Different kind of YJ

Beginning of the hand fabricated cage
Should be tearing up the streets in a few weeks, but with the weather we are having 4WD would have been useful.
 

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I think it's cool! This is what has bugged me since I've been into Jeeps. Someone takes his Time, and his money to build a rig that suits him, and somebody else wants to make him feel like he's not a real Jeep person.

I built my not to rock crawl, but to be reliable transportation. Whether it be dry roads or snow, first and for most I need to get to work, feed my family,pay my bills then Jeep. I have and will always enjoy pulling the yuppie in a rava4 out of a snow bank, and the occasional trail run is always fun. I never got into all this to belittle or pick apart another Jeepers style.

Lee3333, my hats of to you buddy that's just plain cool. If you should get down toward York, Pa give me a holler I'd like to check it out a little closer.:shades:
 
If possible I would run the exhaust all the way out the back.If not when you are stopped your going to eat a lot of fumes.You have the cutouts for racing so it should not affect you much.
 
NiteDog, thanks for the support. It is amusing to me to see all of the Jeeps (and other SUV's) here in the city that look like they are ready for serious off road competition when they probably never see dirt. For them, it is all about the image. They need step stools to get into their vehicles, suffer poor driving characteristics, bad gas mileage, etc and it is just for show.

xt master, I appreciate your comment and will definitely look into it. I planned on using turnouts so the exhaust would not just be under the car, but exit in front of the rear tire. I was trying to save weight and keep things simple by not having to go around the dif, plus with the fuel cell and battery box hanging in the back, there is not much room for pipes. Still, if the exhaust is a problem I will have to route it back there somehow.
 

i think its awesome. i built two lowriders both were ford rangers and just incase u didnt know there is a reason u dont c a lot of fords lowered. they are freakin hard. i beam suspension in the front and axle under the springs, not over, then there is the cross member. well in done with that i bought a jeep for off road and went up not down. (lift it till the fat chicks cant jump in and lower it and the truck may scrape)
 

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Thanks for the kind words. I have a straight front axle with a 4 inch drop (from Speedway Motors). For the rear at first I used lowering blocks and drilled a new hole closer to the chassis at the front mount for the rear springs. But, nobody was pleases with the blocks, so the shop building my cage removed 2 leafs. Now it is not as stiff and sits at a perfect height. Hopefully it is stiff enough to keep fat chicks from bottoming it out ;)
 
NiteDog, thanks for the support. It is amusing to me to see all of the Jeeps (and other SUV's) here in the city that look like they are ready for serious off road competition when they probably never see dirt. For them, it is all about the image. They need step stools to get into their vehicles, suffer poor driving characteristics, bad gas mileage, etc and it is just for show.
:agree: I see it every day too.
 

Roll cage nearly finished-just needed to sit in the seat to see where the side bars go. When I mounted the Tuffy center console, I centered it with the trans tunnel. Little did I realize that it was off to the side. So now both the console and passenger seat had to be moved to the right 3/4 inch to get enough room between the seat and door. Nothing goes easy.

The Summit cutouts were tossed and Bobby hand made some that allow for a tighter fit. Now the mufflers fit nicely in between the body mounts, and there is more room for the turnout. Wont be long now...
 

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If possible I would run the exhaust all the way out the back.If not when you are stopped your going to eat a lot of fumes.You have the cutouts for racing so it should not affect you much.

I checked into it, and the turnouts should make the exhaust exit alright. Bobby pointed out to me that convertible Vettes have been using sidepipes that exit where mine does for years without complaints.
 
Ive always wanted to lower a jeep down to the pavement, maybe air bags or hydraulics. That would be a fun ride in the city. Great Build, looking to place my 79 vette's 350 in my yj.
 

Just got back from the shop. Will be done next week for sure. Now I need to find a place near Hicksville to get it inspected so I can drive it home to Queens. They had the roll cage out and were painting it. All that is left is mounting the drive shaft loop and fuel filter. Then when I get there I have to put the canvas top on and it is ready to hit the streets.
 
I like it... if someone can put a car on a lifted 4 wheel drive frame and go mudding then good for you... It's a jeep drive it and have doing it..... nice job
 
Post some more pic when you get a chance.I hope all that horse power and speed dont blow the top off.:MDB2:
 

Ive always wanted to lower a jeep down to the pavement, maybe air bags or hydraulics. That would be a fun ride in the city. Great Build, looking to place my 79 vette's 350 in my yj.

Let me know if you need any tips, since I have learned from some of my mistakes
 
Cage complete.
Drag radials on order for the rear Weld wheels. They have more offset and fit under better. Plan on using round CJ7 flares.
Gotta get half doors soon-any used ones around for cheap???
 

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im kinda flip flop on it i like it and i dont the part that bothers me is the solid front axel. but its your ride and you stand out in the crowd for sure.its a shame ya didnt put a sweet paint job on it after you were done with it to really stand out i hope its in the future for that UNJEEP. good luck with it........
 

im kinda flip flop on it i like it and i dont the part that bothers me is the solid front axel. but its your ride and you stand out in the crowd for sure.its a shame ya didnt put a sweet paint job on it after you were done with it to really stand out i hope its in the future for that UNJEEP. good luck with it........

Isnt the factory front end with the differential like a solid front axle? The only difference is mine wont spin the wheels.

Custom paint job definitely in the plans. Axle may still be changed in future. I was talking to Bobby yesterday about the reverse shackle, and he said at this point it would be very difficult (castor of axle etc.) He said if he had spoken to me when I was planning the job, he would have preferred coil spring with trailing arms, like street rods use. Said it would have cost the same as my set up. And nothing would stick out the front, like those stupid leafs do now.
 
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I have a buddy that did this a few years ago, he had a a cj7 that he had built into a trail rig, 60s, four linked, small block chevy, that thing will go anywhere, but he was bored with it. He got a yj chassis really cheap with no drive train so he lowered it, cut the diff. out of the front axle and dropped in an old cadillac big block. That Jeep is awesome. Personally I would rather see someone build one into something they are going to use,whichever way they go with the build than build one into a mall crawler that they won't get out unless the sun is shining. But that's just my two cents, congrats on your build, keep us posted.
 
I finally brought the Beast home yesterday afternoon, then took it for a spin this afternoon.

To be honest, I think I bit off more than I can chew (for now at least). This is the first car that I have ever driven (and believe me that I have driven some pretty fast cars) that truly frightens me. In second gear I hit the gas. It bogged for a second, then leaped forward. Next, the RPM's jumped up to about 5 grand (the tires were slipping) until it caught traction. It felt like when you are on a rollercoaster going down the first hill-I lost my stomach). This really makes me wonder how people drive around in 9 second cars. I guess I have to get used to it then I will be looking for more power. But for now, I am glad that the dual springs on my throttle make it so stiff that I have to really work to step on the gas.
 

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