Thing Two (an Expedition XJ build)

Slapped some 1.25 inch spacers on last night now I can turn full lock :driver: Exhaust should be getting done now and welding in the new floor pan tonight. Maybe the front skid install too, trying to get all that done before Uwharrie Friday.:handed:
 
Tested the flex with the fork lift today, the stock rear shocks are KILLING the flex. Add it to the list.
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Well, now I have what I think is a :uzi:rear main leak:handed:, so I have put off the skid and floor pan till after our Uwharrie trip this weekend. Didn't want to rush through jobs I should take my time with. That's how you end up with a cobbled together ride. Have some wheelin' pix for y'all nest week!:rockon:
 
Double check your valve cover job. It may just be running down the back of the motor. Common for jeep I6's.
 
Well, get to add some more things to the list. Broke BOTH sway bar end links, an exhaust hanger, drivers seat mount, bashed a rockero_O and dented the rear bumper at Uwharrie National Forest this weekend :driver:. Pix and a link to a trip report on Expo Portal to come this week.
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You missed the fun stuff. We went for a short trip Saturday, all we did was up Daniel and Dickey Bell. I saw all the FJ's at the outpost but not on the trails.
 
You missed the fun stuff. We went for a short trip Saturday, all we did was up Daniel and Dickey Bell. I saw all the FJ's at the outpost but not on the trails.
Had 2 stock trucks, ZR2 S-10 and Taco TRD with us and it was their first time out so we showed them all of Daniel but didn't run the ledges or the rock garden. We are going back July 17-19.
 
Well, ditched the sway bar (with my on road driving style not having it hasn't made much difference) and installed my free Rusty's skid plate. TNT frame stiffeners should come in today, step one to the under side armor.
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How hard is that skid plate to put on I have one sitting in my shop for close to a year now just haven't had time to get around to it
It's nothing man, It shares a bolt with the rear most sway bar bolt. The front ones you have to drill the lower support but that can be done with the skid in place. Biggest pain is getting the nuts and washers on the bolts. It's a tight reach to get them on and started. Soak your sway bar mount bolts with PB for a day or two before you do the job, having one of those nuts break off in the frame sux. Having a friend to hold the skid in place is really helpful too.
 
RE: Heat Soak... 2000 XJ here. Hood spacers really helped with mine, though it still happens some on long slow rides. I need to get the fan set up too. I'm just afraid to jump into that and screw it all up. After reading about the higher volitility of 10% ethanol gasoline, I went and filled her up with 100% gas and have had absolutely no issues with heat soak since. That can be an expensive solution, but mine isn't an everyday driver so it doesn't hurt too bad.

Enjoying the thread. Keep up the good work. I like that skid plate too. How much does it weigh?
 
Thanks Cufor98, Skid is around 20-25#s, worth it though and not much when you look at the weight of the stiffeners, sliders, and bumpers going on this rig. After all the added metal I may adjust the suspension to keep it at 3 inches of lift LOL.
 
Clutch fan should have no effect at 80 mph with the AC on, she creeps up from 180 to 225 over the course of 45 min to an hr. 70 mph with the AC and she doesn't have a problem. (Both in 90+ weather by the way). I am thinking about adding an aftermarket trans cooler and not running the OE cooler in the radiator in hopes that may help. City driving she is fine.
 
o_O She better get over it then LOL. I don't plan on driving 60 from Raleigh to Durhamtown Tellico, that's for sure. On a better note, my frame stiffeners should finally arrive from TNT today :bling:
 
my 99 blew the head gasket a few years back. I put in a lower thermo thinking the same and also installed an electric fan in place of my clutch fan with a separate thermo switch set at 200. In the summer it would run fine, but in the winter it ran like crap. Even sputtering sometimes. I eventually went back to a 190 and haven't had a problem since. Runs fine down the highway (as well as can be expected) and stays cool in traffic with the ac running. The electric fan was the best improvement and it was an eBay special. Just my .02 from experience. I am planning some louvers for the hood though just to release some of that extra hot air. Good looking 2dr XJ! Keep up the good work.
 
my 99 blew the head gasket a few years back. I put in a lower thermo thinking the same and also installed an electric fan in place of my clutch fan with a separate thermo switch set at 200. In the summer it would run fine, but in the winter it ran like crap. Even sputtering sometimes. I eventually went back to a 190 and haven't had a problem since. Runs fine down the highway (as well as can be expected) and stays cool in traffic with the ac running. The electric fan was the best improvement and it was an eBay special. Just my .02 from experience. I am planning some louvers for the hood though just to release some of that extra hot air. Good looking 2dr XJ! Keep up the good work.

I have no problem swapping to a 180 or 190 for the winter if it gives me crap LOL. Thanks for the complement on the XJ, It has a ways to go but I keep it moving and the Off-Road Club I'm part of helps. We have a Wrenchin' Day each month where we all get together to tackle our projects as a group. Works out great, hell of a club.

Let me know when you head to duramtown I'm about hour and a half from there and wanna go again

We will go as a club either late this season or early next. But I will definitely will hit you up, none of us have ever been and I would love to ride with someone who knows the park. Always makes going to a new park more fun when someone is showing you their favorite spots and lines.
 
Well, finally got Thing Two aligned yesterday. Seems that the tires make less noise and the throttle is more responsive without 3* tow LOL. I don't think the former owner ever had it aligned after installing the lift. I've got the passenger side frame stiffener in place and will get to the driver side sometime this week...hopefully. The July trip to Uwharrie is coming up and I'm moving in 8 days...not that I have a lot going on or anything.
 
Sorry it has been so long since I gave an update. Moving has taken a lot of my time and not much has changed on the Jeep. Got the stiffeners on and added a Cobra 29ltd Classic CB. I don't use the am/fm radio so I removed the mount, mounted the CB mount on the tub and ran the antenna through the original antenna hole. Took her back up to Uwharrie again and she did great, the only thing she hasn't done up there now are the ledges and garden on Daniel.
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