sparkplug98

After getting the trackbar in, I took her wheeling with my buddy.



At this point the front sway bar was still on and the rear springs had pretty much settled



Also around this time I decided to swap out my reverse light bulbs with some white LED bulbs off eBay. Much brighter than OE and throw a decent amount

sparkplug98

Then I spent a few weeks researching which tires I wanted to get and what size.

I decided on Goodyear Duratracs 265/75/16

But I quickly realized that the stock rim backspacing wasnt going to cut it.
I could have gone to another set of rims like 15" Cragar Soft 8's, but I wanted to keep my OE Classic Icon wheels because they're rare and match the jeep well.

So I picked up a set of 1.25" wheel spacers off eBay and torqued them to spec with Blue locktite.

*Waits patiently for people to get their pitchforks and torches ready*

I check their torque specs every few weeks and they havent loosened a bit.

I dont have any pics of install but its pretty straight forward.

I ordered my tires off of tire rack and they arrived on my porch within a few days.

sparkplug98

I had the tires mounted and balanced by the shop who inspects the cars at the car lot I was working at.





I knew they were gonna rub the fender flares but didnt expect how bad it actually was. Even the least amount of turning would rub hard so I knew it was time to invest in an angle grinder and some paint.




Here's the finished product:


I left the little lip on the fender and also just trimmed my front caps as I dont like the open OE front bumper look.
In the rear i completely removed rear caps as i think it looks better in the back without them.

I painted the edges with a metallic blue as I had trouble finding Patriot Blue. It doesn't match but I think it looks good. I'm still debating on painting the indented center section of my hood with the same color so that it matches better

sparkplug98

Took it wheeling for the first time with the new tires. The difference in traction was ridiculous.




We found a mound to flex on which I attempted with my front sway bar on and still connected as I hadn't nutted up yet and yanked it off

GreenXJ98

Love those Duratracs man. Jeep looks good. What are your future plans for it?

drhoward1988

Go for quick discos for your front sway bar if you wanna keep it.

sparkplug98

Thanks! But I've done more to it since then. I'll update more when I have time.
As far as immediate future plans go, I need to put my gas tank skid plate on, get a full size spare, and hollow out my cat.

After that I'd like to get rid of my OE coils and spacer and replace with 2" lift coils. After that I've had some decent drive-train vibes since the lift so either a hack n' tap or SYE kit is in the cards. But the SYE will have to wait until its no longer my main daily driver as I'm afraid that if I **** it up I'll be SOA

sparkplug98

Yeah I was considering that route but after driving it with no front sway bar, I learned its really not that bad. You just have to pay attention when taking turns.

XJ ONLY

haha snapchat pictures on the first page...the best, clean jeep man looking good

sparkplug98

So after the tires I was able to pick up a set of used skid plates off craigslist.

I got the OE front skid, a NP242 Rusty's Skid, and an OE gas tank skid.

I put the front skid on first and just gave it a coat of black. I plan on going back and painting a shark mouth on it like some other forum members have done.

I took it wheeling with my buddy and this was the first time without a front sway bar. What a huge difference. Flexibility was insane ntm just a smoother ride all around offroad.









Full baby flex

brandon.

The life

sparkplug98

lol

sparkplug98

Ever since I bought my jeep, it always had a clunking noise coming from the front end. I checked the tightness of everything up front that could work itself loose but could not figure it out

I did some research on here and then had a friend power-brake it while I watched the motor mounts. Turns out they were pretty worn.

I replaced them with some polyurethane Brown Dogs.
I know most people say not to get the poly ones if its a DD, but I don't think the motor vibrations are that bad.




After this I finally took the time to put my Rusty's Tcase skid on.

I decided to paint it yellow & black striped like hazard tape after seeing another member here do the same.
I know its pointless and will just get dirty & scraped up but I think it looks cool lol






Hardest part was getting the frame rail bolts in, but putting the bolts in a socket on a drill seemed to do the trick. I couldnt find any self tapping bolts but it's held up pretty good since

sparkplug98

Took it wheeling this past Sunday. Had a blast, got stuck once, and shot some guns






Last time we hit this trail we found a sewer pipe to flex on. Last time I didn't have the tires for the approach angle to make it up, but this time I was able to climb up it by approaching at an angle with my tire parallel to it.







Also, I threw on a Rage Powersports roof rack a few weeks ago, i plan on mounting a full size spare up there as I need the trunk space as well as a shovel & axe.

brandon.

This kid stuck