So what is the total bill for all your hard work so far - tool and materials? It's always good to know what it takes to complete a project from start to finish before you even get started.

I'm gonna get my Lil' Red aligned too now that you report such a great improvement in the ride quality - thanks!

 

Total bill is something along the lines of this (my dad already has an arsenal of tools, so we didn't have to buy any):

Sandpaper, primer, sanding blocks, tape: $100
Replacement fender from junkyard: $60
Rear bumper replacement...FREE! (I had some 16 year old girl tap me at a stop sign, told her if she gave me $100 I wouldn't say anything. My bumper was already damaged and the replacement was $96 shipped)
Final paint ($60) and paint both supplies ($20): $80
Lift kit: $266 shipped
Tires, wheels, center caps, lug set: $1,042
Alignment (wasn't completely necessary in my case, but I did it anyways): $70

So all in all, $1,600 to go from that beater to the new and improved XJ. I also sold my old tires and wheels on Craigslist for $250. I could have gotten more than that, as the tires were 90% and 70% tread, but I'm heading back to school tomorrow and had to price em for a quick sell. I got like 10 emails the first day they were up. I actually sold them to a guy who buys XJs from police auctions. I even told him how to do a bastard pack Gotta help out fellow Jeepers.

So all in all, under $1,500. And I have the warranty from Discount Tire. If any one of my tires gets damaged in the next 3 years, I get a replacement no questions asked. I asked the guy if it even covered offroad damages and he said yep. The only time they've had to put a limit on someone was when a guy in a rockcrawler in New Mexico was going through 1-2 tires PER WEEK. He got over 20 tires for free before they told him he couldn't do it anymore haha.

So the initial $1,800 for the car, and this $1,400 puts it at $3,200. Still only has 135k on the odo! Other than this, the only money i've put into it is a $30 water pump replacement.

 

I would recommend it if you have $70 to shell out. My steering was never bad, and my tires never wore unevenly. When I got the new tires on, I could feel the steering wheel a little more...twitchy. It didn't pull left or right (other than from the crown on the road), but I could take my hands off the wheel and watch it "twitch" back and forth like a half-inch to an inch (NOT a death wobble or even similar). I live in NC so there's some bumpy country roads, so I wasn't sure if it was just from the roads.

One thing i've always had though is a slight vibe when braking. Not when braking from 45mph to 35, but when coming to a neighborhood stop sign, from 10-0 I always felt a slight vibe. I never paid any attention to it because it was so minute. I don't notice it anymore though. My steering wheel doesn't feel so sloppy, and as if i'm driving on ice, it feels tight and responsive, no dead zones. Like I said, I didn't think it was unresponsive or sloppy prior to the alignment, but now my eyes are opened

 

266? Where'd you get that kit from?

 

Rough Country. It's the 3" Series I kit. It's like $255 + shipping, which ends up around $295. But if you call and ask for extension #123, then ask for Jeffery. Mention a 10% discount for being a jeepforum.com member and he'll place your order over the phone and give you the discount.

 

Your front could use a .75 spacer. I got an extra set.

 

No thanks, i'm not going through all that work again just for .75" haha

 

PM me.

Nice build btw! Looks like a solid jeep.. I want to keep my jeep for college but the gas mileage sucks..

 

ladies. My wj gets 11..
Pm sent

chad. your jeep is nice looking. like the.setup so.far.

 

Thanks everyone! Since I got back to school, it's made it hard to do anything to the Jeep. Beer funds have overtaken XJ funds not to mention I don't really know what else to do. Does anyone have any cheap and easy mods in mind? I don't have an arsenal of tools up here, but I do have essentials. screw drivers, sockets, vice grips, wrenches, etc.

Here's a few pictures I took today at the lookout right above my school, from the small town airport. My school is in the background. I even got a little baby flex off of the shoulder of the road without knowing it, lol.







These were all taken with my phone, but i've got a few buddies with DSLR cameras that I'd love to take some similar pictures with soon.

 

Tail light guards

 

Tinted tail lights.

 

windshield wash bottle relocation...to make room for a big cai

 

I'm not a big fan of tail light guards, but I do plan on blacking out my tail lights and corner markers. I forgot all about it actually.

A CAI is one of those mods I will probably never ever ever do to my xj

 

Add some kc daylighters