How do you get from a mundane grocery-getter to a flex monster? Start with a '97 Grand Cherokee, sell it to Chris Clayton of Morgan Hill, California, and let him loose. Chris left the stock 5.2L V-8 and automatic, but swapped in an NP231 for part-time action and longevity. He then added a 4-inch Rubicon Express lift with adjustable arms, a Trail Ready front bumper, front and rear TeraFlex spacers, a heavy-duty Rubicon Express track bar and track bar mount, a PSC steering box, and 32x11.50R15 Bridgestone Dueller AT and MT tires on 15x8 Rock Crawler rims.
We only wish that we'd get shots like this one from Scott Mason of Richmond, Virginia. However, most of our sunsets are seen from inside the office, not out on a trail with a '92 Cherokee sporting a 3-inch lift with Pro Comp shocks in the front and Dakota rear leaf springs with Napa Gold shocks out back. To make those scenic overlooks more attainable, Scott put an Aussie Locker in the front Dana 30 and stuffed 32x11.50R15 BFG Mud Terrains around some 15x8 Cragar Soft 8s.
This '88 Wagoneer comes to us from Richard Best of Four Oaks, North Carolina. Richard chose to leave well enough alone, and the Wag still sports the stock AMC 360, TF-727, and NP229. Power is then sent to the front and rear Dana 44s that are still held in place by the stock leaf springs, and it's spinning a set of 15x8 Cherokee rims wrapped in 29x10.50R15 tires. Richard took this Wagoneer on his honeymoon and lost the driveshaft. We can only imagine what his new bride thought about that fiasco.
This '06 Rubicon hails from an hour and a half north of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Since Jake Stahlnecker is in the Navy, he's on a limited budget, and so far, the Jeep has only received a 2-inch budget boost, but that doesn't stop him from wheeling in Charlottesville, Virginia, every chance he gets.
John McConnel from South Toms River, New Jersey, sent us his '77 CJ-7, which he calls Triple 7. The stock engine was tossed in favor of a Ford 302 V-8, but the stock T150 three-speed transmission and Dana 20 transfer case stayed, as did the Dana 30 front axle and AMC 20 rear. Moser one-piece shafts were added to the rear along with an Aussie Locker, and a 2-inch Pro Comp spring lift coupled with a 1-inch custom body lift provide clearance for the 33x12.50R15 Courser Radials. A 4WD Hardware fiberglass tub replaced the stock rust bucket, and a Matkins Extreme Duty Frame was tapped in favor of the spindly stock fare.