joecotter47

This is my first cherokee, and shes a bit of a beater.





This is also my first project car, and I have a tight budget as I am still in high school working only a part time job.



The tires are nice, but the bodywork is anything but that.

The Problems:
The Rear hydralic hatch lifts are broken (minor fix)
The paint is shabby
Both front fenders are rusted, bent, and in bad shape overall
The grill is mangled and both headlight bezels are missing
There are some minor electrical issues involving the dash and parking lights
The drivers side door hinges are bent and worn making the door sagg and not close properly
The drivers side door locking mechanism is broken
the interior has some minor stains

The Good:
The heater/A/C work flawlessly
The interior is very clean with the exceptions of a few stains
Everything seems to be electronically and mechanically sound
The front rotors and pads were replaced a few days ago
There are already Rancho shocks installed
Almost new Big O A/T tires

She is a project, but it should be fun to take on. Hopefully I will be purchasing a parts Cherokee within the next few days to tackle some of the issues. I will be posting images and progress when the progress is made, so check back every few days!

odgreen

Lil bit beat. But I'm interested.... Keep the pics coming!!!!

UglyDuck

Have to start somewhere. You'll have more satisfaction to see it transform. Where in Colorado are you located? Did you get your parts Jeep? I have a 94 Country I'm parting out. Rt fender, Header Panel and Grill are in good shape, plus all interior if your interested.

Also will have a 3" lift with possible Rustys 2"BB (shackles) Available soon.

joecotter47

I'll have to see what the deal is with the parts jeep, I should know about it by then end of today. If I don't get it though I might be interested in the fender and grill.

joecotter47

Not much was done today as I had no parts to work with, and I was caught up in other things until about 3:30. When I got home though, I knew what I wanted to do for today, so I put in the time, and accomplished my goal for today. My goal was to get rid rid of all the hideous stickers the previous owner put on the jeep.

Before:




After:




Bonus picture!: This is just a nice sunset on the drive back from my dad's property


At least today wasn't a total flop, and I got some work done on the project. I am still unsure about the parts jeep, but hopefully I will get some information on it soon. Also, I ordered a new head unit (stereo) and it should come by Wednesday or Thursday, so that installation will be soon. But bye for now, I will be working on the jeep a little bit all week, so check back soon!

joecotter47

just a quick update for today, No pictures, sorry! I haven't done really any work this week, but My stereo should be coming either tomorrow or Thursday, and yes, I will be documenting that install because it is a change, and therefore part of my build. Also, I am planning on getting some parts this week or next week. The header panel, the grill (with light bezels) and the tailgate struts. So those installs will be coming up shortly. As for today, I took it on the trail for the first time. Yes it was a mild trail, but still a trail nonetheless! It did alright except for it being a bit bouncy from the somewhat stiff suspension. But it is not yet an official off roader in my mind. Some plans for the future: I plan on fixing all of the body damage and all the little exterior issues, and then paint it, so stay tuned for that in the upcoming weeks! Anyway, that is all for now, check back soon for more pictures and such!

Search and destroy

That's not to bad a little rough in the front... You should have seen my dads before he fixed it. Both front and back were crushed in quite a ways. Plus you got a 2 door which look real nice lifted.

joecotter47

Finally, My stereo arrived!




Yes, It has come, and from Crutchfield of course. So let the installation begin!
First, I crimped all of the wires together, and some of the more important wires, I channel locked together. Then I electrical taped over them all to keep it tidy. And my table got a little.. Well.. Messy.





Then, I brought it to the car and plugged it in.



Yes, it was pretty much that simple. Anyway, as for tomorrow, I will be getting some parts, which I am planning on installing this weekend. But that's all for now! check back later.

joecotter47

Hello everyone! Seeing as it has been over a month since I last posted an update, I though now was a good time. Even though it has been over a month, not much has been done on the jeep, however I have made some decisions. First of all, I took it wheeling a bunch and got it a little muddy. Here are some pics...










(The silver truck is my friends, He is the only one I wheel with besides my dad currently.)

Also, i installed a CB radio, and I also fixed my tailgate, so no more 4x4 to hold it up! I will upload some pictures of that tomorrow... As for future plans, I am saving up some money for a hitch so i can have a way to carry around my dirtbike. And after that, I am going to try and get a 3-4.5" Lift kit for around $400-$600 any suggestions would help a lot, but this is the one i'm looking at right now: http://www.jeep4x4center.com/rough-c...s-rc-630h.html. Anyway, That's all for today, more updates to come in the future.

joecotter47

So... I have done some things to The Black Beast recently (That's my new name for it ). First of all, Here are some pics of the Cb installed and the working tailgate.





Also, i installed a ski rack to accommodate toys without taking up interior space.




Then, this weekend, I spent some time with my dad working on some installs/modifications. The first thing we did was install the front hitch we picked up for $50 with a winch plate (and bought a replacement hardware pack for $35 shipped). Next, We cut and folded the rear fenders, and now it looks a little better. While we had the tires off, we removed the rear sway bar because of its uselessness. Then we did a bit of work on the front end. We took the bumper off and cut the ends off, then painted it black. We also cut the fenders a little bit in the front to make it look a bit better with the shorter bumper. Here are some pics:










Just a quick flex test without the rear sway bar, Not bad for stock if you ask me.


And this is how it sits right now:



Also, I'm still looking for a parts car, One with a good body but some kind of mechanical issues, Preferably a 2 door. If you have one and you're in Colorado near Summit county or the front range, Let me know, I might be interested.

joecotter47

Here are a couple better pictures of the flex with cut fenders and no rear sway bar... Decent for nearly stock imo...




Just a quick update: I ordered a set of fog lights along with some switches which should hopefully arrive within the next week. Also, I've been talking to some people, trying to get a second job as i can't get any hours in the job i'm in currently... So hopefully the build can be sped up in the next month or two. (ski season is starting soon so employers are looking for employees around this time.) So, nothing much will be happening on the build until i land another job, but here is a list of what i plan to pick up next.

97-01 Header panel and both fenders
97-01 doors (maybe with power windows/locks)
Rear hitch
Upgraded sound system
Off-road bumpers front/rear
Rock rails

As for now, however, I will just stick to trying to find work. Anyway, that's about it for now, I will document the fog lights when i get them in.

joecotter47

Just a quick update, Got my fog lights in a few days ago, and got them installed.
The switches I got were really small, as you will see in the pictures, so i used the one that came with the kit. I might try to think of a way to use those tiny switches, but for now i'll just settle with the stock one. That's it for this update, hopefully more to come in the near future.



(I Can't get this photo to go right-side-up.... Tried rotating it on photobucket, but had no success.)

joecotter47

Just thought i'd do a quick little update... The build has been slow still, and plans are still halted, however, i did find a job and have about a 90% chance of getting it and starting in 2-3 weeks. Anyway, I went to the hardware store and picked up all of the ingredients for a sub woofer box, and i also ordered all the necessary components, I will document that build when I finish it. Also, the dash lights haven't worked since i picked up the jeep about 6 months back, and I just ordered a 16 foot long strip of LED's. My plan is to cut some strips off (obviously not use all 16 ft.) And stick them to all the places that there would normally be lights, like in the dash and A/C controls. I was planning on putting them on the same wiring as the parking lights to bypass the broken circuit completely. My only issue is I'm not sure what peg off of the light switch is for the parking lights. That is about it for now though, more to come very soon.

joecotter47

Alright, time for a quick little update. I have decided it's not worth putting any money into this rig, as we recently discovered that most of the under body part of the uni body is compromised . But, here are a couple pictures of the sound system install. I'll be saving up until summer and I'll be looking into getting either a zj or a xj. I still haven't decided yet. by then, I'll be able to purchase the vehicle and lift it and put some rock rails and new tires on it right off the bat. Anyway, once I get that build started up, I'll throw a link on here. Anyway, peace for now.






Also, this is a bit of a hindrance towards progress.



Finally, there may be some little bits here and there of little tweaks I do, Like ordered some new fog lights, so I'll be wiring those up on the bumper, and using my old ones for reverse lights, so i'll put a bit on that up. But other then that, this will be a finished build. Watch out for my next build this summer!

joecotter47

The fog lights came in. They were just a simple set of Tuff LED off road lights off of Amazon shipped for 50 bucks. And I can't say anything but these suckers are BRIGHT. They are quality made, and for the price really can't be beat. Pictures don't do their justice:







Just fog lights:


Just high beam headlights:


Both high beam and fog lights:


Well, that's all for now, but the reverse lights are going on soon, and with an increase in hours at work, I have a bit more money to play around with. In the next week or two I'll probably be ordering another 2 sets of those tuff led's for the rack. But like I said before, It will just be some little projects every now and then until I get a new vehicle sometime during this summer.