jeep thoughts

[multichamp]

Im looking to get a jeep soon and want to know what you guys think of what im brewing in my head. Ive been a ford guy for a while, so have never done spring over conversion or anything with jeeps before. Looking to get a 70's or 80's YJ, sprung over, high steer, dana 60 front, 9" rear (since of all the cheap mods, and easy gearing). I know there is alot of stuff that adds up when building a rig, so thats why im not going with a 4 link, with coil-overs. I plan to build just about everything for it, but want to know what I should do about the t-cases that came stock in the YJ's, are they complete shit? I wanna run somewhere around 37-39's too. For driveshafts I dont plan to run square, because of them not being safe on the street, and I will get alot of street use with this jeep. So im going to have to be take that into consideration so that I dont get nothing like a bogger. does this sound like a plan? Would you guys suggest I change anything I listed?

[butch6924]

First of all, YJ's began production in 86, anything earlier would be a CJ.

Second of all, YJ's have the NP231 t-case. There are a lot of guys that beat the snot out of them and haven't had many problems. The biggest weak point is that they're chain driven. After enough time in 4wd, the chains will stretch, but, that's not at all a common problem.

If you get a CJ, they'll have either a D20 or a D300 depending on year. In 1980 CJ's got the D300, IMO, a much more desireable case.

If you do decide to go over about a 35" tire, I'd look at stretching the wheel base. SWB jeeps are pretty tippy when they get that tall so stretching them helps a ton with stability. Just a few inches can make a lot of difference.

Considering what you're looking to do, my advice would be something like this:
92 or newer 4.0L 6cyl (I know that's newer than you wanted, but, that would give you the HO EFI motor which is a great little motor and requires very little attention, plus, you'll have the AX-15 tranny that is pretty dependable other than the synchro's going out about every 75k. Not a big deal if you know anything about tranny repair)
SOA with XJ leaves in the rear for ~4" of extra wheel base
Prolly gonna need wider axles but definetly will need stronger axles for the tire size you're talking about. I'd look at either a 60 or 14b rear and a 44 front.
Tires of your choice, and hit the trails.

[MuddyV8YJ]

looks good so far. Hardest part is going to be finding the base rig. How is the rust situation where you are?

[multichamp]

thanks for the information! I guess Ill start looking for a 90's YJ. Alot of jeeps out here are rusted out, but I can most likely find a newer YJ for a good price, and minimal rust fairly easy. I was going to start a Jeep build from the frame up, but knew that would be a money hole, so I decided to just start with a complete running jeep, then just toss a few parts.