clean. And I'm pretty sure the suspension is original, bushings are all shot to hell, rides like a tractor.

The more I crawl around underneath it I think it must have been garaged for the winter.

 

[Chris]

For your location, that's definitely not a common sight. Anywhere where they salt the roads, clean frames are hard to find.

 

[Starrs]

Is this an unlimited Rubicon? Or?

 

[rasband]

Is this an unlimited Rubicon? Or?

Profile suggests an 03 sport.

I guess whether or not it’s a good buy depends on the price, in any case the frame look exceptional for the locale. It’s definitely been sprayed - but that looks to be preventative and not a cover up.

 

[scottgraham]

Is this an unlimited Rubicon? Or?

"Unicorn", not "Rubicon".
Chris should make a sticker for that.

 

[Cedar128]

Seeing all these rust threads made me wonder about the history of my 147k mile TJ that I bought last year. Looked into it and found that it had several owners, but has lived it's entire life in NJ and PA. This is what the frame looks like.

Looks like that, front to back. Some surface rust underneath on things like the driveshaft, but nothing on the frame. Even hardware, like the rear shock bolts look fairly clean. And I'm pretty sure the suspension is original, bushings are all shot to hell, rides like a tractor.

The more I crawl around underneath it I think it must have been garaged for the winter.

View attachment 164307

My ‘05 is like that (212K), it’s also lived it’s entire life in Pa/NJ. I’ve fingered enough frames around here to say yes, we’ve found unicorns for this area.

 

[WallyWest]

Yeah, '03 Sport. Only mod I have found is 30 inch tires.

I guess the pic does make it look sprayed, but I don't think it was. Or if so it was a long time ago. It feels like bare metal, no texture at all.

 

[Starrs]

"Unicorn", not "Rubicon".
Chris should make a sticker for that.

Ok so not a unicorn then haha

 

[PJOJeep]

Call it a unicorn if you want, but a good one! You only showed the skid plate mounting, I’d still think about drilling a drain hole or two on the underside of the frame, and then inspect/flush/treat the INSIDE of the frame rails to keep them in good shape.

 

[bromel]

What does it feel like inside the frame?

 

[WallyWest]

What does it feel like inside the frame?

Same as the outside. I haven't stuck a camera in there to look, but I did poke around in most every hole and hammered on it all around. Didn't find any issues.

I do plan to drill some drain holes and treat the inside of the frame before winter. I hope to be able to keep my older 4Runner on the road for a while longer and drive it during the salt season.

 

[Brianj5600]

"Unicorn", not "Rubicon".
Chris should make a sticker for that.

Crazy how close those words are. Same letters except uNicorn ruBicon.