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The "Dirty Nugget" build '01 WJ

9K views 44 replies 10 participants last post by  mxjosh 
#1 ·
Copied this over from another forum so some things have changed since then

I picked up my WJ back in June, it's an '01 Laredo with only 47k miles and that is turning out to be its downfall. Due to is age and low miles it has either sat for a period of time or was only drove a mile or two at a time, either one is not good on a vehicle, so i'm currently trying to get her caught back up to par mechanically.

I had been doing pretty well, got my associates degree and landed a good job so I decided to purchase a more reliable vehicle. I went back and forth between fuel efficent cars, mustangs, diesels, every thing and decided that i was gonna go with an suv and if i was gonna do that i was gonna get one with a solid axle and thats what landed me on the WJ. Then I decided on the 4.0l due to its reputation for longevity and the select-trac transfer case.

Here's the truck i sold to help pay for the Jeep, it was a little bit more akward off road then what the jeep is and was not as practical with only room for 2.



Here's the jeep as it sits



So far i've put new u-joints in the rear shaft and have had to replace the passenger side window motor, its gonna need a brake job and a tune up soon as well

Mods so far:

Gutter guard grill inserts



Mounted the cb in place of the ash tray





mounted a 3' Firestik on the back





Cabelas trail guide seat covers, they fit good and have lots of pockets in the back for storage



also added a new Curt hitch



and i'm currently working on a cargo carrier



I attempted to split the headlight housings to remove the amber plastics and just about destroyed it so looks like i'll be buying to headlights now anyway

My plans for it eventually will be:

4" IRO basic lift
33" tires on functional beadlocks
rear tire carrier mounted under the factory bumper
front light bar with rigid duallys
hefty roof rack cross bars for the canoe
gonna need an exhaust so why not upgrade
possible intake
rear locker and diff guards front and rear
t-case skid
rock sliders
high lift
just name a few

My plans are more expedition based while still being a daily driver, and with still being a college student the build will be slower
 
#2 ·
my overall idea for this jeep is to have something capable enough to wheel on the weekends but still be practical enough to drive 45+ miles a day

well school has started back up and with work and school it leaves me with no free time for anything, good thing is its ample opportunity to save lots of $$$ for some mods this winter

a couple weeks ago i found some time to paint the underside, used a wire wheel to knock the loose stuff off the used por15 to paint it, also probably gonna try to get a new stainless exhaust installed sometime within the next month or two

BEFORE







AFTER







I have also had some opportunity to take it out with the family and carry the bikes on the back, everything works well but the rack absolutely kills the departure angle, i've dragged through a few ditches already but it didn't hurt it any
went ahead and bought a 3" iro lift, opted for the doetsch shocks, black boots, and adjustable track bar, also went ahead and got some bar pin eliminaters

thing is i probably won't have time to install it till the summer, so until then i'm gonna get a pile of parts together, here's the plan:

-265-75-16 cooper st maxx
-16x7 wheels
-replace a couple rear brake lines
-new calipers/pads
-paint front and rear axles
-new fluids
-paint diff covers
-possibly fab up some diff guards
-possible rear locker
-rear tire carrier w/ matching spare

all just thoughts right now
 
#4 ·
Rad wheels! Rockin the survival strap too huh ;) I've got my Alabama Crimson Tide strap around my shifter too lol
 
#5 ·
thanks, been through alot of trouble to get those wheels, but thats another story

started on the rear tire carrier last night, got it about half way done and tacked together, so maybe it will be finished next weekend but not sure, workin 40+ a week at work and school full time in the evenings doesn't leave me with a whole lot of time

going to order the tires tomorrow, 265-75-16 Cooper ST maxx, and going to try to get the lift on during spring break in two weeks, was planning on waiting till summer for all this but once parts started showing up, i started getting excited lol
 
#6 ·
quick update,

got the the tires finally ordered and put on today, Cooper ST Maxx, 265-75-16 and 10 ply, they look awesome but are pretty heavy and looks like it took a bit of weight to get them balanced, should be getting the tire carrier to about 90% complete tomorrow and will have pics later

 
#8 ·
took advantage of the awesome weather this weekend and got the tire carrier close to completed, the initial coat of paint is drying right now, plans from here are to add a light off the back, relocate the license plate and spring load the latch setup









and a few more of the tires, not as much weight on them as i thought, each weight is only a 1/4 oz, so there is anywhere from 4 to 8 oz on the tires, also only measuring 31.5" tall they are not a huge tire but compared to the stock 225-75 they are pretty big





 
#10 ·
well i got tired of waiting and decided at about 8 o'clock saturday night that i was putting the lift on, took about 6 1/2 hours to do, half the time with three guys, half with two guys, all went pretty well with the old steering stabilizer being the only thing that needed to be cut off

when replacing the old tack bar with my new adjustable, the axle shifted to the passenger side, i think this is what caused my steering wheel to now be upside down when driving straight, so hopefully the alignment shop will take care of that, other then that it still drives straight as an arrow,

between the 8000 shocks and the 10 ply tires it definitely rides stiff, and i didn't really want too spend the money but i think i'm going to be looking into buying some bushwacker flares for it

only poser pics for now, its getting dropped off at the alignment shop tomorrow then i'll be able to get some real seat time in it













 
#11 ·
Got any more pics of how you mounted that first part with the post for the tire carrier? Looks like you cut out part of the "body" was that to make it tuck in the bumper cover or was it to add strength? Lookin at doing a simiar design
 
#12 ·
yea you have to cut the rear end, i don't have any better pics than that and the bumper is back on now, if you google "wj tire carrier" you should get some links for jeepforum of some others guys who did the same and are more detailed, thats where i got the idea, i can't give you any names though, when i get home later tonight i can post some links on here
 
#13 ·
last weekend i finally did the number one mod all WJ's need, tow hooks, more or less a temporary setup until i build a bumper and use my shackles mounts i bought



trimmed the bumper to make them fit





then went for a quick spin after work today, was able to flex it a bit, and i'm definitely glad i bought the cut out flares 'cause the tires are rubbin the bumpers front and rear, also a locker will be on order sooner or later, the two drooped tires lost traction and spun

also the front sway bar is still attached





 
#14 ·
Looking good... Love the rims.

You just made me want to attack mine with por15 too.
 
#15 ·
Quick update, finally got my bushwacker flares last week and just ordered jks disconnects and an addco sway bar from kolak, saved me $50 over buying them from any of the top companies out there
 
#17 ·
Sweet build thread :) I am waiting on the final piece to my Kolak lift (OME HD springs), but I will have a pretty similar lift and will be getting a pretty similar tire size (265/70/17). I have been torn between the ST Maxx that you have and the C rated Goodyear Duratracs. I'm sure they'd both be great but on one hand, you have the Dura's that are pretty light but some say they are weak in the sidewall, and on the other hand, the ST Maxx's are pretty much perfect and super strong, but might be heavier enough that I would get noticeably worse MPG's. I know I'm going to lose some mileage over stock with the bigger tires, but a selling point of the Duras is that I might lose less. I wish I knew the actual weight of the Maxx's but I really don't know how much difference they'd make being heavier. How much mileage have you lost since having stock tires on it? The other issue is that they might ride really rough being E rated. Do you think they're overly rough for a DD or do you think that with Bilstein shocks, it wouldn't be bad? I realize it's just your opinion. I really want the Maxx's because I know they'll last and be very strong and perform well, but I don't want to lose noticeably more mileage compared to Duratracs and I don't want a tire that's going to break my back. Probably overthinking it.
 
#18 ·
No i havent got the flares on yet, with work and school i dont have much time but my last final is tonight so i should be getting them on within the next week or two

As far as the maxx tires, i was told 10 ply was all they had in that size, wasn't planning on that heavy but i figure they oughta hold up better off road, as far as being too rough for a dd, they're not bad, on the highway and country roads theyre smooth as can be, but i drive through a rough neighborhood to get to school and the city streets are real torn up, its rough but i've gotten used to it, lets me know im driving a jeep not a mini van

As far as mileage, last summer i was averaging mid 16 to low 18 mpg everyday driving, right not my odometer is off due to the change in tire size but with the incorrect mileage i average mid 14 to even 16 one time, i try to take the route with the fewest amount of stops when i drive, it actually cruises at a lower rpm with bigger tires, its the stop and go traffic that kills ya
 
#19 ·
last final is done, just need to finish one last project and i can finally have some much needed bonding time with the jeep!

oh, and i got what i believe was my first jeep wave from a lifted wrangler today, guess i've officially been accepted as a real jeep
 
#20 ·
so an update, got the jks disconnects on about a week ago but haven't had a chance to really flex it out yet



and was finally was able to finish up my flares this past weekend, a figure i had somewhere around 2.5 hours into each front fender and close to 6 hours into both rears, really was pretty easy to do, the instructions are super easy to follow and after you cut the first fender the second one is way easier

did have a few issues with mine, first, somehow i ended up short to of the T45 mounting screws on the rear. don't know of i lost them or if i was shorted so i need to find some replacements, the second was i was getting anxious to finish and ended up with a little too much gap on my passenger rear between the door and body pieces and the other was i cut all my splash guards out about two months ago when they were rubbing the tires, so now i need something to fill the gap on the fronts so mud doesn't get trapped being the flare





too much gap



 
#22 ·
i think i'm gonna leave mine, they don't look too bad and sooner or later we're gonna build a tube bumper and maybe eventually a rear bumper
 
#23 ·
Finally got to take it out and finally test it on some trails, I'm pleased with the way it performed, however a locker would do wonders for it and include sliders and a skid plate and it ought to go wherever you point it, within reason that is, not bad for a soccer mom suv

here's a few pics from this weekend



my current wheeling partner











 
#24 ·
I also was able to get my addco sway on tonight, much beefier than the stock sway bar, not sure how it handles yet, will see after i get more of a chance to drive it





and for a cosmetic touch, i tinted the tail lights, not too dark but definitely noticeable, taped off the turn signal and reverse light and scuffed them with a green scotch pad, followed by about 6 or 7 coats of VHT night shades and 3 coats of clear





 
#25 ·
went back out to the off road park this weekend, long story short, we had a pretty interesting day and ended leaving early





coil spring retainers are now on the "To-Do" list, lost that coil completely later on in the day

 
#26 ·
Looking good! That's some awesome flex, gives me high hopes for my OME/Bilstein setup which gave me almost 4", which I haven't really wheeled yet. Let us know how the Addco does. I want one for the road but I hear it limits flex really bad on the trail. Thought about rigging up some quick disconnects for it, but I also read that you want the rear connected for the trail because it's supposed to help a lot with keeping the vehicle level in off-camber situation. Kind of unsure but I think I'd really like to have it on-road.

By the way, I've seen some pictures of someone with the Bushwacker flares who used L-brackets to push out the top edge of the front bumper to make it flare out and meet the outer edge of the fender flares. Looked real good with the front bumper lining up with the flare.
 
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