no rdplz

Got the front axle regeared. Finally running 4.56's at both ends. No 4wd for 2 months sucks. Thanks Paul, mtparker and bassackwards for the help!

WVJonesN

[The headliner was sagging so i decided to heck with a headliner at all. Pulled the whole thing out, trashed it and the front dome light, pulled a rearview mirror from a late 90's pontiac with map lights, wired it into the existing XJ wiring, and used Undercoating on the roof so it's not bare metal.]

How do you like the headliner gone? Does it get too hot now? Im going to prob remove mine any tips?

no rdplz

I like it not being there anymore. You get a little more headroom and you don't have to worry about stuff hitting it and putting a hole in it or it ever sagging. Before I did the undercoating it got crazy hot, but with that on there it's fine. A little more noise, but nothing unbearable. here's a quick step by step for you...

- I just used Duplicolor spray on stuff - 2 cans did it for me.
- Pull the dome lights, sun visors, trim pieces, the headliner and the sound bar (if you have it).
- I bought a late 90's GM review mirror with map lights from the JY to replace my factory one and the front dome light.
- The wiring for the dome lights is held on by tape so use some goo gone and a razor blade to remove the residue from the metal. Use a simple cleaner (brake cleaner works well) and wipe the bare metal.
- The front dome has a bracket coming off the cross member. I took a pair of tin snips and a file to it so i don't crack my head on it.
- Pull out the back seat and use a couple trash bags to cover the front seats. Anything you don't want the undercoating on, cover or remove it. The stuff can get messy when it's being sprayed if you go too thick with it. Newspaper and painters tape work well.
- From there, just start spraying. Like I said, I used 2 cans but a third wouldn't hurt. Use one can over the front seats and half on the roof over the rear seat, then the other on the rest. To make it loom better, make sure to get in the side lip and between the cross braces and ceiling.
- Give it about 45 minutes to really dry. The stuff smells pretty bad for a couple days but it'll go away in about 4-5 days.
- Reinstall the sound bar and rear dome light. Self tappers hold the sound bar and some expanding foam fills in between it and the roof. Once the foam is dry you can trim it with a knife and hit it with undercoating as well so it matches. I used some silicone to hold the dome light in place.
- Not for the fun part - wiring in the new mirror so the map lights work. Out of that while thing of wires you need 4. Both pink wires (power and also the sun visor vanity lights if you have them), the black (ground) and the yellow (hot). Most GM's came with black, white, orange. So, black to black, yellow to white, pinks to orange. Cut and butt-end the rest, use some wire wrap and electrical tape on the whole thing, and then fish a couple zip ties through the holes right there in the roof to hold it all in place.
- Put the trim pieces and visors back in and you're good to go. I haven't had any issues with it.

Couple more pics:
mirror wiring -


sound bar with expanding foam and the rear dome light -

Supahcheese

Where did you get the brush guard you had on there before you sold it??

no rdplz

Got that from a buddy. Not a clue where he got it from.

no rdplz

changed out the hubs for new TIMKEN's, rubber coated the d-rings front and rear, and just for the crap of it, changed my coils from black to silver.


Went to the annual "Offroad Day" at a local dealership, saw they had a show, figured I'd join it as well as do some wheeling and ended up taking 2nd place in the Cherokee/Truck category!

xj wheeler

I was gonna say it looks like your wheels got jacked. lol

Coils look sweet!

no rdplz

Finally decided to make it so I can go doorless. Thanks Red82 for the help! Got a cheapo PepBoys mirror so I can be legal.

mcguyver_xj

Congrats I love going doorless

Disoriented Hillbilly

Doorless is super rad. Nice rig bro!

A Black Cherokee

You gonna lift her any higher? Looks real nice man

no rdplz

Eventually i wanna go to either a Clayton's or BDS 4.5" longarm with 33's. Don't really see myself going bigger than that honestly.

Red82

No updates about the bedliner?

no rdplz

working on it as we speak.....

no rdplz

Took a trip down to Corolla for the CF 3rd Annual OBX Run and decided, "Hey, it's not supposed to rain until later in the evening, I'll go with the doors off." Much to my dismay, and Red82's chagrin, it rained on the way back to Virginia Beach. And when I say it rained, I mean it poured. Buckets of water came down from the heavens, from the side on the wings of the winds, from below off the tires of passing vehicles....it came from everywhere. I'm surprised I didn't see Noah there with the Ark and two of every animal. I was soaked. My seats were soaked. My visors were soaked. Water was dripping from the roof onto my head. And by the time I got home, I was scooping 3 inches of water out of the foot-wells. As much fun as that was, I decided the carpet was beyond saving so I ripped it out, along with the seats and center console.


Bought a 1 gallon Herculiner kit from NAPA (thanks, Tomme!) and went to town bedlining the interior. I gotta say I like it way more than the carpet, even with the hot trans tunnel. But, floor mats work well to block the heat and now I have no worries about water getting into the foot-wells 'cuz I can just pull the drain plugs now.





I've still got some touch up to do on it, but overall, I'm happy with it.

Next up, 33's this weekend and another rear seat swap whenever Red82 has time.