Eagle Posted February 20, 2021 Share Posted February 20, 2021 What years did the make the original TJ (2-door) Wrangler Unlimited? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eaglescout526 Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 1997-2006. Or do you mean the longer body TJ? The longer body ran from 04-06. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted February 21, 2021 Author Share Posted February 21, 2021 Good -- a wider range than I thought. Excellent. I had an interesting day today. I have a friend across town who has a TJ (not the Unlimited) with a snow plow. The last couple of storms he has taken pity on me and plowed my driveway so I don't have to do the whole thing (100 yards worth) with the snow blower. Well, he blew out his back a few days ago and can hardly make it from his chair to the bathroom. Aside from my place, he plows his place, his mother's house, and the lot of the building that used to be his father's service station. His middle daughter (20 years old) managed to scrape a path out of their driveway, but I volunteered to do his mother's place and the shop. It took me about an hour and a half to clear my driveway with the snowblower, then I went off to make my appointed rounds with the snow plow. I haven't done any plowing since I sold my old full-size Cherokee, almost twenty years ago. It wasn't hard to get back in the swing, but his up-down/left-right control is a hand-held box on an umbilical cord. Mine was permanently mounted to the dashboard, and I think I like that better. Plus, his TJ is a 4-banger, 5-speed, on 32" or 33" tires. WOW! Talk about under-powered. My old beast was a 360 cubic inch V8 with Quadratrac. But -- aside from the lack of power, I really enjoyed spending an afternoon in a TJ. It rekindled my lust for a TJ Unlimited. I'm about to do some surfing and see what they sell for. I'm sure I can't afford one, but ... a guy has to have dreams, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokeyyank Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 LJ's are awesome. I would say the last great Jeep, let alone Jeep, ever made. They are pricey for decent ones but are awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted February 21, 2021 Author Share Posted February 21, 2021 3 hours ago, Smokeyyank said: LJ's are awesome. I would say the last great Jeep, let alone Jeep, ever made. They are pricey for decent ones but are awesome. WHOA! You ain't just a'hummin', Pardner. I wouldn't buy one from the rust belt, so I just check Autotrader for Arizona. Only found three -- the cheapest was (IIRC) $16,900, and the fancy red one was almost $32,000! Somebody call 9-1-1 ... I'm suffering an extreme case of sticker shock. Plus -- they were all automatics. Didn't they make the LJ with a 5-speed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
89 MJ Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 You could get a 5 speed LJ in 2004 I think. 05 and 06 were 6 speeds. I’ve also hear that you couldn’t get an manual in 04, so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCO6 Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 8 hours ago, Eagle said: WHOA! You ain't just a'hummin', Pardner. I wouldn't buy one from the rust belt, so I just check Autotrader for Arizona. Only found three -- the cheapest was (IIRC) $16,900, and the fancy red one was almost $32,000! Somebody call 9-1-1 ... I'm suffering an extreme case of sticker shock. Plus -- they were all automatics. Didn't they make the LJ with a 5-speed? I have a TJ and an LJ ('03 & '04) and bought both in salty Ontario. I drive both year round and don't baby either of them in the winter. Both models suffer from the same rust problems but there are a lot of things you can do to keep it at bay. I'm a firm believer in spraying them yourself. I use Fluid Film and there are several other good products. Like TJ's the biggest problems are going to be the front fenders and the windshield frame both of which are easy and not that expensive to replace. The worst spot on the frames is back of the doors where it starts to go over the axle. I bought my LJ knowing that I would have to replace the driver's side floor board and torque box. The previous owner used basic flat floor mats (not Husky liners for example) which leads to wet carpets and rust. The floor board was easy ... the torque box was a pain in the butt. Some of the "extras" that come with a base LJ are ... 10" longer wheel base, 14" overall length, added cargo space, Dana 44 rear end with disc brakes, 3,500 lbs. towing capacity vs. 2,000 lbs. and a soft top with tinted windows. Rubicons are quite a bit better (lockers, transfer case, etc.) Get one with a hard top if you can as they go for about $1,500 US. Mine came with one but as it was not ordered with one from the dealer I've had to track down used washer & defroster switches, hoses, wiring, double pump washer bottle, etc. As for price, you're definitely going to pay more for an LJ and more again for a Rubicon. My general observation is that US Jeeps are more expensive than Canadian Jeeps. Rust can be a factor but I even see ones in the typical US rust belt States go for more than what I see here. The key thing is to get one that was well taken care of and if you can from a non-enthusiast owner. I have 4 Jeeps and every previous owner simply saw them as a "car" they no longer wanted. Three of them were treated well, one was OK. I'm currently doing the body and paint on my LJ. I think this is the first winter since new that it's been off the road. Can't wait for next year so I can start the rusting process all over again! The Jeep Wrangler TJ Forum is a good source for TJ & LJ info. Jeep Wrangler TJ Forum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 LJ’s are nice candidates for Brute style conversions also. I’d recommend you stay away from the 05 6 speed. So many TSB’s for that tranny, had one in my 05 Rubicon and that was such a pain to get fixed. Also, the small channels on the bottom of the body is where mine started trying to rust. The frame never had any problems though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 9 hours ago, PCO6 said: The Jeep Wrangler TJ Forum is a good source for TJ & LJ info. Jeep Wrangler TJ Forum Jerry Bradsford pretty much runs that forum anymore. Chris (site admin) just follows his lead it seems. A lot of the real experts in the TJ field left over the past few years. Actually a lot of them just stopped posting on forums at all. I still see them on JeepForum and Pirate occasionally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCO6 Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 51 minutes ago, ghetdjc320 said: LJ’s are nice candidates for Brute style conversions also. I’d recommend you stay away from the 05 6 speed. So many TSB’s for that tranny, had one in my 05 Rubicon and that was such a pain to get fixed. Also, the small channels on the bottom of the body is where mine started trying to rust. The frame never had any problems though. Brutes are a nice conversion but the kits are expensive if they're still available (I have no idea). Here's what one looks like for those who might not know. Nice ... but not as nice as a Comanche! lol To answer an earlier question in this thread, all '04 models are automatics. '04's are good as they don't have an OPDA (Oil Pump Drive Assembly) that comes with the '05 & '06 models. If that fails it can take much of the engine with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 I absolutely love the brutes. Also seen some nice LJ truck conversions done with the gr8tops setup. Tailgate conversion and a bit of reworking of the new bed area and that’s one sweet rig. I’d absolutely love to build one and throw in a nice little diesel. Dream build there... The crown OPDA is an easy swap out and has the lubrication passage upgrade for that upper bushing. Those oem units will start to tick when they’re on their way out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 1 hour ago, ghetdjc320 said: I absolutely love the brutes. Also seen some nice LJ truck conversions done with the gr8tops setup. Tailgate conversion and a bit of reworking of the new bed area and that’s one sweet rig. I’d absolutely love to build one and throw in a nice little diesel. Dream build there... The crown OPDA is an easy swap out and has the lubrication passage upgrade for that upper bushing. Those oem units will start to tick when they’re on their way out. Not a truck conversion but the GR8 tops Safari one😁 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 38 minutes ago, Limeyjeeper said: Not a truck conversion but the GR8 tops Safari one😁 That’s a really neat top! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeatCJ Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 I read the thread when jscherb created the prototype of that one. And his Pickup build. Amazing skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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