Decided to log my build on my 2008 Limted WK. I bought it back in April 2015 with 80K miles. It had absolutely everything I wanted. I wasn't too fond of the color at first but it grew on me quickly after hardly seeing this color on other WK's in my area. I was really considering getting a four door JK but I was having a hard time finding one within my price range that had a Hemi. That was an absolute must!
____________________________
2008 Grand Cherokee Limited
Color: Jeep Green Metallic
Two tone Leather Interior
125,000 Miles (04/2017)
____________________________
Mods
____________________________
Suspension:
OME HD Suspension (04/2017)
JBA 1/4" Strut Spacer (04/2017)
JBA Upper Control Arms (04/2017)
Front Pinch Weld Mod (04/2017)
Wheels and Tires:
Stock Limited Wheels with G2 1.5" Spacers (Current)
Black AEV Pintlers +10mm offset (Pending)
Tires - BF Goodrich All Terrain KO2 275/70/R17 (Current)
Hankook DynaPro AT 245/70/R17 (Old Setup)
Lighting:
Aftermarket HID Replacement Headlights (05/2015)
Osram 5500k Xenarc Bulbs (05/2015)
Morimoto 55W Ballast (05/2015)
Morimoto XB LED's for High Beams (05/2015)
Complete Philips LED Interior (04/2017)
Engine:
Volant Cold Air Intake (05/2015)
Armor and Recovery:
4xGuard Matrix Brush Guard (05/2017)
4xGuard Hoop (05/2017)
Smittybilt D-Shackle Hitch Receiver (05/2017)
Smittybilt Hi-Lift Jack (05/2017)
Miscellaneous:
Rola Roof Rack (06/2017)
SRT8 Front Grill(05/2017)
Bed Lined Rear Step Pad (04/2017)
De-Badged all Emblems except for "Jeep" Front and Back (04/2015)
Front Windows Tinted to match Factory Rear Tint (04/2015)
_____________________________
So here she is the day I bought her.
1 by matt morris, on Flickr
When I first got it, I was flying through my mod list that I wanted to get done on it. First off, I had always loved the Overland model with the projector HID headlights. Having several cars previously with retrofits or stock projectors, I knew that was one of the first things I wanted to address when I bought it. So I bought a pair of aftermarket replacement HID projectors and started from there. Nothing fancy for a projector set up but enough to make me satisfied. I kind of went crazy on the bulbs and spent a good amount of money on them. I went with a pair of Osram 5500k Xenarc bulbs paired with Morimoto XB Ballast 55W. I also got a set of LED XB bulbs for my highs. Absolutely love this setup, I might upgrade the projectors in the housing later down the road but for now these do just fine!
headlight by matt morris, on Flickr
output by matt morris, on Flickr
While I was addressing my light situation I went ahead and redid my interior with Philips LED bulbs.
interior 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
I also took out the metal reflector in the map lights when I upgraded to the LED's and that made a huge difference by itself!
interior by matt morris, on Flickr
Next thing up on the list that I couldn't live without was getting the front windows tinted to match the factory tint on the rear windows. And I also had ordered a Volant Cold Air Intake around the same time and that made a slight improvement performance wise. But most definitely gave it throatier sound!
(Picture pending)
So now fast forward two years (April '17) and I am finally getting around to getting it lifted. This took way longer to achieve than I wanted to but other hobbies and getting engaged took precedent over getting the Jeep lifted. I sold my motorcycle back when I first got the Jeep to fund the lift and tires but I got into woodworking and went on a tool shopping spree! So after waiting long enough and gaining more interest again into getting her lifted, I finally pulled the trigger and hit up Kolak and got the OME HD kit ordered. I also ordered new isolaters while I was at it. Two weeks later I had all of my goodies ready to go on!
goodies by matt morris, on Flickr
I was debating on if I should pull the trigger on getting JBA UCA's too while I was at it. I was going to have the front end torn apart anyways, so I went ahead and just ordered them. I'm super happy that I did! Peace of mind knowing how beefy and effective these things will be! And of course how beautiful they will look installed!
uca by matt morris, on Flickr
Last minute before the lift went on I decided that I did not like the rake, so I ordered some JBA 1/4" spacers for the front and received them just in time before the lift went on!
spacers by matt morris, on Flickr
Here's everything installed.
begin install by matt morris, on Flickr
install begin 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
A cool little jig my buddy fab'd up real quick to compress the springs.
press by matt morris, on Flickr
And finally everything installed!
install front by matt morris, on Flickr
install rear by matt morris, on Flickr
finished by matt morris, on Flickr
I wanted to address the tire and wheel setup. Last summer I had a un repairable flat so I upgraded the tires to Hankook DynaPros All Terrain and went one size up from stock. I got 245 70 17. So at least they weren't entirely tiny!
tire by matt morris, on Flickr
When I first bought the jeep and had everything planned out I found a killer deal on a single 275 70 17 BF Goodrich All Terrain KO2, so I just bought the one at the time. I eventually found another great deal and bought the other three. And for wheels I'm going with Black AEV Pintlers with +10mm offset, I have one in my possession already, just need three more now. So unfortunately I haven't finished this part quite yet. After I got the lift installed I was anxious to get the tires on so I purchased some G2 1.5" wheel spacers and threw the tires on the stock limited wheels. This look is growing on me more and more but I still want to do the Pintlers.
IMG_3592 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
IMG_3593 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
IMG_3881 by matt morris, on Flickr
Back when I first started following the WK threads I fell in love with the 4XGuard Matrix. I knew I wanted one but wasn't sure where at in my build that I would eventually add one. I finally pulled the trigger on one and also added the Hoop kit to it. I absolutely love this look! I was a bit sad to notice a slight decrease in height in the front but I'm happy with the end result.
image by matt morris, on Flickr
oldflowers by matt morris, on Flickr
I also added a Smittybilt Rear Receiver D Shackle.
image by matt morris, on Flickr
rc4 by matt morris, on Flickr
I was planning on doing the Metal Sheet Grill mod but figured I'd give eBay a chance before I went through with that project. I scored a used grill off of a SRT8 for $50 shipped! Unfortunately I didn't pay attention to the year it came off of. It came off of a 2006, I have a 2008. So the fitment isn't perfect. I'm Still debating on what to do with it but for now I'll rock it. With the Matrix on there its hard to tell that the fitment isn't perfect.
After going back and forth and whether to get a roof rack or not I finally went ahead and ordered the Rola Roof Rack. It will definitely free up more room in the cargo area for camping this summer. We went on numerous camping trips last year and I had to have rear seats folded down to get everything in there, so hopefully that won't happen this summer and we can actually have our nephews or other family members ride with us.
IMG_4256 by matt morris, on Flickr
______________________________________
I'll keep updating this first post as I add things!
____________________________
2008 Grand Cherokee Limited
Color: Jeep Green Metallic
Two tone Leather Interior
125,000 Miles (04/2017)
____________________________
Mods
____________________________
Suspension:
OME HD Suspension (04/2017)
JBA 1/4" Strut Spacer (04/2017)
JBA Upper Control Arms (04/2017)
Front Pinch Weld Mod (04/2017)
Wheels and Tires:
Stock Limited Wheels with G2 1.5" Spacers (Current)
Black AEV Pintlers +10mm offset (Pending)
Tires - BF Goodrich All Terrain KO2 275/70/R17 (Current)
Hankook DynaPro AT 245/70/R17 (Old Setup)
Lighting:
Aftermarket HID Replacement Headlights (05/2015)
Osram 5500k Xenarc Bulbs (05/2015)
Morimoto 55W Ballast (05/2015)
Morimoto XB LED's for High Beams (05/2015)
Complete Philips LED Interior (04/2017)
Engine:
Volant Cold Air Intake (05/2015)
Armor and Recovery:
4xGuard Matrix Brush Guard (05/2017)
4xGuard Hoop (05/2017)
Smittybilt D-Shackle Hitch Receiver (05/2017)
Smittybilt Hi-Lift Jack (05/2017)
Miscellaneous:
Rola Roof Rack (06/2017)
SRT8 Front Grill(05/2017)
Bed Lined Rear Step Pad (04/2017)
De-Badged all Emblems except for "Jeep" Front and Back (04/2015)
Front Windows Tinted to match Factory Rear Tint (04/2015)
_____________________________
So here she is the day I bought her.
1 by matt morris, on Flickr
When I first got it, I was flying through my mod list that I wanted to get done on it. First off, I had always loved the Overland model with the projector HID headlights. Having several cars previously with retrofits or stock projectors, I knew that was one of the first things I wanted to address when I bought it. So I bought a pair of aftermarket replacement HID projectors and started from there. Nothing fancy for a projector set up but enough to make me satisfied. I kind of went crazy on the bulbs and spent a good amount of money on them. I went with a pair of Osram 5500k Xenarc bulbs paired with Morimoto XB Ballast 55W. I also got a set of LED XB bulbs for my highs. Absolutely love this setup, I might upgrade the projectors in the housing later down the road but for now these do just fine!
headlight by matt morris, on Flickr
output by matt morris, on Flickr
While I was addressing my light situation I went ahead and redid my interior with Philips LED bulbs.
interior 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
I also took out the metal reflector in the map lights when I upgraded to the LED's and that made a huge difference by itself!
interior by matt morris, on Flickr
Next thing up on the list that I couldn't live without was getting the front windows tinted to match the factory tint on the rear windows. And I also had ordered a Volant Cold Air Intake around the same time and that made a slight improvement performance wise. But most definitely gave it throatier sound!
(Picture pending)
So now fast forward two years (April '17) and I am finally getting around to getting it lifted. This took way longer to achieve than I wanted to but other hobbies and getting engaged took precedent over getting the Jeep lifted. I sold my motorcycle back when I first got the Jeep to fund the lift and tires but I got into woodworking and went on a tool shopping spree! So after waiting long enough and gaining more interest again into getting her lifted, I finally pulled the trigger and hit up Kolak and got the OME HD kit ordered. I also ordered new isolaters while I was at it. Two weeks later I had all of my goodies ready to go on!
goodies by matt morris, on Flickr
I was debating on if I should pull the trigger on getting JBA UCA's too while I was at it. I was going to have the front end torn apart anyways, so I went ahead and just ordered them. I'm super happy that I did! Peace of mind knowing how beefy and effective these things will be! And of course how beautiful they will look installed!
uca by matt morris, on Flickr
Last minute before the lift went on I decided that I did not like the rake, so I ordered some JBA 1/4" spacers for the front and received them just in time before the lift went on!
spacers by matt morris, on Flickr
Here's everything installed.
begin install by matt morris, on Flickr
install begin 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
A cool little jig my buddy fab'd up real quick to compress the springs.
press by matt morris, on Flickr
And finally everything installed!
install front by matt morris, on Flickr
install rear by matt morris, on Flickr
finished by matt morris, on Flickr
I wanted to address the tire and wheel setup. Last summer I had a un repairable flat so I upgraded the tires to Hankook DynaPros All Terrain and went one size up from stock. I got 245 70 17. So at least they weren't entirely tiny!
tire by matt morris, on Flickr
When I first bought the jeep and had everything planned out I found a killer deal on a single 275 70 17 BF Goodrich All Terrain KO2, so I just bought the one at the time. I eventually found another great deal and bought the other three. And for wheels I'm going with Black AEV Pintlers with +10mm offset, I have one in my possession already, just need three more now. So unfortunately I haven't finished this part quite yet. After I got the lift installed I was anxious to get the tires on so I purchased some G2 1.5" wheel spacers and threw the tires on the stock limited wheels. This look is growing on me more and more but I still want to do the Pintlers.
IMG_3592 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
IMG_3593 2 by matt morris, on Flickr
IMG_3881 by matt morris, on Flickr
Back when I first started following the WK threads I fell in love with the 4XGuard Matrix. I knew I wanted one but wasn't sure where at in my build that I would eventually add one. I finally pulled the trigger on one and also added the Hoop kit to it. I absolutely love this look! I was a bit sad to notice a slight decrease in height in the front but I'm happy with the end result.
image by matt morris, on Flickr
oldflowers by matt morris, on Flickr
I also added a Smittybilt Rear Receiver D Shackle.
image by matt morris, on Flickr
rc4 by matt morris, on Flickr
I was planning on doing the Metal Sheet Grill mod but figured I'd give eBay a chance before I went through with that project. I scored a used grill off of a SRT8 for $50 shipped! Unfortunately I didn't pay attention to the year it came off of. It came off of a 2006, I have a 2008. So the fitment isn't perfect. I'm Still debating on what to do with it but for now I'll rock it. With the Matrix on there its hard to tell that the fitment isn't perfect.
After going back and forth and whether to get a roof rack or not I finally went ahead and ordered the Rola Roof Rack. It will definitely free up more room in the cargo area for camping this summer. We went on numerous camping trips last year and I had to have rear seats folded down to get everything in there, so hopefully that won't happen this summer and we can actually have our nephews or other family members ride with us.
IMG_4256 by matt morris, on Flickr
______________________________________
I'll keep updating this first post as I add things!