Brazillian XJ for expedition
 

Hi everybody!

after a long time being a rally driver, off road instructor, owned several extreme off road vehicles, I've decided to assembly a vehicle to make some trips all around the south america. From the off road dream beaches of Taipú de Fora to the frozen lakes of Patagonia.

And I've chosen the XJ to be this vehicle. now I do have some questions, since it isn't one of the most popular here in brazil, jeep, represented by chrysler, was always a pricey option and tryied to be a luxury brand here. there are 5 times more WJ bulletproofed than XJ on the streets. so, there are no lift kits available here, no bumpers, no nothing! even maintenance is a harsh task to do. I own, nowadays, an parts import business, so, for me, it's plainly viable to start an XJ.

Right now I need advise between two plans:

1 - buy a 1998 XJ with only 45k miles, that never used the 4x4.

2 - buy a 2000 XJ with 60k miles, also never worn the front axle.

I know that they are very similar, don't know enough to say if there are advantages on any of them. they cost the same, 98 is black, 00 is blue. they are both mint and one of them will be deeply upgraded to see the unpaved roads they never did.

my plan is to make a suspension lift. and here lies another question. as an off road enthusiast, all the 6.5" are a dream to my eyes, to put some spacers and a 33x12,5 BF Mud KM2 and drive anywhere. but here is where the plot thickens, a rational choice would be a 3.5" and run on 31", due to stability and driving conditions, and the main objective that is to make long trips. so, is the, for example, Rubicon Express Long Arm or the Rough Country Long Arm a bad choice for the on road drive? or should I go with a lower kit and be happy with a small tire? if any lift kit over than 6" keeps a smooth on road run, that would be jackpot to me.

I know about the SYE kits and longer brake lines as well.

other than that, I will buy a Snorkel, front and rear bumper, probably the Warn ones with the spare tire outside. a roof rack, CB radio, ARB Lockers... and that's it.

so, resuming, my questions for the XJ Experts:

To make an expedition XJ, not a mud warrior XJ
Would you buy a 1998, or a 2000? (or there's no changes in them?)

Lift kit, would you go sky high or just "I am better than you" high?

will be glad with any input, and if you read till here, thanks for your patience.

Get a 98. High pinion d30 doesn't have the 0331 head the 2000 does (which is known to crack). I love my 98

Id go for the 98 model aswell for the reason stated above. The 0331 head is known to be weaker and prone to cracking due to bad casting. Also the 00 model most likely has the LP D30. The HP D30 that should be in the 98 is reverse cut and much stronger. Also the 98 uses a distributor instead of a coil pack. Its a lil easier to replace sparkplugs IMO and less costly to replace. Other than those reasons mentioned above, both vehicles are pretty much identical.

As far as the lift goes it depends what you want to do with it. Personally I love 33s on my cherokee. The longarm kits ride amazing on road so if you have the cash Id run a longarm kit with a 4.5 or higher lift.

I've got a 6" homebrew lift and it really does ride well. I would say 4.5" lift minimum for 33's. XJ's are durable and I think you will enjoy what your getting yourself into!

I also prefer the 98, but just because I had a feeling with that car, we had chemistry... with an explanation like that about the 0331 head, it's a deal.

now, I've seen for sale some crown and pinions, some with the 3.07 ratio, up to 4.10 and over... wich one is the original? is there any longer ratio that can bring me a better than factory MPG? (one of my trips will be a crossing from argentina to chile that has a 460 miles day with no gas station. crossing the Andes, no gas station over the rocks, so, any MPG enhancing will be great.)

also, is there any long range fuel tank?

to all, I truly thank each one of you for your kind attention with my questions.

Agree, 1998 is the better way to go.

BTW, domyou have anywhere (website, twitter, facebook, etc.) we can follow some of the upcoming adventures. I am sometime in the future going to do the full Pan-American highway expedition (Alaska to Patagonia Chile). Only been to S.America once (Santiago & Ski Portillo Chile), but loved almost every minute of it!

Main mpg savings will be in keeping the weight down. Also keep in mind the XJ tank is small. Just 17 gallons, so you may either consider a larger tank retro-fit or find a way to carry some fuel cans. Also may, depending on how you are going about your travels...pre-arrange for fuel caches to be kept in areas that may not otherwise have access.

If it's an auto it likely came with 3.55 gears. If it has the factory tow package it might have 3.73. If it's a manual probably 3.07. You should also check what rear axle it has, if it has ABS it has the dana35, if it doesn't have ABS it might have a 29 spline C8.25 which is a stronger axle. If you only plan to run 31's or even 33's you shouldn't have any issues with the dana35, but it's always nice to have a stronger axle.

MPG on XJ's suck, plain and simple. I'm not aware of any aftermarket fuel tank that goes in without some fab work, if cargo space isn't an issue you could always go with a 25+ gallon fuel cell. Otherwise in order to go 400+ miles I would recommend 4 5 gallon jerry cans. You're going to need that extra 20 gallons of gas... Upgrading the fuel injectors, proper gearing, bored out throttle body, 99+ intake manifold and driving sensibly will help get the most MPG, most of us with lifted XJ's and larger tires get anywhere from 10mpg to 20mpg depending mostly on those factors.

Yup it should have factory 3.55 gearing if its an auto. If manual its 3.07 like stated. 4.10 came in the 4 cylinders. Id also like to keep track of your adventures.

well, I was considering the roof rack just because the jerry cans to take some fuel along. only diesel engines do have that kind of autonomy, but, they're so expensive in Brazil that just don't make sense to choose them just because of one day plan in a trip. so, XJ. I know that there is an diesel engine XJ, but their engine had so many issues with the brazilian diesel full of crap... here it's quite impossible to find one of them running, usually the engine has been replaced.

WeatherWarrior,
My facebook page is facebook.com/guilha4x4, it will take some months before my XJ is ready to travel along, but in my FB page there are some pics from my trips. Brazil is a unlikely place, by that I mean it's the 6th bigger country in the world in area. has 51% of the south america. divided in 5 regions, originally colonized by portugal (we speak portuguese, not spanish), then later our south was colonized by germans, southwest by italians, midwest has more japonese than you would believe, northwest is africans and netherlands, and there's the north with the rainforest. has indians, birds and things wanting to eat you.

we have our own camel trophy, called Trans Amazon Challenge, here are the pics http://www.transamazonicachallenge.com.br/fotostac.html

Sthon
Thanks for the info. since all the XJ brought to BR was the top model, all of them are auto and has ABS, so I presume they all are Dana35. and even though I agree they aren't the best axle, they equipped a lot of cars here, and I can find bearings, sleeves... anything for them here anywhere. the same doesn't apply to the Chrysler axle. so, it breaks, but they are "fixable". now, if I fit a 3.07 ratio C&P in my XJ, won't that make the engine run with less RPM at the same speed? making my MPG better?

well, first let's build the car together! I'll be glad to put a blog or something like to post pictures of those trips.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/guilher...7600194098294/ here are some of my old jeep pics.

Lower rpm's isn't always better, if that was the case we would only have a 1 speed transmission.

I would go with the '98 because of the head design too. I have a high-mileage 2000 and it's head had been rebuilt before I bought it.

The snorkle should help your MPGs a touch because of the cooler intake air from outside and it would seem like upgrading the the the injectors (703s?) could give a slight boost to economy as well as throttle response. I'd also stick with the 31" tires for better mileage. If you think you might not need the roof rack, that would help alot and they make rear tire carriers that hold fuel as well.

I'd also strongly consider hood vents and upgrading the stock headlights and harness to h4s or HIDs.

I could also see adjustable shackles being a nice option to have when loading in alot of fuel or you need that extra clearance in the middle of nowhere. Similarly, you may want the ability to disconnect your swaybar in a pinch or for a long tough trail.