The draw to the MJ

[89 MJ]

Why is it that most of us buy one MJ and then want to start hoarding them?

 

For me it is the small yet large size of the truck (small overall, but decent sized cab and bed), the ride (it rides better than my parent's JKU), and how well they handle (I have caught Camaros and Mustangs in corners in my lifted 4x4 pickup)

 

Why is it that you all like your MJ?

[BeatCJ]

My first car was a mini truck, a red 1973 Chevy LUV. This is that, but better. I wanted one when they came out, but I was poor and raising kids, as a kid. It's a good truck, better in many ways than the competition at the time. I have loved Jeeps since I remember riding in my grandpa's 1947 Willys farm car, in about 1966. I doubt I will have more than one, there are too many other things I want.

[JustEmptyEveryPocket]

My qualifications for any vehicle I personally drive or own:

1. Must be a truck. I do lots of wood working, fencing, building structures, etc.
2. Must have a manual transmission. I hate everything about an automatic, and I understand its both irrational and highly personal. But its how I feel.
3. Must be 4x4. I live in very rural Missouri. The first 7 miles of my drive ANYWHERE else is badly maintained gravel roads and huge hills. 
4. Must be easy to work on. Honestly when I was looking for my next vehicle I was looking for carbs. I hate all CAN bus and similar electronics. Give me the basics and I will accept the downsides.
5. Must be unique. Call it vanity if you want, but I like to stand out from a crowd. The MJ platform does just that. Got to love the huge JEEP on the tailgate!
6. Being able to fix it on the fly and get back home is always nice. K.I.S.S.
7. Cannot, I repeat, CANNOT have the stupid Chevy/ GM/ GMC/ etc emblem on it. Again, pure vanity and irrationality, but I hate the Chevy crowd. I know out vehicles have lots of GM parts . . . but I put up with that because the outside isn't badged and most people now-a-days don't associate the two.

With all of these requirements there are few vehicles that I can actually own. OBS fords, square body Dodges, IH trucks, etc. I found a rustfree (ish) MJ for cheap, bought it, and never looked back.

[89 MJ]

3 minutes ago, BeatCJ said:

My first car was a mini truck, a red 1973 Chevy LUV. This is that, but better. I wanted one when they came out, but I was poor and raising kids, as a kid. It's a good truck, better in many ways than the competition at the time. I have loved Jeeps since I remember riding in my grandpa's 1947 Willys farm car, in about 1966. I doubt I will have more than one, there are too many other things I want.

That's a neat story.

 

2 minutes ago, JustEmptyEveryPocket said:

My qualifications for any vehicle I personally drive or own:

1. Must be a truck. I do lots of wood working, fencing, building structures, etc.
2. Must have a manual transmission. I hate everything about an automatic, and I understand its both irrational and highly personal. But its how I feel.
3. Must be 4x4. I live in very rural Missouri. The first 7 miles of my drive ANYWHERE else is badly maintained gravel roads and huge hills. 
4. Must be easy to work on. Honestly when I was looking for my next vehicle I was looking for carbs. I hate all CAN bus and similar electronics. Give me the basics and I will accept the downsides.
5. Must be unique. Call it vanity if you want, but I like to stand out from a crowd. The MJ platform does just that. Got to love the huge JEEP on the tailgate!
6. Being able to fix it on the fly and get back home is always nice. K.I.S.S.
7. Cannot, I repeat, CANNOT have the stupid Chevy/ GM/ GMC/ etc emblem on it. Again, pure vanity and irrationality, but I hate the Chevy crowd. I know out vehicles have lots of GM parts . . . but I put up with that because the outside isn't badged and most people now-a-days don't associate the two.

With all of these requirements there are few vehicles that I can actually own. OBS fords, square body Dodges, IH trucks, etc. I found a rustfree (ish) MJ for cheap, bought it, and never looked back.

I have very similar vehicular requirements, but I don't mind GMs.

[gogmorgo]

I like the aspect that it’s something unusual but that doesn’t really stand out unless you know what you’re looking at. To most people it’s just an old truck, nothing special, so I don’t have to play the million question game every time I stop for gas. The ZJ is great for that, cause it’s “just” a ZJ, but no one else is driving one with a stick. The Ladas on the other hand are the exact opposite. Up here it’s not so bad because Canadians are usually polite enough to either leave me alone, or at least ask the question, listen to my answer, and then leave me alone. Driving through the States on the other hand, especially the further south I get, it’s almost every other gas station, it’s the same 20 questions, and almost no one listens to the answers and walks away calling it a BWA because they saw ВША on the wheels, so it’s mostly just an obnoxious waste of my time... but I’m ranting.

 

I also like the fact it’s a stout little truck that hits far above its weight class and fits pretty well everywhere I want to put it, and everything on it that could go wrong is pretty easily dealt with, and everything is pretty straightforward to fix. It’s also a pretty good looking little truck. It’s got a “tough” look without being butt ugly or looking like a Pokémon, but it’s not agressive, not dopey, not overly happy, and the proportions are pretty good.

 

I guess it comes down to it being a truck build to be a truck without pretending to be anything else.

[derf]

I bought my first MJ intending to build it up.  The one I bought is pretty well beat up so I'm not ruining anything by modifying it.

 

The short bed has the wheelbase I want.  The front end being XJ means it's easy to swap in the front Dana 60 and lift it.  The rear leaf springs makes bolting up anything easy as well.

 

The 4.0 is a stout engine that has tons of mods available.

 

At this point I'm considering getting another one once this first project is "done".  I'd like one as a drive around truck.  Maybe a metric ton so I can use it more as a truck.

[89 MJ]

1 hour ago, gogmorgo said:

I like the aspect that it’s something unusual but that doesn’t really stand out unless you know what you’re looking at. To most people it’s just an old truck, nothing special, so I don’t have to play the million question game every time I stop for gas. The ZJ is great for that, cause it’s “just” a ZJ, but no one else is driving one with a stick. The Ladas on the other hand are the exact opposite. Up here it’s not so bad because Canadians are usually polite enough to either leave me alone, or at least ask the question, listen to my answer, and then leave me alone. Driving through the States on the other hand, especially the further south I get, it’s almost every other gas station, it’s the same 20 questions, and almost no one listens to the answers and walks away calling it a BWA because they saw ВША on the wheels, so it’s mostly just an obnoxious waste of my time... but I’m ranting.

 

I also like the fact it’s a stout little truck that hits far above its weight class and fits pretty well everywhere I want to put it, and everything on it that could go wrong is pretty easily dealt with, and everything is pretty straightforward to fix. It’s also a pretty good looking little truck. It’s got a “tough” look without being butt ugly or looking like a Pokémon, but it’s not agressive, not dopey, not overly happy, and the proportions are pretty good.

 

I guess it comes down to it being a truck build to be a truck without pretending to be anything else.

That all makes sense. 

 

1 minute ago, derf said:

 

At this point I'm considering getting another one once this first project is "done".  I'd like one as a drive around truck.  Maybe a metric ton so I can use it more as a truck

This is where I am at too. 

[gogmorgo]

31 minutes ago, derf said:

At this point I'm considering getting another one once this first project is "done".  I'd like one as a drive around truck. 

Definitely do it in that order. I got one “to drive around” while I was building up my first one... and now I’ve got two project MJs. 

[Fernando87mj]

8 minutes ago, gogmorgo said:

Definitely do it in that order. I got one “to drive around” while I was building up my first one... and now I’ve got two project MJs. 

Same here.. 

[Torq_Shep]

18 minutes ago, gogmorgo said:

Definitely do it in that order. I got one “to drive around” while I was building up my first one... and now I’ve got two project MJs. 

Isn't that everyone with 2 MJs? I have one torn to bits in the garage and one beat up one I drive around while I work on the other one. 

[derf]

20 minutes ago, gogmorgo said:

Definitely do it in that order. I got one “to drive around” while I was building up my first one... and now I’ve got two project MJs. 

Been there.  Done that.

[Minuit]

At first, I was 15 and had nothing to drive and not a lot of money to buy something to drive. So I bought a fuel pump for grandma's long-sitting MJ. That, plus a couple hundred bucks in various odds and ends, none of them serious, added up to a running and driving vehicle that was a little bit rough around the edges, mostly thanks to the time it spent sitting. Over time, I started thinking, "hey, this thing ain't too bad!"

 

Then, I started fixing the weak spots of that MJ. It started to be a pretty nice vehicle. To the point where I felt guilty every time I went to the junkyard for parts to continue upgrading said MJ and coming back with muddy pants and feet. I was also driving it about 240 miles a week to and from school. The thought of entering it into shows was beginning to be a realistic prospect. But I never wanted to go too far with it, because I wanted it to always be the truck I remembered my grandmother driving as a kid.

 

After a while of this, a member on CC not too far away was downsizing his fleet and needed to get rid of a real specimen of an 89. It came with some decent parts, and a straight and completely rust-free body minus the floors. It was selling cheap (and the parts it came with were worth as much as he was asking for the truck almost), I had some money burning a hole in my pocket, and I already was familiar with the platform, so I said screw it and bought it.

 

This 89 was not like the first one. It had been fiddle-f**ked to within an inch of its life in some areas. It sported a horrific paint job. The engine knocked and made pathetic oil pressure. It had death wobble. The driver side floor was just plain gone. Good transmission, though. But it made the 40 mile drive home without killing me.

 

It was perfect. Nobody had any feelings of attachment to this piece of $#!&, especially not me. I was free to do whatever the hell I wanted to it.

 

Fast forward 4 years or so and that's pretty much as far as I've gotten.

[Chad R]

The draw for me was I grew up in one.

[MiNi Beast]

cause i wanted a truck and a jeep. and only cost me a 100 bucks. 

[sammisox]

Mine started with XJ’s. I grew up always wanting to have my own XJ and the first vehicle I ever purchased with my own money was a 95 Cherokee. I knew nothing about cars so my XJ was like my gateway vehicle. My dad thought I was insane for wanting to get rid of my hand-me-down Kia for a Jeep as old as I was, but I won him over. We spent countless nights working on it in his garage and I fell in love with  scavenger hunting at junkyards. 
 

MJ’s have always intrigued me, but I didn’t want to take on more than one Jeep (heeps as I call them) at once yet. I liked the fact that it was familiar enough in that the front half is basically an XJ, but different enough that I would learn new things from it. I also find myself trying to haul larger furniture and things lately so having the bed definitely beats renting a uhaul. Since my XJ has been my daily for a while, I finally bit the bullet and purchased an MJ. I’ve only had it since October and I’m already constantly on the lookout for parts and I definitely see why people are so crazy about them. 

[JMO413]

While growing up my cool uncle had a flat fender and an early Willy's pick up. I was pretty much hooked when I got to drive both of them. First came the CJ and a SBC chevy swap. Is was way too much fun and it's still always broke. Then came the XJ that I left stock so I wouldn't destroy it. Then the WK when the family needed reliable transportation. All leading up to the MJ. Need a truck and it had to be a Jeep! Now it's my favorite vehicle I own. Now how many more can I collect.

[89 MJ]

4 hours ago, Minuit said:

At first, I was 15 and had nothing to drive and not a lot of money to buy something to drive. So I bought a fuel pump for grandma's long-sitting MJ. That, plus a couple hundred bucks in various odds and ends, none of them serious, added up to a running and driving vehicle that was a little bit rough around the edges, mostly thanks to the time it spent sitting. Over time, I started thinking, "hey, this thing ain't too bad!"

 

Then, I started fixing the weak spots of that MJ. It started to be a pretty nice vehicle. To the point where I felt guilty every time I went to the junkyard for parts to continue upgrading said MJ and coming back with muddy pants and feet. I was also driving it about 240 miles a week to and from school. The thought of entering it into shows was beginning to be a realistic prospect. But I never wanted to go too far with it, because I wanted it to always be the truck I remembered my grandmother driving as a kid.

 

After a while of this, a member on CC not too far away was downsizing his fleet and needed to get rid of a real specimen of an 89. It came with some decent parts, and a straight and completely rust-free body minus the floors. It was selling cheap (and the parts it came with were worth as much as he was asking for the truck almost), I had some money burning a hole in my pocket, and I already was familiar with the platform, so I said screw it and bought it.

 

This 89 was not like the first one. It had been fiddle-f**ked to within an inch of its life in some areas. It sported a horrific paint job. The engine knocked and made pathetic oil pressure. It had death wobble. The driver side floor was just plain gone. Good transmission, though. But it made the 40 mile drive home without killing me.

 

It was perfect. Nobody had any feelings of attachment to this piece of $#!&, especially not me. I was free to do whatever the hell I wanted to it.

 

Fast forward 4 years or so and that's pretty much as far as I've gotten.

That’s a great story. 

[89 MJ]

4 hours ago, Chad R said:

The draw for me was I grew up in one.

Neat! Tell us more, if you don’t mind. 

[89 MJ]

2 hours ago, MiNi Beast said:

cause i wanted a truck and a jeep. and only cost me a 100 bucks. 

Can’t go wrong with that!

 

1 hour ago, sammisox said:

Mine started with XJ’s. I grew up always wanting to have my own XJ and the first vehicle I ever purchased with my own money was a 95 Cherokee. I knew nothing about cars so my XJ was like my gateway vehicle. My dad thought I was insane for wanting to get rid of my hand-me-down Kia for a Jeep as old as I was, but I won him over. We spent countless nights working on it in his garage and I fell in love with  scavenger hunting at junkyards. 
 

MJ’s have always intrigued me, but I didn’t want to take on more than one Jeep (heeps as I call them) at once yet. I liked the fact that it was familiar enough in that the front half is basically an XJ, but different enough that I would learn new things from it. I also find myself trying to haul larger furniture and things lately so having the bed definitely beats renting a uhaul. Since my XJ has been my daily for a while, I finally bit the bullet and purchased an MJ. I’ve only had it since October and I’m already constantly on the lookout for parts and I definitely see why people are so crazy about them. 

Cool story. It’s great to hear where others have come from. 

 

11 minutes ago, JMO413 said:

While growing up my cool uncle had a flat fender and an early Willy's pick up. I was pretty much hooked when I got to drive both of them. First came the CJ and a SBC chevy swap. Is was way too much fun and it's still always broke. Then came the XJ that I left stock so I wouldn't destroy it. Then the WK when the family needed reliable transportation. All leading up to the MJ. Need a truck and it had to be a Jeep! Now it's my favorite vehicle I own. Now how many more can I collect.

I agree with that last part. 

[Chad R]

27 minutes ago, 89 MJ said:

Neat! Tell us more, if you don’t mind. 

   It’s a long boring story. I will give highlights.  Dad bought a new 86 when I was 6 years old , road everywhere in it and did lots of fun stuff in it. I got it to be my first car in 1997 drove it till 2001 when I traded in on my wrangler. WORST thing I ever did spent the last 15 years looking for one just like the one I had and couldn’t, but found one close to it.

[Dzimm]

I grew up with my dad owning older vehicles, specifically a Toyota pickup, Bronco, F-150, then finally buying a 98 2dr XJ from his dad/my gpa.  I then drove that XJ in highschool and eventually bought it from him (sold it to buy my red truck, wish I still had it).  I loved it and just started to get into Jeeps.  I couldn't afford a Wrangler or anything else so I decided to stick to the XJ platform.  

 

I eventually found out about the MJ, likely from CC while looking for info on something XJ related.  Quickly decided I wanted to do a 97+ swap MJ and a few years later I was able to make that happen.  The rest has been documented here for the most part.  

 

There are too many things I like about the XJ/MJ platform to list here but the more I learn, the more I love it and I don't see myself not owning an MJ or XJ for a long time.  I wish I could afford more because there are so many builds I want to do with them, I'll just never get to in my lifetime.

[Torq_Shep]

I learned to drive in a 90 XJ Laredo. First vehicle was a 1994 2dr XJ AX15 4wd. Wanted a truck and learned about MJs and decided to sell the XJ to buy the MJ. Drove the MJ through college until I was too broke to pay tuition and sold it... fast forward to career with some amount of disposable income and like cycling through 20 some odd other vehicles, and MJs somehow keep getting purchased.

[89 MJ]

9 hours ago, Chad R said:

   It’s a long boring story. I will give highlights.  Dad bought a new 86 when I was 6 years old , road everywhere in it and did lots of fun stuff in it. I got it to be my first car in 1997 drove it till 2001 when I traded in on my wrangler. WORST thing I ever did spent the last 15 years looking for one just like the one I had and couldn’t, but found one close to it.

That’s cool. 

 

6 hours ago, Torq_Shep said:

I learned to drive in a 90 XJ Laredo. First vehicle was a 1994 2dr XJ AX15 4wd. Wanted a truck and learned about MJs and decided to sell the XJ to buy the MJ. Drove the MJ through college until I was too broke to pay tuition and sold it... fast forward to career with some amount of disposable income and like cycling through 20 some odd other vehicles, and MJs somehow keep getting purchased.

 

8 hours ago, Dzimm said:

I grew up with my dad owning older vehicles, specifically a Toyota pickup, Bronco, F-150, then finally buying a 98 2dr XJ from his dad/my gpa.  I then drove that XJ in highschool and eventually bought it from him (sold it to buy my red truck, wish I still had it).  I loved it and just started to get into Jeeps.  I couldn't afford a Wrangler or anything else so I decided to stick to the XJ platform.  

 

I eventually found out about the MJ, likely from CC while looking for info on something XJ related.  Quickly decided I wanted to do a 97+ swap MJ and a few years later I was able to make that happen.  The rest has been documented here for the most part.  

 

There are too many things I like about the XJ/MJ platform to list here but the more I learn, the more I love it and I don't see myself not owning an MJ or XJ for a long time.  I wish I could afford more because there are so many builds I want to do with them, I'll just never get to in my lifetime.

 

6 hours ago, Torq_Shep said:

I learned to drive in a 90 XJ Laredo. First vehicle was a 1994 2dr XJ AX15 4wd. Wanted a truck and learned about MJs and decided to sell the XJ to buy the MJ. Drove the MJ through college until I was too broke to pay tuition and sold it... fast forward to career with some amount of disposable income and like cycling through 20 some odd other vehicles, and MJs somehow keep getting purchased.

What’s with everyone and getting 2 door XJs!?! LOL

[Dzimm]

2 minutes ago, 89 MJ said:

What’s with everyone and getting 2 door XJs!?! LOL

I loved the 2dr!  It was definitely a pain if someone needed to get in the backseat but I rarely had anyone back there.  Was great having the bigger doors and the cab just felt more spacious than the 4dr.  

[89 MJ]

46 minutes ago, Dzimm said:

I loved the 2dr!  It was definitely a pain if someone needed to get in the backseat but I rarely had anyone back there.  Was great having the bigger doors and the cab just felt more spacious than the 4dr.  

Once I get my next MJ (I want a metric ton), then I plan to get a 2 door XJ.