jeepsarecooliguess

i apologize beforehand for taking up bandwidth with this thread but i figured i would get more answers this way since i cannot find what i need to know

what i have: 87 model xj & 99 model xj. my 99 rotted out so i picked up the 87 for dirt because it has a clean body and burnt motor in it. I have pulled EVERYTHING out of the 87 from the motor, wiring harness, and interior and plan to simply swap everything over from the 99 to the 87


what i need to know: will i run into any issues with the dash and related parts mounting to the 87 firewall inside the jeep? and possibly any other issues with parts under the hood? and if so, what do i need in order to complete this task? I know the bodies are relatively the same but i also know some things DID change over the years so any info and advice will be greatly appreciated.

XJwonders

The liftgate won't work unless you cut out the D pillars and a portion of the roof or something to make the newer style fit on old body. Look up Sarge build thread by none than our own ODGreen.

jeepsarecooliguess

well i wont be doing all that. the exterior will remain the same because its a wagoneer and i dont wanna change that but im more curious as if the interior is a direct swap.

odgreen

Direct swap? No. A lot of drilling mounts and rewelding mounts needed. Build thread is in my signature. Go take a peek.

odgreen

You also have to cut and weld the firewall if you plan on using the 97+ steering column

jeepsarecooliguess

well that escalated quickly

jeepsarecooliguess

how bad would it be to keep the steering column and wire in existing parts into the harness? or possibly make 99 parts work on the column?

odgreen

99 parts won't work and imo it would look stupid as ****

jeepsarecooliguess

the only reason im swapping the parts over is because the donor i bought has wiring harness burnt up all the way to the tcase and the motor is garbage. if it comes to it ill just make the stuff fit into an older dash but i figured why not just swap it all over since everything is still good on my 99

jeepsarecooliguess

do you have pics of when you did this? i went through your thread but didnt see any in detail (great thread BTW). cutting and welding stuff is not a big deal, i can do the work but id just like to get some more info on what actually has to be done in order to make it fit. if i could just trash it and get older stuff ot make it easier, i would but working all the time and having a 1 yr old, i dont really have the luxury of spending all my time and money on doing that so i just have to make do with what i got

odgreen

I don't have a pic. Solo worker. Lol just pull both apart and look at both bare fire walls. You will see what needs swapped. I cheated and bolted the cut out fire wall to the 89 at the booster mounts. Then cut where needed then welded on. You also have to drill a few mounting holes for the heater box. It's a big task. But cool when done.

jeepsarecooliguess

ok man, sounds more tedious then anything. thanks for the advice and input. Ill be doing what you did minus the exterior body work. I just want to convert the inside, the outside is a Wagoneer