Our Baby Jeep - 03 Wrangler Rubicon

Ha Ha - well, there used to be a horse living in our garage. We sent her to live with our son. Now we just have the Baby Jeep.
You traded one money pit for another! 🤣
 
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I Sanded it and my son buffed and polished it today.
 
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It was a lot of work. The PO had some idiot at UHAUL install the hitch and lights. it was really amateur hour. I had to repair a bunch of wiring to make it work. And then, one of the rivnuts spins so I have to fix that someday. All in all, it looks better and there is no rust.

I also love how the bumper and rust removal went. Rear bumper looks awesome.
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Degreased and Detailed the Engine

I bagged the electronics first and then sprayed degreaser on the engine, let it sit and then washed it off.

I then used engine dressing to clean it up a little. Looks better.

Before and after.
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Replace with Stock look Headlights
https://www.extremeterrain.com/kchilites-h4-headlight-4230.html
I wanted a non-LED light that looked stock and that I can replace quickly without having to take apart the housing.

This was a very simple replacement.

Unplug the old light, remove the stock beauty ring (3 screws), remove the stock mount (4 screws), remove the old light, wash the rings, replace everything and plug back in.

It looks awesome.

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Complete.

In normal jeep project fashion...

One of the lights does not turn on when I hit the brights - will have to trouble shoot - hopefully it is only a bulb.

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Check the wiring at the connector. It's a pretty common TJ/LJ problem, where the wiring is frayed and/or corroded. Sometimes it's obvious, like this, and sometimes it's not.

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Check the wiring at the connector. It's a pretty common TJ/LJ problem, where the wiring is frayed and/or corroded. Sometimes it's obvious, like this, and sometimes it's not.

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Thanks!

I troubleshot the issue by swapping the bulbs and now it works so I will stop messing with it until it starts acting up again. I have a feeling it is a wonky bulb as the wires look ok.
 
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Thanks!

I troubleshot the issue by swapping the bulbs and now it works so I will stop messing with it until it starts acting up again. I have a feeling it is a wonky bulb as the wires look ok.
Could also have been some corrosion in the bulb connector which got scraped loose during the bulb swap. Either way, good that it was a simple fix. Electrical stuff can be a pain.
 
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Paint Black Parts - Front Bumper and surrounding area
Duplicolor Trim and Bumper Paint.

The next project I am starting is to refurb the front bumper area.
The rear bumper turned out so well that I am excited to to see the results for the front.

Step one is to strip the bumper of the extras and the trim.

Remove the Fog Lights so that I can paint them and refurb the mounts.
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Remove the Plastic Jeep Trim
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I finally got around to pulling the front bumper. I had to buy a 55 star socket and use a long pipe to remove the bolts.

Next step, clean up and spraying with anti-rust spray.

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Spraying the metal bumper parts with Rustoleum Rust Reformer and then with Bumper and Trim paint. The plastics will just get Bumper and Trim paint.
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Replace or Repair Rocker Guards

While the jeep is down, I masked and painted the drivers side rocker guard with Rustoleum Rust Reformer because there is one small spot of rust. I also am planning on painting the frame in that area as well.

Once the Rustoleum dries, I will hit it with the Bumper and Trim paint for consistency.

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