New Jeep Owner

[dmct75]

Hi guys..
Im a new Jeep owner... very new actually... i just picked it up yesterday.
Its a 1997 cherokee sport.. navy blue.

Any way ...hi

Drew[/img]

[DaveM]

Good to see another Jeep owner brave enough to admit to owning one (just testing the waters to make sure you have a sense of humour)

Anyway, welcome aboard. Where you from?


Dave

[xj]

welcome brother chrysler..... we are lacking in the jeep stakes. dont let them wind ya up pal, theyre just all a bit scared when a jeep rocks up to a site, stock standard and starts showing the lads up with $10,000 modifications...... hehe

I'm driving a 93 ltd. Nice to have ya around..

Mark

[dixie]

Welcome Drew,what area do you reside in maybe we can get you out amongst the crap with the crew,i believe you would make xj man very happy ,another jeep freak in the field may inspire him to be more ambitious than he already is,But I hope one of you invests in winch,i have no doubt on the performance on your trucks getting there,but getting back maybe cause for concern(ha,ha),Try not to let XJ man lead you astray!!Good to see another tarseal cowboy leaving the seal!!

[xj]

dixie, do i have ot remind you what happened at the end of the rockclimb at thommos last weekend??

Dont listen to em Drew, if your around the waikato pal, feel free to stop by. If you need any help just holler.

[dixie]

ha ha ,you may need a megaphone,soon as they see your jeep they would keep driving!!ha ha.And the hill climb,well,if we all had biscuits and pulling 6000rpm im sure we could have all pulled in there.lol
[/quote]

[access4WD]

Hello too to friendly jeep owners
I actually own 3 jeeps.
My wife has a Wrangler (rego is RANGLR)
My work truck is a Cherokee (only 18 months old) They should have called them “Liberty” like they do in the states!
My other is a 1982 Jeep CJ7 slightly re invented (Rego CJ782). I have had it for about 10 years and really done some work on it. Running a rover V8 (put that in as I get a better power to weight ratio than say a Chevy V8 and also meant that I did not have to beef up transfer case, diffs etc) all the suspension replaced with a Warn Teraflex kit gives it amazing articulation, that allows me to run 35's plus lots more. It featured some years ago in the NZ4WD magazine. I have replaced it as my real off road machine with a new vehicle but have not got the heart to sell it! So I keep it full road legal condition and do get it out from time to time. It has a soft top so mainly only get it out in summer!
My now Off Road toy (or beast! depending on your background) that replaced the CJ7 is a Landrover 90 TD5 I got it from a guy who imported it into NZ it is 3 years old. I have had the chip reprogrammed, put it on 33's put a bull bar on the front and a couple of bash plates and lockers front & back.
I still like the jeeps, but the rover option was a good out of the box solution that gave me a tough vehicle one that did not need too many mods to get it to where I want it, it is manual, plenty of torque, and newer. Plus no more certifications to keep it road legal! Off roading is always a compromise, so I am not totally brand loyal just get the best that I can for the $$, so yes I was also once a Toyota owner!
It is not a good off road as my CJ7 but suits my needs better more comfort travelling on the open road getting too and from trips (Travelling long distances in the V8 powered jeep is not only expensive but very noisy with a rag top! ) Plus I do a lot of work on access and turning up on a farm with a nice shiny Rover 90 does get a better look.
Paul

[dmct75]

Hey guys... thanks for the welcome.
Im actually based in auckland / eastern suburbs at the moment.. but i was living down in hamilton until i moved up here, so i know my way around the mighty waikato pretty well. Im actually an Australian... dont hold that against me though hehe..

Now about the Jeep... its actually my first 4wd... unless you count my old mans 96 disco which i kind of trashed.

But, i would definatley fall in the "newbie" category as far as off roading goes... but im keen to get the new girl dirty.

Might even get myself a winch like dixie suggests.

Im keen to do some mods on the car as well.... dont want to be a wanker about it just jacking it up for the sake of it.. but if you've got any advice on some basic "essentials" that i should do... please let me know.

And Mark, i could always get down to the waikato if you are plannig a off road adventure... i may need some help with it all though.

Thanks again for the warm welcome guys... i look forward to getting to know you better...

[dmct75]

I was thinking ... maybe you guys could give me the pros and cons of some basic mods for example...

Body lifts, suspension / Air filters, snorkel / winch's

For example...

I read a post somewhere in here about body lift blocks... for jeeps ...
is that a no no ... it seems so common with the other brands toyo's etc?

Im kind of new to the whole forum thing as well ... so i wasnt sure if this should be a new thread?

Thanks

[chops]

one more of us jeep onwers I got a jeep wrangler 96 and think anyone who bags them are just angry that you have a jeep and they dont this group here at ore are great fun to go out with and learn some new tricks enjoy and GO THE MIGHTY 4L INLINE 6 JEEP

[xj]

Bro, you physically cannot bodylift a cherokee. There is no chassis to lift the body from. The block lift you refer too is maybe the version of lifting the suspension by way of blocking between the rear axle and the leaf, and the top of the front coil and the wheel arch. Cool for a cheap, quick lift. (no need to change springs/shocks) According to some this method flattens the leafs hardens the ride and does nothing at all for practical application. good "show" lift, not a lot of substance. Depends of course on what your intentions are for the wagon.

Im putting a 2inch suspension lift (leafs/coils/shocks) in on the weekend to fully accomodate 30inch tyres (and to enable future use of 31inch) and to enable some better articulation. The old cherokee dont like twising too much.

Sure slap on a snork, no reason why not. theres a dude on Trademe selling the airflow for $319.00 (that was a few weeks back, dont) know if hes done any lately).

Other mods...... ARB front Bar ($1400.00) Winch ($1700, or $800 odd for a chinese version)

K&n filter, well i dunno, are they really all theyre cracked up to be? Dunno.

I assume your runnning those stoopid 225/70/15s they came standard with? Do urself a favour and slap some 30inch tyres on there to get some kind of diff clearance. (225/70/15 = 690 mm outside dia, 31 inch = 750 outside dia, which gives 60mm difference/30mm more diff clearance. - 1.2 inches ) Not much, but a good cheap start.
Standard rims are ok up to 265/75/15 or 31 inch. Any bigger (lift kit needed after 30 inch) and youll have to find 8inch wide rims. Im happy to leave the standard rims and 30 inch tyres on for the meantime.

oh, and dont forget, cherokee kerb weight is like 1300kg, compared to a safaris 1900-2020kg. with 4litres of fuel injected petrol, they have got plenty of grunt on a much lighter structure. Be careful, it can get ya into trouble. It can also raise some eyebrows.......

feel free to call anytime, thinking about thommos again on the 12th, but our friend callum in Whitford may have some virgin farmland to "break in" also.

Number is 0274 707015, always happy to talk jeep

Mark

[borg]

Hi Guys, Im also new to this forum but not to Jeeping
I have a Cherokee 95/6. goes well with the lift kit an few tickles here and there. One thing i will say is that a snorkel is a real must.

dmct75, Im out in the eastern suburbs. bucklands beach to be exact.
If you are interested im also supposed to be leading a trip out to Muriwai beach on the 20th.

Andrew

[xj]

what lift have you got?

[borg]

its about 4" but about to be done again, Im working on a longarm and with luck may se about taking it to about 6 possibly 8 but will really depend on how the longarm turns out

[xj]

well, let me vent for a second here.

I have just finished putting in my new 2inch lifted springs...... or have i???

First, theres an exta 18mm in spring height, the tossers supply me with u-bolts approx 6mm longer than standard.

Second, the locator bolt on the new spring is too big for the hole on the axle mount.

After grinding away at the locator bolt to make it fit im kinda getting really pissed right......

So i get the shit all sorted.................. and

Thirdly, the ####### thing has lifted 100mm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

Decided prudent for my sanity to leave it for the night and tear someone a new arsehole in the morning. Someone is either paying to remove and place the correct bloody springs, or for slip yoke, pitman arms etc. and to install.

Oh and this is after a guarantee of 7 days to make the ####### things they arrive 11 days after the order was placed!

[DieselBoy]

That sounds familiar man.
Same thing happened with the Lift i got for the GQ. 120mm in total. The shocks i got were to short, the diff's are still way offset and i had to get adjustable control arms and pack the transfer case cros member down. I was PISSED!!!!!!!

http://www.offroadexpress.co.nz/modules ... sc&start=0[/url]

But

Now i am stoked i went to the hassle of sorting it out, the lift was worth it.
Even more so on yours with the limited options for gaining gaurd clearence to get the essential bigger wheels on it. Stick with the springs a see what you can piece together to get it to work, you won't regret it!!!!!

You gotta remember that your old suspension had probably sagged a shit load and that the new ones will settle out after a couple of good twisty tracks!!!!!

[xj]

You gotta remember that your old suspension had probably sagged a shit load and that the new ones will settle out after a couple of good twisty tracks!!!!!

Dont worry, the manufacturer tried that one on. He sat his ass down when i spouted specs and that sag had nothing to do with anything. its 100mm up on Spec! not 100mm up on where it was.

tossers tried to first tell me that if i take the springs back out and send them back to chch, they will fix and send back. Told en to piss off, that if anything they make new ones send em to me and then ill send the incorrect ones back. as the day passed on he then tole me they were correct and in accordance also with pedders and OME's specs. My simple response again is, 100mm does not equal 2inches.
They are adamant they are the correct springs for a 2inch lift, so the deal we have come upon is that ill run with it, put the fronts in. the second the driveshaft falls out, or breaklines snap, or new shocks (which allowed for 50mm more travel) tear their arses out, they will be sending a truck, mechanic and a chequebook.

Oh and the ubolts are 100% the correct spec too. Now it doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure that if the new spring is 18mm thicker than the original one, that the ubolt should be the same, or does it?

Should be a fun night tomorrow.

[DieselBoy]

Useless!!!

Simple job becomes a nightmare

[xj]

Should make thommos an interesting day on sunday.

[wopass]

....Jeeps......

sorry but i had to

allways a pain when it all turns pear shaped

[borg]

the deal we have come upon is that ill run with it, put the fronts in. the second the driveshaft falls out, or breaklines snap, or new shocks (which allowed for 50mm more travel) tear their arses out, they will be sending a truck, mechanic and a chequebook.

Be aware that the rear brake line connects to a block mounted to your read diff, this is bolted to the diff by a hollow stainless bolt with a breather pipe that goes into the chassis. If your suspension has too much travell then your break line will tug on the bolt and rip it our of the thin wall diffrential tube. And this is a real pig to repair afterwards not to mention the little bits of metal that end up in your diff and to make matters worse chances are you only find out after you have been in mud an water.

[xj]

yeah borg, hey, they gunna be paying fer it, not me!! (famous last words)

Going to do some gentle, and gradual articulations tomorrow after work, with observer just to see what i got in driveshaft and brake lines. Fingers crossed

[borg]

Also just something that I would recoment after putting any lift on the XJ is to clean the driveshaft where it enters the transfer case. a dirty shaft will cause the rear seal on the transfer case to flog out real quick. its not a huge pain to replace but certinly something that you dont want to have to to often.

[dmct75]

Hey guys...
I have been doing some research on 2 inch lifts... and i dont know if this is the related to the problem you are having... but i was speaking to one of the guys from arb about the OME lift and he was saying that if you had the factory "up country" or "up county" (one or the other) that the 2 inch lift would only give you about 100mm because it has a longer shackle in from the factory (i think it was the heavy towing upgrade)... ?

Anyway as i say im not sure if that helps.. but it may be something like that.. ??

Hey can i ask you guys where you got your towing point / brackets from..?

[borg]

I would have thought that having a longer shackle would have increased the lift rather than decreased it.

[xj]

Hey guys...
2 inch lift would only give you about 100mm

that math dont work cuz. 100mm of what?

Anyway, spat the dummy with the spring makers and the retailer, left the 4inch on the rear with 2 inch in the front, just today made some packers for the transfer case and dropped it by 3/4inch... took all the shudder out immediately. Driveshaft has only about 40mm in spline, under full articulation, so i'll have to ge that lengthened at some stage to play safe, but all in all seem to be sweet. Brake lines have planty of play, shocks are going to top out, but i dont think the retailer will be too forthcoming with the correct sized ones after friday, so i'll just have to wear that one.

Ant thommos is buggered, so no trip tomorrow, rush and stress all week only to sit on me arse on the day we were supposed to be getting filthy.!!!!!

[wopass]

buggered ?

is there more slips ?

[xj]

yeah, dix was up there on his bike yesterday. slips and large water ruts.

[wopass]

yeah, dix was up there on his bike yesterday. slips and large water ruts.

so have slips taken out the main track again ?

[xj]

didnt get ito detail cuz, nothing is too rugged for the missile though!!!!!!