Jason Richards

Evening all,



I'm kind of knew to the Jeep scene, but as always there is a back story.



It all started back in 2004 when my sister and brother in-law bought a nice 'N' plated Jeep Cherokee 4.0 Limited that had suffered a little tap to the front offside corner, resulting in me inheriting a few weekends of work to put it right. so a wing, bumper and headlight later it was looking sharp, and upon completion I waved it off back in the hands of my sister and brother in-law for it to live its new Jeep life in London and it wasn't long before it was upgraded with a multipoint LPG system and a slightly reduced petrol tank to accommodate the LPG(no tank in the boot ) making it a usable daily for their young family.



So that the brief time with the Jeep rubbed off on me, and it was only a matter of time that I spotted a similar aged model running LPG with a short MOT and a low price.... so I bought it!! Within hours of getting it home I realised I'd bought a whole lump of trouble, bent selector linkages were the easy bits, stacks of rust in the boot(so I bought a MIG welder), some tricky electrical faults, corroded brake lines, sagging rear leaf springs and as I learnt a single point LPG that was both inferior to my brother in-laws system in both performance, economy and the gas cylinder in the boot was the icing on the poo!! Needless to say, I stuck with it for a year then parted company with it for similar money. So there's me thinking that my Jeep affair was done, and some 12 years later I've find myself in possession of that original Black Cherokee 4.0 Limited that started this whole journey off, albeit less fresh than 15 years ago, and rather tired looking wearing scares of city life and worse still a the abuse that only a loving young family can give



So what's next? We'll in order to take on this Jeep I've given myself a few caveats, one most importantly a garage space than can handle the task (last time around I was working outside in the rain) and several weeks later I'm almost in a position to drive the Jeep indoors for its make over. I'm still very mixed on how to tackle the XJ, do I try and restore it to original spec, mildly upgrade a few bits or go all out and lift it up with big wheels, drivetrain mods and lots of stick on bits. I'm not really looking to build an offroader to drag around the green lanes and mountian tracks every weekend, nor am I really wanting to create a pristine classic for future investment. My kids(yes I have 3 off them too) have been showing me pics off the internet on what to do, hmm, and I can see the appeal, but there are a few restrictions ££££$$££££.



Anyway, until the first spanner hits it I'll leave it there and hopefully will have some news on planned direction in the next few weeks.



I've added a 2 pics of what I've got and one of what my kids want(like I said, I can see the appeal)



Jason

RockinRonnie

Welcome to the Forum Jason !

With a little work and a little bit more money there is no reason yours cant look as good!

Jason Richards

Yes, going to have to dig into my pockets a bit.
I just read through your build thread, nice work, I just wish I had the size of workshop you have there!

Tntxj

Nice. I would not do much of a lift. If you staying mainly on the road. 3 in lift. Maybe 30 in tires. After that it takes more work n money. IMHO. After 30 inch tires is where the big money kicks in. 31 to 32 in tires usually needs 3.5 to 4.5 lift and/cut fenders/ or new flares, or no flares. At least 4:10 gears. Offset/back set rims. SYE and driveshaft. Plus other stuff. And a black xj looks good anyway it is done. Good luck.