New to the forum and a new to me 1993 xj sport

bman602

New member
Been lurking for a bit, so about time I posted. I really like the feel of this forum as I am not a hardcore wheeler or rockcrawler (have dirt bikes for that, and they go waayyy faster in most terrain). Me and my girlfriend have a gas Chev 2500 to haul the bikes with, and needed a second vehicle that was cheaper to run but capable of a lot of fire roading and moderate offroading to get to fishing holes, mtb spots, etc. Our trucks see a fair amount of use (30000km a year) with a lot of remote gravel and forest service roads in the summer (we live right in the mountains near the bc border). So here is some photos of what we found for $1500.00 - http://s1056.photobucket.com/albums/t371/bman602/?start=all . The good: 183000 km or 113711 miles, interior is mint, 5spd, instant start and smooth shifting (the day the photos were taken it was -22f). The not so good: Leaking oil, suspension not the best, and Rust! I have already taken care of the oil leak (if you can believe it the po did not use a valve cover gasket at all, just rtv!), and plan to pull the carpet and see how bad it is underneath in the next week or so. Gotta say the underside pics have me a bit worried. I haven't done rust repair on a vehicle before, but there is only one way to learn I guess. I figure since the jeep only cost $1500 I can throw a bit back into it. Its gonna happen slow though as one of our dogs ate pine cone and needed surgery to remove it (dog is ok now). There goes $2000.00 bucks in upgrades for a bit, unless the pine cone can be used somewhere. But money comes and goes, and good dogs are hard to find. Anyways, after the rust is fixed and we get some extra dough we are looking at getting some 30" tires and ome 2.5" lift. Now quick question, which ome parts do I need to get? There is a new distributor in Canada that has supposed to have some good prices but does not sell full kits, just the individual pieces. Thinking of 30's over the 31's for better road manner and mpg's. Sorry for the long post, but hope to build a good vehicle and value your input.
 

jeep-N-montero

Expedition Leader
I grew up back east in Maine and know all about rust being a problem, part of why I left there. That 5 speed will last forever and clutches are cheap for them if a replacement is needed. As for the OME stuff, they are the best on the market for small lifts, you just need to decide on which springs suit you best.
 

bman602

New member
Well in regard to the springs that's where it gets interesting. I am thinking a rear medium load 2.75" #CS033Rb with the nitrocharger sport shocks. For the front I guess the heavy load 1.5 springs #2930 and same shocks with a 1" spacer would be what I am looking for? As I mentioned the goal is 2.5-3" of lift and an improved feel and performance. I know I will also need the u bolts (8.25 27 spline I think) and bushings, anything else missing?
 

bman602

New member
So all the items make sense to you then (with changing the front to stock/lite springs)? Also think I might be picking up some bfg 30" ko's this weekend that I found for a great deal.
 

bman602

New member
Well got the tires! 30/9.5 bfg at ko's in great shape and better wheels for $370.00, so could not say no. Will post the pics hopefully tomorrow. Also finally got to spend some good seat time in the jeep. Damn this thing feels small compared to my old 98 4 runner ltd, such a tight turning radius. Getting a bit of rub in the rear over big bumps so as soon as a bit of money frees up I think I will get that lift. 4x4 works great, got to try it in about a foot of fresh and was happy with the results. Also loving the 5sp in the snow, makes winter driving so much nicer. Smaller things that turned up were the high beams wont stay on and I need to rewire the pass side door speaker and I need to fab up a cup holder, nothing too earth shaking. So aside from the minor stuff, for spring I need to - 1. Add previously mentioned lift kit. 2. Deal with rust issue. 3. Find roof top basket carrier. 4. Try to find junk yard stock swing out tire carrier. 5. Look at beefier front bumper. 6. Install rear hitch mounted bike rack. So defiantly a few things to keep me out of trouble for a while.
So far really happy with this little beast. I think xj's get over looked sometimes because there is so much bang for the buck, it lacks in the "exclusive factor". I liked my 4 runner but in the +30kms I drove it had to replace and change a reasonable amount of items (rear diff, rear coils, all shocks, etc) like ANY older vehicle driven off pavement. Also it drank a lot of gas for its size. So this will be an interesting test to see how the xj compares to what many consider the superior Toyota (cheapest 4 runner with this km was around $8500-$9500 vs $1500.00 for the xj). Should be fun!
 

bman602

New member
Sorry about the crappy phone pic, but here are the new wheels. Big improvement, but you can really get an idea of how much the rear is sagging. Still, only occasional rub so I think it will make it till I can drum up some cash for the leaf packs.
 

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