Project "Turquoise Medallion" 94' XJ
 

Well, I decided to start a build thread of my rig because as of right now it is sitting in my garage with no axles under it. But before I get into all that I want to show you what I started with, and where I'm at now. Keep in mind I've now had this Jeep a year as of this month.

Here we go... the day I got her.. I liked but, but at the same time thought it was an ugly looking Jeep. The front bumper really bugged me, and the aluminum wheels painted black too.

Pure uglieness... :ban:
http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/5...0001medium.jpg


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My first mod was a roof rack, thought I had to have one cause everybody did. And I scored a deal on some sweet wheels so I threw them on. I also cut the ugly hoop and bars off my front bumper. That put me here...

http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/549...1232medium.jpg

I then decided I wasn't a roof rack kind of guy, and yanked it and sold it. I also threw a set of Hella's on before the trip.
Then planned a Moab trip and headed out. Jeep did awesome this trip with no carnage. A few pics...

http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/583/moab2071medium.jpg
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After that I decided I didnt like my spare bouncing around in the back of my Jeep, so I built my tire carrier on the rear bumper. A few pics...

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Then I decided 33's weren't for me.. and mine were getting bald. So on went the 35" MTR"s and a test run, ended up have to trim some more to clear them....

http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/6...ch2009003m.jpg
http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/7...ch2009001m.jpg


Then we headed for Moab again on 35's... this was the trip from hell. Beat my rig to the point it was not drivable, front end was done, locker broke, ran out of spare u joints, had no front drive line in, finally ripped the rear dirve line off for the third time and walked away from it. Left it on the trail over night. Went back the next day, pulled axles, pulled carrier, removed locker, installed spider gears. New Wheel u joints, new u joint in both drive lines. Drove it off the trail and back to Salt Lake. Not a fun trip by any means. Some pics...

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One Saturday morning I was surfing a local offroad website and ended up scoring this cowl hood for twenty bucks. Needed some work, but i fixed it up and painted it and installed it. About the same time i also installed my late model front clip. Scored a messed up header panel off a rolled Cherokee for a deal, along with all the lights. And scored two used fenders for 70 bucks. Fixed and painted it all and looks great! Pics...


http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/2...2037medium.jpg
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At the same time I had all my suspension components sand blasted and painted them silver.
That put me here.....

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/4...0001medium.jpg
http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/2404/...806amedium.jpg



Then I decided I wanted to run bead locks, I loved the thought of running almost no air pressure without the worry of losing a bead. I called up my buddy who works at a steel fab shop. He drew some up and cut them on the water jet. I found a deal on a set of black 15x10 steel wheels and I was off and running....

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/5...1951medium.jpg
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First trip out on them... worked flawlessly.


Then I traded some paint work for this front bumper my buddy built, and I decided to throw a winch on. Picked up an XRC10 10000 pound Smittybilt.... and painted the rear to match....

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/1...anbnmedium.jpg
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I think thats about the just of it. In between all that I have broken every U'joint on the thing, front axle, two front lockers, front ring and pinion, blew a motor, blew a trans, motor mounts, new exhaust header, 3 row radiator, just to mention some of the bigger stuff.

So as of right now it is sitting in the garage on jack stands with no axles under it. Upgrades include: Custom Long arm, beefed up control arm brackets (I ripped one off the axle which is what started all this), lose the T-Case drop, SYE Installed, Stretched rear- axle is going back 5 inches. Home made quarter panel guards/tail light housings which incorporate LED tails, new rear drive line, and whatever I decide along the way. I have already ordered all the joints for the front long arm, just waiting delivery.

So here she sits now..... I will update this thread as I go. Wish me Luck!

No longer running flares ...
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Man thats a sick cherokee...I hope i can get mine up as high as yours one day! I want a rear tire carrier like you got as well i cant find any unless i wanna pay 1300$ lol.

Either way its a very sweet jeep.

I like that you kept the color with the 97 & up clip. Nice rig.

love your truck man nice build
good luck

#1 biggest fan here jus checking in and subscribing!!
lol

this thing is beautiful..
I love the late model front clip on it, ive been considering doing that to mine, but My fear is that I wont be able to find the factory paint color, how did you go about finding the right color?

like it what lift did u use

What link system are you going to run and what kind of joints did you get?

Thanks for the compliments guys. It really has been a ton of work in just a years time. In betweeb those mods I have installed some other stuff also, like my hi-lift, 10 lb. CO2 for airing up, CB setup, 3 row radiator, some other misc. stuff.

I ordered all my joints from Ballistic Fab. After trying to get a hold of a highly respected local shop for a week, then going down there on my lunch and waiting 45 mins for them to get back from lunch, then seeing how expensive they were, I went home and ordered online from Ballistic Fab. Their website is easy to use and they had everything I needed. Good prices too. I ordered their Forged Chromoly 2.63" Ballistic Joints for the Frame side of the lowers. Here: http://www.ballisticfabrication.com/...nt_p_1636.html

I will be running a factory bushing on the axle side of the lowers.

For my front suspension I will be running a radius arm setup with a Y-Link on the driver side and a custom cross member. With this setup and some longer shocks I figure I should be able to get 3 - 4 more inches of droop out of the front, and obviously a much better ride. Here's a pic of my buddies he did this summer, mine will be very similiar.
http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/9...1094medium.jpg

When i got it it had RE Drop Brackets, factory upper and lowers, 7.5" springs, 6" leafs, and a 1.5" shackle. The only thing I changed was the RE Fixed lowers. The reason I did that was because when I jumped it the bushings popped out of the control arm on the axle side, so just replaced the lowers with aftermarket. This setup worked great for me.

You can get the paint code off the vehicle ID badge.

Here's a good place to get info on this subject. http://www.automotivetouchup.com/pai...tcodelabel.htm

I just went and bought the color off the paint code. It is a shade off, but it's a jeep so I dont care. For a little extra you can take a piece of your Jeep down and they will match the color exact for you, if you care that much.

Alright, cool, thanks a lot!

I think the updated front clip makes a world of difference, plus I dont think Ive ever seen it done to a laredo, So I think it would really add to the customization factor. Thanks a lot, and congrats on the COTM win!

Oh yeah, if you need a new home for the bushwhackers let me know!

That front clip is a bolt on correct?

really nice lookin cherokee. I like the facelift she got

Yeah. As long as you use the newer style fenders it will all bolt right on.