I'm with you there. I don't modify anything unless there's a clear cut, useful and practical reason to do it. It's cheaper and less aggravating in the long run.
mods you wouldnt do again ...
- Thread starter jeffryscott
- Start date
I'm with you there. I don't modify anything unless there's a clear cut, useful and practical reason to do it. It's cheaper and less aggravating in the long run.
zjsheller
Observer
Just to add something to the list.
Thorson Headers.
Paid just south of $400 5 years ago for the 4.0l. Ran great. Improved fuel economy and the rest of the expected stats were great.
The problems began 2 1/2 years after purchase. They began to disintegrate. Literally. I gave the guys at Thorson a call, explained that the receipt had been lost in a house fire 6 months prior. Too bad.
After some research on Stainless Steel and the ratings of Stainless Steel used in exhaust, I found that they used the worst possible stainless possible. Guess the lifetime warranty is expecting people not to keep their vehicles longer than 3 years.
I finally replaced them after several weld jobs to buy me some time. Paid $89 for a cheapo set off EBay made of better grade stainless. Even if they only last 3 years, at least they weren't misrepresented to me.
Sorry to waaaaa on, love everything else I've done to the Jeep.
Still undecided on the roof rack. In Oregon I have wide open spaces where the roof rack is great, and others where I've ripped it off. Actually had to drag it off one trail while in the Coast Range.
Great thread!
Thorson Headers.
Paid just south of $400 5 years ago for the 4.0l. Ran great. Improved fuel economy and the rest of the expected stats were great.
The problems began 2 1/2 years after purchase. They began to disintegrate. Literally. I gave the guys at Thorson a call, explained that the receipt had been lost in a house fire 6 months prior. Too bad.
After some research on Stainless Steel and the ratings of Stainless Steel used in exhaust, I found that they used the worst possible stainless possible. Guess the lifetime warranty is expecting people not to keep their vehicles longer than 3 years.
I finally replaced them after several weld jobs to buy me some time. Paid $89 for a cheapo set off EBay made of better grade stainless. Even if they only last 3 years, at least they weren't misrepresented to me.
Sorry to waaaaa on, love everything else I've done to the Jeep.
Still undecided on the roof rack. In Oregon I have wide open spaces where the roof rack is great, and others where I've ripped it off. Actually had to drag it off one trail while in the Coast Range.
Great thread!
off-roader
Expedition Leader
A couple of them for me...
- Quick disconnects for the rear anti sway bars. Don't work on the montero.
- Simple .120 wall tube nerf bars. They don't support the weight of a montero. Use rock skids instead.
- Use POR15 without using a UV proof top coat. UV seems to easily destroy POR15.
- Quick disconnects for the rear anti sway bars. Don't work on the montero.
- Simple .120 wall tube nerf bars. They don't support the weight of a montero. Use rock skids instead.
- Use POR15 without using a UV proof top coat. UV seems to easily destroy POR15.
Backwoods Rambler
Explorer
Isn't .120 wall the same that they make roll cages with? I would think that would be plenty, no??
Hill Bill E.
Oath Keeper
Yep, a lot of cages are made from 0.120 wall.
But sliders (on some rigs) can take a beating each time out, whereas a cage isn't really designed for 'repeated hits', but more for safety in a 'one time' incident.
My cage is built from .120 HREW, and my sliders are made from old CJ 'rollbar' mainhoops.
These are heavier wall* and also 3" diameter.
(not sure on the wall thickness, but the '80 bar was thicker than the '84 bar, and both are thicker than my cage tube)
A lot of people only need sliders for the 'occasional oops', and others need them for heavier wheeling.
All depends on the usage.
off-roader
Expedition Leader
Also I should have clarified what I meant by 'simple'.
In this case, it was a basic loop from front to back. Only 2 attachment points. No triangulation to strengthen the design. Nothing to reinforce it from major hits. It bent on the first rock and it was a very minor hit!
I agree though that .120 wall is plenty strong but I'll add a caveat to this and include 'only when designed properly for the task at hand'. In my case, the guy who made them, was a sandrail builder but he simply didn't understand the load dynamics of a +5k lbs vehicle slamming on one of his rails much less resting on it like I did.
Oh and fwiw, my current rails are built using 120 wall dom tubing (trail gear rock sliders) and I'm hoping to test them this weekend on the Slick Rock, Deer Valley, & Strawberry Creek trails.
Will let you know how well they hold up.:smiley_drive:
jesusgatos
Explorer
Really? I used to LOVE the 35" BFG MT's on my CJ7. Would get about 40,000 miles out of them, and I thought the off-road performance was pretty decent.
Yeah the tread life has been great and they are pretty good off-road. I just think a hybrid tire would be more suitable for my needs. I'm not going to a full on All Terrain though. I'm not THAT crazy lol.
A couple of bad mods:
Trail Master Exhaust on a Nissan Hardbody PK back in the day. It was essentially a "Y" pipe after the catalytic that sent the exhaust through two glass packs. The exhaust was all stainless, but really loud, the kids today would have loved it, but nothing stealth about the set up.
99 TJ - Not changing the gearing soon enough. I have been running 31x10.5AT Tires on the Jeep for 8 years and never changed the gearing. I changed the diffs last summer,to 4.11 and its fun to drive again. I can actually use 5th gear. Should have done this mod years ago.
As for the roof rack - I think its essential on a Jeep. I have an "East Coast" rack that can be installed or removed in 15 min. Put my rocket box on it and the jeep actually has a trunk. Hate the rack without a load due to the excessive wind noise.
My other gripe is that many aftermarket companies do not make their products to last very long. The paint and finish is not designed to last the life of the vehicle. I tend to keep my vehicles a long time, and I don't want to keep replacing items like bumpers. My TJ has over 177,000 miles on it and is still running strong, and the Olympic Rear bumper has look like crap for 150,000 miles, while the OEM front bumber is still looking good.
Trail Master Exhaust on a Nissan Hardbody PK back in the day. It was essentially a "Y" pipe after the catalytic that sent the exhaust through two glass packs. The exhaust was all stainless, but really loud, the kids today would have loved it, but nothing stealth about the set up.
99 TJ - Not changing the gearing soon enough. I have been running 31x10.5AT Tires on the Jeep for 8 years and never changed the gearing. I changed the diffs last summer,to 4.11 and its fun to drive again. I can actually use 5th gear. Should have done this mod years ago.
As for the roof rack - I think its essential on a Jeep. I have an "East Coast" rack that can be installed or removed in 15 min. Put my rocket box on it and the jeep actually has a trunk. Hate the rack without a load due to the excessive wind noise.
My other gripe is that many aftermarket companies do not make their products to last very long. The paint and finish is not designed to last the life of the vehicle. I tend to keep my vehicles a long time, and I don't want to keep replacing items like bumpers. My TJ has over 177,000 miles on it and is still running strong, and the Olympic Rear bumper has look like crap for 150,000 miles, while the OEM front bumber is still looking good.
Hill Bill E.
Oath Keeper
I've found that also. Even powder coating can go to heck fast.
On bumpers or sliders, all it takes is a couple contacts with rocks, and the elements take over. Within a few months, the powdercoating is coming off wherever there is a scratch.
I try and build my own armor (sliders/bumpers/skids) and while I prep and paint them nice when I build them, I use either flat or gloss black for color.
Then it's very easy to touch them up with a rattle can each spring.
I stay away from polished aluminum and chrome, as it's a lot of work to keep up. Good stainless isn't bad.
Of course, with the salt and icemelt stuff they use on the roads 5-6 months of the year, keeping anything 'nice' is hard to do on an older rig.:snorkel:
x32792
Adventurer
I have a '01 TJ 4L with 5 speed and was thinking about going to a 2" lift and 31" tires...What sort of milage do you get with the 4.11 diffs?
John
TJ - Mileage may vary with conditions.
By installing the new gears, the Jeep's mileage returned to origional. My guess is that I can pull 15-16 city, 18-19 Highway. On country/mountain roads without the roof rack traveling at 50MPH, I can sneak it into the 20. I really don't keep track of mileage on this vehicle, its a Jeep and it would make me mad.
The real gain was the improvement in drivability. With the stock gears I was so out of the power band that I never really used 5th gear, unless I was coming down hill on I-70. Overall performance from changing the diff gearing is now similar to factory when the Jeep had the 215/75R15 on it.
If I make a significant change in tire size, I will change the gearing sooner rather then later. I really don't know how people will drive a TJ with 33"-35' tires and still have the stock gearing.
By installing the new gears, the Jeep's mileage returned to origional. My guess is that I can pull 15-16 city, 18-19 Highway. On country/mountain roads without the roof rack traveling at 50MPH, I can sneak it into the 20. I really don't keep track of mileage on this vehicle, its a Jeep and it would make me mad.
The real gain was the improvement in drivability. With the stock gears I was so out of the power band that I never really used 5th gear, unless I was coming down hill on I-70. Overall performance from changing the diff gearing is now similar to factory when the Jeep had the 215/75R15 on it.
If I make a significant change in tire size, I will change the gearing sooner rather then later. I really don't know how people will drive a TJ with 33"-35' tires and still have the stock gearing.
Warhead
Adventurer
Sargeek: is your Jeep a 2.5 or 4.0?
I am thinking of building myself similar to this:
except higher up(on the actual roof, not the windshield) and with 5" lights using a smaller guard around the lights. I have a drawing but no scanner:sombrero:
bringing this one up from way back...Why?
I am thinking of building myself similar to this:
except higher up(on the actual roof, not the windshield) and with 5" lights using a smaller guard around the lights. I have a drawing but no scanner:sombrero:
SWbySWesty
Fauxverland Extraodinaire
That's a Jeepspeed rig....but most people complain of glare off the hood with the lights placed so far forward. By placing it further back, you reduce glare.