Midwesterner New to the Fold
07-19-2017, 03:40 AM
#1
JK Newbie
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Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: St. Charles, MO
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Midwesterner New to the Fold
Hello all!
I'm in the process of buying a jeep from my brother-in-law, I'm very excited. A bit of background on what I'll be working with, my BIL bought this jeep from a guy he works with and the engine on it was bad, so he got a good deal (I don't recall what the exact problem was, only that the engine had to be replaced.) In the past ~4 months the engine and exhaust have been replaced and the ball joints were done prior to my BIL buying it. The engine they put in is essentially stock, as is the exhaust. So I'm excited to have a jeep with somewhat new guts. The only things we have left to do, for now as new things keep popping up, is trace down an antifreeze leak, replace the axle seals and do some fiberglass repairs to one of the freedom panels.
I've got a lot of upgrades I want to get, and I'm getting a ton of ideas from browsing the site, the major things that come to mind, in no particular order:
3.5" lift
35" tires, maybe new wheels (it's on stock 18s, i'm thinking about going to 17s)
winch
new bumpers (is there a specific reason for buying a winch plate versus a new bumper? They're not that much cheaper)
fenders
regear (I'm thinking 4.88 as I don't plan on going bigger than 35" tires)
So, yeah, probably the normal stuff, but I'm stoked, though my wife and pocketbook are probably less so.
I definitely don't want to buy a jeep and never take it offroad so I'm thinking about doing the upgrades that will get me trail ready the fastest. Any recommendations?
I'm in the process of buying a jeep from my brother-in-law, I'm very excited. A bit of background on what I'll be working with, my BIL bought this jeep from a guy he works with and the engine on it was bad, so he got a good deal (I don't recall what the exact problem was, only that the engine had to be replaced.) In the past ~4 months the engine and exhaust have been replaced and the ball joints were done prior to my BIL buying it. The engine they put in is essentially stock, as is the exhaust. So I'm excited to have a jeep with somewhat new guts. The only things we have left to do, for now as new things keep popping up, is trace down an antifreeze leak, replace the axle seals and do some fiberglass repairs to one of the freedom panels.
I've got a lot of upgrades I want to get, and I'm getting a ton of ideas from browsing the site, the major things that come to mind, in no particular order:
3.5" lift
35" tires, maybe new wheels (it's on stock 18s, i'm thinking about going to 17s)
winch
new bumpers (is there a specific reason for buying a winch plate versus a new bumper? They're not that much cheaper)
fenders
regear (I'm thinking 4.88 as I don't plan on going bigger than 35" tires)
So, yeah, probably the normal stuff, but I'm stoked, though my wife and pocketbook are probably less so.
I definitely don't want to buy a jeep and never take it offroad so I'm thinking about doing the upgrades that will get me trail ready the fastest. Any recommendations?
07-19-2017, 08:21 AM
#2
JK Jedi
Welcome to the forum. Since it sounds like you're planning on wheelin' that, you should also plan to upgrade your tie rod and drag link. You might want to consider flipping since your plans involved 3.5". You'll need to budget for at least a front drive shaft at that height too. I'd suggest going with a quality lift.....there's nothing cheap about going 3.5". If you don't do it right you won't be happy. If the axle is bone stock, you might at least want to throw some gussets on it. Hopefully the ball joints they installed weren't just factories again. If it doesn't have any already, I'd also consider some sort of rocker panel protection. That is definitely not an area you want to take on damage. The list just goes on and on....lol. Open up the pocket book. 
