JeepcoMJ Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Not an MJ, but... Maybe some of you remember awhile back when I posted a "what to do with this" thread about my brother's rolled (totalled) 2002 Liberty Renegade on 3" or so lift and 32" Hankook MT's. Would you like to know more? click me http://s248.beta.pho...912394281319418 Well, the time has come. We've sat on it for quite some time, and finally found a new body with a bad motor. Bring on the 2002 Limited Liberty Renegade This Luxurious model features power windows, locks, power defrost mirrors, defrosted rear window with wiper, cruise, a/c, premium surround, heated seats, leather, sunroof, and Renegade light bar. For the "Rugged" types among you, it also features a 3" OME/Skyjacker lift combo, 32x11.50R16 Hankook MT's, 4.11 gears all around. Lol. So, I've started tearing into it for Steve (my brother). After some tinkering, with the original intent of just swapping the motor and selling it, I decided that dropping the engine/trans/k-member/front suspension was the easiest way to do this project. So, I stripped out the front clip, cooling and a/c system, disconnected the entire engine side engine bay harness from the engine bay itself, layed it over the motor, and moved on to popping the upper ball joints off in order to hang the calipers up and out of my way. After this, I proceeded to unbolt the trans crossmember, which was a chore in and of itself....this is a horrible design. Extra long bolts going through the crossmember through sleeves that like to hold water, promoting rust. Only broke one bolt. After that, I came here to type all of this up, and post links to all the pics. More tomorrow following the second post. The limited has a good engine, except it needs a head, because one of the lifters broke it's housing couple interior shots it will need some seats, driver's side is worn. interior is dirty, likely will put the charcoal interior in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted January 29, 2013 Author Share Posted January 29, 2013 Here are what remains of the tranny crossmember bolts. If they come out that bad from the other liberty, I will replace them Power steering shtuff out of the way now Driver's side all disconnected Passenger side all disconnected Everything laid over the engine Guess the ugly guy working on it me. For your own sake, We had to avoid taking pictures directly of his face. ....Kinda like Tim Allen's neighbor on Home Improvement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Engine, trans, tcase, y-pipe, front diff, lower front suspension, all out Just before pulling...using the pallet jack to support the K member and the engine hoist as a car lift. Don't worry, everything was blocked appropriately for safety, with jack stands and supports getting ratcheted up all the way, and we did not get under it once it was time to pull. Steve posing Clear engine bay So, now that I've dug into one....I really don't know why/how I got kicked off of JeepKJ.com for calling them mini vans. My mom's mini van had a k-member, too. A real jeep does not. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tylerzap Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Engine, trans, tcase, y-pipe, front diff, lower front suspension, all out Just before pulling...using the pallet jack to support the K member and the engine hoist as a car lift. Don't worry, everything was blocked appropriately for safety, with jack stands and supports getting ratcheted up all the way, and we did not get under it once it was time to pull. Steve posing Clear engine bay So, now that I've dug into one....I really don't know why/how I got kicked off of JeepKJ.com for calling them mini vans. My mom's mini van had a k-member, too. A real jeep does not. LOL Did you say the mini van owners creed? lol don't worry bud I got banned from Jeepforum for saying butthole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Don't know it. But call it a mini van, grocery getter, soccer mom car...cause that's what it is. Does it with style, but it is still just a 4wd minivan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ComancheKid45 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 That worst thought is This is what Chrysler thought would out perform and sucessfully replace the XJ... Keep up the hard work, its nice to see what a mess these things are to tear apart! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tylerzap Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 That worst thought is This is what Chrysler thought would out perform and sucessfully replace the XJ... Keep up the hard work, its nice to see what a mess these things are to tear apart! lol X2. I wouldnt mind one as a DD but it could no way outperform a XJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 To be honest, they're not bad to work on. Some design flaws, but the xj had some too. And they take a roll better than an xj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akula69 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 You were extremely lucky (or good) with the Trans bolt in the lower right of the picture. Looks like it had less then 50% of its diameter left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Spent some time with the impact just walking in and back out. I always tighten bolts before I loosen them, too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dscowell Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 So, now that I've dug into one....I really don't know why/how I got kicked off of JeepKJ.com for calling them mini vans. My mom's mini van had a k-member, too. A real jeep does not. LOL Haha that's hilarious! My mom has a KJ as her DD and its nice and all but doesn't seem like much of a jeep to me. I don't think they are rugged enough but I think that about most newer jeeps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92tanMJ Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Spent some time with the impact just walking in and back out. I always tighten bolts before I loosen them, too I do that too. Good luck with your build brotha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigblue12v Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 So, now that I've dug into one....I really don't know why/how I got kicked off of JeepKJ.com for calling them mini vans. My mom's mini van had a k-member, too. A real jeep does not. LOL They don't call it a "KJ" for nothing! Now you know lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted January 31, 2013 Author Share Posted January 31, 2013 Well, a bit of frustration pulling the "new" K-member, motor, trans, tcase, y-pipe, front suspension. I got everything done in record time as far as disconnecting...had about 2.5 hours into that this morning. When it got time to pull it, we found that our second pallet jack won't hold pressure and stay up...oh well, used it anyways, it got a little hectic but came out safely, with no one injured. pics everything pulled up top out and what it's going into Sorry for the "hazy" pics folks. The halogen lighting in the shop is detrimental to pictures...cannot use the flash on the camera or they're too dark to see, and without flash you can't so much as breathe while taking pics. But we've made progress. I have to reposition it on the pallet jack, then we will finish cleaning out the new body's engine bay, undercoating everything that should be prior to installing, then put the upper A arms in before the install. I figure it should be running by sunday, and that we'll have the rear suspension in by wednesday, that's with all the other crap we've got going in the meantime Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 3, 2013 Author Share Posted February 3, 2013 Well, after a day or two off for work, I'm back at it. Swapped the nv242 off the KJ's old drivetrain onto this one, slid it under, lined it up, adjusted the K-member, lightly installed all the bolts for the trans x-member and exhaust, and got the coils and upper a-arms in on Friday morning. Today I didn't get back from the swim meet (I coach a h.s. team) and in the shop until around 3pm. Spent a couple hours tearing down the old motor to find cause and effect of damage....the front cylinder exhaust side valve seat had come partially out, which dropped the roller rocker out, and when the cam came back down and hit it, it busted the lifter housing out of the head. I'll post pics of that later. Luckily, the short block is good, and I have a buyer who has good heads. Once done with that, I finished aligning everything, hooked up the steering shaft, put the calipers on, then layed the harness back out and plugged it all in. Once I got that done, computers back in, I hooked up most of the a/c system (except to the radiator since that will come back out to put a new water pump and the mechanical fan in). After that, it was a simple matter of mounting the power steering line brackets and cooler, sliding the radiator in, hooking up trans cooling lines so that I could test run it. Test run went great. I'll button up the front end tomorrow, except the front bumper itself, and then turn it around so I can swap the rear axle out for the 4.10 geared rear and lift kit, skid plates for the gas tank, transfercase, and the rear driveshaft. We do have to do some light trimming and probably ditch the inner fenders in order for the 32x11.50's to fit. I don't want to, but my bro doesn't want to buy different tires. It should come out OK. Once all the mechanical is done, we still need to swap out the interior to charcoal since this "grey" looks more "tan", and kinda ugly. We will keep the light grey seats as that is a color combo available from factory, and they are heated leather. On to the pics! Of course we also still need to wash the engine bay completely to get rid of the dust from the "new" parts, and then wax the jeep. It is going to get a lightbar if we can dig up one that's in good shape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 3, 2013 Author Share Posted February 3, 2013 Finished up the engine bay this morning. dropped the grille and front bumper on loosely so that I can see what it looks like...still have to do some work in that area as the very edge of the tires just barely rub the fender flares when turning. Under compression, that could be very troublesome. we will see what I come up with there. Now I have to hook up the shift linkage, front driveshaft, and muffler, then turn it around so we can put the rear end and lift in it. gettin closer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92tanMJ Posted February 4, 2013 Share Posted February 4, 2013 I like it, lots or work, lots of pictures and little talking. Keep up the good work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 7, 2013 Author Share Posted February 7, 2013 Thanks. Got everything in the front done after a few more days off. reorganized and shuffled things so the silver one is out in the middle, and the green one is in the open bay to strip. this is mocked with the rear axle drooped, body on jack stands, rear tires just sitting on. still have to swap the rear end. Also pulled the busted up lightbar from the renegade, set it on the roof for mockup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 7, 2013 Author Share Posted February 7, 2013 A guy stopped in before we started this project, seeing the silver one sitting outside on the tow dolly, and talked about one he had picked up that was t-boned in the driver's side. we were going to sell him the parts to fix it, but the frame rail is rippled. Once we looked at it, we decided to buy it. it's got a new motor in it, 205k on the ticker, rescue green Renegade with intact lightbar, color match wheels (good $$$ there) with new tires on it. Boy did it get hit hard. But, looks like we're looking for another body to do this again now, as we still have all the lower miles trans and k-member to put the new motor on so we can build a good one. Bright side....we have a good lightbar now. And a spare to go on my xj :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rymanrph Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 A guy stopped in before we started this project, seeing the silver one sitting outside on the tow dolly, and talked about one he had picked up that was t-boned in the driver's side. we were going to sell him the parts to fix it, but the frame rail is rippled. Once we looked at it, we decided to buy it. it's got a new motor in it, 205k on the ticker, rescue green Renegade with intact lightbar, color match wheels (good $$$ there) with new tires on it. Boy did it get hit hard. But, looks like we're looking for another body to do this again now, as we still have all the lower miles trans and k-member to put the new motor on so we can build a good one. Bright side....we have a good lightbar now. And a spare to go on my xj :D Are you sure it isn't Cactus Green like this one? Cause that is a factory color with factory wheels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 7, 2013 Author Share Posted February 7, 2013 It's Cactus green for sure. identical to that one. "new" one The hammer is for asthetics good, uncracked light bar set on. much better Spare tire fits, door glas just skims by it, and it doesn't seem to affect the hinges (I'm sure it will over a long time, but not long enough for me to care much) The ol' renegade pretty much stripped. finishing interior and rear end, then on to swapping that all in. damn camera sucks tho We're swapping the charcoal interior in, less seats, as that was a color combo available from factory, and frankly...the charcoal interior actually looks good and the creamy grey/tan that is in the silver one looks like puke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 8, 2013 Author Share Posted February 8, 2013 finished gutting the interior in both liberties. Have to swap the dash harness no matter what to install the Renegade roof lights, or splice into the high/low beam harness. I'm glad I've got the parts to do it right. charcoal interior panels removed again, sorry for the grainy pics. green renegade interior stripped except carpet, heaterbox. tire carrier removed charcoal /agate dash removed with harness. no broken clips :D Silver Limited interior gutted, less carpet (will be switching, but it was easier to vacuum while still installed) pile of grey(ish) interior. will be reusing grey leather in it, but I think we found nicer ones to go in. power and heated all of the charcoal interior in a pile. gotta clean to install old dash removed. goodbye ugly It's funny. We decided to swap the interior once we really realized how dirty the headliner was. As there is no "good" way to clean it while installed, and it likely would result in the headliner falling down if we did, we are recovering it. I just hated the grey interior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92tanMJ Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 Looks good dude! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepcoMJ Posted February 9, 2013 Author Share Posted February 9, 2013 Thanks! got the dash in ...and light bar working today. there was one wire missing in the limited engine harness to make that work, so I carefully pulled that wire and installed it in this harness as I didn't want to tear the engine bay apart again. works good. Just need to mount it then it's good to go. Also got to finally testing out the fog lights etc. and everything works Also started on the door panels. Wanted to make them even nicer, so we swapped the brushed aluminum luck parts into them. old look new look Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpnjim Posted February 9, 2013 Share Posted February 9, 2013 Good attitude about the Liberty/Minivan thing :yes: Some guys still get pretty defensive about their KJ's. I guess they don't know all the crap YJ and XJ guys got from CJ guys way back when...... so, in honor of your KJ build, I think we should have a Minivan/Liberty forum here :D "Your Project Minivans; Caravans, Voyagers, Town&Countrys and Libertys" ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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