[Wheaty]

Ok, obviouls im a noob at jeeps because of what i'm about to ask but hey, im only 17 and looking for a first car.

Ok in total approx how much would this list cost? ( Cuz, i've got no clue i've just been thinking of what i'd like to do to it ) sorry if the descriptions of the parts are lame but i am a noob with cars in general..

Hard Top ( 2 piece )
Chrome Bumpers ( back and front )
Seat Covers ( just black )
4 inch Lift
5 ThornBird tires ( yes i want a full spare tire )
2 Winchs ( front and back )
Chrom Rear light guards
Bar Head lights ( rectangular lights, NOT circular )
Chrome Grill
Tow Hooks ( probably 2 in front and 2 in back )

What else should i get for going off road? ( yayaya a suply pack just in case i get stuck and need to spend the night )

Any help is greatly appriciated..
Thanks Alot
Brendan

[YJNotDone]

I would say you're looking at close to 4,000 dollars give or take.

[MusicMaverick]

Hardtop - $1600-1900
Chrome Bumpers - Depends on what ur looking for, tubular ones will run u anywhere from 200-300 a piece, so double that if u want front and rear, but if you want just the racing one, which is kinda like a stock bumper, only chrome with holes all the way down it, those are only $100 a piece.
Seat covers - $70 for the front ones, another 70 for the rear.
4in lift - I assume this is a YJ (87-95 wrangler) I would suggest a SOA conversion, spring over axle conversion. What this is is this: Your Jeep, stock, has the axle ontop of the leaf spring. what this will do is reverse that, resting your spring above the axle......giving you about 4 1/2" of lift...... This will run you around $400. Other lifts will run you around $500 on up.
Thornbirds- ?? You have it down to the brand name? I'm not sure on prices on this but it depends on how big u wanna go too. I think thornbirds are right up there. And remember your gonna need rims too. So its hard to give you a price but here it goes. I just got cheap American racing rims chrome nuggets for $55 a piece. And 31" tires for $80 a piece. ALl and all, for only 4, I spent a little over $500. With a 4" lift, I think 33" would be apropriate. But if u want thornbirds, I could be wrong, but you will be pushin' $1000 on up. I'd stick with BFG's they are nice.
2 winches - 2?! Ok..... winches run anywhere from $300-to over a grand, if you want a decent one its at least $500, front and back, (havent heard of alot of people mounting them on the back) theres another $1000.
Light guards - $40
Light Bar - $100 for the bar, lights maybe $50 a pair, so lets say $100 for lights
Chrome grille - $170 or so
Tow hooks - $50 top for front and rear but I would skip the rear and just get a hitch if u dont already have one.

Your lookin' at more around 5 grand there kid. But don't go maxin' out your credit card just yet. You do need some pointers. More than I can explain in this post, mainly because its 1AM and I need sleep. For example, all this stuff, but no engine mods at all...... if you go with big tires like that, u will need to regear, so thats atleast another $600. Hang around me and the the rest of us for a while, read some of the old posts. You will pick up quickly. The one thing you should never worry about is feeling stupid, its not like people will make fun of you for not knowing, because every1 here at one time or another was just where you were, and they learn a bit as they go, and no matter how stock your Jeep is, they respect you because you are trying and working on it still, as long as u dont lower it. With that being said, welcome to the board, and Good night!

[rollinashortysahara]

lemme fix some stuff 4"lift it will be stiff .... there is no mention of axle upgrades ( dana 44 , 8.8 etc rear needs it bad!), with thornbirds you will need the winches (crappy traction on anything but asphalt rock etc), chrome AAAAHHHHH don't be mean there is tastefull chrome and not bumpers i believe are too much chrome for a jeep (bling bling)
if you want an awsome jeep
go spring over , with tj flares , new axle in the rear, arb bumper, steering conversion kit ( available at m.o.r.e.)gearing , a rear bumper with a beefy tire carrier ( big tires break tailgates) 35" bfg mt or goodyear wrangler mtr
polished aluminum wheels (alcoa style) or black steel wheels you will also need a slip yoke eliminator and only one winch preferably a warn 8724 lockers if practical or affordable
or
if you want your jeep to be the absolute **** copy osborn !!!

[bhs77]

winches front and back is going to turn a 4 inch lift into a 3 inch lift

[MusicMaverick]

Yeah, I forgot, ur gonna need lockers for your dif's. But come on, ur only 17. I'm 18 and $$ is tight for me. I just paid off my jeep yesterday. It is completely stock. This week I get 31's with rims. Maybe in a month, I'll get a new exhaust and intake. LIttle by little.

[Wheaty]

Thanks all, but the only person who made much sence to me was mav. ( thanks mav.. ) As you may have guessed im not the type of car person, ( as of yet at least ) and as for "rollinashortysahara" i think you need more chrome buddy! hahaha... Ya, mav, i do need to hang around hear and just listen and try and understand cuz as of now, i don't even know how to change a spare tire ( i can learn!!! hahaha ) Yes, i do know it will come little buy little, but for now i don't even have a vehicle I'm looking into this for next year around this time for getting one, im just looking to see how much it'll all cost first cuz im smart =) hahahah anyway, thanks all for the posts! and remember
"IT'S A JEEP THING"

[4wheeler4CJ]

Being a "newbie" and not having any car/repair experience, start off fairly stock with some sensible factory options. The only way to learn is by doing, so slowly learn which add-on's/changes are good, and do them yourself (within reason, I wouldn't recommend you taking on a gear change job, LOL). That way you don't break the bank.

Keep it simple in the beginning or you will get overwhelmed.

[Quan]

Always best to learn your jeep stock then go for the mods(though ive never done that:P). You can still do some decent offroading as a stocker. So play for a while and learn your limitations, then, when you finally up grade you'll know how to adjust with your new goodies.

[MusicMaverick]

I couldnt believe the ammount I could do with just my stock 2.5 with 205's thats about as stock as possible. I just bought 31's today, rims will be in later this week, by this weekend I'll take them offroad and I can't wait to see the difference.

[phataux]

well it looks like we are all 17 or 18 in here b/c i am 17 as well. i am in the same boat but i have a problem i dont have the money. i have a 90 stock from the 2.5 4 banger to the soft top. i go off the road and do just fine never been stuck ( knock on wood ) and have been places i shouldnt have been. i am like musicmaveric and have to wait till i pay off the jeep and that will be in 3 more years. mabe a few small mods if i work hard in the summer and have spare cash but till then i sit here and learn. i can tell the mods you are talking about will cost you a pretty penny so good luck with all your jeeping

[MusicMaverick]

Wahoo!! paid off my jeep TO-DAY!!!! Right after I ran up and got my pep boys credit card and bought rims and 31" tires!! sorry, just so excited!

[NaeKid]

Hey, I just paid off my Jeep today as well! Its all mine!!!

Wheaty,

As far as what to do with your Jeep? Your tag says that you are in Victoria BC which is cool. Best thing for you to do is pickup the latest issue of "Canadian Four Wheel" magazine (published in Victoria) and hookup with a club there.

For the mud that is in Vic (my sister and brother tell me all about it), you really don't want the Thornbirds. A decent set of softride 4" lift springs combined with 33" tires and cutout fender flares would be the bomb for you to get started with (looking at around $2,000). Check the classifieds, you can find 8000lb winches for around $500.

Skip the hardtop, it doesn't get cold enough for you there .. stick with a decent BestTop soft-top.

The lights are for night-riding .. give the day riding a good chance before heading out at night. Skip the lightbar over the windshield, use lights on the windshield hinges (for better clearance in the parkades).

Tow hooks are a must on the front (easy to install) and I would suggest a trailer hitch in the rear as it can give you a lot more functionality.

[Jeepguy3401]

Well, I'm only 19 here, and am starting to get my Jeep together finally, still a long way to go. Took me 2 years, and its still next to stock. The best thing to remember is to be patient. A guy I know has $47,000 into his Jeep. You gotta be sure a Jeep is the vehicle for you. Remember any Jeep is built 1 piece at a time. Try to think of what your goals are for your Jeep, and build it accordingly. Figure out were the weakest part of the Jeep is then modify that, just, keep on doing that, until you're confident in it. Don't worry about not knowing much about vehicles either. I've got mine and the only experience I had was a small engines class. You'll learn quick enough. By the way the mods you're talking about doing are gonna pile up quick. Oh and don't get the thornbirds, they look and wear good but are junk in mud. My friend got stuck BAD with 35" Thornbirds on his big Chevy, and I pulled him out with near bald 235 75 15s. Yeah they stink. Oh and don't get dual winches, you wouldn't use the one in the rear enough, besides the sell winch plates with receivers, so if you had a rear receiver you might be able to use it in the back sometimes.

[osburn]

Yeah, you're right! Your question does sorta give you away as a newbie. Nothing wrong with that though. All of us were newbies at one time and we're all around people now and then that make us feel like newbies.

First, there are cosmetic items in your list. Big NO NO. Never, EVER buy anything for cosmetic appeal. A Jeep's beauty is in its function. Buy good looking functional parts, sure. But never buy anything purely for it's look. If you build it for function, it will just naturally look good. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

Thornbirds fall into the above category by the way. They are probably the one tire you can bad mouth and most will agree. Bad mouth any other tire and someone will speak up to defend it. Not so with a Thornbird. They are junk for posing and everyone knows it.

2 winches? Getting a little ahead of yourself. I'd venture to say there's not one person on this board with dual winches. Many of us are hardcore four wheelers and don't have a need for two winches, I doubt you will either.

Now you are off on the right foot wanting 5 tires instead of 4. You wouldn't pass a tech inspection out here without a matching (so to speak) spare and it sucks to get off the trail with an odd ball tire. Also, getting a winch early on is very very wise. Stick to that idea, it's a good one. I'd stick around and follow some of the threads posted on this forum for a while before you spend any of your hard earned dough. Make sure you're getting what you need.

Probably the very first cheap investments you should make are quick disconnects for your swaybar, a hi-lift jack, tow hooks and a tow strap. Find a buddy to wheel with and work from there.