While you might not read about the vehicles we own and work on in every issue, rest assured, many of the Jeeps that show up in these pages are still in the Jp Magazine family.
Back in July of 2002, we ran an article called "Lifting Luxury," where we put a TeraFlex lift on our '99 Grand Cherokee Limited netting us 5 inches of lift in the front and 3 inches in the rear. Since then, it has been to Moab, Utah, a couple times, TDS Desert Safari, the Rubicon Trail, and other four-wheeling hot spots. It has also been through two or three sets of tires, two rear driveshafts, a set of shocks, more brakes and oil than you could shake a stick at, and not one but two NV247 full-time transfer cases.
This Jeep is a daily driver and weekend warrior, so we were sick of its transfer-case habit. The fact of the matter is, unless you're more than 75 years old and only drive to the corner ACME, you will likely have issues with the full-time NV247. The major problem is the viscous coupler dies, sometimes leaving you without 4WD, sometimes just making your transfer case sound like a meat grinder filled with marbles.
We sent our crack-addict luxo-wagon to the Betty Ford clinic (aka Jeeps R Us in Laguna Beach, California) in the form of a JB Conversions HD NP231 and some new driveshafts. In addition to having "found the beef," we gained mpg and what is most important: a feeling of confidence that our T-case will be there splitting power front and rear when we need it next.
We normally work on most of our junk in our driveways. Our neighbors hate us, that's for sure. Anyway, right before the '07 Moab Easter Jeep Safari, the WJ's NV247 started grinding the marbles, and we really wanted to get it to the event. In the two weeks beforehand, we contacted JB Conversions, Novak Enterprises, and Jeeps R Us for this swap. The parts came in mere days before we were due to leave, and Larrie at Jeeps R Us cleared off the calendar to make sure we could go. Sometimes it's comforting to have a shop with unlimited tools to help us get our piles back on the road.
We aren't much different than most of you. We plan four hours for a nine-hour job. We show up to dinners greasy because we refuse to plan for the pitfalls that come with swaps. What should take two hours ends up taking seven, thanks to eleventy trips to the parts store, Home Depot, and the junkyard.
Well, this time wasn't like that. The JB Conversions case was a slam-dunk fit. The staff at Jeep R Us knew their stuff and humored us when we wanted to take pictures and try different things with the shift linkage. But really, after waiting around for driveshafts, talking to the guys on staff, the owner, walking around, looking at the Jeeps and projects, and then watching three Jeeps show up on flatbeds-without any information, not running, and not having their owners present-we decided this is the kind of place we'd want to be a part of if we weren't stuck behind the keyboard writing stories.
Thanks to Larrie and the Jeeps R Us crew for getting our WJ off the rack and on the road, dealing with driveshaft issues, and humoring our "let's try this/how about that/what if we" style of working on Jeeps. And if that wasn't enough, getting it done on an inhuman deadline without cursing and with a smile on their faces. If your wife or ol' lady ever takes you to Southern California, tell her you know a nice, quaint town, and drop her off in downtown Laguna Beach while you head to Jeeps R Us. These guys are real Jeepers.
OK, this is the unfortunate...
OK, this is the unfortunate bit of the swap and where our true personality comes through. You can take the horse to water and all that. We looked online for a replacement shift plate with the part-time indicators where we needed them, but couldn't find one. So until some aftermarket company jumps on this, computer-printed labels are going to indicate what range the new transfer case is in.
Here's what we started off...
Here's what we started off with: a Novak Conversions XK2X shifter assembly and a JB Conversion HD NP231, which includes the 25 percent wider (than a stock NP231-think 11/42-ton truck parts) chain, six-gear (think 1-ton truck parts-the Jeep has three gears) low-range planetary gearset, all-new professionally installed innards, and we added the new Super Short slip-yoke-eliminator kit for the ultimate in strength and to maximize driveshaft length and U-joint angles.
Once we got into it, we realized...
Once we got into it, we realized we could get away with reusing the stock shifter, cable, and shift arm that was bolted to the transfer case with only minor modifications, keeping the soccer-mom mobileness of the rig intact from the driver seat. If you don't have a welder, you can make this from 31/416- or 11/44-inch plate. The dotted lines indicate the shape of it before we got there.
This is the final installed...
This is the final installed picture. We had some problems with the Drivelines driveshafts being the wrong length. On this rig, full droop in the rear means fully compressed driveshaft length. But not to worry, we got it sorted out-only three hours after close.
The other thing that came...
The other thing that came with the case was a long input gear for our application. JB Conversions can build these all day long, and they bolt in so easily that it's almost criminal. If that's not enough, there's an awesome warranty on the parts, including a lifetime warranty on the 32-spline output shaft.
This is the installed version...
This is the installed version of our cut, redrilled, and welded shift arm. With this solution, we didn't have to touch anything inside the WJ-leather seats, plastic console, and everything remained untouched and ungreasy. We redrilled and relocated the stock pin for proper shifter travel.
With the JB Conversions case,...
With the JB Conversions case, this is a three-hour swap that greatly increases the reliability and the yearly gas prices on your WJ. Here's one of the many cool projects going on at Jeeps R Us. Free Jp Magazine stickers to the first 22 readers who can ID the year range of the dash, the make and model of the vehicle, and the manufacturer of the console.