parts cherokee woes

[terrawombat]

Pics coming as soon as I can get it in my shop...need to make some room.

 

Here's how much I'm into it all.

 

Jeep: $400

U-haul Trailer Rental: $60

Gas for friend's truck: $60

30-pack for friend letting me borrow truck: $20

 

Total: $540

 

Not too bad. I expect to make around $150-$200 back on selling off parts I don't need and then whatever the scrapyard pays me for the bare shell. I'm hoping the yard will take the Jeep without a title or then I'll have to shell out an additional $60 for a title transfer.

[terrawombat]

Got it in the shop. The front axle took a good hit - broke the control arm mounts right off and pushed the whole thing back several inches. We had to use a spare tire from a boat trailer to get it to fit in the wheel well. Going to pull the axle out and rig it up as best I can so I can move this thing around for the next couple of months while I prep the MJ. I'll be salvaging what I can from the front axle and scrapping the rest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[JeepcoMJ]

NICE SCORE!

 

scrap price should be around $150-$200.. load it up with as much metal weight as possible...NO SPARE TIRES just metal weight.

 

you should make over half back. a good rear hatch sels for around $125 up here.

[terrawombat]

Thanks. I bought it completely sight unseen except for a couple of small, crappy CL pics. He posted this truck for sale a couple weeks back and was trying to part it out or sell it whole. I passed on it because of the extent of the front end damage and his asking price. The PO, like me, expressed his extreme frustration with CL buyers that talk a big game but never show up. He decided to not bother with them anymore and just send it to the scrapper. He had a guy put a deposit on the engine, but when he came to look at it, the gauges were acting screwy and showing zero oil pressure so that buyer walked away. When I got there, the gauge also showed zero oil pressure, but I pushed on the gauge cluster - it was loose. Oil pressure jumped up to 45-50psi.

 

The 242 was a real treat. On the way up to get it, I was thinking to myself wouldn't it be great if this thing had cruise control and a 242 - nah, it's only a Sport model so it probably won't have a 242, but maybe cruise. Didn't get cruise, but got he 242. It also had factory fog lights as it has the switch for them, but those were destroyed in the accident. Unfortunately, the wiring harness for the front lighting is about trashed too - cut and smashed everywhere.

 

Hoping I can get some money for the rear glass, too. It's factory tinted so maybe that'll draw some attention. The hatch seems to be in decent shape, but it doesn't seem to close right for some reason. I can't tell if it's the hatch or if the body is tweaked in the back. There are also no Jeep or 4.0L badges on the hatch which makes me wonder if it was repainted.

 

Also noticed that the previous owner was using Wix oil filters. Atta boy!

[Sir Sam]

Damage looks pretty minor, personally I'd fix it and flip it.

[terrawombat]

The thought has cross my mind...several times. Initially, the thought was that the frame sustained some major damage, but after tearing into it, it looks like the front axle and control arms took the brunt of the hit. Swapped in an axle and control arms and have been driving it around my property a bit testing out the transmission. Unfortunately, the axle I had lying around wasn't the right gear ratio so I didn't connect the front driveshaft and cannot test the transfer case, but I suspect it's fine.

 

I also got a clear title with the Jeep so I could fix it up and sell it if I chose to. For now, I'm going to continue prepping my MJ for the 97+ conversion. I've got a lot of work that still needs to be done and I'll be keeping an eye out for another wrecked XJ on the cheap. Still looking for that MJ that got hammered in the rear, is not fixable, and has all good front end parts on it :D

[terrawombat]

Looking a litttttle better.

 

Trying to source 97+ front end parts. Hit the pick-n-pull today and was able to get a header and grille. Header is in poor shape, but the guy only charged me $10 for it. Got it so I could put headlights in and drive it around the abandoned road by my house to test the trans.

 

 

 

[Sir Sam]

Damm your halfway to having that thing fixed. I would say go ahead and spend a little more and flip it.

 

From my perspective I come across lots of cheap wrecked/non fixable donors 97+ every day(rolled smashed etc). I don't come across lots of lightly damaged cheaply fixed 97+'s everyday.

 

Check out certifit for the rest of your 97+ stuff you need:

 

$150 in paint, $100 for some airbags, $100 for the rest of the front end parts you need and you have a fixed flipper.

 

Just think, with the money you make off of this one you could buy another donor that wasn't fixable plus all sorts of goodies for the mj.......

[Sir Sam]

Also, if that had been at my local auction I would have to pay 1500-2000 for it.

[terrawombat]

I'm slowly sourcing front end parts from various places. I may pick up a passenger fender and headlight surrounds from certifit (never knew about that place until now, thanks!). They have a local store not too far from me, either.

 

Got a guy from NAXJA giving me a front bumper and endcaps. I can work with the current header panel I have if need me and I already have two sets of turn signals - would need to pick up side markers (certifit maybe?) and a new wiring harness. I think I can get the wiring harness off the same XJ I got the header panel from and tape it up and make it look respectable.

 

That would leave fixing the front and rear passenger doors, windshield, passenger rocker (has a hole in it somehow and I don't think it's from rust). The PO gave me a new passenger airbag and cover so I would just need the driver side. Do you know if the airbag control module needs to be replaced once the airbags have been deployed?

 

I would also need to swap out the front axle for one that's geared right :D

[Sir Sam]

I'm slowly sourcing front end parts from various places. I may pick up a passenger fender and headlight surrounds from certifit (never knew about that place until now, thanks!). They have a local store not too far from me, either.

 

Got a guy from NAXJA giving me a front bumper and endcaps. I can work with the current header panel I have if need me

 

That would leave fixing the front and rear passenger doors, windshield, passenger rocker (has a hole in it somehow and I don't think it's from rust). The PO gave me a new passenger airbag and cover so I would just need the driver side. Do you know if the airbag control module needs to be replaced once the airbags have been deployed?

 

I would also need to swap out the front axle for one that's geared right :D

 

For as inexpensive as the certifit header panel is I would just pick it up and paint it.

 

Also for how cheap the turn signals and marker lights are from certifit I would get those as well, the new shiny non faded lights really clean up the front end and set it off when theres new paint up there.

 

certifit will also have the bumper brackets(might not get those with the bumper), as well as bumper and end caps if the ones you get are too crappy.

 

What do the doors look like?

 

Drivers airbag should be pretty cheap, you will need to get the clockspring or at least the plug to get soldered in. The airbag plug usually melts to the back of the airbag and is unusable in the future.

 

There is no module that needs to be replaced, just the airbags and the clockspring/plug. Sometimes the fuse blows down in the interior fusebox.

[terrawombat]

Can you comment on the quality of the Certifit parts? They're cheap enough...I can basically get all of the parts I need for about $240. However, I have had experience with aftermarket body parts suppliers and the metal is usually thinner gauge and the fit isn't perfect. Now, I wouldn't care if I was absolutely positive I was going to flip the vehicle, but I haven't made that decision yet. If I keep the Jeep and/or use the parts on my MJ then I'm going to be picky and demand absolute perfection :D

[Sir Sam]

Can you comment on the quality of the Certifit parts? They're cheap enough...I can basically get all of the parts I need for about $240. However, I have had experience with aftermarket body parts suppliers and the metal is usually thinner gauge and the fit isn't perfect. Now, I wouldn't care if I was absolutely positive I was going to flip the vehicle, but I haven't made that decision yet. If I keep the Jeep and/or use the parts on my MJ then I'm going to be picky and demand absolute perfection :D

 

Things like the turn signals and marker lights are great, just about any plastic light is going to be just as good as OEM but cheaper.

 

The fenders are pretty good, the metal is a little thinner, for the price its hard to beat. It's always hard to find good 97+ fenders, and they are ALWAYS getting tweaked, so most of the time I just about have to give up on getting OEM fenders. Fit is pretty good, not the same as OEM. It's not any one thing that I can tell is off, but they are just a little bit harder to get in place. You have to look pretty close with a trained eye to tell the fenders apart from the real thing. I've got one on my Jeep right now and it doesn't bother me.

 

The header panel is plastic, compared to the OEM fiberglass, the quality has varied, the last one I got was super cheap crappy plastic, ended up not using it because it was warped and broken etc.

 

My friend recently got one and it was still plastic, but much better quality, thicker, better lines etc. I would just make sure the one you get has the studs along the top to attach to the upper rad support. The cheaper ones don't seem to have that, the newer better ones do.

 

FYI a new fiberglass header panel is like $250 from Jeep - I grab all the fiberglass header panels I can find at the junkyard, if there are header panels - I gotta grab em while I can, same for fenders. The bumpers and end caps are so cheap through certifit that its usually not worth messing with used parts.

[terrawombat]

Thanks for the feedback. I was afraid that this might be the case in regards to quality. I will likely continue to hunt for a good fiberglass header panel in the junkyard and just make due with the one I currently have. It's not too bad, but the bottom edge near the bumper is cracked and chipped in various spots. I'll likely wind up getting both front fenders, side markers, and headlight/turn signal surrounds from Certifit - maybe even a grille. The plastic stuff is cheap enough, it's kind of hard to justify NOT getting them.

 

I picked up the front bumper and endcaps tonight for free from an NAXJA member. It was dark out so I couldn't really see. Going to drop it off at my shop tonight and inspect it, but I think it'll be fine. Also still has the mounts attached to it.

 

I'm in no rush to get this finished, so I'll keep grabbing parts as they come around.

[terrawombat]

Here are some more shots of the XJ:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[JeepcoMJ]

the door and rocker damage totals it out for me.

 

 

that header would be an easy fix, though.

[ComancheAssault]

My thanks as well for the review, I came across certifit on the net and plan to get those rocker panel and some cyl bolts from their dropoff.

 

For as inexpensive as the certifit header panel is I would just pick it up and paint it.

 

Also for how cheap the turn signals and marker lights are from certifit I would get those rocker panel as well, the new shiny non faded lights

really clean up the front end and set it off when theres new paint up there.

 

certifit will also have the bumper brackets(might not get those with the bumper), as well as bumper and end caps if the ones you get are too crappy.

 

What do the doors look like?

 

Drivers airbag should be pretty cheap, you will need to get the clockspring or at least the plug to get soldered in. The airbag plug usually melts to the back of the airbag and is unusable in the future.

 

There is no module that needs to be replaced, just the airbags and the clockspring/plug. Sometimes the fuse blows down in the interior fusebox.

[Sir Sam]

Here are some more shots of the XJ:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can get new door skins fairly cheap, seems like a good way to go here.

[terrawombat]

I've got a lead on a '00XJ and a '01XJ, each for $500, both with near perfect body panels, but issues with the engines. If I can ever get an ounce of free time from the 14+ hours days I've been putting in at work, I will drive to get them, flip those for profit, and use the blue one in this thread as a donor for my 97+ conversion.

[Rymanrph]

Where are you finding the information on Certifit? The website only seems to show lenses, mirrors and lights. I've got one somewhat near me that might be a good resource.

[terrawombat]

Website only shows the smaller items like the ones you mentioned. Gotta go to one of their locations to get the big stuff.

[Sir Sam]

I've got a lead on a '00XJ and a '01XJ, each for $500, both with near perfect body panels, but issues with the engines. If I can ever get an ounce of free time from the 14+ hours days I've been putting in at work, I will drive to get them, flip those for profit, and use the blue one in this thread as a donor for my 97+ conversion.

 

Yup that makes sense, use the engine from this one and then part it out. Not a bad way to go.

[terrawombat]

Engine, trans, transfer case, rear end, dash, seats, carpet, wiring harness, the whole lot. My MJ that is in line for the 97+ conversion has a drivetrain that is pretty well shot - an engine with low compression across the board, a pukegoat transmission that doesn't seem to want to stay in 1st or reverse, and a D35 rear end that is, well, a D35 rear end. I think the transfer case may be okay, though :D

[Sir Sam]

Website only shows the smaller items like the ones you mentioned. Gotta go to one of their locations to get the big stuff.

 

Yup, though they do have their full catalogue available as a PDF for you too look through, but you do need to pick those parts up in person.

[terrawombat]

The '99XJ Classic that I sold to my girlfriend's mother was just hit on the right rear on Friday. Looks to be suspension and frame rail damage. The insurance company may total it and I'll be looking to buy it back if they do.