will be CJ/YJ/TJ shopping soon

[animus_divinus]

currently, i have a 96 grand cherokee, its temporary, in the next few months i intend to purchase a CJ, YJ, or TJ, though im not exactly sure what i want... i have some beliefs that im not sure are entirely true and will ask some questions

i heard wranglers have a galvonized body, does this make a wrangler body better than an un-galvonized CJ body?.. has anyone put any kind of coating or finish on their CJ bodies to prevent rust?

to me it seems the coil suspension of a wrangler is good for people who want to do competition rock crawling, but for general off and on-road use including dirt, some rocks, mud, etc... the stronger, simpler, more reliable leaf spring suspension will be better, so that leads me towards the CJ/YJ debate more than a YJ/TJ debate

TJs are a bit more than i want to pay, as i do want to leave some money for working on the vehicle, cleaning it up, maybe adding some accessories here and there too.. so the TJ can be crossed off

im not like some people who care about headlight shape, so the round vs square headlight debate really means nothing to me

that all being said, it comes down to the engine.. i like simplicity, and reliability, so normally id lean towards carburated.. but a properly done fuel injection setup is good as well, as long as i can avoid all the OBD sensors, and go with a simpler, no frills EFI system, does the YJ offer this?

which engine is easier to work on, easier to fix, and be most reliable? a CJs 4.2 I6, or a YJs 4.0 I6? (im aware i can get a YJ with a 4.2 as well)

i kind of like the appearance of modern wranglers, because of the padded sport cage, half doors... should i go CJ, does anyone make a decent padded sport cage for them similar to what wranglers have?

 

[TerryMason]

The YJs were E coated from the factory and to a better job at rust prevention than the CJs. In 95 the TJ's frame and tub were galvanized. I'm not sure if they continued to galvanize both the frame and tub though. As to a coating or finish to prevent rust, the standard answer is a paint called POR15. It's UV sensitive, but works wonders on rusty metal.

I think the sweet spot for a Jeep these days is the YJ. If you get the right year, you'll get EFI and alot better rust protection. YJs have wider springs than CJs, and will ride better. Most 4.2L have a carter carb which is a piece of junk.

As to the body, YJ doors and hard tops will fit on a CJ, so you can have a CJ with half doors. When I had my 85 CJ7, I swapped a YJ tub (windshield back) onto the CJ body, which gave me the cool CJ front clip, with a (mostly) unrusted body.

 

[superj]

I think a late cj and a yj are the same thing basically. Engine, transmission body parts, tops all interchangeable. I think the speedometer on a cj is a big cool cj thing. But I like the yj wrangler more then a cj just because they are so cool.

 

[clemtiger8]

I have all three 86cj 94yj and a 97tj. I love the tj hands down. Its all up to you. Cheaper to lift up is yj. All will ride rough if you change any suspension.

 

[animus_divinus]

well, doing suspension work isnt any problem for me, but for reasons previously stated, id rather have the stronger, simpler, more durable, more reliable leaf springs which work just fine for general duty offroad work... dont really need coils unless i get into rock crawling for competiton

anyway, seems to be a lot of YJ fans in here.. and i know of por 15.. im not entirely sure its as useful against preventing rust as galvonizing as it is still a paint

but as far as wider springs go.. im sure its not all that difficult to use wider springs on a CJ either.. might have to weld on new mounts, but its certainly doable, and is more labor intentive than costly

but either one i get, my intention is to strip down, clean, rebuild, and protect each component of the vehicle as best i can before reassembling

so i guess when it comes down to it, for the work i plan to do it seems i could really go either route for about the same final price

IF i go with a CJ, the money i save i could just as easily purchase a higher quality, higher performance carburator for it.. if i go with an EFI YJ, i would have to be able to scale it back to the bare minimum electronics to make a simple EFI system work... and none of that OBD sensor warning light crap all over my engine either

 

[TLCJ5]

Personally I think it's generally easier to upgrade than to retrofit to older style.
In other words I think a new carb & YJ style suspension on a CJ would be easier than "undoing the computer electronics on a YJ. So I guess I'm saying it depends on which is more important to you...The YJ is definetly a smoother ride & the EFI is better than a stock carb,but the CJ is way easier to work on and as you say an aftermarket carb is an easy swap. Either way you go you'll end up with a great off road vehical.

 

[animus_divinus]

youre probably right.. to really put in a simpler, more reliable EFI system would mean replacing the EFI system entirely.. and as one of my long term goals is to eventually run entirely on my own home grown ethanol, carburation would probably be better...

also, older jeeps arent entirely out of the question.. if i could find a willys MB, M38, or a CJ5, and someone could give viable reasons why one of these could be more useful besides the historical aspect, i might consider one of these too

 

[animus_divinus]

i think ive decided to get a close to stock and clean CJ7 i can find.. strip it down to nothing, clean up and rebuild all the components.. using por 15 on the frame, underside of the body, axle housings, and possibly the high heat stuff for engine components to hopefully prevent rust from occuring in the future... it would be nice if it didnt cost too much to have the frame, body, and axle housings galvonized, but hopefully the por 15 will be suitable to prevent rust for a decade or two

with the money i save getting a CJ, i can rebuild it, and do some things with it that id like to do... more comfortable seats, some styling components like nicer fender flares, interior indoor/outdoor carpeting, a simple sound system, quite possibly just two, maybe four speaker that can play MP3s from an SD card... might even go with a double din unit that does that and GPS... also, half doors and atleats a soft top for winter.. bikini top for the summer, and ill set up the suspension for all-around occasional off-road use

 

[animus_divinus]

i know this posting is sort of old now.. but i was wondering if there were any CJ2, 3, or 5 owners in here that could tell me what they think about their smaller, older jeeps?.. im really taking a liking to old MB/GPW and CJ5s.. .what do you like about yours, what makes them special, and in what way can they be more useful than a larger jeep?

im hoping an early CJ5, or an even older MB/GPW, with perhaps a new carb and a few tweaks here and there, could achieve pretty decent fuel economy... im also hoping to go with a relatively stock tire size, and hopefully be light enough to not need any sort of power steering to comfortably handle.. i want something utilitarian, with as few unneccessary components as possible.. my goal is simplicity, and reliability over comfort and luxury.. im looking for a real jeep, not just another soccer mom SUV like just about anything made today

 

[Imakrazy]

i had a manual 4cyl yj and now i have a 6cyl auto tj
my advice is GET A MANUAL!!!! regardless to what you get get a manual its so much better thats the one thing i regret with my tj now, if you could get a tj 6cyl manul right now id say thats the best bet. i personally feel that tj parts are the easiest to get right now. whatever you decide do your hw and study up!

 

[animus_divinus]

im not too worried about aftermarket availability right now.. i like the challenge of fabricating my own stuff like rollcages, flares, hard and soft tops, etc... but yeah, ive always intended to get a manual, i stopped driving automatics a while ago... im not sure what the fuel economy on an old MB or early CJ5 with a better, modern carb would be, and ive heard the 4 cylinder CJ5s have trouble going up hills.. not sure if any of this is true as i dont personally have one

 

[Imakrazy]

id suggest making sure your engine is fuel injected too. but yea my 4cyl yj would get like a steady 35mph up most big hills

 

[superj]

my buddy jared has a 53 jeep. i don;t know which one that is but his is a blast. his dad, him, and his uncle all have older 50s model jeeps because they own a restoration parts business. other then the cost of some parts, his is very cheap to own. his is totally an off road vehicle with tractor tires and bare nothing in it but it runs great and has never gotten stuck anywhere. he goes through mud that slops over the door sill and the jeep just keeps going. its got whatever that old school 4 cylinder is and transmission and is a great little jeep.

here is his

 

[TerryMason]

perhaps a new carb and a few tweaks here and there, could achieve pretty decent fuel economy... im also hoping to go with a relatively stock tire size, and hopefully be light enough to not need any sort of power steering to comfortably handle.. i want something utilitarian, with as few unneccessary components as possible.. my goal is simplicity, and reliability over comfort and luxury.. im looking for a real jeep, not just another soccer mom SUV like just about anything made today

My first Jeep was an 80 CJ5, and it was alot of fun. I would not say that it was reliable, or got good mileage though - not a slam on the Jeep, just that it was 20 years old.

CJs are simple and easy to work on, just be careful how much rust it has.

 

[animus_divinus]

problem with an MB or CJ2A is theyre pretty much off-road only, not having enough high end to travel on a highway.. and should one reach those speeds with gearing or engine mods.. probably wouldnt be too safe with a proper suspension tuning... rolling a topless jeep with no rollbar is sure death

 

[animus_divinus]

does anyone know anything about earlier CJ engines, like the hurricane I4?... is it a decent, reliable engine worth rebuilding?

the more i look, the more that old MB design is starting to grow on me... but the more i see the CJ3B and its higher hood.. at first it didnt look right, looked up, but even thats starting to grow on me intensely... in fact, im starting to really like that beefy look of the CJ3B

so one major question... with engine modifications and possible aftermarket parts... is it at all possible for a go-devil or hurricane engine to make highway speeds without major change in gears?

 

[superj]

My buddies jeep will only do 55 (with proper tires) and that is the max. Its like the old military vehicles, 55ish is tops

 

[animus_divinus]

what has your buddies jeep had done to it besides tires? and what exactly is his jeep?

 

[superj]

minus tires, its stock

 

[54cj3b]

I can go faster than 65 in my 3b but don't top is 55/60
I love the 4.3 more power off road
these older jeeps weren't designed for high speed any how
there fun and that's all that counts and yes they go just about anywhere