I recently purchased this from some friends whose son parked it when he went to college and never looked back. I'm looking to turn it into my hunting and camping rig so as not to tear up my daily driver and give me a great post-divorce project. I had a 1985 Jeep CJ-7 back in high school/college but, I quickly learned that a daily driver that is also a project does not bode well for my transportation needs. With my old Jeep I did lots of fabrication on it and cut my teeth, so to speak, in the off-roading world. Now that I live in Wyoming, an off-roading honey hole, I wanted something unique and capable, which brings me to the point I am at now. Here are a few pictures of my new FJ55, along with a list of my plans for it.
Mechanical
Mechanical
- Go through the engine to make sure it runs
- Replace gaskets
- Rebuild carburetor
- Drain and refill the oil
- Drain and refill the coolant system with Evan’s Coolant
- Drain/flush the fuel tank ~ replace if necessary
- Flush or replace fuel lines
- Go through brake system ~ replace any necessary components
- Brake lines
- Wheel cylinders
- Install Tacoma conversion kit for the front brakes
- Calipers
- Brake pads/shoes
- Dual batteries installed in the engine compartment with custom mount
- New U-joints for both drive shafts (2 u-joints per drive shaft).
- Patch any rust ~ front fenders, rear fenders, rear corners, rear valance, rear door sills
- Reinforce the vehicle frame where necessary (crossmembers, boxing, etc…)
- Primer and paint the body (red/white or grey/white with black accessories)
- Use a rust encapsulator on the inside/underside of the vehicle body wherever surface rust is present
- Undercoat the entire body
- install a truck bed liner coating on the floor
- 3 inch suspension lift via spring-over-axle
- New spring perches on both axles
- New polyurethane bushings
- Longer shackles
- Shackle reversal for the front/rear axle as needed
- New shocks with boots on all four corners
- Sway bar disconnects with longer links
- Polyurethane body mount kit with bolts and washers
- 33-35 inch M&S tires with 15-17 inch steel rims
- DIY bead-lock kits for all five wheels
- Install Detroit lockers front and rear
- Front bucket seats
- Install ammo-can center consol
- New seat covers for the rear bench seat
- Rear seat harnesses (4-point harnesses)
- CB radio move and reinstall with antenna
- Build roof rack with mesh bottom (use existing rack mounts but paint to match)
- Include mount for auxiliary lights
- Include mount for shovel
- Include mount for axe
- Include mount for Hi-Lift jack
- Auxiliary lighting
- Rifle rack in cargo area (lockable with four rifle locations)
- Install stereo
- Ammo-can storage for parts and recovery equipment
- Build rear corner body protection
- Custom center section skid plate and crossmember
- Build custom front winch bumper with stinger, shackle mounts for D-rings, and grill guard
- Build custom rear bumper
- Swing-out tire carrier
- Jerry can for gas
- Jerry can for water
- Shackle mounts for D-rings
- Rock rails/rocker guards (rear of the front fender wheel well to the front of the rear wheel well).
- Install 10,000 lb winch with in-dash controls
