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MDJuan yj tub, a new batch of headaches

3K views 52 replies 12 participants last post by  Koala21 
#1 ·
Well my rolling chassis is currently on hold till I find out if the frame is bent or not so why not move on to bigger and better headaches? Last August I ordered an MDJuan replitub from Morris that was "going to bolt right up" seeing that all the body mounts were the wrong threads yea that wasn't going to happen. The crate or what they call a crate it came in had yj7 stenciled on the side, that was the first sign this was going to suck. Unfortunalty I killed the phone that had the pictures so just take my word for it.

First impressions of the tub weren't very good. I didn't expect perfection but this thing looks like it was hand formed with a hammer and block of wood and welded with something harbor freight wouldn't sell. Thus far problems have been having to drill and tap body mounts, removing the plate that the steering column, master cylinder, clutch reservoir, and bulk head attach to, and removing the terrible dash plate that came with it. The tailgate is set up for both a yj and cj7 which is nice because I'd planned on doing the cj7 swap anyway. Sadly the yj brackets that sit inside the tub and near the tail light were also hand made, poorly. The roll bar threaded inserts are off about a 1/4 inch which is no big deal seeing I can grind out a small notch in the roll bar plate to make it fit. The holes for the rollbar behind the front seats are non existent. I had to take a grinder to the floor so I could actually get to the threads to install the risers. The floor behind the seats also has a welded seam running across the length of the tub. The rear seatbelt holes are non existent on the wheel wells and the floor seatbelt is off by 1/4 inch or more. I'll have to grind off the flat stock from my corbeau seat bracket and weld in a longer one for it to work. Well that's all I can remember at the moment. I'll add pictures and answer whatever questions anyone may have.
 
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#2 ·
These are the firewall plates. Left is from my yj, right is from the Juan tub. The holes don't line up very well. The steering column angles are also totally different. The Juan tub seems to be set up for the smaller early yj clutch reservoir, not helpful for my 94. The bulkhead cut out is also too small. The ecu holes are non existent, as is the stabilizer bar that runs through the firewall to the pedal assembly. There is also the large hole where the ecu goes that may be for a cj not sure on that one. The Juan plate looks like it was formed with tin snips and never ground smooth. It was actually wedged behind the sheet metal where the fenders bolt up.
 

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#3 ·
The firewall holes were lined up as best they could be using measurements from my father's yj as well as the plate from mine. So I cut out missing holes and drilled mounting holes a couple sizes larger so I had wiggle room. That didn't really help. I got everything bolted up and after tightening everything the holes were still off. Think I'll have to weld everything shut and start from scratch.
 

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#5 ·
Using measurments from the old man's tub I had to drill out where the steering column bolts up to the dash. Yea those cut outs are where they are supposed to go but were off. The holes were actually drilled in the correct location but covered. Did I mention that there are no threaded inserts for the dash or windshield plate that goes from the windshield frame to dash?
 

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#7 ·
From what I understand Willy's overland doesn't fix the yj tubs. Honestly if I were to do it again I'd order one from jeepsunlimited.net and take my chances with an oem tub. My father ordered one from there and outside some surface rust and a couple small dents and scratches it was pretty nice. I payed 3500 and regret it. I've seen these replitubs as high as 5k, that's just insane to me.
 
#8 ·
From what I understand Willy's overland doesn't fix the yj tubs. Honestly if I were to do it again I'd order one from jeepsunlimited.net and take my chances with an oem tub. My father ordered one from there and outside some surface rust and a couple small dents and scratches it was pretty nice. I payed 3500 and regret it. I've seen these replitubs as high as 5k, that's just insane to me.
That's good info to know. I guess I will give them a miss for my scrambler tub.
 
#9 ·
If you're looking for a scrambler tub Willy's may be the way to go. At least they are guaranteed to be fixed and ready to go. I'll get some more pictures up soon of the quality of the Juan tub so you can see some of the rougher parts. Seeing you're in Colorado check jeepsunlimited first, they're located there.
 
#17 ·
If you're looking for a scrambler tub Willy's may be the way to go. At least they are guaranteed to be fixed and ready to go. I'll get some more pictures up soon of the quality of the Juan tub so you can see some of the rougher parts. Seeing you're in Colorado check jeepsunlimited first, they're located there.
I might have to. I'm not looking forward to it. I have had a few past dealings with them and they didn't leave me very impressed.
 
#10 ·
You have a link to this tub? I looked on Morris and found an Omix tub that says "Body kits, body tubs & body parts are sold "as is"." which would make me leary, and a Aqualu aluminium alloy tub, that's only $200 more than the Omix, but both are over $4K.

I'd be pissed beyond belief if I bought something like that and had to re-work it.

EDIT: Never mind found it on Quadratec
 
#11 ·
The MDJuan is sold under Omix. I contemplated the Aquala but it comes with zero cut outs and my limited welding skills don't include aluminum. That and the pain it would be to paint and the issues with dissimilar metals. Anyway I am a little pissed but it's not going to get me anywhere. So I'll continue to grind away and hope I get somewhere.
 
#12 ·
Got the steering column and pedals in. What a pain. I had to enlarge all the holes in the firewall for wiggle room then put the stock yj plate on and fill in all the tack welds. The firewall is wavy as hell so there was a good amount of clamping and hammering. Still not perfect but acceptable.
 

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#15 ·
Still have a lot of grinding to do but you can see how wavy the firewall is before trying to fill holes and keep things straight. Once I get everything relatively smooth the plan is to slap on a couple coats of silver chassis saver to fill in some of the imperfections then to brush on rust oleum. I did this on the frame and it seems pretty solid. No pictures yet but I attempted to test fit a half door. Unfortunately the door hinges don't fit the Kentrol windshield bracket or the bottom hing. Awesome. Also the holes for the door strikers don't line up worth the **** and I can only get three screws in.
 

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#20 ·
Figure with the chassis saver it'll save me from having to do a coat of filler and then all the sanding. It's a jeep firewall not a show car so whatever. I was wondering why my pictures were sideways, they're all right on my phone. Think I'll switch to an actual camera.
 
#22 ·
Hopefully I'll never have to replace my tub. Especially after reading this tale of woe. I have pondered fiberglass tubs if I ever did need a replacement. I talked to one CJ owner at the Daytona Turkey Run who had an all glass Jeep and loved it. Plus another guy here locally running an all glass CJ8 who loved it and both said glass was the way to go, especially in here in FL if you are close to the coast. On the other hand I've read complaints about some glass bodies warping and some complaints about weak areas in the cores and/or body mounts.

Anyone have any good info on the glass stuff?
 
#25 ·
I looked into glass but in all honesty I was afraid of ever getting in an accident with it. Here in Rhode Island absolutely everyone is more concerned with their phones than actually driving. I don't know how strong they are but really didn't want to risk it. That and running dedicated grounds would be a pain. I've built fiberglass sub boxes and speaker pods and it's a ton of work, damaging a tub would take a while to fix properly. The thought of it not rusting and rotting away is tempting though.
 
#24 ·
The issues I have seen in this post are typical of any aftermarket sheet metal I have ever dealt with. Why would a reproduction tub be any different? You always have to move holes or bend or tweak something to make it work , that is part of being a body man. You cant expect it to bolt o like a water pump. It is a piece of stamped metal made from duplicated or old worn out dies. f you want it to bolt up like factory then spend factory part money.
 
#27 ·
Well I'm not a body man for one. Like I said when I started this thread I didn't expect perfection. I'd have no problem spending factory part money if jeep reproduced tubs, they do not. These replitubs are officially licensed by Chrysler Fiat so you would expect a little more attention to detail. I understand that they just want their cut for having joop stamped on the side. I just wanted others to be aware of what problems they may come across if they decide to invest their money. Seeing these things have gone up in price since I bought mine. Just a cautionary tale.
 
#29 ·
I appreciate it but the patience is all but worn out. The door openings are just not working for me. The windshield hinges sit crooked, the striker locations are horrendous, and the middle of the door sits too far out of the cutout. It's starting to get cold here so that doesn't help. This weekend I'm going to take another shot at it before I throw in the towel. Luckily I got my chassis back together so I can focus on this garbage.
 
#33 ·
Tubs are sold as is unfortunately. Anyway after being thick headed and getting to the point of ordering a used tub I got the door on. Three of the four striker holes lined up somewhat. Pulled the post out of it and put in a couple more washers to bring the post out further and was able to get the door to latch. It's pretty good, flush from the windshield hinge down and across, sits out a bit on the corner and is flush again up to the striker. The tub looks like it's bowed in a bit so I may give it a few hits with a mallet and see what happens. I'm moving it up to my grandfather's garage where my chassis is hopefully Sunday.

If the body mounts line up properly I'll start getting the battery box installed and finish the firewall shave. The jegs heater doesn't fit as well as I had hoped so I'll start figuring that out. Went with the largest one they had with the three outputs. In retrospect should have gone with the smaller two output but it's ok, I'll figure something out. Even if I make a box and weld it into the firewall, we shall see. After that I have to make plates for the roll bar to bolt through, weld in the seatbelt bungs, modify the corbeau bracket, figure out a latch for the cj7 tailgate, get the windshield frame installed, and get a windshield. Then of course there's all the chassis saving, painting, and monstalining. Someday I'll start wiring and building my speaker enclosures and then drive it. Oh and I need to figure out a location for my Ox shifter then get the cable for it. Hopefully by the spring I can wheel this damn thing. At least I'll have plenty to do during the winter.
 
#34 ·
This is when I wish I had unlimited funds to go after a company. There is As-is and there is unusable. This sounds like they are making a ****ty product, taking money and then saying 'screw-off'

With them as-is they obvioussly know they are total crap.
 
#35 ·
I know the owner of MD was on here asking for input from people who had purchased the military and cj tubs. Whether or not that went anywhere I do not know. Haven't seen anyone on here using a yj tub yet so who knows if there are better ones out there. If anyone reading this is using a yj tub please let us know. Either way I don't think going after the company would be worth the effort.
 
#37 ·
Three out of four ain't bad I guess. Basically every hole on the tub is off just enough to annoy me. Think I'm going to drill a hole and see what's lurking behind this panel. Maybe it'll be thick enough to tap. That pic is upside down for some reason but you get the idea. You can also see the beauitful weld and body work done on the top of the tub.
 

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