[FrenchToastKing]

So I tried to thread like this before, but I wasn't dedicated enough to keep posting and updating what I have done. Here is my oldest pic I have of the Jeep. My sister and I posing by my new Jeep.

On the contrary to what it says, I did not get this Jeep for my birthday. Me and my dad just happened to fly down to Florida from NC to pick it up/buy it the day before my birthday. I had to pay for this baby and everything done to it out of my own pocket, but that makes me take a lot more pride in it. And so far I have done all the work myself, with the help of some good buddies of course.

The first thing that I did to the Jeep was get it some new shoes. I picked up some Aluminum rims that came from a Sport edition, and got some "31 inch" tires. Then I decided that the hardtop was too much of a b**** to keep taking on and off due to this wacky NC weather, and that a soft top was due. Here is what the Jeep looked like with these two mods while clean.


And of course you gotta get a dirty pic in.


(With my buddy's Dodge Ram 1500)


A little later for X-Mas my parents got me a Pioneer head unit and infinity speakers all around to replace the stock ones. Just the addition of the head unit with the stock speakers made such a difference!! Then when I put the Infinity speakers in, I was amazed by how crisp and clear the sound was.

Next was Herculining the tub. The only thing I have to say if you want to do this is to take your time and do all the prep right. Lumpymayo helped me on this because he had some experience in doing it to his YJ.
Here is the before with the Tan carpet. It is still in really good condition, so I have it stored away with all my other parts.


And the after - Black and Beautiful. Could not be more pleased with the outcome.



There was a little pause after this until my next clump of mods because I got a little side tracked. First I almost traded this Jeep for a 2008 2 door Rubi, but that fell through. Then I almost bought a CJ7 with my saved up money, but my dad convinced me to just hold on to what money I had. Man was that money burning a hole in my pocket, because about 2 weeks later I almost bought motorcycle (a YZF750 with a Two Brothers Exhaust and an extended adjustable swing arm - I was going to get a hell of a deal for it) but my dad wouldn't allow me to bring a crotch rocket into the house, so that was a no-no. And then I ran into my speedy car stage, where I was looking at cars that would get me in a load of speeding tickets. Didn't get anywhere with that because luckily I was still attached to my Jeep and wasn't going to get rid of it. Here I am though still lovin' this Jeep with no plans of ever getting rid of it. I did however end up getting my mom's bike FO FREE so I am pretty happy to have that (a blacked out 2001 Harley Davidson FXDX Dyna Superglide Sport). And then I also have a boat that I don't ever use anymore, so I might sell that and get a CJ like I have been wanting. Anyway, back to my TJ.
So after that little period , I finally decided to keep the Jeep and go all out. So on July 1st, 2009 I ordered a lift kit as well as some new tires and rims to make my Jeep look a little more.. custom. (=
I ended up getting the Rough Country 4" suspension lift kit with the 2.2 shocks and the performance steering stabilizer. The same day I also ordered 4 new 33x15x12.50 BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM2s and 4 new 15x8 Cragar Soft 8's to mount the tires on.
Here are the KM2s, waiting for the Soft 8s to arrive. I had a hard time deciding if I should face the white lettering in or out. I decided to face them out, and I am glad with my choice and how great it looks.


Again, I had help from 3 great guys in my area. My buddy with the Dodge 1500 helped me a lot. Lumpymayo came to give a great amount of help as well. He had a few tools in certain sizes that my garage was lacking. He also hooked me up with a super cheap place to get my tires mounted to my rims and balanced. Then there was smithtime09, who stood around looking like he was doing something important. Hahahah jk jk. These three really made this project a lot easier on me, being it was my first time doing something of this level. It was a great learning experience for all of us. Now for the few pictures I have.

I started to take apart the front end before I even got the lift kit, so as soon as it came we started assembling. In this picture is my buddy who drives the Dodge 1500. He was the muscle in this project. As you can see, my garage is hooked up with air powered tools, which made the project a hell of a lot easier.


From left to right- Me, Jordan (smithtime09), and Jimmy (Lumpymayo) working on my Jeep (I took the headlight bezels off while waiting for the lift and painted them black). Jordan was working on taking the stock steering stabilizer off.


One, Two, skip a few and it's time for the transfer case drop!! Coming up rather soon, I am going to get an extended drive shaft and SYE to eliminate the T-case drop. The picture here is of the angle before the drop. I am sure I have a picture somewhere of the after, just gotta search for it,.


So once we were done, we took a short drive around to show off all our sweat and tears we put into the lift. I don't know if I have ever grinned so hard. Here are a few pics I snapped once we got back.
From the front. (still no bezels)


And at an angle.



The next day, I found a sand pile in the neighborhood and did a little messing around. Snapped a quick pic.


A couple days after doing the lift I listened to some advice from smithtime09 and made a set of my own swaybar disconnects. I can't use them to their full potential yet because I need to invest in extended brake lines.
Then after I made those, me and my buddy with the 1500 Ram made a sub enclosure from 2 12" JBL subs that just perfectly fit my "trunk." Powering them is a 500 watt amp. I have the amp drilled down under the driver's chair. My plan was to rhino line the enclosure, but I just got lazy and decided to leave it as is. I must say, for such a small enclosure, the subs sure do sound great. I am a musician, so the more clear the music sounds, the more I enjoy it.

After that, I decided to purchase a set of the combination mirror brackets and a kit containing 2 130Watt 6" Halogen KC HiLites SlimLites. I mounted those then moved the mirrors forward, and wired up the lights. When I wake up, I will take some pictures of this and update this thread with a current picture of my Jeep.

[FrenchToastKing]

Also, I almost forgot to mention that during the lift project, I took the running boards off. I am hoping to get a set of sliders soon. Anyway, finally off to bed after typing this all up. Be back with current pictures later!!

[ArrizX]

Would you do me a favor?

Measure the height from the top of your to the bottom of your fender for the front and back for me?

I am just looking for an ~about~ comparison to mine. It looks like you neted a little more lift.

[SquareLJ]

I have nothing important or insightful to add to this thread other than to say, your sister looks hot.




......and your Jeep looks ok too.

[MisterO]

Jeeps lookin great! I really love it, I really like the white jeeps but my wife doesn't like them.. still lookin for anther..

[digitalcox]

Nice looking combination. Looks like you are a progressing well with the rig. Enjoy it!

[FrenchToastKing]

Originally Posted by ArrizX

Would you do me a favor?

Measure the height from the top of your to the bottom of your fender for the front and back for me?

I am just looking for an ~about~ comparison to mine. It looks like you neted a little more lift.

Well for the rear I measured 40 and 3/4" tall to the bottom of the fender flare.


The front measured right at 40" from the ground up to the bottom of the fender flare.

[FrenchToastKing]

Originally Posted by SquareLJ

I have nothing important or insightful to add to this thread other than to say, your sister looks hot.




......and your Jeep looks ok too.

Umm, thanks? That pic was taken about 2 years ago, so she has changed a bit since then.

[FrenchToastKing]

And here is a picture of the Jeep with the HiLites and the mirrors moved up.

[kyle_craig]

Nice work!!

[ArrizX]

Originally Posted by FrenchToastKing

Well for the rear I measured 40 and 3/4" tall to the bottom of the fender flare.


The front measured right at 40" from the ground up to the bottom of the fender flare.

Damnit, I knew I got jipped somehow.

I measure 40.5'' rear and 38.5'' front.

I wonder why my front springs suck? We have the same kit...

i wonder if my 99 is different from your 02 in the ways of how the suspension sits or weight distribution or something?

Granted, I know tire differences and inflation make a difference too, but not 2 inches! Besides the rears are about the same.

[FrenchToastKing]

ArrizX - you do have a high lift and a bar mount up front, but I don't know how much extra weight that is up front for you. Probably not enough to make that 2" difference though.

[jeepbro's]

Looks good, I just put those same mirror movers on myself about a month ago.
You should check out Carolinaoffroadforum.com some time, its a new carolina forum, with a good number of people from around raleigh, clayton, and such

[AlTheKillerr]

Originally Posted by FrenchToastKing

Umm, thanks? That pic was taken about 2 years ago, so she has changed a bit since then.

pics or it didnt happen

[Dirtrider5490]

Originally Posted by AlTheKiller

pics or it didnt happen

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