I was planning on just reusing the factory clamps. They seem to work still. I am going to have to use hardware store j-hooks for the gas tank straps though - I just cut the old ones in two. I did the same with my 2dr and it seems to work just fine.

I hope it's as good as it looks and how well it was made. The tie-rod ends should be plenty beefing for just 33s.

I took the week off so I wrenched a bit today. I mounted the winch controller to the bumper, attached extra fasteners to the bumper and tightened it down, and siphoned out the old gas. Getting there.

But they are just regular hose clamps like the picture in the link I posted?
Yeah can't believe how expensive those J Hooks are.
I think the gas straps we sell at my store come with them but am not sure.
Replacing the fuel hose and the vent hose?

EDIT: Cause I wonder if they are more like this:

https://www.fisheriessupply.com/scan...nd-hose-clamps

No slots in the band for the worm gear.

It runs. It moves. It's alive!





First startup was pure devastation though as it ran like garbage followed immediately by gushing sounds from the gas tank. This is after I fought that stupid plastic fuel pump ring to thread. The fuel pump swap in my 97 - which uses a Bosch pump rather than a Delphi pump in this 99 - was significantly easier. The rubber seal that came with the Delphi pump didn't want to fit so I reused the original. Then, the pump kept wanting to spring up so I had to hold it down with one hand while threading the ring with the other. I guess I didn't get the fuel line secured enough as it popped off and started spraying fuel everywhere and for a minute, I thought the ring didn't seal and I was going to have to drop the tank again. Thank goodness that wasn't the case.

It needs an alignment and there is still air in the brakes but it drove on public roads! Plus, the winch works!

Next up is to re-install the hitch (which I think I'd like to ditch entirely but it's the only rear recovery point I have access to at the moment). and wire up the front locker switch and compressor. I've also got to break in the gears, which means no wheeling for me for the next 495 miles... maybe I'll fix the heater core in the meantime.

Congrats! Looking good and I'm sure it feels great to get it on the road! Been watching this for a while and it's a nice build.

Great progress. I remember you saying how you'd like to do paint matched napier flares - those would look real good at this stage.

Oh, dang - I forgot about the paint-matching idea. I'm going to need to trim sheet metal no matter what so maybe I can spare a few ponies for the Napiers. My current idea is just to run no flares again but I'm sure I'll get tired of how much dirt and mud gets flung up on the body after a while.

The rig goes in for an alignment on Wednesday so hopefully I can start putting miles on it for the gear break in.

I also contacted a friendly fab shop in my hometown in TN about a rear tire carrier. I may drive this home for Thanksgiving instead of the Subaru so I can get that done... maybe... haha. The GF and I usually take the cats for longer stays in TN so not sure how much they'll like the extra road noise.

That's awesome. Must be so exciting after all this work. You'll be running 4.56 gears right? Interested to see how that is on highway drives, seems pretty deep.
Here's a cool paint matched flat flare XJ:

So, the steering has zero issues with moving the 33s and practically no bump steer but... it does have tie-rod roll which I don't remember having with the V8 ZJ tie rod/stock draglink. It's not miserable but it's definitely something different.

Yeah, it's buzzy! 65mph in fifth is at 2,500 rpm give-or-take. I hit 72 confirmed by GPS. It's much happier putting around at 55 on two-lane highways. The Jeep doesn't seem to care about the high rpm but the road noise is a bit much. The Bighorns are not helping - it would probably be better with some all terrains or more sophisticated MTs. But, around town it's glorious! It has so much torque you can basically leave it in fifth everywhere and start out in 2nd in most places. I can't wait to wheel it. My 2dr still has 3.07s with 29" tires and can do 80 all day - that can be my long-distance road trip Jeep.

Unfortunately, it's leaking a lot more than I remember. Either the trans is leaking or the rear main again (even though I replaced it).. or both (probably). The transfer case is leaking too. This wouldn't be that big of a deal but the leak is hitting the exhaust and coming through the trans tunnel. I was feeling pretty weird after driving it for a while and inhaling that oil smoke. Not good.

So, I caved and will be contracting a shop to deal with some driveline issues and leaks. The clutch is original and will judder when there's a lot of humidity in the air. Plus, it shifts so much smoother when cold and can be hard to get into gear when at temp. I really have to put some effort into shifting (again, my 2dr is a cream puff in contrast). It's been that way since I first bought it back in 2013. Maybe it'll get a new clutch, maybe it'll get a rebuilt trans and transfer case - who knows!?

Woah, momma - nearly two years with no update? That's either a good or a bad thing - good that I haven't had much to do to the old girl and bad because it's a shame there have been no updates on how awesome this Jeep is lol

The shop I found to do the clutch was a nightmare, honestly. They took forever to get it done and then when they finished, the Jeep suddenly stopped starting with the key... They did however fix my oil leak (I butchered the rear main seal job myself) and install a proper speedo gear, which was nice.

I had to jump start the Jeep to get it home and then spent a few days chasing down the issue. Eventually, I learned and tested the entire starting circuit (FSM FTW) and found the clutch interlock switch was bad. I just cut it out and replaced it with a good quality butt splice and viola! - the key worked again. Now I can start it without the clutch engaged, which is cool for wheeling and what not.

I took it to Uwharrie shortly after this for a shake-down run. It had stock untrimmed fenders and I rubbed EVERYWHERE. I actually took some chunks out of the sidewall of the Bighorns climbing up Dickey Bell. But, despite all the rubbing, the Jeep was noticeably more capable than before. The front locker plus the 4.56s and 33s with only 4" of lift was perfect for those trails. I even got to use the winch that day to unstuck a stuck JL Rubicon.



After that, I got the Napier flares installed - significant improvement in wheel clearance and I really like the look - kind of goes with the red/black motif I've got going on.



Then, about 1,000 miles later, the newly replaced clutch failed.... It would engage and disengaged kind of on its own, which made starting and stopping really really inconvenient.

At this point, I was pretty much pushed into a corner of "I don't have the time/space/tools to do a clutch job" so I caved again and found yet another shop to help me out. And thank goodness I did - the guy I worked with the second time was amazing - a former Jeep mechanic that realized he could make more money doing same-day servicing on more modern cars. He initially didn't want to work on the Jeep but we sorta bonded over them and old Toyotas - I think he was just happy to work on something that was properly setup (he was asking about all the parts I had on the Jeep to make sure I wasn't an idiot).

The first shop used a Centerforce clutch and non-OEM slave/master cylinder. Our thought was either they did the install poorly, or the Centerforce clutch overpowered the otherwise stock and worn-out transmission, so out it went and in went a LUK. It's been (knock on wood) good ever since and that was probably 5K miles ago at least.

Then, I moved yet again and the Jeep took on moving van duties for a bit. I even used it to tow a 12'x6' Uhaul trailer with all my garage stuff. That was a nearly 300 mile trip with that trailer and it went surprisingly well. I even hit 65 mph a few times! There was one bit of I-40 getting into the mountains that was a 6 mile stretch of a steep grade climb. I was in third gear and 3400 rpm for most of those 6 miles and the Jeep just took it in stride. I was super impressed with how, dare I say, easy that tow was (easy but slow and consumptive - I think I got like 11 or 10 mpg doing that).







Then, once settled in around the end of 2021, I started taking the rig out wheeling more. Hit up Windrock again and man, everything starting coming into play. This thing rocks!





I decided I wanted to put back seats back in it and open up the rear passenger area for, well, passengers. But, I also wanted to keep the full-size spare inside the Jeep - I don't want a big, heavy roof rack and/or a rear tire carrier. A 33" tire fits pretty much perfectly laying flat in the cargo area with the rear seats up and having a skinny tire also helps with extra space. I coupled JCR's molle window panels with their "upper shelf" and a home-made plywood deck lid to build a open space interior rack system. This has turned out perfect for what I want and I unknowingly created a standing desk, which I've used to do my desk job remotely more than once. I even ran a meeting in a parking lot lol.







I've wheeled it and driven it around quite a bit as-is. It's a great backup vehicle but it still definitely has issues that need fixed, including:

• The heater core NEEDs to be replaced. I literally have no real cabin heat, which is annoying.
• My front control arm bushings are really bad and getting worse. I ponied up for a Stinky Fab 4-link which I have on the shelf waiting to be installed
• My rear diff's breather hose likes to push fluid through the frame rail, which is annoying as well.
• I still have no horns, which is bad in the eyes of the state...

Because of the heater core being bad and the floors will need to be drilled through for the 4-link install, I really want to strip the carpet entirely and spray down the full-on Lizard Skin treatment and just run without any carpet. Then, put some sound deadening on the roof and just custom cut vinyl to have a "headliner" again.

The 4-link also brings up issues that will be kind of costly - I don't want to run a 4-link without better bumpstops and longer travel shocks, so when that goes in, I'll likely swap out the 10" travel Bilsteins with 12" travel shocks and add in more bumpstops front and rear.

Oh, and I'm also pretty sure I have minor intake manifold gasket leak...

Until that happens though, it's just gas-and-go with some routine maintenance along the way (I've changed the oil and diff fluid a couple of times already and threw in a fresh set of plugs within the past year).

Put together a powerpoint of what I want to get done this year. I want to have a long-distance, trail rig that can be a auxiliary service/remote work station. I'm not calling it an overlander - I really want to volunteer as a "Heavy Sweep" at area rally races.






I'm going to start with slides 3 & 4 (the engine & interior) - with the heatercore/cooling system being the first while tearing out the old interior to prep for Lizard Skin. I'm on the fence about my initial placement idea for the Premier Power Welder - I'm thinking it'll probably be better suited in the original battery location given the space and proximity to the PCM, so I might switch the two and relocate the battery to the stock airbox location. Given the welder's ability to provide auxility power, I'll probably ditch the dedicated 12v system idea and just rely on the welder control box.

I'm also going to get my HAM radio license, so the molle center console will house all my comms stuff.

More than a year later... and I finally started to do stuff to this ol' Jeep! Things are happening - parts are being replaced - money is being spent - bigger problems are being realized - it's excited stuff! After my last update, I stripped the interior trim and carpet of the Jeep to find a remarkably clean (but not perfect) floor. There's some very light corrosion on the passenger floor pan from what I'm assuming is the heater core leak, and there's two dents in the floor that seem to have been caused by a stick trying to poke through the floor (I'm assuming this happened when off-roading at some point). Absolutely nothing that can't be easily fixed with a sand, grid, and paint job, which is nice.





Right after I pulled the carpet - no corrosion - all dirt - full win

The Jeep sat around for most of 2023 - I focused more on my 2dr. I did bring it home at one point to try and get a head start on removing the undercoating. I tried many methods - including, of all things, oven cleaner. My hands hated this and it was cold so I lost motivation pretty quick.







It then went back to storage (with the Mercedes) and sat around longer than the Mercedes... until recently! Like, a week ago actually.

Earlier in the year, I tried selling it as a "as-is" project and got zero legitimate interest. I did get a bunch of friends telling me I'd be an idiot to sell it (again) and would regret it (again). One friend works at 4x4 and fab shop and suggested they do some of the work - I caved. They agreed to take on most of the heavy lifting fabrication work - the sliders, the shackle boxes, the long arms, and the transfer case swap (I bought a used NP241OR TJ Rubicon transfer case at some point last year...). The goal is 4.5" lift on 35s... maybe...

Before I drove to the shop, which is in my home town about 120 miles away from me, I changed the oil, replaced the manifold gasket, cleaned the interior just a little bit, and hauled the spare parts and interior trim in my roof box.











I also replaced the shifter boot for my Hurst short shifter and I think I've figured out a solution for the damaged/torn lower transmission tunnel cover - a small company called Boxy Jeep makes a cover to retrofit TJ lower boots, but it doesn't have a center console mounting point... I bought one anyways just to test it out. https://boxyjeep.com/products/jeep-c...over-1984-2001







Driving it to the shop was slow, loud, and concerning. I think the roof box really slowed me down - I really had to get on it to do anything faster than 70 mph. Then, the transmission, which has always been kind of meh, was making all kinds of noises transmissions shouldn't. I didn't stop once during the trip and sent it straight through - getting off the highway and going through the gears again, it started to whine at higher rpms... then the transfer case started making noise while reversing in 4wd to park at my parent's house... woof. Anyways - it's at the shop, waiting to be torn into. I'd love to swap in a lower-mileage/new/rebuilt AX15 or have mine rebuilt - I'm not sure it can take highway jaunts much longer.

Shop updates - the stiffeners, long arms, and sliders are complete - got new shocks too and extended brake lines with some trimmed bumpers and sheet metal. The fabrication work is worlds above what I could have accomplished with my introductory skillset. Those stiffeners and sliders are IN THERE too - they used tons of welding material to make it super strong.









Before they did the trimming, they also put it on some spare 35s they had laying around to see what it would look like. These are 12.5" wide MTZs and they rubbed. We figure with a lower backspacing and narrower wheel with a skinny 35, it should be good to go.






I could pick it up now but they caught wind of a low-mileage ax15 for $800, so we're going forward with the transmission and transfer case swap - wish them (and more importantly my wallet) the best of luck! I'm worried the NP241OR is going cause some headaches...

Glad to see you're making progress !! Those are some professional grade upgrades going on there...I bet you're excited and I'm happy for you...

The Jeep has been back in my possession since November. A low mileage ax15 got swapped in as well as the NP241OR with a cable shifter, and all-new locally made driveshafts to work with the stock TJ Rubicon rear yoke. It all works with the Stinky Fab cross member, but the exhaust has very little clearance now.

Due to scheduling, I got my dad to pick it up from the shop and drive it back to his house so I could swap cars out on a weekend (I had been dailying his 2010 stick-shift Outback). Here's a TL/DR of what went down on that trip:

• The battery died and the Jeep had to be jump started to get back - I ended up buying a brand new one ($$$) to replace it
• The cable shifter wasn't engaging low-range and was binding up instead (the transfer case does shift fine)
• The 4wd light came on... when in reverse. The transmission shifts GREAT though - much improved.
• While driving on the interstate, about 2 miles into my journey, I hear a loud "clunk" from underneath and my speedo stops working. I think "huh" and keep driving. About a mile later, a lady passes me and flags me down saying I'm leaking something. I pull off and the speedo gear has popped out of the t-case. I pull into a NAPA, ruin their parking lot with ATF, and use a butt-load of duct tape to secure the speedo gear back in. It worked a treat!
• Around dusk, I realized my headlights were not working but my marker lights were. Then, right at dark, I pulled over and found the H4 wiring harness relays were unplugged. Fixed that and the lights worked.

To me, the Jeep really wanted to make sure I was ready and prepared to own it again...










The drive home, despite all the issues, was noticeably different than before. The frame stiffeners coupled with the long arms, rear shackle brackets, and Fox shocks really improved the ride & handling. The Jeep feels more "factory" now despite all the modifications. It's a major improvement.

Since getting it back, I worked on getting it to pass safety inspection (I had to install horns and replace the rear license plate, third brake light, and one side marker light) and to get the 4wd shifter to work... by replacing it. The t-case's previous owner had an older, hacked up TJ cable shifter that just didn't work. I bought another one meant for the NP241OR from Novak and destroyed my hands getting it to work. It works but the throws seem a bit off in terms of where the factory "position" should be (low range looks like neutral...). Throughout this fix, I also worked on a solution for the transmission cover plate (I ended up hacking up a Boxy Jeep metal cover plate to be a "inner washer" of sorts for the factory cover plate) and had to replace all the factory bolts holding the t-case shifter assembly to the body. It was a major PITA.







I also replaced the speed sensor with... a camshaft position sensor... they're literally the same part lol.



I threw the interior together enough to be reasonable at the inspection station (I didn't want my guy asking me where my passenger seat/seat belts were or why there were wires hanging out of my partially disassembled dashboard) and finally, after years of vagrancy, have a fully legal and up-to-date Jeep again!







I still haven't fixed the heater core though... one day. Until then, I'm just going to start using it!

I used it for it's intended purpose!!!!!