irishexpat

SO, i've only owned my XJ for a month. keep that in mind. However, I feel that what i've learned in this first month might help others.


1) read this forum before buying your jeep. Spend a few days or more lurking in the tech forums and jeep builds (try not to drool too much). Honestly, before i bought my jeep i had no clue what anything was on a vehicle, but after only a month looking at jeep stuff, i feel like i could identify 80% of the stuff underneath the body, and 60% of what's in the engine bay.

2) find a local jeeper and convince him to give you some starter info. (this guy will also come in handy when buying your jeep)

3) find local junkyards that have jeeps (sooner or later, you will need to know this)

4) buy a stock jeep. This may seem wrong...but i made this mistake. I bought a lifted jeep. Sure, it looks cool, but you will never know how good the lift is. Plus, buying a lifted jeep comes with its own set of problems. a lift is not just shocks and springs....i know that now. A good lift includes upgraded control arms, tcase drop/sye, upgraded steering components, and more. Plus, buying a lifted jeep means you may be buying an abused jeep, not a used jeep. (my jeep's lift is missing some important geometry-fixing components and some mounts are mangled almost out of recognition). secondary point: after a bit of time and research, the lift on the jeep you buy might not be the lift you want. (my jeep has a 5" skyjacker, and i want a IRO long arm kit. had i bought a stock jeep, i would end up spending the same amount.....or less, if you factor in repairs to the current lift....and ending up with the same lift)

5) before you buy the jeep, get it inspected by a mechanic. I fortunately did this, and had fewer surprises after buying it. If you ignore step 4 and buy a lifted jeep, get your new local jeeper friend to look it over as well, as they should be able to spot any offroad-specific defects that a run-of-the-mill mechanic is likely to miss.

6) buy a tool set. Nothing fancy, just ratchets, pliers, and so on. And a hammer. You will use it. I promise. Also buy a repair manual (Haynes/Chilton seem to be the big names). It may not have everything, but it helps to have.

7) buy an XJ!

8) don't be afraid to wrench on it. Having never done a single repair in my life, within my first week of ownership i replaced the alternator after diagnosing a snapped serpentine belt. secondary point: dont be afraid to ask questions on the forums (but use the search feature first).

9) don't get cocky. after my first repair, I almost fried the electrical system simply jumping the battery (i crossed the wires). Stay confident, but double check everything.

10) dream big! Who cares if you only have $200 in your bank account? Spend time online looking at lift kits, bumpers, winches, fender flares, roof racks, and everything and anything else you want. It may not happen for months or years, but damn its fun to daydream!


That's pretty much all i can think of right now. enjoy

xjdirtbath

Good list. Welcome to the jeep world. The only thing I would ad is if you buy a stock rig and you want to wheel, just wheel it stock for a while. You will gain a better appriciation for what these things can handle out of the box. And, you will get an idea what modifications are necissary for doing the type of wheeling you want to do. You don't need a huge lift for every type of wheeling. Me I am mostly into cruising unimproved roads and light to modorate trails. So I have a 3 inch lift and some 31's (locker and recovey equip coming soon). If you want to rock crawl you want tons of flex and armor. And so on.