April 2010 Jeep Shots - Readers Rides

Eleven Hundred
With only $1,100 dollars into it, including the 34-inch Super Swamper LTBs, we'd say Warren Wildman has done pretty well with the buildup of his '88 Wagoneer. A 51/2-inch lift was cobbled together out of Rubicon Express Super Flex Arms, A Rubicon Express track bar, 4-inch coil springs, and 1 1/2-inch spacers up front. Out back, a custom leaf pack was built with junkyard leafs and a 29-spline 8.25 was swapped in. Junkyard-sourced rock sliders and a custom winch bumper with a Ramsey REP 8000 winch round out the package.

Cheesehead Cherokee
Jake Schenk of Burlington, Wisconsin, sent in pictures of his '96 Cherokee wheeling the Badlands of Indiana, and McCaslin Mountain in Wisconsin. It's got a Rough Country 41/2-inch lift to clear the 31x10.50R15 BFG MTs and an ARB bull bar protect the front end from, well, anything. The front Dana 30 and Chrysler 8.25 still run the stock internals, but were graced with Rock Crusher differential covers. Other mods include an electric fan override switch and a Cobra CB.

Vacation Wheeler
Darrel Swenson of Omaha, Nebraska, tells us that he built this '00 TJ for daily driving, weekend wheeling, and vacation wheeling in the Colorado Rockies. A Rubicon Express 2-inch spacer lift gets some air under the Jeep and clears the 32x11.50R15 Goodyear Wrangler AT/S tires. The stock 4.0L, five-speed transmission and NP231 T-case are all still ticking at 118,000 miles. The front Dana 30 and rear Dana 35 have been hopped-up with 4.56 gears and ARB Air Lockers which were added in 2009 to get Darrel further down the trail.

Drunk and Totaled
Mitchell Gordy of Greensboro, North Carolina, bought this '99 TJ brand new in 1999, and within two years was hit head-on by a drunk driver. It was repaired, and over the last 8 years built into the 39-inch Super Swamper IROK-shod monster here. A Dynatrac ProRock 60 front axle and Trail Series Dana 60 rear with 5.38s and ARB Air Lockers are hung under a 7-inch Rock Krawler X-Factor with 7 inches of rear stretch.

Sandy Bubble-J
Ashley Waters snagged this picture of her '00 Grand Cherokee out at Silver Lake Sand Dunes in Michigan. The Jeep has a 4-inch Rough Country lift kit with 275/55R20 Fuzion tires on Granit alloy rims. It's a daily driver and has racked up 214,000 miles on the venerable 4.0L inline-six-driven powertrain.

Last AMC Waggy
We all know that Chrysler took over AMC's interest in Jeep in 1987, but what we forget is that many of the '87s were still sold with AMC window stickers and titles. This prime example belongs to Clay Carley of Rohnert Park, California, and still runs the AMC 360, TF727, NP229 T-case, and Dana 44 axles with 3.31 gearing and rear Track-Loc. Rough Country provided the 3 inches of lift while Bilstein 5125s damp all four corners and the track bars hit the junk bin years ago. Pep Boys Dakota M/T tires in 31x10.50R15 clear great and give this AMC Wagoneer enough oomph to handle the Rubicon trail, as seen here.

Non-Chick Jeep
Apparently, Brian Smith of Phoenix, Arizona, is a fan of our "Sideways, Jeep Chix Edition," because not only did he apologize for the lack of "chick" with his Hugger Orange '91 Wrangler, he later tried to make amends by telling us that at least it was properly "dressed" (topless). Brian did the paint himself and has added a 4-inch Rough Country lift and still runs the stock front Dana 30 and rear Dana 35 with 33x10.50R15 BFG KM2s on American Racing Rims. The stock 163,000-mile 4.0L, AX-15, and NP231 work together to keep this topless beauty cruising down the road.

Speed Racer
This '96 Cherokee is used by its owner, Brian Line of St. Clair Shores, Michigan, for rallycrosses, TSD Rallies, and trail riding. It has 245/75R16 Goodyear MT/Rs on Rubicon rims with 1-inch spacers, OME coils, and JKS disconnects up front to clear them. Out back, OME lift springs hang the Chrysler 8.25 with Powertrax No-Slip. A three-core Modine radiator keeps it cool, while All-J Products rock sliders and XJNation transfer case and gas tank skidplates protect the underside.

'87 CJ-7
We just happened to be online at 6 a.m. when the email with this '87 CJ-7 belonging to Mike Straatman came through. While we pondered that, we looked at the specs: 258ci inline-six with stock POS 1-bbl carburetor, Dana 300 with Currie twin-stick kit, spring-over conversion with a shackle reversal, and a roll cage tied into the frame. Sounds like a cool Jeep... but '87? Then, over 5 hours later, we get the real skinny-it's really an '80 CJ-7. Dang typos.

Ten-Year Veteran
While Cory Kilvert of Pine Bush, New York, didn't tell us what year his TJ was, we figured out it was a '97 by the three vents in the cowl. He's got it set up with a 41/2-inch Teraflex S4T suspension kit, Daystar 1-inch body lift, JB Conversions HD slip yoke eliminator, and M.O.R.E. 1-inch raised motor mounts. The Dana 30 and 35 with 4.56 gears, and a Warn full-floater kit out back have survived 10 Catskill Mountains Jeep Jamborees with 35-inch tires.

Possum Hollow Jeepin'
Possum Hollow is a private property east of Attica, Indiana, and Mike Galey's '53 M38A1 spends early spring to late fall on the property. By keeping his Jeep there, Mike can escape his home of Ridge Farm, Illinois, by just jumping in the car and going. The Dana 25 front and Dana 44 rear both got Lock-Right Lockers and still run the stock 5.38 gearing. The F-head engine, T-90 transmission, and T-case were brought home with all the other parts in the beds of two pickups and assembled in winter of 2005.

Rock Spider
We think the Cliffhanger Trail in Moab, Utah, is hairy with a regular-sized Jeep, much less something the size of a four-door JK. This is Kim Pollock's second Jeep and she's added a 31/2-inch Nth Degree lift kit and AEV front bumper with a Warn 9500 on top. Out back is a Fab Fours bumper and Fab Fours also covers the rocker panels. AEV provided the vented hood, corner guards, and Pintler wheels that are wrapped with 37-inch BFG KM2 tires.