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What should I do to my Tj?

3K views 32 replies 20 participants last post by  Bangert 
#1 ·
I have a 2003 sahara Tj, and I'm honestly not sure what my first move should be. Moneys not an issue, however I don't want to spend a fortune! I've already flipped the mirror:thumb:
 
#3 ·
Well heck! if you've already flipped the mirror, I'd say you're done!

Now dust yourself off and take it for a drive, decide what you want to use it for, take it out on the trails a bit (if that's your destination) and then try to figure out what you want to do with it.
 
#7 ·
I agree. No need for all the negative comment. People are here to learn and gain knowledge and advice. We were all at the stage were we didn't know a thing about jeeps at one point or another. To the OP, what are you looking to do to your jeep? Lift? Get it trail ready? Just improve looks for a DD? We are here to help you out.
 
#9 ·
Congratulations on the Jeep, and welcome to the forum!
It seems like there are 2 camps with early Jeep mods: Form and Function. If you dream of off roading, even just trail riding, then you can get advice on tire size, lifts, gearing, etc..
If you'd like to customize the looks first, then there's lots of guidance here on customizing your ride. Most seem to end up with a very personal combination of the two, and you will see some amazing rigs on these pages. When you see what you like, ask the owner about their Jeep.
Good luck!!
 
#10 ·
I would start with bumpers, winch, and then under the hood a cold air intake, exhaust, lift, rims,tires, gears, lockers,body protection, flat fenders, rock rails and a cage with suspension seats 5 point harnesses, lights LED tail lights, there are some ideas run with it
 
#12 ·
This is good advice if you have thousands and thousands dollars. But considering he's new to the whole Jeep thing, I doubt he'll need a winch, or lockers, or body armor, or rock rails, or fenders, or a sport cage just yet... And just my personal opinion, cold air intakes don't do much for our TJ's. And if you like to do any type of water crossing it is much better to stay with the stock air intake because it is less likely to suck in water by accident just by nature of design.
 
#13 ·
"money not an issue"(wish i had that problem)
"dont wanna spend a fortune":rofl: if you start modding you will:D

first thing i did was relocate the mirrors to get the doors off while driving, small 2in lift, bumpers,whinch,33s. i use mine for offroad so people here on the forum recommended skid plates(steering box,gas tank,oil/trans pan) so if you are looking to offroad i would get skid plates in the very near future.

have fun with it. once you start will always be thinking of what the next project will be
 
#14 ·
i would get a
new front bumbler (about 250)
back bumber with upgraded tire rack (about 500)
light bar (about 200)
fenders flars ( about 250)

(you can spend alot more then the prices i posted.. but the ones i posted are mid grade ones)

put 2 lights on front bumber.. 2 lights on wind shield corners.. 4 lights on light bar.. and 2 on back bumber tired in to your R gear.. ..

deeping on price of lights you get your looking at 1300- 1600 so not cheep but you get alot for that

then i would buy a samll lift(any more the 2 inch is pointless IMO) bigger tires

then work on inside like another said better seat and 4 or 5 point harnes

there is litterer a million thing you can do
 
#17 ·
Stupid forum @$$holes...

Good thing we still have some decent members :thumb:

Look around a different threads, search for some stuff that might interest you, and read some build threads. You will see lots of stuff that you may like, and then you can start modifying based on what you want out of your jeep!
 
#19 ·
I assume that you have a jeep. a lift is on your mind. You will find that OME is just about the best 2.5inch lift you can get. DPG off road is where you should go to look for lifting it.
bumpers are not %100 necessary. Ive had the stock bumpers on for over a year and they are great. two fog lights on there. put a winch on there. if you cant get a winch right now. look into a high lift jack, never go alone...

first thing id do is small lift (Old Man Emu = OME), tires you dont have to re-gear with (32's or so) i took a set of 5 32's and rims from a jk rubicon for cheap.

Its a jeep! rock stock if you want to, there still the coolest things on the road.
 
#20 ·
Right on man my first mod was lift kit it was my first lift on any vehicle, had a buddy help out it on in his driveway with some tools I have collected over the years.

It helps to be mechanically inclined but not needed. If you have a friend or relative to give you a hand and kind of knows a little bout mechanics then its not that hard to get started on any mod you decide to get.

But anyway I say get a lift then some bigger tires and if money is no problem for ya then the sky is the limit

Good luck
 
#21 ·
--^ on point. Sky is the limit, but don't use sky jacker. It will shake your teeth out.
Hit up the lift review tread. It will help you see what lifts are used for what. Stay away from rough country. Skyjacker. Etc.
Look at OME. Rubicon express.

Have fun! Its raining at snow here in VA. But my doors are off!
Just read :) and read.
Happy jeepin!!
 
#22 ·
If your going for a good off road and dd jeep there's one combination I've seen that amazed me on a JK. To start with he has an 08 JKU Rubicon, so he has the lockers gears and rockers. The lift he put on was a simple skyjacker 2" budget boost and the tires are 35" BFG KM2s. He had to put spacers on the wheels to fit the 35s and a little bit of trimming but he can put that thing anywhere he wants and it didn't break the bank either.

Here's a picture of what it looks like. IMO it's one of the most capable rigs in our club (he's also a really amazing driver)

View attachment 224451
 
#28 ·
Sorry for never replying guys, I suck at these forums. Basically the first things I've done are practicality,. New thermostat, serpentine belt, and pulleys. Now it's getting a lifter job done, as I hate the "tick"
 
#29 ·
Also, I have a jeep, and I've had one for a while,. Just new to forum and looking for ideas to bounce around. It does have a 3" suspension lift and I think 35s are the next move. I go wheeling occasionally and it's very capable "stock". The problem is there are less and less places to go
 
#30 ·
On the topic of lifter tick, I've been fighting it for over a year. When it's time for an oil change its at its worst; people can hear it coming from a block away. It changes the exhaust note and mileage and power all go to shit. I'm to the point of pulling the head and replacing. Last weekend I thought I'd try some mechanic in a bottle. Went to Wal-mart bought a gallon of their house oil and 6 qts of my normal Rotella T5 and a bottle of motor flush and Risalone ZDDP additive.
Changed oil with Walmart house brand, dumped in the bottle of motor flush and let it run for 20 minutes. The motor flush seemed much like kerosene, changed oil and filter, put in the T5 and ZDDP. Sounds and runs much better, will see what happens when it starts getting close to next oil change.
All in all I guess I can't complain, got 198,000 miles and I've overheated a couple times; once bad enough to trip the ASD
 
#31 ·
Yeah modern oils don't have the ZDDP content they used to, and our flat topped lifters suffer as a result. Many people run diesel oil because of the little/no environmental restrictions put in place that would limit the amount of antiwear agent like ZDDP. I have never used the supplement they sell in stores because I fear of messing with the oil chemistry and throwing other levels off, so I use like a quart of 1980's or so oil that has around 1,100 ppm of ZDDP, twice what oils have now. I only run a quart max because prefer the new oils cleaning abilities and lifetime. When I started doing this, I noticed my tick to quiet down a bit.
 
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