Project: Lunar Rover
 

I just purchased a 1997 Cherokee Country a few weeks ago. It already had some upgrades, but I can't leave well enough alone. I have to make it my own.

I came up with several ideas at first, but ended up with my first task of installing a new stereo system. The P.O. put in an aftermarket system, but there were definitely issues that needed to be resolved. Instead of just trying to fix what was there, I replaced everything. Luckily for me, I buy from Crutchfield often, so a good portion of the cost of this upgrade was offset by cashing in my rewards points. They also had some pretty good promotions going on at the time.

My next bright idea was that I needed fender flares. I'm not a fan of the flat sided look, and again, the P.O. trimmed the fenders so stock flares would no longer work. I designed and built some using PVC. They were pretty badass. However, I went to paint them and it turned out bad, even with the plasic primer, so I gave up. Now I have a PVC graveyard in my back seat. I did manage to get a set of TJ fenders for cheap off Craigslist. The front have been attached (poorly) and wired in. I figure that if it can house lights, why not make them work? The rears are still in the process of being cut to fit.

After that, I decided that 4 lights were not enough. The P.O. already installed the door mounted lights, but I figured I would put some behind the grille. So I did.

I was trying to come up with a theme for the vehicle, since my friend did his TJ up with a bunch of Hulk stuff. I was tossing around putting the Jurassic Park Explorer theme on it, then maybe trying to pull of a Halo theme. Then it hit me, I'm going to paint it white, and the flares copper colored. I am going to make a Lunar Rover. I'm not going to cut the vehicle apart and really make it look like a real lunar rover. However, I am going to take the basic theme and see where I can go with it. As far as I can tell, it hasn't been done on an XJ before, and what can it really hurt? A paintjob and some decals...? I know a guy.

And the part you've all been waiting for: The Pictures
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/.../IMAG14261.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1427.jpg
Disclaimer: Not my Ramcharger, and I was parked there first. I thought they looked cool parked next to each other so I snapped a quick photo.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1423.jpg
Please note: Yes, that is a coffee cup inverter powering a corded dril. My battery powered Makita decided that even with a new battery, it wasn't going to work.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1419.jpg
Anyway. I'll try to take more pictures as I do more to the vehicle. Unfortunately, money is kind of tight, so I am not sure when major upgrades are going to come through. I am looking to purchase a welder so I can fabricate my own bumpers. In my opinion, the bumpers for the XJ that aren't outrageously priced, are outrageously ugly, and for what even the cheap ones cost, I think I can purchase the welder and the materials. Even if it is slightly more expensive, it will be exactly what I want.

Okay, so I had intentions of putting on the rear fender flares today, but ended up simply cleaning the trash out from the back seat, and giving it a hose-down.
Then this evening I saw a few interesting things to mess around with.
Fair warning: These are crap shots taken with my phone.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1433.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1439.jpg

So I got around to putting the rear flares on today. I got them to line up on the body line, but the outer edge on the front of the rear part of the flare sticks up a little higher than the trailing edge of the front one.

http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1441.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1442.jpg

And I promptly got it stuck in the mud. However, I did not have enough juice in my camera to take any pictures at that point. Afterwards, I did take some pictures of it, and the flares definitely kept the majority of the mud off the sides.

http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1446.jpg

Just so you understand how stuck I was, my frame was in the mud, my front bumper was in the mud, and I could easily see over the Jeep when I got out to see if there was any hope whatsoever. There wasn't.

And just when I'm thinking about leaving it painted the way it is, I decide to go and have a bit too much fun...

Background story:
It rained all day here in Central Florida. This lead me to believe that the ever-shrinking mud pit that I have been freqenting may have a bit more of that sticky, slimy stuff to sling. Once the rain lets up for the evening, I go over to that pit and to no surprise, several other people figured the same thing. I watch them sling mud, get stuck, and do some of the same. They decide they've had enough, but I'm not quite done, so I stay there for a little while longer. I really enjoy leaving it in 2WD and trying to keep that rear end behind me when I have the petal to the floor going through mud. When I decide that I've had the appropriate amount of fun, I begin to head out. As I'm leaving, something catches my eye. Could it be? A trail that I have not yet travelled? I couldn't help but investigate. I followed it around for quite a ways, and it got narrower and narrower. It was like something out of Jurassic Park. Then suddenly...
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1456.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1454.jpg
By this point, both of my mirror lights had been bashed in different directions. Unfortunately for me, I have become used to having them on, so if I turned them off, it was difficult for me to see. The driver's side stayed tight, so I was able to reposition it to it was usable. The passenger side, however, would swing back and forth from facing the center of my hood to straight out to the side of my Jeep. I decide now, that I should attempt to back up. This was a poor decision. As I was facing down hill, everything was wet, and I was sitting on some palm branches, all I did was spin my tires when I put it in reverse. Time for 4HI. Still spinning. 4LO? Yes, spin again, but this time slide sideways, into the tree. Except at this time I don't know this, all I know is that the Jeep is refusing to go backwards. Alright, forward it is. I leave it in 4 LO and just push through the 1-2" saplings.
So I drive back home (still unaware that there were any problems), and park the Jeep. I get out to inspect the mud, and see a small branch on my roof.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1457.jpg
So as I continue to walk around the vehicle, I notice...
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1459.jpg
Oh, it looks like I need a new flare. Time to go hunting on the Wrangler forums for a new passenger front TJ flare. Wait... Oh crap...
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1465.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...J/IMAG1463.jpg
The fender itself is crushed in. Also, the front clip is pushed back into the hood on that side. I'm not entirely sure if that is the result of pushing through the trees or if it was pulled back by the tension placed on it by the fender being crushed. On the bright side, I did a fairly decent job installing the flares, I tried to just rip it off, but it is on there quite sturdily. Although, it does make me wonder, If I didn't have the flares, would I have gotten out of there scott free?

So, does anyone in Central Florida have a spare passenger fender or know of a good place to get one? Black preferred, but it doesn't really matter to me. This will just make my need to get it painted happen even sooner.