Best Mods under $50... (3 Viewers)

[Man Jerk]

Another under $50 modification I made was using some stainless steel flashlight clips to mount a 4-D cell maglight on the left hand side of the transmission hump. I know there are brighter, perhaps better lights out there, but I like Maglights, they're proven, nearly indestructible and cheap. A buddy of mine that does spray-lining sprayed my flashlight one day he was making samples, pretty neat trick!

I had a buddy with a chrome mag light. We all gave him hell about it, until he showed us a trick. Late at night around a campfire, take a black maglight and throw it out of sight, throw the chrome one the same distance and it is much easier to find because it is shiny! Much easier to find after a night drinking beer

 

[DocB]

A three hole cigarette lighter plug plugged into the stock hole for powering cell phone, spot light, etc. Bought mine at a truck stop.
A spot light (I have a slim profile silver one made by Brinkman got it at Academy, sits between Tuffy and folded rear seat and takes up less space than a Q Beam.)
Under the hood I keep a drop light which is modified with battery clips.
Pulled trim panels inside the back and stored parts: belts, hoses, extra fuel injector (TBI), etc. Gobs of unused space in there for emergency stuff. Put a detailed list of what is stored in the glove box.
A thin profile plastic tool box that opens from the top mounted against the inside wheel well.
A "Hitchmate" step that unfolds and sits on top of the tire for quick easy access to the roof rack.
A pair of cheap binoculars for long distance spying.
A stick on compass.
A stick on inside/outside thermometer/clock.
A headset/mic for my cell phone.
A truckstop 10 dollar Slim Jim and lock out set so someday I might be a hero.
Eight million Wal Mart bungee cords, $12.
A "canned heat" heater that sucks up oxygen but provides next to no heat.
A military surplus down sleeping bag stays in the truck for cool "emergencies".
A pair of cheap rubber mud boots.
A pair of snake chaps (I live in West Texas).
Swedish Military Surplus backpacks strapped to the back of each front seat, looks cool and good storage. And looks cool. Really.
A small mongrel dog named Charlie who chases cows and loves to wheel, my best mod.

 

[dd113]

Cheap all weather floor mats from Costco, I think PIMP and I have the same

Velcro on the back of the cel phone and female velcro on the dash to the right of the speedo (FJ62)

3D mag light with one clip on holder next to the AC box. The far end is held by the HI/LO shifter.

5lb fire extinguisher

 

[bad_religion_au]

A three hole cigarette lighter plug plugged into the stock hole for powering cell phone, spot light, etc. Bought mine at a truck stop.

i just bought a couple of cheap 3-1 cig lighter converter, cut the end off the cord, hard wired it to the battery through a fuse, and instant more cig lighters. one in the center console, one in the cargo area...

bought cheep fluro 12v work light, hardwired with fuse and switch, to use as a cargo area light.

a couple of cheap drive lights to use for work lights/ camp lights/ reverse lights at the back of the truck


undre 50 bucks the lot.

 

[Jim_Phillips]

Goto the local car wash. Costs very little and the car looks all clean and shiny afterwards. Worth paying for if it hasn't rained in a few weeks (unlikely in UK) and washed all the mud off...

 

[Man Jerk]

Since I am the king of cheap, I'll impart some wisdom...

1st and formost...
CB Radio, $40 from Radio Shack

Aux Mech gauges (temp, Oil pressure) $30 from Summit Racing
Homemade ARB compressor made from Caddy compressor ~$40
Trimmed front fenders courtesy of sawsall
FJ62 Dash Grab bar $13 from ebay
I'll second daves suggestion about fire extinguisher
Extended brake lines from Pick n pull..

I know I got more, I just gotta think about it some more!

 

[jesterb]

Auto tranny cooler. This is essential for FJ62's and only costs 40 to 60 dollars.

 

[Landpimp]

piece of mouse pad works good.

ah ha...now i know how to cure those keys. it has been driving me nuts lately.

 

[lowtideride]

I just hooked my keys to my wallet..that stopped that...plus its a lot easier to find the keys with a wallet attached to them...

 

[Jman]

IH8MUD sticker!

Stainless steel battery tray (well, I think it's $59, but still worth it--can't find the Web site though)

KLF, you are a genius--the tap tap tap was getting to me recently.

 

[casey]

stainless battery tray (ebay)
fj62 dash grab bar on fj60
can of tuff stuff to clean headliner (mine was so nasty I was ready to buy a new one, after cleaning it looks new again)
hella horns
hi-lift
diff breathers
replacing missing/broken trim pieces (ebay)
sea foam

 

[Jim_Phillips]

Two of my best have been a reversing sensor ($30) and outside temperature sensor ($30)

 

[jjbodean1970]

Another freebie: attach a small chunk of carpeting to the steering column just below the ignition, no more noise from the keys jangling against it.

now i know what the PO was thinking by attaching the big velcro piece to the side of the column! glad i didn't remove it....

 

[grrlscout89FJ62]

I don't know if these are the *best* upgrades, I've done. They're pretty much the *only* upgrades I've done (except for the stereo, which was way more than $50).

Dog barrier - $50 (down from $70) at petco.com and footlocker - $14.44 @ wally world. Luckily the footlocker fits right between the vertical bars. Plus it stores my tool box, maps, jumper cables, handheld CB, EMT kit, etc etc etc.

 

[fogblanket]

here are a couple that i haven't seen mentioned yet that I have done.
1)bought a section of remnant diamond plate rubber mat from SOR, and have attached to a number of places: on the top of the rear door wheel wells (the section that is only exposed when the rear pasanger doors are open) great step for reaching up onto roof rack. I put it on the top of my rear bumper looks nice and is very functional.
2) put a 3x5 industrial work shop floor mat (find them at any hardware store or home depot) it fits half way under my rear cargo mat and the other half folds up agains the rear tail gate which really reduced noise and fumes from entering the gap between the tailgate and body,plus when the tail gate is folded down it gives another layer of paddingfor the tailgate.
3)map light has been covered but i mounted mine to the plastic shield that covers the rear view mirror mounting hardware. I beleive landpimp has his mounted the same way.
4) wired 2 lighter plugs in rear cargo area, great for work light and my frig. also wired 2 more on front of center cousel, power to these is always on. great for running gps and fridge that need to stay on even when igition is off.
HTH someone jason

 

[jwest]

Great suggestions!

A lot of us think alike.
I too, put some adhesive backed foam rubber on the steering column.

Here's a few. Probably more like fixes rather than mods.

1) My green instrument panel lights were dim and dingy. The original Koito bulbs are white with green plastic boots. They can be replaced with tinted green mini bulbs (192 if i recall correctly) from the local parts store. I got mine from autozone. These wedge bulbs are pretty common and I also remember seeing blue, red, and white. Cheap.

Seems there are several bulb p/n's that are interchangeable. Here's a chart that shows the differnces, where the 168 is the brighter but also has a shorter life.

Trade No. Volts Watts Amps Avg. CP Life
161 14.0 2.66 0.19 1 4000
158 14.0 3.36 0.24 2 3000
194 14.0 3.78 0.27 2 2500
192 14.0 4.62 0.33 3 2000
168 14.0 4.90 0.35 3 1500


2) 3mm I.D. Akimoto silicone vacuum hose to replace every piece of old tubing you've got. About 30 bucks. These are extremely thick walled hoses and are supposedly guaranteed not to pinch when folded over. I bought 33 feet which was way over what i needed. I like them better than OEM for heat resistance, and performance, but they do add an aftermarket look to the mill.

3) I must be anal. Wrapped all fuel lines, hard and soft, with foam rubber insulation, using cable ties to hold them.

4) Wrapped cold A/C hose with pipe insulation too. Cable ties to secure it.

5) 50 watt backup lights. (idea taken from offroad.com) My rear windows are tinted pretty dark, so at night the extra wattage helps me see out the back. About 6 bucks.

.

 

[thorvald]

rewired speaker wires when I installed the radio. they threw the wires in for free with the radio purchase, so only cost me some time and a little solder/butane.

 

[87CRUSR]

Replaced the oem rubber pedal pads that seemed to continually crack at the edge stress points. Used after market screw on aluminum/plastic pedal covers that screw tight for a perfect fit. I bought the blue/gray ones that are a perfect match to my Blue '60. Cost around $30 and I haven't had to replace after a year and a half.

 

[Man Jerk]

Nice comfy sporty seats.... cost: free out of my brothers totalled dodge neon!

Built a platform which covers the cargo area and sits above the wheel wells.... free! Scrap wood laying around the house. Turned the 60 into a swingin RV! I even bought some screen from the hardware store and tape it over the windows for ventilation.

 

[Mike S]

I just added this thread to the FAQ! Good thread - fooling with the Cruiser without spending piles of cash.

Here's a couple...

Extra long jumper cables from heavy welding cable <$30

George Scolaro's LED dome light about $20

Full set of field service manuals - More than $50 but worth gold

Fire extinguisher - get one for <$15

Satellite phone (OK, it's more than $50 but it's very cool to call anywhere - from ANYWHERE)

WWI British Army leather map case - cool and useful for storing... maps - $$$?

Also - removing all the chrome strips - Free.