Hey people. So we all know that IF we decide to trade in our Jeep to the Stealership, they won't give us squat for any modifications we've made. I think it's stupid, but I'm not here to debate that. I've already decided I want to get the new JL whenever they finish welding ALL of them (duh!). This thread is a write up on tearing down my JKU so that I can trade it in on a new JL. I've already decided to buy the new JL (don't need to argue on that), and I'm positive that I'm going to trade it in (yes, I know selling it privately might net a good deal). I love working on my Jeep and tearing it down will either give me parts to sell separately OR I'll set them on the shelf in hopes that one of my sons will buy a JK way down the road (they are 2 and 4 yrs old) AND I love working on vehicles and this is a way of saying 'goodbye' to Eugene. Eugene is a 2010 Jeep JKU I bought new in Jan 2010 (first new vehicle ever and first Jeep ever) and I'll be removing the rock sliders, skid plates, Ripp mods cat back exhaust, Ripp mods Supercharger, putting back the Sahara OE fenders/bumper trim/grill, removing the Engo winch and adapter winch plate, fuel filler door, LED headlights, original OE tires/rims, upgraded front drive shaft, Teraflex rear tire carrier/hinge setup, and other stuff I can't think of right now. I will probably leave the 2.5" Teraflex coil spring lift because it's a ton of work and the Stealership will give me $1000 more in trade in for leaving it (yes, I got a guy). If you're interested, feel free to follow along.

Disclaimer!!! I AM NOT A MECHANIC OR A PROFESSIONAL!!! I am 41 yrs old, male, and well educated in medicine and we'll leave it at that. Regarding auto stuff, it frequently takes me twice as long to do a mod and I'm fine with that. My experience entails building a 1970 chevy c10 from the ground up and all the mods done on this Jeep (Eugene). This is my DD and my JEEP experience is 3 trips to Moab EJS for some awesome rock crawling. I firmly believe in bruises, making lots of mistakes, nearly dying daily, but believe it or not I'm not an idiot. I'm open to criticism just as long as you're open to me not giving a sh*t.

So I already started this process two nights ago by removing my Shrockworks Rock Sliders and putting back on the OE plastic step ones. Man I hate those cheap things. I will say that the rock sliders were an awesome upgrade and really solidly built. I plan on getting the same ones for my new JL EVENTUALLY.



Shrockworks Rock sliders: BEFORE



OE ugly/nonfunctional steps


I also took off the Ripp Mods CatBack Performance Exhaust and put back the OE exhaust. No pics. Today, I'm hoping to work on the winch and front bumper.

 

Tuesday, I started working on the front end (winch, mounting plate, etc...)


Before...

Before...

I started by pulling the 6 bolts and unhooking the winch power. I loved this winch plate because your can mount any winch on the stock bumper so easy. When you want to pull it off, all that's left is this (some bolt holes) where the OE hooks were.

Stock bumper with mounting plate hardware.

Take out the 8 bumper mounting bolts and you can see the brackets the plate bolts to. It's held with 2 large bolts and then uses 4 of the OE bumper mounting bolts.


Winch plate mounting hardware

 

4 bolts and separate the outer plastic bumper shell from the inner metal bumper. Had to 'find' the old OE tow hooks.


Attach the OE tow hooks between the plastic shell and metal bumper and bolt back together.



Almost there.

Sahara plastic trim plate.


OE Sahara trim.

Now the Ripp Mods Supercharger can breath a little easier (until it comes off).

While I was under there, I pulled off the quick disconnects posts. They mount to the two main bolts that hold the front frame/grill/radiator to the main frame. When you disconnect your sway bars, they can mount to these to keep them up out of the way.



Disconnect mounting posts.

 

I liked the Mopar gas cap door.



Mopar fuel filler door.

Pull the rear tail light, a few clips and back to stock. One more thing for the SALE pile.



Stock

Done for today.

 

Had a little time after getting the kids to sleep. Undo 10 bolts from the front and rear. I remember painting these with POR-15 gloss black paint quite a few years ago. Have held up awesomely after a few trips to Moab. I'll be putting something like them on the new JL for sure.



Riddler Differential Guards

Since Eugene started as a Sahara, the front differential is a Dana 30 and the rear is a Dana 44.



Riddler Differential - inside

I'm planning on getting a 2018 or 2019 Rubicon. Guess I'll be looking for covers for the Dana M210 and Dana M220.

Note: I decided to reuse the LubeLocker gaskets and torqued to 20 ft/lbs. Both were leaking a few drips. After a day, I tightened down the bolts to 25 ft/lbs and the rear one stopped. I think I'll be getting out some RTV for the front as I don't want to dump more money into the trade in.

 

Off with the TeraFlex Hinge and Spare Tire Mount. I've really liked this setup, but the brackets that mounted to the Jeep rusted very quickly (shame, shame, TeraFlex). It hasn't affected the performance, just the look. I started with the 8 bolts holding on the Tire Carrier Mount, then loosened with 6 torx head bolts attaching the hinge bracket to the Jeep, and lastly the 2 bolts that go through the Hinge Carrier into the stock tailgate. To avoid undoing the wiring, I just set the tailgate/door in the trunk.



TeraFlex Heavy Duty Hinge

When you swing the TeraFlex Hinge out, you can see the inner 4 torx bolts.



TeraFlex Heavy Duty Hinge

I used tape to make sure my door alignment was maintained. Then back on with the OE JK hinges. 4 bolts to hold it to the door and back on with the 6 torx bolts.



Stock JK hinge

And back on with the black plastic trim pieces.



Stock JK hinge trim

The stock tire mount returns with 4 rubber gaskets and 8 bolts. Route the wires for the light and put the spare on (stock spare, not the 35" one). For now, I'm leaving the backup camera in place. Job done.



Stock rear tire mount with light and hinges.

Some paint (POR-15 would be so much better) and the whole TeraFlex setup will go into the SALE pile.

 

So yesterday I dug out the old color matched natural pearl green fenders that I took off years ago. After my first trip to Moab, I drug the side of Eugene along some rocks and scratched up both the front/rear passenger side fenders. I replaced them with the stock black ones. We've all seen people pull the bolts and yank off the fenders. Took awhile, but got all 4 done.



Before...


After


Before...


After.


And, of course, both differentials are back to leaking. So I'll be doing them again (dammit!!!!).

 

I thought I had a nice sized stash of factory parts sitting around if I ever needed to go back to stock but seeing what you've done thus far, I don't think I have nearly enough nor do I have the space. The fenders alone take up quite a bit of real estate.

 

 

On my 2nd trip to Moab for EJS, I tore the front driveshaft boot (not uncommon). I met Tom Woods while in Moab and he sold me a new custom one which has worked flawlessly for the last 2-3 yrs. I bought a replacement boot kit for around $30 from a friend and regreased the OE driveshaft. I'll spare everyone the install (which there are plenty of write ups on). Here' s the boot kit:



Front driveshaft boot kit

Here's the finished install freshly greased. Man, those bolts are a pain to tighten at 1/4 turn at a time.



Finally, the Tom Woods driveshaft goes in the SALE pile. I'll do the measurements and show my invoice when the time comes to list everything.



Tom Woods 1310 Series "JK-A2XC-131-F6"