Soon to be Newbie from NOVA

Sj's TJ

Sj's TJ

TJ Enthusiast
Supporting Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2018
Messages
965
Location
Vienna, VA
Hi everybody. My neighbor is moving away and he is giving me is 2000 TJ. I have taken a look and it's got a little bit a rust, but nothing crazy. One of the sway bar links is completely broken, but otherwise he drives it at the moment so it can't be that bad :) It's got a 4 banger and is a manual transmission with 4wd.

The TJ will be my second vehicle that I will mainly use to off-road with. I currently have a 2017 Cherokee Trailhawk that gave me the bug, but I'm glad i'll have a project that I won't mind messing up in the woods. I've been looking at the threads to try and figure out all the mods I want to do, and they have been very helpful.
Jeep TJ.jpg
 
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Your going to have a bunch of fun. The first thing I would do is remove the milk jugs then remove/paint the fender flares so they are black again.

How many miles?
 
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Those are suppose to black huh :) It's got about 210k miles. I'm looking forward to getting her setup for the woods.
 
sjalkian said:
My neighbor is moving away and he is giving me is 2000 TJ.
Click to expand...
Nice neighbor!
Welcome to the forum, and X2 to touching up those flares. New sway bar links don't cost too much, however it may be the perfect opportunity to get some quick disconnects.
 
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Your neighbor is giving it to you for free!? Wow, that's one heck of a nice neighbor!

You're going to love it!
 
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Yeah, he is very nice. He bought it brand new in 2000 and has moved around a lot since he is in the Army. His family is moving to Thailand for 3 years and he was going to donate it. He like my Cherokee and mentioned he was going to donate it and I said I will take your donation :) I should have it in Mid-July, then it's on. Quick disconnects for sure!!
 
So I finally took possession of the TJ today. I took the milk jugs off and it already looks better. It looks like it has some rust, but doesn’t seem to be to bad. I banged the normal bad sections with a hammer and everything still seemed solid, so I’ll need to sand things down and treat the surface rust. Below are pics.
55b9418ea78861665defe36e2f967870.jpg
f04a5806c77ed72b71c74bdf394d8cc0.jpg



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sjalkian said:
So I finally took possession of the TJ today. I took the milk jugs off and it already looks better. It looks like it has some rust, but doesn’t seem to be to bad. I banged the normal bad sections with a hammer and everything still seemed solid, so I’ll need to sand things down and treat the surface rust. Below are pics.
View attachment 49801View attachment 49802


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Click to expand...
Don't mean to be discouraging but if the rust looks like that on the outside of the frame, its much worse inside the rails...I know this from experience too, I had to have the whole frame surgery done on both center skid plate sections all the way back beyond the rear trailing arms.

I will say this. Under no circumstances remove the 6 bolts holding the transfer case skid plate on there. I can almost guarantee if you go to loosen one, you'll break the welded nut on the inside and that'll be a project you don't want to get into. You can drain the t-case fluid out without removing the plate if your interested in changing the fluid. Just an FYI.

Other than that, try and take care of it a little at a time and you'll bring some good life back into it!
 
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EJD said:
Don't mean to be discouraging but if the rust looks like that on the outside of the frame, its much worse inside the rails...I know this from experience too, I had to have the whole frame surgery done on both center skid plate sections all the way back beyond the rear trailing arms.

I will say this. Under no circumstances remove the 6 bolts holding the transfer case skid plate on there. I can almost guarantee if you go to loosen one, you'll break the welded nut on the inside and that'll be a project you don't want to get into. You can drain the t-case fluid out without removing the plate if your interested in changing the fluid. Just an FYI.

Other than that, try and take care of it a little at a time and you'll bring some good life back into it!
Click to expand...

X2 to this. I hate to be the downer here, but that's way more than surface rust, I promise.

If the outside of the frame looks like that, I guarantee the inside does as well. Take a tiny inspection camera and snake it in there, you'll see it with the right light.

I never would have suggested buying a TJ with that condition of frame had you shown photos of it before you purchase it. Again, I'm not trying to be rude or condescending, but you've got a big project on your hand there if you are attempting to address that rust.

I know others can relate, such as @Ranger_b0b. Rust is not to be taken lightly with these things.
 
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Thanks for the info guys. I put my finger in there and felt some flacks for sure. I’m ok with a project. I got the TJ for free from my neighbor and my other neighbor knows how to weld so I’m in it to win it. I was just happy I wasn’t able to push through any parts of the frame. I’ve been looking on here for awhile now so I am armed with tons of info, so thanks for that guys. The best part is this is totally my 3rd vehicle to play with so I’ve got nothing but time.


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Congrats...free is nice! As they say, “Never look a gift horse in the mouth!” But yeah, quite a bit of rust, so I wouldn’t put too much money into it. How miles on th OD?
 
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mots said:
Congrats...free is nice! As they say, “Never look a gift horse in the mouth!” But yeah, quite a bit of rust, so I wouldn’t put too much money into it. How miles on th OD?
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212k, he was driving it to work 25 miles each way up until yesterday. Even if I sink some $$ into it I’m still in good shape. It’s easier to convince the wife spending a little bit at a time then to drop multiple thousands of dollars on a Jeep I don’t “need”. At least that’s what I keep telling myself


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sjalkian said:
212k, he was driving it to work 25 miles each way up until yesterday. Even if I sink some $$ into it I’m still in good shape. It’s easier to convince the wife spending a little bit at a time then to drop multiple thousands of dollars on a Jeep I don’t “need”. At least that’s what I keep telling myself
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Understood, starting at $0 is great and it must be in good mechanical shape then if it was his daily. I’m just suggesting to take a real good look at the frame and keep that in mind before committing to a long term plan. If it has 5 years left, then keep that in mind before you open your wallet and invest a bunch of your time. If the section of frame you posted is that rusty, the rear part of the frame that is known to be a weak spot is very likely much worse (start in front of the rear wheel low point and work back up and over to the rear bumper). I saw one in a shop a couple weeks ago that had a decent tub and some nice mods, but the frame was beyond repair. Felt sorry for the guy.
 
mots said:
Understood, starting at $0 is great and it must be in good mechanical shape then if it was his daily. I’m just suggesting to take a real good look at the frame and keep that in mind before committing to a long term plan. If it has 5 years left, then keep that in mind before you open your wallet and invest a bunch of your time. If the section of frame you posted is that rusty, the rear part of the frame that is known to be a weak spot is very likely much worse (start in front of the rear wheel low point and work back up and over to the rear bumper). I saw one in a shop a couple weeks ago that had a decent tub and some nice mods, but the frame was beyond repair. Felt sorry for the guy.
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Thanks for the info, I will keep that in mind for sure. It could be a lot worse:
659f638f727ba0a96e03ba5e2c227c5b.jpg


That guy repaired his and it’s going strong. He paid $2k knowing about the frame damage.


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sjalkian said:
Thanks for the info, I will keep that in mind for sure. It could be a lot worse:
View attachment 49873

That guy repaired his and it’s going strong. He paid $2k knowing about the frame damage.
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Cool, sounds like you are up to speed on how these beasts work. Just had to make sure, haha! At first, when I glanced at the pic before reading anything, I thought it was yours, haha! Whew! Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.
 
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You can always get a new frame. That is the thing about wranglers...there are a TON of them out there, and a lot of them are in decent shape still, sitting around in junkyards. Rust is not the end of the world, you just have to create a plan of attack and be honest about what you want and where you want to put your resources (time AND money). Is it better to spend the coin on a rust free, 100% ready to tub, or get a wrecked one with the good panels you need (to cut out and repair another tub). Is it better to spend money on Safety Caps, or get a whole frame? Can you weld? Its all part of the fun. A lot of guys here will run from anything that has a speck of rust on it, saying its gonna fall apart in days.

Do I wish I would have gotten a totally rust free jeep? Sure...but realistically, there isn't ANY way I would have paid 15-20 K for a 2004 Jeep Wrangler. For not a lot more, I could have gotten a two year old JK with less than 20K miles (I know, because shortly after I got my TJ, My folks bought said JK) Unlike most here, I like JK's...but I also like TJ's. I had a set amount of money to spend, and I got what I could.

My advice...Go through it and make a list. Rank in order of priority. Safety things that need fixing (frame rot, brakes, steering, tires, etc), Maintenance Items that need done. Things like Diff and tranny fluid, coolant, etc. THEN get to the stuff you want to do. You want to make sure the vehicle is safe and reliable (it probably is if it was a daily driver) to your standards, before you go sinking a lot of money into the "Fun" stuff.
 
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