Been putting off a lot of projects just because of time and money (valve cover gasket, rear main, bent axle, etc. Had a family emergency and it was either take the jeep from San Diego to Wyoming or take my work truck with 225k on it. Didn't want to risk my livelihood so I took the TJ. The radiator cap failed, spraying coolant in the engine bay going over the Mojave but it never truly overheated. For all that people dog on these rigs, they'll run like a champ even with a lot of problems.
That being said, I spent this weekend replacing the radiator cap and testing the coolant system, finally swapped in the hpd30 that I geared myself, installed an Aussie locker, found some vent steering components, did an alignment, test drove, learned that the alignment needs to be done axle loaded and the Aussie locker pins and springs were in backwards (this lesson involved some puckering and nearly destroyed the neighbors fence). Redid the alignment and locker pins and drove it today and it's the smoothest rig I've got in the house.
I got this with a bad shake and the PO said "it's a Jeep" as the explanation. I lowered the tcase, better. Did sye and put tcase back where it goes, even better. Found some bent hardware, better yet and damn near perfect ride. Don't let anyone tell you these things just "ride rough". I've got a 3.5 inch lift and this will do 80 all day with just one finger on the steering wheel and no spilling the coffee
(largely thanks to the good people on this forum and the phenomenal "how to" sections).
Never thought I'd enjoy another vehicle as much as I enjoyed my race bike, but I fucking love this Jeep!