MiRustyjeep

Mike_H

autos are better - WRWD508
Supporting Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2017
Messages
11,577
Location
Grand Rapids, MI, United States
Table of Contents...

CIBIE Headlight Upgrade with Relays

JK Wheels and Tires

New Front Bumper

Rust Repair and Lift (LOTS of pages)

Gas Tank Tuck (1 Inch)

Front Seat Refurbishment

Audio Upgrade

Currie Control Arm Rebuild

Control Arm Install

Tummy Tuck

Tub Swap

JCR Crusader Rock Slider Mounting Guide

So, I figured it time to put my plans and work into a single location. Not a lot going on yet. Still in the "bring maintenance up to snuff" phase. I do have a couple of modifications planned though. My overall build plan is going to be 2.5 OME lift and 1.25" BL to clear 33's. A lot of the trails I run don't require anything more than a stock jeep, but we have a couple offroad parks where the extra Ground Clearance will be nice. Plus...It just looks cool! If I do decide to run 35's (doubtful, but who knows), I'll get a set of tube fenders for the extra clearance. I'm also planning on a tummy tuck, but that is way down the road (probably two years).

For right now, My first real Mod will be Cibie headlight upgrade with +130 H4 bulbs. They should be at the house today...I hope the relay kit makes it by the weekend. I'll try to submit a nice "how-to" style thread for those who wish to follow along at home. I ended up spending about 170 bucks on the whole "kit." I looked at LED, but they are EXPENSIVE. From the research I've done, I should be able to get about 80 percent of the output with about 15% of the cost.

I also have to do front brakes. I noticed a pull as the brakes are applied. It gets worse as brake effort increases. Crawling around underneath showed very worn rotors, and the pads are not making good contact...explains a lot. I ordered a PowerStop 1 click Kit and some extended SS brake lines. I figured I'd future proof my eventual lift with extended lines now, since I want to replace the rubber lines anyway. The PowerStop Kit (Buy HERE ) Is about 230 bucks. I would have REALLY liked to get the black magic brake kit but I just can't stomach the price tag right now. Again, I'll try to document the installation process for anyone who'd like the information.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: JMT and Chris
Sounds like you've got a good plan laid out. You'll love that OME lift, I can guarantee you that. Be sure to post some photos along the way.

BTW, you don't need the Vanco big brake kit (if that's what you're referring to) unless you're running 35" tires or larger. I have it with my 33" tires and it's overkill. Not that I mind it, my TJ just stops exceptionally well :D
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mike_H
Sounds like you've got a good plan laid out. You'll love that OME lift, I can guarantee you that. Be sure to post some photos along the way.


I'm not planning the lift until next winter. Michigan has a nice three month down period of jeeping, and I have a heated workshop in which to perform jeep surguries! I'm going to drive the crap out of it this summer, build up my piggy bank, and blow it all at once on everything I need to do the lift right, the first time.
 
For right now, My first real Mod will be Cibie headlight upgrade with +130 H4 bulbs. They should be at the house today...I hope the relay kit makes it by the weekend. I'll try to submit a nice "how-to" style thread for those who wish to follow along at home. I ended up spending about 170 bucks on the whole "kit." I looked at LED, but they are EXPENSIVE. From the research I've done, I should be able to get about 80 percent of the output with about 15% of the cost.

I went that same route with my LJ and I love the results.
 
I'm not planning the lift until next winter. Michigan has a nice three month down period of jeeping, and I have a heated workshop in which to perform jeep surguries! I'm going to drive the crap out of it this summer, build up my piggy bank, and blow it all at once on everything I need to do the lift right, the first time.

Is that 3 month down period due to massive snow?
 
Is that 3 month down period due to massive snow?


I guess you have to define "massive snow." Average snowfall where I live is about 75 inches a season. Last couple of seasons, we've been pushing 100 inches. This year wasn't too bad. It's more due to the cold Temps and road salt. Guys do drive jeeps here year round, but I'm fortunate to be able to afford my jeep as a"toy" and can choose not to drive it during the winter months.

Where my wife is from, Michigan's Upper Pennisula, near Houghton, they get about 280 inches of snow a season! So my sense of massive amounts of snow is warpped. Most people think 75 is a lot.
I use this machine to take care of it. Do I need this, absolutely not. Does it make quick work of my driveway? Hell yes! Garden tractors are another hobby of mine, this one is my worker. ..it's a 1998 Simplicity 18 hp, hydrostatic drive, power steering, and hydraulic implent lift.
Screenshot_20161211-123336.png
 
Last edited:
I guess you have to define "massive snow." Average snowfall where I live is about 75 inches a season. Last couple of seasons, we've been pushing 100 inches. This year wasn't too bad. It's more due to the cold Temps and road salt. Guys do drive jeeps here year round, but I'm fortunate to be able to afford my jeep as a"toy" and can choose not to drive it during the winter months.

Where my wife is from, Michigan's Upper Pennisula, near Houghton, they get about 280 inches of snow a season! So my sense of massive snow warpped. Most people this 75 is a lot. I use this machine to tame care of it. Do I need this, absolutely not. Does it make quick work of my drive? Hell yes! Garden tractors are another hobby of mine, that one is my worker. ..it's a1998 simplicity 18 hp, hydrostatic drive, power steering, and hydraulic implent lift.
View attachment 12548

Okay, even 4 inches of snow is a lot to me. Here we are lucky if we even get an inch a year. Though this year was one of those fluke year where we got several feet!
 
Sounds like a good plan. Any plans for a gear change? I run the Powerstop Extreme set on my Silverado. They work awesome and get better with some heat. I have loaded up my hunting gear and towed the TJ it has plenty of stopping power. I read nothing but good reviews the the BMB as well.
 
Put relays and heavy gage wire in my headlight circuit today. Also installed Cibie H4 Headlights and Phillips +130% H4 Bulbs. Took me WAY longer than I thought it would. Pulled power from a couple of unused spots in my PDC, ran separate circuits for Hi and Lo Beams and replaced all the headlight connectors. Some pics...

Here is where I started. I bought a relay kit from Daniel Stern and augmented it with some 12 gage wire and other stuff I had laying around. The kit is pretty nice. The included relays are really nice, in that they have two 87 terminals (not an 87 and 87a) so you don't have to try to get two 12 gage wires on one connector. I didn't end up using the fuse holders. They were like 8 gage...Not sure why when everything else was designed for 12. Since I pulled power out of my PDC, they were extra. I also needed more ring terminals. One reason it took so long was I soldered and used marine shrink wrap on every connection I could.
20170318_121257.jpg


The Bulb housings. They actually look pretty similar to the sealed beam Wagners that were in there, but you can tell these are quality units.
20170318_114150.jpg


20170318_202348.jpg


Here is where I tapped into the PDC. Slot 7 and 14 I think were open, so I used some fuse taps I had leftover from another project. I'm going to have to pick up another PDC so I can get the correct terminals in there, but these work for now. The circled fuses are the new ones.
PDC with new Fuse.jpg

Here are the relays, mounted to the radiator support, along with the backside of the connectors. I got the signal for the relays from the existing harness. The kit I bought came with male terminals to plug into the existing harness. So the Green and White wires are my signal wires for the headlights. They are plugged into the old headlight sockets. It will go back to stock very easily, if desired.
20170318_195953.jpg


Here is a shot of the grill, with the new painted bezels, mounting rings and new lights.

20170318_200039.jpg


I have to get some night shots tomorrow. I'm beat. Tomorrow, I'm heading to my folks to work in my dad's heated barn. I'll do front brakes, and aim the headlights. Initial impressions are good though. The light is MUCH more white. I gotta image it will throw it a LONG way. What is going to be real interesting is how it compares to the projectors on my F150. I'll try to get a comparison shot in the next couple days.

The only issue I'm running into is that my High Beam indicator is flashing in the dash. I don't have an owners manual, so I don't know what that means yet. I have a suspicion that its due to one of my factory connectors not being attached to anything. Anyone know? @VirtualRussel you did this upgrade, right? Any ideas?
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: Ephry73 and matkal
Quick update...I feel foolish. I've been doing my testing with the ignition off. Checked out the service manual posted at morris 4x4 and realized that the flashing indicator means the lights are on...with the ignition off. Turned my ignition on and the lights work just the way they are supposed to!
 
Quick update...I feel foolish. I've been doing my testing with the ignition off. Checked out the service manual posted at morris 4x4 and realized that the flashing indicator means the lights are on...with the ignition off. Turned my ignition on and the lights work just the way they are supposed to!

Doh! That's a good thing to remember. I was about to say that, other than pulling from the PDU, my setup was exactly as yours and I didn't have any issues with that. Glad to see it was something simple.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mike_H
Glad to know the light upgrade is working well for you! Looks like a mighty fine install.
 
Glad to know the light upgrade is working well for you! Looks like a mighty fine install.

Looks OK now...well see how it holds up after a couple years. I will probably get back into it and clean up some of the routing. It's a little messy around the relays. Not sure I can make it much better, but maybe. A couple of my runs were estimated, so they have a couple extra inches of wire. Gotta make sure they won't abrade on any exposed sheetmetal edges.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Chris
Wiring is always one of those things I'm super OCD about. I go out of my way to go to specialty electronic stores and buy factory style connectors, heat shrink everything, solder, etc. I don't know why, I just want my wiring to look as neat and factory as possible.
 
Definitely worth the time to upgrade. I figure I'm into it for 200 bucks...or in other words, half the cost of ONE trucklight LED.

Two Truck Lites will run you $320, so one of them is $160 :p

But seriously though, that is a huge difference!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ephry73
Ok, I had to add extraneous supplies. The lights, relays, and bulbs were $170. Total cost was about $200. I thought the trucklites were more expensive. Looks like the trucklites are totally plug and play too. Probably is a better way to go, if you don't mind the look of LED's. I definitely made up the difference in cost in my time. I enjoyed the project, but it did take about 5 hours to build that harness, start to finish. Thanks for the tip!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chris
Ok, I had to add extraneous supplies. The lights, relays, and bulbs were $170. Total cost was about $200. I thought the trucklites were more expensive. Looks like the trucklites are totally plug and play too. Probably is a better way to go, if you don't mind the look of LED's. I definitely made up the difference in cost in my time. I enjoyed the project, but it did take about 5 hours to build that harness, start to finish. Thanks for the tip!

The Truck Lites are indeed plug and play. No need to upgrade wiring since they draw way less power than halogens.

One of the less often discussed reasons I like Truck Lites is because of their polycarbonate lenses. Unlike the halogen headlights that are glass, the Truck Lites will not crack off road if a tree branch (or bush) smacks them (ask me how I know).