ghostrider
Full Access Member
New KJ owner and weighing my options (long) (pics added 6/6/18)
As I posted in my intro thread, I have purchased a 2005 Black Rocky Mountain 4x4 this past weekend from one of my best friends. He bought the vehicle brand new and daily drove it until the end of December/beginning of January; he replaced it with a much newer car. I have been riding in this thing throughout the years since it was new whenever I was visiting
.
The Jeep has just over 182k miles on it and is completely stock. He did not buy it for the 4wd and it has hardly ever been engaged. I can also probably count on one hand how many times the sunroof had been opened before I bought it. He still had the original paperwork including the window sticker; the biggest add ons are that it has the off road package and the towing package. The vehicle is dirty inside and out, but the oil has always been changed very regularly. Other things like power window regulators have been replaced over the years.
Here are things I know of that will need to be addressed:
BODY: The roof has a couple of dents from falling tree damage a couple of years ago. The paint is peeling off from them and there is surface rust. I talked to a body shop and it would require replacing the roof panel as the dents are not repairable (expensive). I don't care that the dents are there; I just need to prevent them from becoming holes. It was suggested to sand down the paint past where it is peeling and remove the surface rust, spray on some black primer, and hopefully be done with it. Thankfully, the operation of the sunroof is not impacted by the dents. There are other scrapes and scratches on the flares and bumper corners, but I'm not overly concerned with cosmetics. The rear bumper cover by the license plate is broken from a light impact with a lot pole (no metal damage), and I may replace it if I can find one cheap enough. A taillight lens is pretty cracked along with one of the front signal lenses, and I consider those as safety items so they will be replaced. The Jeep has never been in an actual accident so everything else is straight.
SUSPENSION: The boots on the front lower ball joints are torn/partially gone. The suspension in general is just plain old. I am most likely going to just go with a small lift to upgrade rather than just replace the parts. The OME options look like the best path to me. I need to make sure that I get everything I need to make it better than new. I measured center wheel to lower edge of flare at around 18.5-18.75" all around provided I did it correctly. An alignment is needed, but is pointless without fixing things first.
TIRES: It has 225/75/16 Goodyear Wrangler STs all around and pretty much always has been replaced with the same tires. The tires are getting pretty worn, and they pretty much suck anyway. I don't yet know which route I am going with tires, but that decision will be made after addressing the suspension.
MECHANICAL: The rear boot on the front driveshaft is torn (shaft to transfer case). I'm not sure if I can just replace that or if I need to do anything further. The engine runs great, and the transmission shifts fine. However, there may be a worn mount to look into. It's not due for an oil change yet, but I will probably change it anyway along with the other major fluids (diffs, transfer case, and transmission). There is some sort of oil leak toward the lower front, but it isn't major. The power steering fluid was low and most likely slowly leaking somewhere. The brakes are great and working perfectly.
MISC: The driver's window motor doesn't stop trying to go up when it reaches the top like it should. If you hold the switch, it makes a grinding noise. The other windows stop as they should. The hood struts are shot and need to be replaced along with the rear glass struts; I am looking for the best cheap options on those. At least one of the TPMS sensors is bad, but I don't yet know which one.
I also want to look into possible factory upgrades obtainable from junkyards and/or ebay. Things like an EVIC interest me. Radio upgrade options are another thing of interest but not a priority.
This is really just a fun vehicle for me and won't be a daily. I like to do things like geocaching and am looking forward to being able to access areas where my cars cannot go. For comparison, I drive a 2017 Mazda Miata RF most of the time, and I have a 1998 Chevrolet Cavalier as an extra car. However, this is not my first Jeep as I had a 2006 Grand Cherokee Limited as a primary vehicle some years ago. It was fun, but I never did any "Jeep" things with it before I traded it in.
Thanks for reading and any helpful insights are appreciated.
Marty
As I posted in my intro thread, I have purchased a 2005 Black Rocky Mountain 4x4 this past weekend from one of my best friends. He bought the vehicle brand new and daily drove it until the end of December/beginning of January; he replaced it with a much newer car. I have been riding in this thing throughout the years since it was new whenever I was visiting
. The Jeep has just over 182k miles on it and is completely stock. He did not buy it for the 4wd and it has hardly ever been engaged. I can also probably count on one hand how many times the sunroof had been opened before I bought it. He still had the original paperwork including the window sticker; the biggest add ons are that it has the off road package and the towing package. The vehicle is dirty inside and out, but the oil has always been changed very regularly. Other things like power window regulators have been replaced over the years.
Here are things I know of that will need to be addressed:
BODY: The roof has a couple of dents from falling tree damage a couple of years ago. The paint is peeling off from them and there is surface rust. I talked to a body shop and it would require replacing the roof panel as the dents are not repairable (expensive). I don't care that the dents are there; I just need to prevent them from becoming holes. It was suggested to sand down the paint past where it is peeling and remove the surface rust, spray on some black primer, and hopefully be done with it. Thankfully, the operation of the sunroof is not impacted by the dents. There are other scrapes and scratches on the flares and bumper corners, but I'm not overly concerned with cosmetics. The rear bumper cover by the license plate is broken from a light impact with a lot pole (no metal damage), and I may replace it if I can find one cheap enough. A taillight lens is pretty cracked along with one of the front signal lenses, and I consider those as safety items so they will be replaced. The Jeep has never been in an actual accident so everything else is straight.
SUSPENSION: The boots on the front lower ball joints are torn/partially gone. The suspension in general is just plain old. I am most likely going to just go with a small lift to upgrade rather than just replace the parts. The OME options look like the best path to me. I need to make sure that I get everything I need to make it better than new. I measured center wheel to lower edge of flare at around 18.5-18.75" all around provided I did it correctly. An alignment is needed, but is pointless without fixing things first.
TIRES: It has 225/75/16 Goodyear Wrangler STs all around and pretty much always has been replaced with the same tires. The tires are getting pretty worn, and they pretty much suck anyway. I don't yet know which route I am going with tires, but that decision will be made after addressing the suspension.
MECHANICAL: The rear boot on the front driveshaft is torn (shaft to transfer case). I'm not sure if I can just replace that or if I need to do anything further. The engine runs great, and the transmission shifts fine. However, there may be a worn mount to look into. It's not due for an oil change yet, but I will probably change it anyway along with the other major fluids (diffs, transfer case, and transmission). There is some sort of oil leak toward the lower front, but it isn't major. The power steering fluid was low and most likely slowly leaking somewhere. The brakes are great and working perfectly.
MISC: The driver's window motor doesn't stop trying to go up when it reaches the top like it should. If you hold the switch, it makes a grinding noise. The other windows stop as they should. The hood struts are shot and need to be replaced along with the rear glass struts; I am looking for the best cheap options on those. At least one of the TPMS sensors is bad, but I don't yet know which one.
I also want to look into possible factory upgrades obtainable from junkyards and/or ebay. Things like an EVIC interest me. Radio upgrade options are another thing of interest but not a priority.
This is really just a fun vehicle for me and won't be a daily. I like to do things like geocaching and am looking forward to being able to access areas where my cars cannot go. For comparison, I drive a 2017 Mazda Miata RF most of the time, and I have a 1998 Chevrolet Cavalier as an extra car. However, this is not my first Jeep as I had a 2006 Grand Cherokee Limited as a primary vehicle some years ago. It was fun, but I never did any "Jeep" things with it before I traded it in.
Thanks for reading and any helpful insights are appreciated.
Marty
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