Rule Breaker
We are breaking a few of our own rules with this submission. Doug A. of Brick, New Jersey, just got finished with this restoration, and at the time he sent in the submission, he'd barely had any seat time in his '63 CJ-3B. So we bent our rule requiring the Jeep to have been photographed off-road because he had just finished it. We then went on and broke our guideline of picking on CJ-3Bs because they are ugly, and further violated our firm-held opinion that civilian Jeep restorations should be painted civilian colors. All because of what a nice job Doug did bringing his back to life.
Weedville Jeep
We've never seen an orange Sahara before, but that's the color this '89 has been painted. Bob Trayer of Weedville, Pennsylvania, also welded up the rear differential, added a Weber carburetor, a DUI distributor, and an 8,000-pound-rated winch. The Jeep also has what looks to be 6-inch-wide replacement flares, aftermarket heavy-duty shackles, a custom front bumper, and a set of blurry 35-inch tires.
Lil' Sweetness
Clarence Blalock of St. Augustine, Florida, sent in some pictures of wheeling in Georgia with his '88 Wrangler. The Jeep benefits from an AX-15 swap, 4 inches of lift, a slip-yoke eliminator kit, TJ fender flares, and a Weber carburetor on the 4.2L I-6. The front Dana 30 and swapped-in MJ Dana 44 both got regeared with 4.56s and Lock-Right lunchbox lockers. For the time being, 33s provide the gription for all the mud this Jeep must see, being in the Southeast as it is.
Bay Window
This is one of those submissions where we are in the dark. We'll share what we know. This '98 Wrangler belongs (we think) to Ben Henion of Colorado Springs, Colorado. The pictures, which are all titled "Bay Window," were sent in by Julie Lapka. The 32-inch BFG All-Terrains were originally mounted on the stock rims, and recently (as of the date we received this) transferred to a set of American Racing rims. Maybe Julie wants us to stop by Ben's place, as she made sure to provide us with his full address. Next time we are in the neighborhood, we'll be sure to drop some rust from one of our piles at your place, Ben.
Cool CJ-3A
We called this one "Cool CJ-3A" not because the Jeep is cool, although with a 283ci Chevy V-8, direct port nitrous injection, a four-speed Muncie transmission, and a fiberglass body from Terra Competition, the Jeep sure is cool. Instead, we named this submission after its owner, Mike Cool of Piketon, Ohio, who also built the full rollcage out of 0.120-wall tube and swapped the steering out to a Saginaw-style setup. This is definitely one cool Jeep.
Last Of The Line
When Jeep unexpectedly killed off the Cherokee in 2001, a lot of people went scrambling to get one at the last minute. Ryan Murry of Pueblo, Colorado, is one of the lucky ones. Jeep Moab wheels and tires from a Rubicon, 4 1/2 inches of lift, Warn front and rear bumpers, and a roof rack all make this Cherokee more off-road capable and even more desirable than it was when the Liberty ended the Cherokee.
Dirty Deutschland TJ
Dan Anderson sent in some pictures of his '01 Wrangler wheeling around his hometown of Binsfield, Germany, and we got to thinking we really should check it out in person. It looks like a blast. The Jeep has the 4.0, NV3550, and NP231 it left the factory with, but has benefited from a 3 1/2-inch Rubicon Express long arm lift kit, as well as Old Man Emu shocks and 33-inch Goodyear MT/Rs.
Kid Wheeling
Due to our aversion to running driveway shots in an off-road-oriented magazine, we were halfway to discarding this '98 Wrangler Sahara submission from Rebecca and Chris Nation of Milford, Pennsylvania. Then we realized that it was parked on a huge rock in the middle of the woods with a 3-year-old in the front seat and a 1-year-old in the back. What could be better than a Jeep built to get your kids into nature and the Jeep world?
Jeep Route
This '99 Sahara Wrangler has 4.56 gears in the front Dana 30 with an Aussie locker, and a Powertrax locker in the rear Dana 44. Eagle Alloy model 589 wheels wrapped with 33x12.5R15 Dick Cepek F-C II tires claw the Jeep out of whatever pits it ends up in. Joel Route of Eagan, Minnesota, only added a Borla Header and an AEM intake to the 4.0L, and the stock AX-15 and NP231 still split power out to the differentials.
Home Brew XJ
Scott Decker of Clifton, Virginia, home-built most of this '88 Cherokee. Among the work done is a custom radius arm front suspension using 4 1/2-inch Rubicon Express springs, 1 1/4-inch spacers, and Fox emulsion shocks and limiting straps. A custom front bumper, custom double-triangulated rear four-link with 12-inch Fox air shocks, and a pair of Wagoneer Dana 44s with 5.13s and lockers are just the tip of the iceberg with this completely homebuilt XJ.
Break Master
Be careful what you send us. This one was sent in to explain to us how to use the rear disc "breaks" from a Ford Crown Victoria on a Cherokee Dana 44 or non-C-clip Dana 35 rear axle. It involves milling about 0.050 inch off the backing plate or shimming the bearings. This '89, which belongs to Joel Hetherington of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, benefited from the brakes, and also from 33-inch BFG ATs, a 4-inch Trail Master lift, coil spacers, and longer rear lift shackles. The funny part of this is that one of the pictures he sent in was of the MJ sideways across a dirt road, nose down in a ditch, which leads us to wonder how well the brakes really work.
14-Day XJ
Jaime Lee of Sandusky, Ohio, sent in these pictures of his topless, doorless YJ replacement. This '89 Cherokee came about thanks to a son on the way. It was picked up for $1,700 and in short order, the front Dana 30 got an Aussie Locker and TJ shafts, a Ford 8.8 was swapped into the rear of the Jeep, and the Jeep benefitted from an Optima red top battery and some extreme fender cutting to clear a set of 33x12.50R15 Baja Claw Radials on Mickey Thompson Classic II wheels. Two weeks after buying a stock XJ with 30-inch tires, Jaime was wheeling the trails of Wellsville, Ohio.
Resolute Wrangler
There was just so much information on Bill Jordeth's tech sheet, we didn't know where to start. This Colorado Springs, Colorado, native sent us a few pictures of his '97 Wrangler at the top of Resolution Mountain in Colorado, and we bet he used all the power his Borla Cat-Back, AEM Intake, Jet Stage 2 powerchip, and Banks header added to get the Jeep up there. He has also swapped in a Wagoneer front Dana 44, a Dynatrac Pro Rock 60 rear, a full complement of Poison Spyder Customs armor, fenders, and corners, and a set of 37x13.50R17LT Mickey Thompson Baja Claw Radial tires wrapped around TrailReady bead locks.
High Seven
Robert Arnett of Chandler, Arizona, sent us this picture of his '85 CJ-7 all the way up at 12,407 feet at the Hurricane Pass in Colorado. A front shackle-reversal made the long drive from Arizona that much more comfortable. The 258ci I-6 has been balanced and blueprinted with a cam, fuel injection, and a high-volume oil pump. While the fuel injection means Robert didn't have to change jets on the way up the hill, the 2 1/2-inch Rancho lift and shocks clearing 33x12.50R15 BFG All-Terrains meant that he didn't stop due to being hung up, either.
Bushwacker's Jeep
At the time he wrote us, Luke Hauf was on deployment in Okinawa, Japan, and had at some point in his service earned the name Bushwacker. His '82 CJ-7 doesn't have any Bushwacker flares on it, but this Gulfport, Missisippi, native has added a front Powertrax and rear Lock-Right to the Dana 30 and AMC 20, respectively. Luke's favorite modifications are the 33-inch Super Swamper LTB tires that he put on some hand-me-down 15x8 steel wheels. The first modification after he gets back stateside will be regearing the axles to work better with the bigger meat. Thanks for serving, Bushwacker.
Vantage Point TJ
This '04 Wrangler Sport features front and rear 35-spline Dana 60s stuffed with ARB Air Lockers and sporting a high-steer setup out front. Casy Russell of Dallas, Texas, added a Rubicon Express 5 1/2-inch suspension lift to provide clearance for the 37x13.50R17 BFG Red Label Krawlers with front and rear Currie Antirock sway bars that make the transition from street to rock seamless. The stock I-6, 42RLE automatic, and NP231 still handle power duties, with a 32-spline output on the transfer case and a pair of 1350 High Angle Drivelines sending the power on downstream.