ITTs_Cole

Its about time I made a damned build thread so let it begin. I got this Jeep about November-ish in 2013 This Jeep came all the way from California, and somehow ended up all the way in Greenfield Massachusetts. Its been a California Jeep for 18 years of its life and has only seen snow/salt for 2 years. I came home to this little present from my Dad sitting in my driveway.

(he sent me these teaser pictures while i was away)

Can you believe the neighbors rented a bounce-house?!



She sits bone stock with a saggy rear, broken taillight housing, and 150,000 miles. Dad handed me the keys and I took off down some trail without it even being legally mine yet. After parking it after a fun exploration in the woods, I knew I was hooked on a drug called Jeep Cherokee.

ITTs_Cole

Now keep in mind, When i got this Jeep i was 19 at the time with very minimal knowledge of how a vehicle works. I knew the basics, but only ever changed a flat tire on a truck.

First, after my little joyride at 10pm the previous night, I cleaned out the interior the absolute best I could. I worked with the previous owner a few months prior and lets just say this guy had no idea what deodorant was. I steamed cleaned the seats Armor All-ed the entire interior and ripped off that horrendous looking roof rack. Inside i found a load of crap he decided to leave behind, and one gift was a quart of tranny fluid. Why? Because apparently the tranny leaks and needs to be topped of every now and again. No big deal, I knew how to check tranny fuild and oil. After everything was nice and clean and disinfected (this guy was seriously nasty) I went off and got my first insurance policy, ($110 for LIABILITY. Thats what you get when your a 19 year old male, they think your going to drive into the presidents limo.) tags and transferred the title. She was now mine.

ITTs_Cole

Im trying to keep this in chronological order from when i got it to the now, but heres the build sheet from Jeep that i got months later

Vehicle Description: JEEP CHEROKEE
Model Year: 1993
Body Model: XJ J L 74
Color: PG5 - Hunter Green Metallic

According to our records, your vehicle was equipped from the factory
with the following:

*Q7 Cloth Low-Back Bucket Seats
ADAP Light Group
AHT Trailer Tow Group
APCP Center Band Two Tone Paint
ARXP Country Decor Group
AWH Power Equipment Group
AWJP Visibility / Protection Group
BARP 90 Amp Alternator
BCDP 500 Amp Maintenance Free Battery
BGK 4-Wheel Anti-Lock Brakes
CACP Low Back Bucket Seats
CBZP Prem Vinyl Door Trim w/Map Pocket
CDBP Reclining Front Seats
CDGP Premium Leather Interior Trim I
CFMS Rear Fold w/Removable Cushion Seat
CKAS Carpets - Floor and Cargo Area
CKNS Cargo Compartment Carpet
CKTP Cargo Tie Down Loops
CKVP MOPAR All Weather Mats
CLCP Front Floor Mats
CSAP Spare Tire Cover
CSRS Passenger Assist Handles
CUFP Full Length Floor Console
DGB All 4-Speed Automatic Transmissions
DGSS 4-Speed Automatic AW4 Transmission
DHAS Lock-Up Torque Converter
DHNS Command-Trac Part Time 4WD System
DHSS Floor Mount Automatic Shift Lever
DJHS Dana M30/181MM Front Axle
DMDS 3.55 Rear Axle Ratio
DRMP Dana 35C/194MM Rear Axle
DSA Trac-Lok Differential Rear Axle
ERH 4.0L I6 Power Tech Engine
GAL Deep Tint Sunscreen Glass
GBBS Tinted Windshield Glass
GCBS Front Door Tinted Glass
GEC Front Left Side Sliding Window
GRKP Left Power Mirror
GSKP Right Power Mirror
GTK Power Mirrors
GVBC All Vehicles W/Power Mirrors
GXMP Remote Keyless Entry
HAAP Air Conditioning
HGDP Deluxe Insulation Group
JAYP Instrument Cluster w/Tach
JBGP Instrument Panel Woodgrain Bezel
JCAS 85 MPH Primary Speedometer
JHAP Var Intermittent Windshield Wipers
JHBP Rear Window Wiper/Washer
JJAS Cigar Lighter
JJFS Single Low Note Horn
JPAP Power Windows
JPBP Power Locks
JPS Power 6-Way Driver Seat
LAJS Headlamps On Warning Chimes
LBBP Courtesy Lamps
LBCS Glove Box Lamp
LBDP Ash Tray Lamp
LBEP Cigar Lighter
LCDP Map/Dome Reading Lamps
LDAP Underhood Lamp
LDBP Cargo Compartment Lamp
LHDP Headlamp Off Time Delay
LMAS Halogen Headlamps
MBUP Argent/Dark Argent Front Bumper
MBZP Argent/Dark Argent Rear Bumper
MCAP Front Bumper Guards
MDAP Front License Plate Bracket
MFKP Body Color Grille
MHAS Black Windshield Moldings
MMCS Rear Qtr Solid Window Insert
MMGS Belt Moldings
MMKS Body Color Drip Trough Molding
MNAS Black Door Handles
MUKS Silver/Chrome Badging
MWGP Roof Rack
NAE California Emissions
NBKS EVAP Control System
NFAS 20 Gallon Fuel Tank
NHBP Auxiliary Transmission Oil Cooler
NHMP Speed Control
NMCP Heavy Duty Engine Cooling
PG5 Hunter Green Metallic
QS7P Dark Silver Metallic Clear Coat
RAAC All Radio Equipped Vehicles
RAFP AM/FM Cassette Radio
RCG 6 Speakers
RDDS Fixed Long Mast Antenna
SBAS Power Steering
SCGP Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel
SFAS Standard Duty Shock Absorbers
SGAS Rear Shock Absorbers
SHBP Front Heavy Duty Stabilizer Bar
SHCS Rear Stabilizer Bar
SUAP Tilt Steering Column
TBB Full Size Spare Tire
TBLS Inside Mounted Spare Tire
TRVP P225/70R15 Eagle GA OWL AS Tires
TZAP Goodyear Brand Tires
WJGP 15" Aluminum Wheels
WKDP 17" Aluminum Spare Wheel
WLZC All Aluminum Wheels
YAAS Build To U.S. Mkt. Specifications

Our records indicate that the following recall campaign(s) have not been
performed by an authorized dealer:

Recall 733 - BRAKE PEDAL SHIFT INTERLOCK

dukie564

dang that thing is loaded. Country Package, Tow Package, and Trac-Lock rear

ITTs_Cole

Now my dad recommended we do an oil change on it because we had no idea what the maintenance intervals so i went to Advance Auto and threw in whatever was on sale. I also got some oil additive (something with stop leak in it which i regret to this day) To help stop the oil that seems to always spew out of this thing. I also stopped on the way home at a junkyard and put a "new" taillight housing on it to rid myself of the old busted one. I also grabbed me a temp. gauge thinking it would replace the factory one that didn't seem to work.(more on that later)

Later down the road the Jeep got its first ever (from me) Tune up! It got brandy new wires, plugs(i think some kind of platinum that's still in there now) , cap, rotor, felpro rubber valve cover gasket and battery. When we fired it back up, she ran clean with no apparent misfires. We did this tune up at a family friends house who did ammeter car racing and had every tool imaginable so it went pretty smooth.

At this point I discovered CherokeeForum, went from being a lurker to a member, and started asking painfully noobish electrical questions about my temperature gauge DISASTER that still persists to this day) as follows:

It came with an aftermarket gauge that always read 150. I followed the line and took a picture of it and someone confirmed that it was going into the temp sender (yes the one at the back of the block) My dad theorized that since this came from the California desert, that it was probably reading correctly and someone put in a lower thermostat to compensate for the intense heat which to me at the time made pretty good sense, but i didnt like the gauge location, that square next to the headlight switch, so i decided to gut it and try to make the stock one work to clean it up a bit. AND THIS is where my war began.

ITTs_Cole

just wait till i show you current specs...
the trac lock just makes my dana turdy5 a polished turd

ITTs_Cole

Before the war of the temp gauge, fun jeep pictures time!






the bump stops sorta don't exist anymore so this is probably the most flexed stock jeep youll ever see. lol


Ran it through the car wash one day. Looked Pretty.

ITTs_Cole

So i tried to get this wonderful stock gauge to work and heres what i did:

I discovered the factory wire was bypassed and so i simply plugged it in again, the result? Neither of the 2 gauges worked. Great. Then i posted on here and someone said try replacing the sender. Did that, nothing. I could always get the aftermarket one to read but it would never go above 150. It was wired directly from the sender to the gauge with power coming from the fuse panel plugged into a random free slot. (are these supposed to be full or are there random free slots?) That one always worked but never above 150. (by now i replaced the thermostat so i knew the temp was "normal") So i tried running the direct wire (not the factory one) into the back of the gauge cluster and screwing it in the the gauge prong thingamabob to see if direct reading would make the gauge work. Nope. I did a bunch of other bs and various other wiring combinations but it never worked. ONE day i apparently got it right cuz the stock gauge moved a little, immediate success i thought! Only i blew a 7.5 fuse. No biggie. Took it for a test run to see if the gauge was working, it started to climb a bit. Got to the top of a hill and blew the fuse again, my entire cluster went dead and interior lights failed. Swap fuse again on side of road.

@ good god damn seconds go by and i sit back in the keep and key it on and the entire cab in less that 3 f#@ing seconds the whole cab is filled with smoke. OHSH--.jpg and i bailed out of the jeep and smoke pours out of the open door. Smoke stops and i disconnect the wires then and there. Melted a wire right out of the jeep. Kinda gave up since then. (until later which youll see soon)

ITTs_Cole

By now i got the fever. I had been on the forum a few months poking around, asking new stuff, bugging the hell out of salad and cruiser I decided i want this Jeep to be well...A JEEP so i started browsing lift kits and looking at rigs with envy. So now i had a big lift change coming up, i was moving. One sday i loaded up 4 of my cousins in the jeep and as we rode around town (they are truck guys with huge Chevys sitting on 40huges. and they heard my jeep constantly bottoming out and determined my wheels were rubbing, axle thudding on the uni-frame bumpstops were shot. So i figured this will never do im moving soon and the jeep will be fully loaded! So this is the first time i really got down and dirty with my jeep and added a short leaf in the rear to help with the extra weight in the move so i wouldn't bottom out the whole trip. (sorry no pics) It raised the rear about 2" over stock. I also changed the oil 2 more times since and flushed the hell out of my coolant system. It was very muddy. Now i was ready for my big trip.

ITTs_Cole

I moved from Massachusetts to where i reside now In Frederick MD living with my girlfriend. The jeep Didnt like the 400+ mile road trip. Every half hour or so the Check engine popped on and id stop to get get and let itcool off. i thought i was over heating. But me and the Jeep madeit here in once piece. Everything i owned was packed into the jeep and i said goodbye to mom and dad and took off!

ITTs_Cole

So once I got on down here to MD i found myself pretty limited. I don't have any tools except a basic husky mechanic set. So my progress has been a bit slow so far but ill catch you all up. I moved down here at the end April, and turned 20 in may. I got a job at Advance Auto Parts, and between my job, the jeep, and this forum i now know enough about cars to finally tackle my dream of lifting.

So now that i gained some knowledge, heres some of the things i have done so far. I started down here by flushing my terrible coolant system which is still pretty bad (pic to follow) Ive ripped out a good chunk of the interior to patch holes in my floor, and i even attempted to dye the carpet. I also installed some tow hooks and done some minor things here and there. I also tried wrestling with the temp gauge some more. Pics and explanations to follow.

ITTs_Cole

MMMM gunky

Rusty





hello driveway



no more sway bar


MOAR rust


Replaced the old fuel filter, which made my abs light come on and hasn't gone off since

Picked up some lift springs at a junkyard and started the paint removal process


figured out why my washer pumps werent working


Floor patched

ITTs_Cole

Just another quick couple of things i forgot to mention that i did before i move on, Upgraded the headlights with the Putco wiring harness and got new autopal housings. Very happy with those. Also got a new water pump, thermostat, serpentine belt and fan clutch. Also made cruiser proud by one day cleaning some of my grounds, and i seafoamed the throttle body and my89xj cleaned my throttle position sensor for me.

ITTs_Cole

These are the blue leds i put in the cluster but have since swapped them out for purple

These are purple now too

These are still blue.

New headlight housing and rock guards that i love.




One day while on my way to work my idler pulley decided to explode and i owe it to NewKindOfClown for saving me and changing it for me in the parking lot.

a_shirey

Seems boring, but I'll subscribe.