Cherokee upgrades

Whoknows

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 8, 2005
Location
Benson
So my father in law just gifted me his 96 Cherokee. It's 5 speed and 4.0 with about 298,000 miles. It still runs strong but I'm sure a rebuild is in the near future.

I've always been a Chevy guy and not too familiar with Jeeps. It's a WV vehicle so Ive got some rust to deal with.

My question to you Jeep guys is what modification/upgrades should I be looking at? What weakness and issues should I be aware of? Any advice or personal opinion is appreciated. I don't plan to get too crazy with it but I would like it to be a tough and dependable vehicle.
 
Are you going to wheel it? If so, what size tire do you want to run?
 
If you want to wheel it the first thing you should do is plate the frame including the steering box area. Then a simple interior cage, then a 4 inch lift. Throw some 33's and lunchbox lockers front and rear and have a bad cheap rig.

If you have a dana 35 rear immediatly ditch it and throw a chrysler 8.25 under it.
 
Stuntman Autoworks said:
If you want to wheel it the first thing you should do is plate the frame including the steering box area. Then a simple interior cage, then a 4 inch lift. Throw some 33's and lunchbox lockers front and rear and have a bad cheap rig.

If you have a dana 35 rear immediatly ditch it and throw a chrysler 8.25 under it.
Click to expand...

Were there different axle options for these or was the Dana 35 standard?
 
D35 and the 8.25 axle were both standard axles in XJ's. Def swap to an 8.25 if you have the d35.

If it's already rusty or kind of beat up, I wouldn't spend the time/money to plate the unibody. Put a lunchbox locker in the front, 4.5" lift with fender trimming to clear the 33's. Then get out and enjoy it for awhile and upgrade from there.
 
D35 rear axle is def. the weak point. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to when they used a d35 and when they used the corporate 8.25, you just have to look. Look for the telltale 'rock dragger' bottom lip on the 8.25 center section.
33s are about the max you should consider for the 3.55 gear ratio you likely have if you want to keep any streetability.
 
I'll have to go back and check what axle it has.

Tell me more about the plating. Is there a premade kit you guys recommend or what other options are there?
 
They are more commonly called frame stiffeners on Cherokees, Google it for lots more opinions. I have actually had great luck without plating the front, which seems to be the more common area to install. The first XJ I raced in ECORS developed cracks above the rear bump stops, so I used a set of rear stiffeners from HDoffroad eng. on the next XJ.
 
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