Not Getting The Color Jeep You Wanted

[JMT]

I never thought of color, but I fell in love with Flame Red. I'd like to have a White, a Yellow, an Impact Orange and a Patriot Blue. But my favorite color of all is 2003 Intense Blue (it would be awesome if there was an LJ in that color, but nope, never to be)

 

[Airjunky]

I didn't buy it for the color. But blue is definitely in my scope so it didn't get ruled out. My truck, jetski & boat all have blue in them too.
If your so wound up on the color, paint it.

 

[DustyRhodes03]

I was really only concerned about the condition of the jeeps I was looking at when searching for mine.

Never gave color a second thought till I came across what would eventually become my TJ. I really disliked the green, but the condition, maintenance history and price were too good to pass.

After 2 years now, it's really grown on me. And I agree, they do look best when covered in dirt or mud!
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Your Jeep looks like the more successful older brother to mine haha Looks good!

 

[mxz800]

My 2001 Jeep was silver the frame rotted out so I got a 2004 silver Jeep to replace it. I wasn't looking for silver either time just kind of happened.

 

[AndyG]

I bought based on mileage , etc...wasn’t set on color .

the top color and wheels add or take away from every color it seems . Check out Hog and his black Sahara he stripped the wheels to aluminum on the what did you do to your TJ today thread . ...huge change .

tip-don’t buy purely on mileage , but overall condition and lift quality if lifted , gearing and overall set up .

 

[bedhed]

I like the khaki color of mine. Most especially the khaki interior. After having this one for 7 years and beginning to hit that replacement stage, I can honestly say that this khaki is a pain to have. With tops, the best looking choice is black, or black. I miss my dark khaki soft top. Carpet is harder to find. Vinyl dye I'm now finding to be pretty difficult to find too. Nothing like slapping a camel or spice colored soft top on khaki! Nothing matches except for black anything.

If I was to swap, I'd probably go with white or forest green.

 

[Moab]

I like the khaki color of mine. Most especially the khaki interior. After having this one for 7 years and beginning to hit that replacement stage, I can honestly say that this khaki is a pain to have. With tops, the best looking choice is black, or black. I miss my dark khaki soft top. Carpet is harder to find. Vinyl dye I'm now finding to be pretty difficult to find too. Nothing like slapping a camel or spice colored soft top on khaki! Nothing matches except for black anything.

If I was to swap, I'd probably go with white or forest green.

I love the color of your Jeep. But I never considered finding appropriately colored replacement parts. That's my favorite color. But when I go to buy another Jeep I will keep this in mind. If anything is not in perfect condition. I'll have to address finding what I need.

I know it's not Bestop. But Rampage makes a Khaki top in black diamond. I got mine on sale for less than 200. And it's worked fine for about a year now. Again, not a Bestop. But something to consider if you really like the color. I have not run a Bestop except the OEM one that came on it originally. I didn't notice a big difference between the two. Noise levels etc. etc. Although I'm sure a new Bestop is way better. But I didn't have another grand to put into a top. And I wanted Khaki with my black Jeep anyway. In the southern sun I also questioned how long ANY soft top would prevail against it. Even the Bestop fades. But really I was just hoping a Bestop in khaki would come out by time my Rampage wore out.

My one note about soft tops is fitting. Make sure you understand how a soft top goes on and off. It makes a big difference in it's performance.

What I was originally going for once I had it purchased was this.

But I've since ditched the halfdoors. And new tires and maybe rims are coming soon. Mine is not in that good of condition in the pic. But it's getting close.

And whoever said paint was cheaper than major repairs. A good paint job is going to cost you upwards of 10k or perhaps a little less. That's alot of mechanical repairs. I always avoid bad paint jobs first. MEchanical things you can fix as you go along. But a paint job is a big expensive event that has to take place all at once financially. I'd have a Jeep wrapped way before I ever considered paint. It would have to be a loved lifetime car to get me to pay for a complete paint job. Especially with wraps being cheap - $1500-$3000. Even less if you stick with one solid color.

But I will say I bought mine with mechanical repairs in mind. And opted for cosmetic damage (other than paint) in the Jeep I bought to get the price down. Things I could easily paint - like trim pieces and interior pieces. Mine was basically sun bleached. And needed a new top and wheels and tires. All stuff that negatively affected the price. But things I could fix myself.

I still didn't want black though. I'd much prefer khaki. Or even white.

 

[MountaineerTom]

But really I was just hoping a Bestop in khaki would come out by time my Rampage wore out.

I just emailed Bestop recently asking if they ever planned to make a top in Khaki, and specifically for an LJ, and they responded that they had no plans to do so.

 

[hardtopper]

And whoever said paint was cheaper than major repairs. A good paint job is going to cost you upwards of 10k or perhaps a little less. That's alot of mechanical repairs. I always avoid bad paint jobs first. MEchanical things you can fix as you go along. But a paint job is a big expensive event that has to take place all at once financially. I'd have a Jeep wrapped way before I ever considered paint. It would have to be a loved lifetime car to get me to pay for a complete paint job.

That comment struck me as odd, too, even if your cost estimate is on the high side. (I've gotten estimates from highly regarded painters for $3.5-5k.) Paint is literally the only thing with a non-wrecked vehicle that the choice hinges on whether you plan to keep it indefinitely, because you'll never get the value back other than in personal satisfaction.

 

[Plumber1]

I guess I am like so many before have posted. I was looking for a Yellow or Red TJ it was going to be for weekend fun in the mountains and since it was going to replace my 95 YJ Rio Grande 4cyl I know I wanted a 4.0. I looked around for several months and looked at many. But since this was going to replace the current YJ I have done some homework and knew what I wanted. I saw so much crap out there that guys had slapped junk on to make it look mean. I was not about to buy a TJ that had 35's with a Rancho or Skyjacker lift kit on. If guy skimp on the lift they most likely skimped other places. I was looking for a unmolested TJ or one that was put together very well. Again looking Yellow or Red, then I came across this little beauty an 05 Rubicon the only mod was a rear rack. It still had "I think" the original tires, it had both a hard top and the factory soft top was still in the original box which was never opened. Very low mileage how could I pass it up, but it was white so there was no way I was buying a white TJ . Well two days later that same white TJ was sitting in my driveway and now white's my favorite color

 

[Tranz Zam]

I sought out my color. I'm very happy I found one, as they're not the easiest thing to find.

 

[hardtopper]

@Tranz Zam , you have no idea how jealous I am of your garage setup. Well, maybe now you do.

 

[Zedd]

Yellow was my last choice, whatever...

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Awwww :/

 

[Zedd]

That comment struck me as odd, too, even if your cost estimate is on the high side. (I've gotten estimates from highly regarded painters for $3.5-5k.) Paint is literally the only thing with a non-wrecked vehicle that the choice hinges on whether you plan to keep it indefinitely, because you'll never get the value back other than in personal satisfaction.

Exactly this

 

[Zedd]

I guess I am like so many before have posted. I was looking for a Yellow or Red TJ it was going to be for weekend fun in the mountains and since it was going to replace my 95 YJ Rio Grande 4cyl I know I wanted a 4.0. I looked around for several months and looked at many. But since this was going to replace the current YJ I have done some homework and knew what I wanted. I saw so much crap out there that guys had slapped junk on to make it look mean. I was not about to buy a TJ that had 35's with a Rancho or Skyjacker lift kit on. If guy skimp on the lift they most likely skimped other places. I was looking for a unmolested TJ or one that was put together very well. Again looking Yellow or Red, then I came across this little beauty an 05 Rubicon the only mod was a rear rack. It still had "I think" the original tires, it had both a hard top and the factory soft top was still in the original box which was never opened. Very low mileage how could I pass it up, but it was white so there was no way I was buying a white TJ . Well two days later that same white TJ was sitting in my driveway and now white's my favorite color

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Very similar story to mine but I ended up with “Amber Fire Pearl”

 

[DrDmoney]

There were nine colors to pick from in 2000, I ordered mine so I chose Solar Yellow. Medium Fern Green Pearlcoat was my second favorite and Desert Sand Pearlcoat third.

 

[bedhed]

I love the color of your Jeep. But I never considered finding appropriately colored replacement parts. That's my favorite color. But when I go to buy another Jeep I will keep this in mind. If anything is not in perfect condition. I'll have to address finding what I need.

I know it's not Bestop. But Rampage makes a Khaki top in black diamond. I got mine on sale for less than 200. And it's worked fine for about a year now. Again, not a Bestop. But something to consider if you really like the color. I have not run a Bestop except the OEM one that came on it originally. I didn't notice a big difference between the two. Noise levels etc. etc. Although I'm sure a new Bestop is way better. But I didn't have another grand to put into a top. And I wanted Khaki with my black Jeep anyway. In the southern sun I also questioned how long ANY soft top would prevail against it. Even the Bestop fades. But really I was just hoping a Bestop in khaki would come out by time my Rampage wore out.

I bought a used crash pad (weird name) a few months ago to replaced mine. At the time, I had been struggling to locate a khaki color, so I thought to myself, "Ah, no big deal. SEM has my color in spray dye. I'll just spray it."

Enter the next conundrum.

They say to never go off of a picture online to choose a color. They are right, but this one had me baffled. I talked with the lead color-mixing tech with SEM Products, and even he was a bit baffled. But, he said that he does vaguely recall running into a problem with this Jeep's khaki color in the past [Join the club, my friend!]. I was then told to call my area SEM rep, then he was confused. After buying a can of the color on the right and not seeing a close resemblance, I went into a SEM dealer with a dash part in hand. They can match and custom mix. The rough part was the cost. I'll still do it when I get to the project, but the dye was right at $40 for a pint.

I did stumble across the rampage top recently. I was pretty stoked when I saw they had my color, but I did question the quality of it. Glad to hear of your results with it. That gives me hope.

 

[Zedd]

I bought a used crash pad (weird name) a few months ago to replaced mine. At the time, I had been struggling to locate a khaki color, so I thought to myself, "Ah, no big deal. SEM has my color in spray dye. I'll just spray it."

Enter the next conundrum.

They say to never go off of a picture online to choose a color. They are right, but this one had me baffled. I talked with the lead color-mixing tech with SEM Products, and even he was a bit baffled. But, he said that he does vaguely recall running into a problem with this Jeep's khaki color in the past. I was then told to call my area SEM rep, then he was confused. After buying a can of the color on the right and not seeing a close resemblance, I went into a SEM dealer with a dash part in hand. They can match and custom mix. The rough part was the cost. I'll still do it when I get to the project, but the dye was right at $40 for a pint.

I did stumble across the rampage top recently. I was pretty stoked when I saw they had my color, but I did question the quality of it. Glad to hear of your results with it. That gives me hope.

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I had a similar situation with the front dash plate. The one that was in had the vents broken and the tabs broken from them taking out the stereo...? Anyway I got a replacement but it was in OG green so I had a buddy paint it and it was impossible to get the interrior Jeep Agate/Black. We ended up with about a 90% match. The interrior jeep black is actually quite red then pure black or black-blue.

 

[bedhed]

Funny you mention that, Zed. During my web scouring, I saw Chrysler listed Landau Black as a common interior color for our TJs. I've never used it before, but I saw it mentioned in a fabrication group. The person said that it's "not even black". Since then, I've wondered if that is the color of our dash bezels.

 

[Zedd]

Funny you mention that, Zed. During my web scouring, I saw Chrysler listed Landau Black as a common interior color for our TJs. I've never used it before, but I saw it mentioned in a fabrication group. The person said that it's "not even black". Since then, I've wondered if that is the color of our dash bezels.

I betcha it is.