Looking at this TJ tomorrow

R

Robert Christy

New Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2018
Messages
12
Location
Southern California
New to Wranglers, not new to Jeeps. I've owned 4 Cherokees including a '77 V8 with a stick shift, manual hubs and a bench front seat, other than the world's worst constructed body, it was great as long as you never topped 70mph.

We have a new Grand Cherokee Overland, V8 4x4 we tow a small Airstream with. It's too damn nice to take on trails, it's going to be my wife's car and I finally get a Wrangler.

I found a 2004 Rubicon, 2 owner, 131k. I6 automatic. It's got a 2 inch lift, Nice wheels and new tires. From the pictures it looks nice and has a clean Carfax. Sold new in San Diego, traded and it moved to Riverside. The first owner put 90k on it, The 2nd drove it 40k in the last 6 years. It's on the lot of a local used car guy with a good reputation. He bought it at auction. He wants 12-9 for it, my guess is he bought it for 10. The guy knows zip about Wranglers as he sells mostly economy cars. Other than rust what should I look for?

Thanks
 
That is a decent price for a Rubi, luckily rust is not your biggest issue in so. ca. make sure the lockers work via the switch on the dash. what kind of lift is on it...if it is rough country it is crap and will need to be replaced. post as many pics here as you can and the pro's here will tell you what you have. we like as many under carriage pics as possible. If you can negotiate a bit that would be great, if it looks good put a REFUNDABLE deposit to hold until the gurus here go through the pics.
 
Clunky rear U joint, really bad. Had subwoofer behind seat that took up entire cargo area, 12 inch speaker. Differentials leaked. CB radio wires all over the dash all of that and no AC.

Looking at a 1 owner 99 with 51k on it later this week.
 
Missed out on the low mileage 99. Found a 2006 with 35,,000 actual miles, Has some nice modifications. It's a two hour drive from me, so I have a mechanic going to look at it Thursday morning. It's spent it's life in Palm Springs, it's had three owners in 12 years and it seems none of them drove it very much. If it checks out, I'll put a deposit on it and drive out on Saturday or Sunday. We'll see what happens.

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Robert Christy said:
Missed out on the low mileage 99. Found a 2006 with 35,,000 actual miles, Has some nice modifications. It's a two hour drive from me, so I have a mechanic going to look at it Thursday morning. It's spent it's life in Palm Springs, it's had three owners in 12 years and it seems none of them drove it very much. If it checks out, I'll put a deposit on it and drive out on Saturday or Sunday. We'll see what happens.

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DAMN... that thing looks clean as hell.
 
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Palm Springs has a lot of retirees. My guess is, it was a toy to drive to the store and the Indian Casinos from time to time. If it had bounced around out in the desert the under carriage would be scuffed up, it looks new. They want top dollar for it (just under KBB value) but if it's as nice as it looks, worth it. It has an aftermarket audio system with satellite and GPS with a 7 inch screen. Car play, Bluetooth, etc. I hope it's as good as it looks. The guy going to look at is a Mopar mechanic, who does Jeep lifts at his dealership. He is a school friend of a mechanic I know. Worth the $100.
 
Looks like it's spent some of it's life behind an RV. Super clean unit!

As far as the pup is concerned, Get some Spiderweb Shades, and a leash that clips into the rear seat belt buckle.
 
With the backseat out, I was going to cover the footwells with plywood. then use his old dog bed (35x40) as his spot behind the front seats. I should probably use something to block the camping gear from burying him when I hit the brakes, maybe webbing would work. I like those sun shades. They would work with the side windows and back window unzipped.
 
I use a windjammer and just fold it down in half to separate the back. It allows me to store some gear behind the seats without the gear taking out the pup.
 
they are asking a very steep price for a soft top X model...it is ridiculously clean though but for that I would want a rubicon.....even if it a bit more miles....just my opinion.
 
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cliffish said:
they are asking a very steep price for a soft top X model...it is ridiculously clean though but for that I would want a rubicon.....even if it a bit more miles....just my opinion.
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I just retired at 73, I'm not going to do any serious stuff

Camping with my grandson etc
Easy stuff in the mountains to fly fish, drive around in the desert
I beat the he'll out of my old Cherokees and myself 30 years ago. I can probably negotiate them down a little. Not to be morbid but it will robably be my last car. I just sold my BMW 550. My wife will drive our GC Overland for awhile and then get a small Benz.
 
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cliffish said:
By all means go for it...you won't find a cleaner one!...I am sure they will negotiate, they know they are on the higher end.
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Agreed. If you plan to keep this one 'til the "end", you'd do well to find one in the best shape with the lowest miles...this one seems to fit that profile. Good luck with the search and possible purchase.
 
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