Best Junyard Mods for the XJ?
 

Hey folks! New to the XJ modding scene - I have a 1999 Cherokee Classic 4.0 auto. 197K km. (Yes, I am a Canuck)

I am planning on slowly building my daily driver into a (more) capable off-road fishing and camping rig. I want to use it daily around town, but it also should get me down logging and maintenance roads to those trout lakes I crave! The plan is a 3" lift with 31's, and not too much crazier. However, I know that a properly built rig goes beyond just that, and so after scouring forums (here and elsewhere) I've noticed various junkyard Jeep upgrades and I was curious, which ones are the most legit?

I've seen:
- Durango steering box
- ZJ and Liberty rear discs
- WJ (I think?) Knuckles (thanks for the correction, TRCM, I mixed up my chassis names)

(interior wise, the seat swaps, but that's preference)

So what upgrades do I not know about, or which ones are seen as "absolutely worthwhile"?

Sorry if it seems much more vague than the other posts in this section, but I would love to compile a parts list to keep an eye out for when I visit the local wreckers!

wj knuckles

Thanks for the correction! (and yes, that's what I had in mind) Is it a worthwhile swap?

Some various (usually pre-97) models came with factory front, gas tank and transfer case skids as well, though they can be a bear to get off the vehicle with rust issues. I don't know if I'd pull junkyard parts for this, but ZJ steering components are absolutely an upgrade as well.

I found this on NAXJA that may help you. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...NZ8/edit#gid=0

Certain Volvo rear LS will work in the front 30.

Upgrade your tire rod/ drag link to v8 zj. Pull a larger alternator if possible.

So knuckles are a good deal of work for only wanting 31s, fyi.

Rear axle discs are good/easy and overall easier to maintain.

Other wise JY/ upgrade don't exactly go together.

Wish I'd known that earlier - the junkyard just crushed a nice ZJ V8 with a LOT of newer parts (Someone put money into it, before it was scrapped eventually).

So that was something I was curious about - at WHICH point does the Knuckle upgrade become beneficial? 33s and a 4" + lift? I feel it may be unnecessary for my needs at the moment.

Discs are definitely going to get done now, or in the spring, it's a great idea and I like the way Discs are maintained - drums annoy me and feel ancient.

Finally, can I just ask, what do you mean by "JY/Upgrade" don't go together? Just curious!

Good to know! Is it from older Volvos? (I will google it anyway, but thought I'd ask)

Interesting! Might be difficult to find those skid plates anyway, my junkyard had 4 XJs and 1 ZJ last week, this week, they only have one 1990 XJ (they crushed the others to make room for new stock)

Which ZJ steering components do you have in mind? Like, the steering box? Or the links themselves etc?

Cool! Thanks!

All XJ could have come with skids.
Could take some time to source them. I was able to. One at a time. From Craigslist.
I believe the front and transfer case skid to work for all XJ's.
Gas tank skids are different. '96 and down or '97 and up.
But I believe that with a small mod a '96 and down will work on a '97 and up.
Not sure about the other way around.

It's the V8 tie rod and tie rod ends, which are larger than the factory XJ (or TJ) parts. I found a link to a complete parts list, with amazon links Here

Haven't seen rear axles mentioned. If you have a D35 you may want to swap it out for a '97+ C8.25.

x 2 on that!

Also, the ZJ can have a high output alternator. I think its 140.