Hello everyone! First post, I'm new here.
Apologies if this is not the correct place for my question(s). Someone send me the right direction if thats the case. A '87 Wagoneer is considered an XJ right? I mean the main difference is just the front grille from what I can tell (which is pretty cool IMO). Anyway...

So I bought this jeep a couple weeks ago for a really good price. You find a running 4x4 for less than a thousand bucks and temptation kicks in. I'm sure I don't need to explain myself because you all probably suffer right along with me here haha. So here are some pics of my "barn find" wagoneer. I didn't personally find it in the barn, but the guy I got it from said it had been sitting for around a decade before a couple months ago.




As you can see from the engine shot, the wiring is a mess. Also, that prop rod did not come off any jeep I'm familiar with, but it was included. The A/C compressor was removed at some point, and instead of installing an idler in its place, someone BUILT (nasty welding) a custom bracket for the alternator to sit there instead of its normal place at the very bottom on the passenger side. It works, even though its tilted about 5 degrees down. I may redo that later.

Many things are out of sorts with this thing, and some parts are missing, but from what I can tell, I have most of the missing items on my parts vehicle (a '91 cherokee complete but with no engine). So as I look down at this thing, I realize that there are many many differences even between it and the '91. The wiring, the vacuum....stuff. There are vacuum lines absolutely everywhere, and there is a ton of stuff that just seems extra really.

So now for my point/question: What can I safely remove? How can I simplify all this? I know that there are better more modern versions of many of the parts on this thing that came with later models. All I really want is the necessities: running jeep with functioning 4x4, heat, and the gauges and electric windows are nice too. I think everything else can go. Anything electrical that could fail and cause a problem, anything vacuum-driven that could fail and cause a leak, I want to remove it or bypass it safely.

All advice is welcome and much appreciated!

EDIT: oh crap, I signed up with my google account so it used my name. Can an admin change me to "benthecomputerguy93" please? Thanks a million.

 

Note from DJ
Do you want your engine bay to look like this?
1987 Engine Bay Photo by Chris Clapper

 

I mean...thats nice yeah. But I'm after function, not so much form. That looks like its been steam cleaned lol. And maybe I just can't see it well enough, but it doesn't look like there's much deviation from the stock setup in this pic. Cleaner electrical for sure, presence of A/C, but lots of other things look the same.

But I feel like you have more to say, pending my answer, so pretend that I answered how you anticipated

EDIT: I see now that I didn't word this very well before, so let me clarify. I'm looking for suggestions for recommended upgrades (within reason) while also removing unnecessary things, with the end goal being to just make things simpler. For example, I've read that the older thermostat and housing are inferior to the newer models in some way and its good to swap that, also read something about some extra junk on the coolant hoses going to the heater core that can be removed, I see this vacuum-driven thing on the front of my airbox that is either not present on newer models or I've just never noticed it, etc. I believe I have two working stock electric fans so I plan on removing the mechanical fan and clutch and doing the swap on the cheap. Maybe I make some sense....

 

Unfortunately based off your post everything in the engine bay is a necessity. If you remove vacuum stuff then things like your heater won't work.

Now if its a bush buggy and you don't care then that is different.