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Nothing to big to update but even the little things add up. I picked up a gas shock kit for my hood from Rugged ridge. The kit installed pretty easy. Driver side lower mount I was able to use one of the stock holes for the hood lift. The brackets are a bit thin but seem to be strong enough. Time will tell. I will say it’s pretty slick not having to prop open the hood.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 04-11-2022 at 01:21 AM.
New roof rack from JCR installed, I’m liking it so far minus a few installation issues. I’ll dive into those issues after the weekend. I’m in Moab for the weekend giving it a good shake down.
I’m a bit worried about my fans and over heating. I have already installed a aluminum champion radiator but these dam fans suck at moving enough air. Also I am looking to dial in the bump stops. Either way I’m really looking forward to what the weekend brings! Cheers and happy trails.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 05-09-2022 at 09:42 AM.
Amazon LED headlight
replaced most interior bulbs
clear side maker lights
20% ceramic window tint all around
Engine bay:
Champion aluminum 2 core radiator
Factory replacement alternator
Power steering pump
Sterling battery
Iron Rock four link exhaust with anodized tip
KS Suspension four hole injectors
Jeep Cable’s 2/0 cable upgrade
Rough Country intake
Rugged Ridge hydraulic hood lift
Interior:
Alpine Bluetooth head unit
-Alpine 5.5in door speakers
-Rockford Fosgate 5.5in hatch speakers
Replaced weather stripping on the doors
Replaced window trim
ARB air Compressor with air up kit
Rugged ridge floor mats front and rear
I bought the Jeep for 2000$ and have done most of the work myself. At this point I’m around 13-14,000$ total into the build.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 12-10-2022 at 10:20 PM.
I went ahead and bit the bullet today. I picked up a new water pump, high flow thermostat housing, thermostat, upper/lower radiator hoses and some fresh coolant. The instal went pretty well and took me about 3.5 hours. No leaks at this point!
At this point I have removed the water pump and thermostat housing. I tried to clean the area as good as I could with some brake clean a razor blade and a good scrubber. I really wish I had a shop.
New Flowkooler water pump and silicone rad hoses. On the left is a new high flow housing compared to the stock one. MishiMoto thermostat with a pin hole drilled in it to help burp the system.
I added a little protection to the new rad Hose by cutting up the old one and zip tying it to a common rub spot.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 05-08-2022 at 10:07 PM.
Nice.
Only 3.5 hours?
Took me 3 days. On purpose though. LOL.
Spent the first day taking everything apart, second prepping everything, and the third putting it all back together.
I did mine outside too, no garage, and used a blue cookie on my angle grinder to clean everything up.
Also was thinking of using teflon tape but used thread sealant instead for the coolant sensor and the black tube.
I also opted for FelPro gaskets for the thermostat housing and water pump.
Probably not really necessary but really did not want to use the supplied paper gaskets.
I also opted for FelPro gaskets for the thermostat housing and water pump.
Probably not really necessary but really did not want to use the supplied paper gaskets.
looking back at it I wish I would of thought about getting better gaskets. At the time I was on a mission to get it done so I just used the ones supplied. I took it out for a good drive and I have no leaks yet...
When I was changing the water pump I noticed the passenger side motor mount was shot so that was today’s mission. I find it best done when changing the oil because you have to clock the oil filter adapter to get the motor mount bolt out.
I’m excited to test the cooling system now with all these new parts. It’s something that stresses me out every time I go wheeling. Full A/C wile crawling through the rocks sounds awesome!
The trails in southern Colorado are starting to open up again so I will be putting the Jeep to work here soon.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 05-09-2022 at 09:45 AM.
Took the Jeep out to go have a look at the snow levels up high. I was surprised a bit with more then I thought. At 12,000ft There was three to four feet.
I worked really hard this winter to get the Jeep ready for a big long season of wheeling. I’m over the moon at this point how well this thing is handling the rough tracks wile still being “ok” on the highway.
Got her all cleaned up for the drive.
Stuck in the snow but hell I got to use my winch and recovery gear.
This was the end of the road at 12,000ft. The road was plowed all the way to this point which sat at the base of the last climb to the summit of Engineer pass.
Headed back down soaking up those big views!
Since I got this Jeep I have been fighting a overheating issue. Well today I am happy to say that I think I have finally got it under control. In the last week I hammered the Jeep through a deep sand wash in the desert and crawled it up to 12,000 feet. It’s been a tough fight and it cost me quite a bit. I don’t like the look of hood lifts and cutting holes for vents seems like more problems down the road.
Cooling system:
Champion two core radiator
Flowkooler water pump
high flow thermostat housing
Mishimoto thermostat
Silicone coolant hoses
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 05-09-2022 at 09:46 AM.
This week i took on a task I have never done before. I picked up a distributor, rotor and cap. I also got a new coil, plug wires and spark plugs. I watched several YouTube vids and read pages on the forums. I felt pretty confident going onto it.
I choose to mark the location of the rotor on the block and pull the old distributor out and flop in the new one. All went as planned but I couldn’t get the new rotor to line up. I fiddled with it for an hour. Then I had a brain fart and rotated the motor and lost all reference to the correct orientation.
I tried several times to backtrack but the deed was done. I gave up for the night and was pretty bummed and ready to call a tow truck to take it to a shop.
The next day with the help of a friend we were able to locate TDC by looking into the #1 Cylinder. I installed the new distributor and tried to start the motor. I could here it backfire out the intake. At that time I knew I was 180 out so I spun the distributor around and crossed my fingers. To my surprise it fired right up! I was and still am blown away that I got it corrected. I took it to a shop to check the timing and was told it is spot on.
New stuff
Old stuff
New stuff working
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 05-21-2022 at 09:38 AM.
Thanks man I really appreciate the kind words! I must admit tho Colorado and the high elevation trails is the true inspiration for this build. I’m finding I want to be able to do some semi technical rock crawling trails but I also want to be able to travel in the middle of nowhere and be self sufficient. Cheers and happy trails
I did Poughkeepsie Gulch and the XJ did perfect! Just did “the wall” with ease. After a year and a half in Colorado I had to move back to Idaho. I’m bummed but I will be back. New 6in duel rate springs next to the iron rock off-road 4in springs. All installed and now it rides so good! When I installed the lift the 4in springs were to short and I had to run 2in spacers. Now with the new springs the truck sits level and I don’t have to run the spacers. All cleaned up and back in Idaho.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 10-03-2022 at 10:53 PM.
The Jeep is getting some need upgrades over Christmas break. I’m looking to make it a little more self-sufficient and add some protection. Stoked to get into the shop and spend some time wrenching.
Last edited by Yukon Cornelius; 12-11-2022 at 09:39 PM.
04-10-2022, 10:50 PM
