Big Country - The Build
 

This is the thread for the build of my 1996 Jeep Cherokee Country Edition XJ, 4-door, 4x4, 4.0L H.O., AW4, NP242, D30, Chrysler 8.25, 3.55 Diffs front and rear. Inside leather trimmed seats, simulated woodgrain dash and door panels, CC, PDL, PW, driverside SRS, cheap aftermarket alpine CD player presumably from 1997(Won't play burned CD's) Space Saver Spare and jack under the rear seat.

When I first got her 2 years ago, she was as plain jane as they come! I can't find any pictures of when we first got her, so we'll go back as close as possible. Not sure what the date would be here but not too long after I got it I had the good 'ol flowmaster 40 series put on her, mostly because the stock muffler wore a hole through it, and a 2&1/2" straight tip, around the same time, had a set of 30x10.50x15R BFGoodrich All Terrain T/A's put on her at stock ride height. Also put a cheap Cobra Cb inside with a free magnet antenna on the roof.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...1607/jeep2.jpg

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_0931.jpg

About 6 months later I get my first Lift, a cheap 3" from rough country with AAL in the rear and the nitro charged shocks, also purchased the steering stabilizer shock for the front and a new adjustable trac-bar, installed everything, also fabbed up a cheap home made bracket off the stock bumper for my 4' cb antenna.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1399.jpg

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1394.jpg

A few weeks later, bought these tail light gaurds off eBay for $40. Around this time had the Cat replaced with a high flow one, original was making that rattling noise that all the 95-97 seem to do eventually, there was a recall on them shortly after i had this done because chrysler wanted to replace all the cats for emmissions, so i sent them the reciept and they sent me a check for the amount.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_0898.jpg

Here you can see the RC steering stabilizer, and the new set of 55w driving lights i installed on the front bumper.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1443.jpg

Here is the driving lights alone at night with the headlights off and marker lights on.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1646.jpg

Picked this up on eBay for $60, D30 Front Diff. gaurd from RC, forged steel. You can also see the new adjustable trac-bar

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1680.jpg

New set of wheels, 15x10's with 3&3/4" back spacing from RC, eBay, $230 shipped to my door!

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1686.jpg

Heres the overall build up to that point.
-3" Lift from RC, with steering stabilizer shock, and adjustable trac-bar.
-30x9.50x15R BFGoodrich All Terrain T/A's
-15x10 black steelies with 3&3/4" back spacing from RC
-55w Driving lights mounted on front bumper
-D30 Steel Diff. Gaurd from RC
-Tail light gaurds
-CB and 4' antenna mounted off the rear bumper with a home made bracket
-High Flow Catalytic Converter and Flowmaster 40 series muffler with 2&1/2" straight tip
-New Kenwood CD Player and 4 5&1/2" Infiniti 5022i's installed in the front doors and sound bar in the roof above the hatch.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1687.jpg

About another 6 months later or so, I bought some cone filters from Advanced auto and decided to rig up my own CAI, mind you this is when i first threw it together, it looks a little more decent now, I'll take some pictures when it warms up a little, theres also a tiny cone filter on the breather valve coming off the valve cover where a rubber hose ran before to the stock airbox. Around this same time, my motor mount on the passenger side broke while I was on my way to work and I almost lost my motor!:( So while it was in the shop getting that fixed, he had to pull the motor because of how the bolts were rusted and snapped off with part of them still threaded into the block, so I had him install a 4.0 Header I bought off eBay for $130, and a set of 1&3/4" lift shackles for the rear leafs also from RC, those were another $60.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1877.jpg

A month or so after that found these bumpers as a set on eBay from a guy who fabs them up in his own shop all day everday, for all kinds of jeeps and other vehicles, trucks, broncos, blazers, different isuzu, toyota, and suzuki suv's. They were about $500 shipped to my door unpainted, the front has two D-rings built into it with 3/4" clevis's on them, and light tabs on the top of the push bar, with new 130w Dick Cepek Offroad lights mounted, the rear has two D-rings built into it also with 3/4" clevis's on them and a spot for a hitch with a 2" receiver in it currently, and a tab on the passenger side where my 4' CB antenna is currently mounted. I decided to use spray on rubberized undercoating, cus it was cheap, durable, and said it seals out moisture. Well I was in a hurry and wanted my new bumpers on! so I ended up spraying them on a day when it was like 75% humidity here, and low and behold about 3 months later, the **** started flaking off, and rust was forming under it, so I need to take them back off this spring, strip them down and redo them with actual herculiner or rhinoliner, or just paint them, havent decided what to do for sure.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1872.jpg

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1875.jpg

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_1876.jpg

This is what my jeep looks like currently, lots of stickers on it now, lol especially the big one across the wind shield that says JEEP, this is prolly my favorite pic, messing around on a pile of gravel!

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...04071704-1.jpg

This was on the Artic. ramp at "The Cliffs" in Marseilles IL.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...07071634-1.jpg

And this was last fall at a buddies farm, climbing a 60 degree, 45Ft. hill

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n...7/100_2606.jpg

I just filed my tax return, and could receive it as early as 3/20/09 direct deposit, $1,465 I will be getting back, that combined with another couple hundred saved out of my next 3 pay checks, and I'm planning on purchasing the 6.5" kit from RC and a set of 35" BFGoodrich Mud Terrain's, 4.10 gears front and rear, and a power-trac locker for the rear, an electric fan setup in the front, a heavy duty 1-ton power steering pump, a 130amp alternator and dual battery setup, along with some more goodies for the inside! will update as I order parts and start putting them on, my friend who has the same kit on his 96 sport with 33"s said he would help me put it on and thinks we can have the lift on in one day depending on how bad the current hardware is.

Thanks for reading/looking!

4.10s with 35s is a waste of money!! go at least 4.56. i would go 4.88. Actually i am going 4.88 with my 35s

yeah the 4.88 with the 35's is your hot ticket anything lower then that is going to fell sluggish

looking good.

x3 on the gears. you should look into some quick discos to, to help you out on that ramp.

Thanks jake, the rear sway is coming off this spring anyways, but the front one might come off after the new lift, or i might get disco's

Maybe 4.56's then, i still want to retain some of my gas mileage, and i might only be going with 33"s i'll have to see what happens, i'm hoping for 35"s now though

4.56 is perfect for 33s

x2.

and if its your DD, my preference would be to keep the front sway and just get discos. but either way, looking good.

i have been running with out the front sway bar for about two months i dont even notice anymore just a little lean in the corners that is not a problem and i don't have to get under the jeep to disconnect in the rain or snow or mud anymore. beside jeeps are not sports car's right

dang I love your jeep!! $500 is a great price for both bumpers shipped! how can I contact the guy? The only thing I don't really like is that your rear bumper sits kinda far away from the bottom of the fender panels. I would like something that flows a bit more. Good luck with the 6.5". thats going to be sweet!

yea that is prolly what ill end up doing, just not sure if ill like that or not

Very nice.

so as posted awhile back in the badlands trip thread in the great lakes section, i did something stupid, and lost my license from may 6th till aug 6th and basically threw away my entire tax return, all the other money i had saved up, and lost my job for losing my license as i was a delivery driver for work. For the last 20 years i have lived at home with my parents in northern IL and am now because of these circumstances going to be moving to Oklahoma to live with a friend who is going to school at OU, and im hoping to get a job on the Oklahoma University Police Dept. so when i move back here eventually, if i do, it will make it look better when i try to get on the local sheriff's dept. but my jeepster will be staying up here when i go down there at first, so all my connections with jeeping besides this website are about to be cut for about 3 months or so, i would like to save up money while im down there and try to find a semi-nice comanche that i can eventually build into my dream vehicle that i have all planned out. Friday June 5th is my last day at home, so the next time any of you hear from me i'll be in OK, just thought i'd let everyone know what was going on, for the last month and the next three months atleast, Big Country will be sitting in the driveway...