The Long Way Home, 1987 YJ

LBarr2002

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 16, 2009
Location
SC
Tomorrow, we set out on a 1,000 mile adventure in a nearly 40 year old Jeep.

We're flying down to Texas to pick up a 1987 Jeep Wrangler YJ and drive it back home to Kentucky the long way. No interstates if we can help it, just backroads, small towns, roadside attractions, and whatever adventures we find along the way.

Three guys, an old Jeep, and a whole lot of miles between Texas and home. What could possibly go wrong?

This is what we're calling The Long Way Home, and we'll be sharing the journey along the way.

If you want to follow along, we've set up a webpage where you can track our journey live and see where the road takes us!

Long Way Home - YJ Fly and Drive - Texas to Kentucky - 11/10/2026 - 11/13/2026 · Follow the Trip

longwayhome.offroadsc.com longwayhome.offroadsc.com

Stay tuned!
 
LBarr2002 said:
Tomorrow, we set out on a 1,000 mile adventure in a nearly 40 year old Jeep.

We're flying down to Texas to pick up a 1987 Jeep Wrangler YJ and drive it back home to Kentucky the long way. No interstates if we can help it, just backroads, small towns, roadside attractions, and whatever adventures we find along the way.

Three guys, an old Jeep, and a whole lot of miles between Texas and home. What could possibly go wrong?

This is what we're calling The Long Way Home, and we'll be sharing the journey along the way.

If you want to follow along, we've set up a webpage where you can track our journey live and see where the road takes us!

Long Way Home - YJ Fly and Drive - Texas to Kentucky - 11/10/2026 - 11/13/2026 · Follow the Trip

longwayhome.offroadsc.com longwayhome.offroadsc.com

Stay tuned!
Click to expand...
Sounds like an awesome adventure!

Hey, when you get to Kentucky, can you pick up a dump bed I found on Facebook and bring it back towards Charlotte? :laughing:
 
Sounds great, except for the guy who draws the short straw and rides in the rear seat!
The wife and I did a coast to coast to coast trip in a YJ ~12 years ago.....we lost 5th gear in texas on our way out, popped a radiator in TN on our way back, and fought to stay warm with the soft top and sub-freezing temps the whole way back.

You will have a great time, embrace the breakdowns and remember, no one wants to hear about your road trip in your new Camry!
 
Autozone and Oriellys will be your friends .... they have tools you can borrow!
 
Day 1 recap:

Guages- dysfunctional
Temp- cold
Oil pressure- all of it
Fuel gauge- liar
Clock- only right twice per day
Alternator- works!
Speedo- useless

Exhaust- leaky
Brakes- squishy
Gas cap- lost

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We met one of Chris' friends for breakfast and took the jeep for a test drive. We ate then went over to Beaumont. It died a couple times in town, then we parked in front of a mural to take a picture and she wouldn't start. Fuel gauge was at 1/2, but no fuel. The other 2 guys walked a few blocks to get a can and some gas.

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The aftermarket bumper has the tire latch in the way of the flip down license plate so it took some finagling to get the spout in.
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Then we headed back to Chris' dad's house to button up a few things and hit the road.

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The jeep drives remarkably well. 1 finger on the wheel and likes to cruise right around 60.

When i wasn't driving, I was in the back seat sitting sideways on the driver's side with my legs over behind the passenger seat. It's actually not bad.
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Other than the running out of gas early, the only issue we had was clutch linkage. Chris was driving and pedal went to the floor. Right in front of us was an Oriellys. Ended up just being the linkage so a new cotter pin and back on the road.

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Day 2 recap:

Brakes: squishier
Right rear wheel cylinder: crying
Synchronizers: not really synchronizing
Leaf springs bushings: pulverized
Transmission mount: left the chat
Transmission torque arm bushing: just do your best.
Headlights: barely
Brake lights: always

Spent the second half of the day stopping for gas and topping off brake fluid. Picked up wheel cylinders from O'Reilly just outside of Memphis.

Over 600 miles down, around 300 to go!
 
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