Hi All,
Just found the forum last night, but from the brief amount of time I've been here, I think I'm going to like it. I'm a relative noob to jeep ownership. I have lots of friends that have them and I have wanted one for a LONG time. The wife and I decided to wait for the right time though. We finally decided that the time is correct, so the hunt began. I ended up finding a pretty nice 04 rubicon within a few hour drive from me that was in my budget and looked pretty clean.
The biggie that concerned me was that the front locker didn't work. I talked the dealer down a bit on price and he wanted it gone, so he left me have it for less than 10K. It had 126,500 when I bought it, so I feel like I got a pretty good deal. Definitely didn't steal it, but I did ok. I bought it knowing it needed a little TLC. I've put a couple hundred miles on so far and she drives real good. No unusual clunks or rattles, steering is still relatively tight and there hasn't been any death wobble. I suppose it helps that its bone stock, so I don't think its been wheeled much, if at all. Bonus is that the dealer had already replaced the front fenders with Brand New ones from Mopar.
I've been working on general maintenance so far. Ordered all my oils, air filter, CCV fittings, plugs, etc to do a full tune up. Started with the Differentials, so I could see what was going on with the locker. Turns out that the air line fitting that is pressed into the pumpkin was rusted away. I replaced both front and rear fittings with some homemade brass and copper ones. Both lockers now work! I did notice that both tailpipe hangers have rusted off, so I will be replacing those. Trying to hold off on a new cat-back for a bit yet, though its not far off. The muffler is starting to fall apart. It will also need front brakes...complete. Rotors and pads for sure, but while I'm at it, I'll probably throw a set of calipers on and replace the brake lines. Finally, I want to flush the cooling system. I'm a stickler for maintenance. I feel it helps me learn my vehicle, plus I want to feel comfortable with my wife taking it out if she likes. Don't want her to get stranded anywhere.
I'm going to try and drive this thing as much as possible this summer, and clean up the corrosion that is there. The frame needs some paint, the body has a couple of small rust spots, and the wheels are pretty bad. After I drive it and wheel it I will decide how much lift I want to do. My brain says I don't need anything bigger than 33" tires in Michigan (mostly fire roads with the occasional off road park or sand due session). My heart says 35" on a LCG build. Don't know what that appeals to me, but I like the big tire without huge lift look. I know its expensive to do correctly...so we'll see.
Couple Pictures...
Just found the forum last night, but from the brief amount of time I've been here, I think I'm going to like it. I'm a relative noob to jeep ownership. I have lots of friends that have them and I have wanted one for a LONG time. The wife and I decided to wait for the right time though. We finally decided that the time is correct, so the hunt began. I ended up finding a pretty nice 04 rubicon within a few hour drive from me that was in my budget and looked pretty clean.
The biggie that concerned me was that the front locker didn't work. I talked the dealer down a bit on price and he wanted it gone, so he left me have it for less than 10K. It had 126,500 when I bought it, so I feel like I got a pretty good deal. Definitely didn't steal it, but I did ok. I bought it knowing it needed a little TLC. I've put a couple hundred miles on so far and she drives real good. No unusual clunks or rattles, steering is still relatively tight and there hasn't been any death wobble. I suppose it helps that its bone stock, so I don't think its been wheeled much, if at all. Bonus is that the dealer had already replaced the front fenders with Brand New ones from Mopar.
I've been working on general maintenance so far. Ordered all my oils, air filter, CCV fittings, plugs, etc to do a full tune up. Started with the Differentials, so I could see what was going on with the locker. Turns out that the air line fitting that is pressed into the pumpkin was rusted away. I replaced both front and rear fittings with some homemade brass and copper ones. Both lockers now work! I did notice that both tailpipe hangers have rusted off, so I will be replacing those. Trying to hold off on a new cat-back for a bit yet, though its not far off. The muffler is starting to fall apart. It will also need front brakes...complete. Rotors and pads for sure, but while I'm at it, I'll probably throw a set of calipers on and replace the brake lines. Finally, I want to flush the cooling system. I'm a stickler for maintenance. I feel it helps me learn my vehicle, plus I want to feel comfortable with my wife taking it out if she likes. Don't want her to get stranded anywhere.
I'm going to try and drive this thing as much as possible this summer, and clean up the corrosion that is there. The frame needs some paint, the body has a couple of small rust spots, and the wheels are pretty bad. After I drive it and wheel it I will decide how much lift I want to do. My brain says I don't need anything bigger than 33" tires in Michigan (mostly fire roads with the occasional off road park or sand due session). My heart says 35" on a LCG build. Don't know what that appeals to me, but I like the big tire without huge lift look. I know its expensive to do correctly...so we'll see.
Couple Pictures...
