New(ish)1998 XJ
 

Just picked her up today. I'm reserving my spot for my future mods

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Ok . . . got the step up runners, or whatever they're called, the bumper caps, molding, front fender trim, and trim mounts removed today. That includes the adhesive behind the molding. Took all friggin' day though. Once I managed to get the adhesive removed, I started working on everything else. Turns out, damn near everything was rusted solid on it so I ended up having to use my grinder to cut off a lot of things. Broke a socket wrench in the process.

It's not really necessary to post pics at this point but I'll still try to take some and throw them up. I'm set to trim the front fender though . . . that'll be my next step. That and prepping the rear.

Well . . . finished taking the plastic off the back . . . found this little gem. I'm obviously new to this so . . . now what?

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Now you go back to the dealer and ask for a repair or some money back.

Most states have laws covering this, even for used cars...

Well I know they won't repair it. Money back or not, what do I need to do to fix this? Is it easy to replace this panel or do I just need to cut it out completely and weld in a couple panels in it's place?

Well first of all, it's used so it's probably sold AS IS like all the cars at my used dealer lots around here...

If you want to fix it, the location is pretty tricky. Stop the rust with some primer and then take a piece of sheet metal about that size and either weld or rivet it in. You can either paint over it, or put the plastic bumper guard back on to hide it.

If you plan on lifting it, just cut off. Do what camping350 did:
http://i50.tinypic.com/350jxo6.jpg

Check out his build by the way, it's great.

Ok I think I'll try cutting it out and jb "welding" in some replacement sheet metal. If that doesn't work, I'll cut it off of both sides. I'm definitely not putting the plastic back on.

The easiest thing to do would be to cut and fold your fenders. Nice ride.

So I went and bought a "Harbor Freight Special" flux core welder and I've been practicing. My welds aren't pretty but they hold. I did some tests of what I'll be doing on the jeep and I couldn't break them with a very honest effort from a hammer.I'm going to cut out the rust, weld in the replacement sheet metal, throw some body filler, then hopefully bed line it along with the rest of the rocker panels. The bed liner might have to wait until next week but we'll see.

Ok! So it's looks like it's going to be cut and bend! Can't weld the steel on without putting a hole in the car lol. I've looked at the thread referenced by thatXJguy but I can't for the life of me see where I'm supposed to actually cut and bend that panel. Can anyone point me towards a more of a step by step so I can get this knocked out? Right now I just have an even bigger hole with weld mess all over it lol.

Disregard. Found a couple good ones and managed to get one side taken care of. I'll post some pictures tomorrow.

Had to fumble my way through it and I still have to seal and rivet the bent panels but it worked out alright. I would have finished up today but I'm sick and don't feel like doing much of anything

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Lots of bad luck . . . rear cut and fold on the quarter panels is done. Still haven't been able to do the fenders themselves. I got it all rivoted and sealed so I'm set to bed line the wheel wells and what not. Gotta start looking for a good bumper or buy some steal and try to build one myself.

--Edit--
Forgot I also busted the driver side tail light in the process lol. I've got some new leaf springs, trunk struts, and the tail light ordered though.

Finished cutting and folding the rear fenders and trimming the front fenders. Then, bedlined the rear quarter and the rocker panels. I also bedlined what's left of the fenders to seal them. They'll be covered with a set of bushwackers or alternative here before too long.

Sanded and masked:
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Then all Done:
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I was a little disappointed when I took the tape and what not off . . . It didn't leave a clean line like I had hoped . . . ended up being kind of jagged. I don't know if I didn't wait long enough or waited too long or what. Either way, when I repaint the whole thing this Spring, it won't show up anymore so I'm not really worried about it.

Anyone have any clever ideas for how to hide the jagged edge? Eventually I plan on re-painting the entire XJ OD Green and then I'll paint the liner flat black in a way that will give me a sharp line. Until then . . . I'd like to do something to cover the nastiness.