Sir Sam

Consider making an interlocked popsicle stick "beam" use the sticks as the substrate. between two beams make a truss to bear the wieght

Be careful, or I'll spay and neuter you. :rotf: Glad someone got it, last time I made a joke like that I was called "sick and twisted" or something akin to that. :doh:

Well I just thought about how I wanted it to look and made the decision that it needs to look OE. And there is nothing you can do to the Alex fenders to make them right. The lines are not as crisp, the edges are not as crisp, the rolled area is sloppy, they are too thin..... ect. Since I totally gutted the truck I'm not going to waste my time just to have it look shoddy. Now don't get me wrong I'm not going to do some concoure d'elegance restoration on it, I just want it to look right. And I understand that some people hate the 2500 clip, I get it, it's not for everyone. But if everyone is looking at it... it better look right. -Chris Yup, everything about those alex fenders are sloppy. What kinda wire(thickness) did you use to weld in that part of the fender? This should give you the best finished look, after seeing how the alex fenders were made I knew I couldn't deal with it.

Looks good, I was trying to decide which way I would go, do like you did, or cut my US fenders. I don't have a welder that is good for that type of work, which means I would either need to borrow someones, or spot weld it on and throw some filler over it. I also like how you came to the same conclusion as me.......ditch the 2500 fenders and use US fenders.....

I love leftovers.

Has he has any new movies the past 5 years?

Be careful, or I'll spay and neuter you.

Still waiting for the flex.

decent price

Me too, the best thing is paying for something with them and then being able to get indignant when the person is not giving you your change because they still think you have to give them 75 cents. I'm planning to get a bunch of $2 bills for this very same reason, I've decided I want to mess with people that way now.

all the dakota 8.25s I've seen where 6 lug

What an ugly envoy copy. Seriously if this is Jeep what wanted to make then they should have just licensed the envoy. Chrysler showed us the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee in person last week and frankly, we're impressed. It's the most attractive Chrysler interior and exterior we've seen in a while. But is that enough? The next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee's built on the same rear-wheel-drive unibody platform underpinning the new Mercedes-Benz ML. It's one of the few things Chrysler got out of its ill-fated "merger of equals" with the German automaker. There's also a new Quadra Lift air suspension system that provides height control and lifts the new Grand Cherokee up 4.5" from park mode to a maximum ride height of 11.1" for better off-road capability. There's also a select-trac system with four separate 4x4 systems, each set up for different driver needs. But of all that, the chassis's about the only thing they get from Mercedes. It's at this point in a preview piece on a Chrysler vehicle where we'd attack the rest of the vehicle for being a complete waste of time. It's not. The exterior body of the new Grand Cherokee gets an all-new sculpted body that helps give the new Grand Cherokee an athletic profile despite the increase in size and weight. It looks good in photos. In person it looks, and most importantly, feels, fantastic. The interior's all-new too. And by all-new, we mean it looks like what we expect a luxury SUV to look like. That's good, because it'll need it to go up against competitors like the new Cadillac SRX and new Lexus RX. It may actually succeed, mostly because it's not just about the looks, there's also engineering changes that come from listening to current-generation owners — things like more than 4" of extra rear-seat knee and leg room (38.6") compared to the previous model allowing it to get reclining second-row seats. The problem is still the fuel economy. That's not to say it's not good — for a Jeep. It is. In addition to the base model flex-fuel 3.6-liter V6 with an estimated 280 HP, the new Grand Cherokee gets the available 5.7-liter HEMI V8 generating 360 HP and 390 lb-ft of torque at 4,250 rpm – features VVT and despite features like VVT and fuel-saving Multi-displacement System (MDS) technology, we're still talking about fuel economy in the 16/23 (FWD) and 16/22 (AWD). The HEMI gets 14/20 (2WD) and 13/19 (4WD). Good for an SUV. Unfortunately, will it be enough for a Chrysler lineup that currently doesn't have any vehicles with over 31 MPG? We'd have to say no. But for the Jeep brand, this is a hell of a top-of-the-line for the lineup. We approve. We'll have more including live shots later. http://jalopnik.com/5203380/2011-jeep-grand-cherokee-good-looking-but-is-it-enough

different bolt pattern, width may be different

Yes. Its not even a XJ wheel mounted on a XJ column, the ZJ column has a different level for the tilt, is smaller, and only has one control stalk. This is very clearly a 96-98ZJ column. um. you have NO idea what you're talking about here dudely. I've seen that wheel in 2000 and 2001 XJ's, though none were stock jeeps so it is possible they were swapped (however unlikely) for ZJ wheels/airbags. But, that column is DEFINITELY an xj column. I have the same, identical column in my comanche from a 1995 cherokee. they didn't change much, if at all after that. cherokees never had dual stalk columns either...always single stalk, just as the one in the picture is. the other "stalk" you see is the tilt adjuster. not to start animosity...just pointing out the truth. The 95/96X used that same column with a mechanical airbag setup. A uniquely one of a kind piece.(was that redundant?) But don't tell me what that I don't know what I am talking about. I omitted the 95/96XJ having a similar column because it would just confuse the issue. That airbag only came on the 96, 97, and 98 ZJs. ALL, and I mean every single 1997-2001 XJs have TWO control stalks(your quick to try and point this out to me, yet you yourself don't even know this fact, have you ever looked at the interior of a 97-2001 XJ or 1997-2006 TJ?) Not to sound like an @$$, just correcting the "truth."

Better than me, all I found was roofing nails and a AR15 muzzle brake.

Right, but the guy who did this probably got it titled as a homemade vehicle in 2004.

Looked to me like he recovered a bench seat with XJ fabric. If it was done as well as the rest of the jeep I think that means the bench is in nice new shape, and probably rides like a brand new seat.

Yes. Its not even a XJ wheel mounted on a XJ column, the ZJ column has a different level for the tilt, is smaller, and only has one control stalk. This is very clearly a 96-98ZJ column.

They clearly are not. They are from a 96-98 ZJ(grand cherokee).

Ya I know what you mean. Would be a little funny for you to goto all that trouble with the 2500 orders, and then not use any........... 97+ interior?

this gap gets better, but its going to take a lot of work to sit flush. But then look at a US OEM fender, you can see that its many times better quality in the stamping. All sorts of rippled and nasty looking: this is the upper header bolt that you want to duplicate: Once again you want to make a 97+ upper mount for the 96 fender, and then you want the lower 96 mount. Also, this is what your bent over support looks like after modifying it to clear the 2500 header.

I got lucky and was able to sell my 2.5 with 93k for $70, maybe you could get $30 for your junk parts? also sold the tranny for $60. what you pulled out looked very familiar. 2500 front end?

jeepco is going to have a nervous breakdown

I didn't have any trouble with it, twice, since I forgot to put the tranny pan magnet back in.