Top Of The World
Melanie Tackett of Bountiful, Utah, sent us a picture of the Top of the World trail which is about 20 miles east of Moab, Utah. You can see why the trail is so named. Her Rubicon JK has 2 inches of lift and the lockers were still needed to get up to the "scenic overlook".
One Week
Within the first week of Carl Shirts II owning this late-model XJ, he had it out wheeling twice, and stuck once. This is a picture from before he learned the "joys" of wheeling an unlocked Jeep. With the stock six-cylinder, AW4, and NP231 putting power to the unlocked rear Chrysler 8.25 and unlocked front Dana 30, Carl has a great start on his new obsession. Maybe some recovery points are in order, huh Carl?
New Jeeper
Ron Herman isn't new to 4x4s, with already owning a '84 Toyota FJ60 and a Z71 package Chevy Suburban, but he is new to Jeeps. This '07 JK was left pretty much alone because the Charleston, South Carolina, resident didn't feel it lacked for much. Aftermarket bumpers were added, along with a Warn tire carrier and winch. Inside, a GPS and CB radio complete the communications and navigation package and together help Ron get his JK to his place on the river through some pretty rough terrain.
Go Mango
Brian Smith sent in this '81 Scrambler from Denver, Colorado, and the spec sheet reads like a dream. An '05 5.3L Vortec was swapped in with an NV4500 behind it. The Dana 300 was rebuilt with a LoMax 4:1 kit, heavy-duty outputs, and a Currie twin-stick conversion. A front Dana 44 and rear Dana 60 were narrowed to fit the Jeep and stuffed with 4.88 gears and ARB Air Lockers. KMC beadlock rims are wrapped with 37x12.50R17 BFG Mud tires. Clearance for those comes by way of 4-inch lift springs and a spring-over conversion, while the front axle got high-steer arms.
Ex Farm Truck
This picture comes to us all the way from Namibia which is in southern Africa. Renier Liebenburg tells us that his father rescued this '53 Willys Pickup from a farm in 1987. They don't know much about its life on the farm, but since they got it they have rebuilt everything except the interior and the tail lights. The stock flathead six-cylinder, three-speed transmission, and all the rest of the stock drivetrain is there with whatever new parts were needed.
Family Truckster
There is just something cool about a relatively stock looking Jeep with a late-model drivetrain in it and Sebastian Varas of Chile nailed the sleeper look right on the head with his '89 Grand Wagoneer. With the only exterior modifications being a set of BFG All Terrains, the real story is under the hood in the form of a 6.0L Vortec V-8 and 4L60E overdrive automatic transmission out of an '04 Chevy. Sebastian built it to take his family camping, but he wanted enough power to run dunes too, and we'd say he succeeded in fine style.
General Jeep
After not making the cut for our PA Jeep show coverage, John Vavra of Gloucester, New Jersey, sent in his '95 Wrangler for consideration for Jeep Shots. The 2.5L engine was booted in favor of a 4.0L out of a '97, the AX5 tossed for an AX15 out of a '95 Cherokee, and the NP231 was sourced off of Craigslist with a fresh rebuild and slip yoke eliminator Rough Country springs provide 4 inches of elevation while a swapped-in non CAD Cherokee front axle with 4.10 gears to match the stock gearing in the stock rear Dana 35 spin the 34-inch Super Swamper LTB tires.
Keep It In The Family
This '99 XJ comes to us from a farm in Bowling Green, Kentucky. We don't know if Drew Southard built it and his brother Stephen drives it or vice-versa but this picture shows just another normal day on the farm. A Rubicon Express 4 1/2-inch lift with front long arm conversion and 32x11.50R15 Mastercraft Courser MTs on Cragar simulated beadlocks round out the drivetrain modifications. The stock 4.0L, AW4, NP231, and front Dana 30 and rear Dana 35 still provide locomotion while a JC Offroad front bumper, Yakima roof rack, and ARB snorkel are the exterior modifications that help this farm Jeep to better perform its duties.
Attention To Detail
Chad Morehead of Grand Junction, Colorado, sent in at least 20 pictures showing the frame-off rebuild of his '82 CJ-7. Every body panel was brought back to better than new condition and then a mildly-built and Howell-injected 258 was mated to a T-176 four-speed and twin-stick'd Dana 300. Rubicon Express 4 1/2-inch lift springs and Dave's Customs boomerang shackles pave the way for front and rear Wagoneer Dana 44s stuffed with ARB Air Lockers and 4.56 gears. The 35x12.50R17 Cooper mud tires wrapped around Walker Evans beadlocks complete the package.
Long Time Coming
This '54 Willys truck was sent in by Don Whitley of Mariposa, California. He bought it in '01, didn't start the frame-off restoration until '04, and has ended up with this beast you see here. Along the way the truck got a 400ci Ford V-8, a C-6 automatic transmission and an NP208. Power is put to the ground thanks to a front Dana 44 and rear Ford 9-inch, both with Auburn limited slips and 4.56 gears. The 37x13.50R15 Pro Comp Xterrains have plenty of clearance thanks to some 2 1/2-inch lift springs and a spring-over axle conversion.
Stock Jeep Wheeling
Our "Quick Tech" form is two pages, with most of the pertinent drivetrain info on the first page. It isn't often that the only two modifications listed on the first page are "cold air intake" and "Pro-Comp steering stabilizer". Sure some think we are in the business of writing about modified Jeeps, but really we just like to see the Jeeps that were designed to go off-road being used off-road. The second page modification that Alex Kwarta of Parker, Colorado, listed along with this picture from China Men's Gulch in Buena Vista was the addition of a set of 31-inch BFG ATs.
Send us your Jeep Shots. Include a photo, your name, and information about your Jeep. Send 'em to Jp magazine, Jeep Shots, 6420 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048, or e-mail 'em to pete.trasborg@jpmagazine.com.