February 2026 - The Basket Case MJ

[89 MJ]

February 2026 - @Gojira94's Basket Case MJ

 

Build Thread-

 

Year/Model - 

1987 Base Short Bed - 2.5L TBI/ AX-4, 2WD, 18.5 gallon tank, W/O AC

Day one:

 

 

Drivetrain- 

HO on Renix - complete swap from a 1993 YJ (4.0L HO/ re-clocked AX-15/ NP231 with SYE), Tom Woods rear shaft, 1989 Dana 35, late 1999 XJ Dana 30, 3.55 front and rear gears for now, TJ shift tower, Novak NP231 shifter setup

 

 

Cooling- 

Open conversion with Late XJ electrical fan using Renix-era radiator mounted temp switch, Added a manual fan override switch

 

Electrical/Ignition- 

1989 engine and engine control harnesses, 429 ECU, relocated coil/ module, Durango 160A alternator, big 7 cables, Renix style distributor, NGK wires

 

Suspension/Steering- 

General Spring 97-555 rear leafs OTA, Rusty's RX-11 hydro rear shocks, stock style shackles, OME 2934 front springs, ACOS, Core 4x4 adjustable upper & lowers, Rusty's RX-16 hydro front shocks, Rocky Road CAD, Trail Forged HD crossover steering, V8 ZJ sway bar w/ Iron Man drop brackets, JKS quick disconnects, home-built steering box with 99-01 XJ pump arrangement, stock Pitman arm, stock stabilizer, HD track bar w/ drop bracket, full steering box bracing, Iron Man steering box spacer, tilt column from a 1989 XJ

 

 

Interior-  

All stock, manual windows & locks. 1989 full gauge cluster. Bench seat and mini-console, added aftermarket Sony radio with front and rear speakers.

 

 

Brakes- 

Stock 1989 MJ Dana 35 drum setup rear, 1999 XJ cast rotor/ caliper setup, long hoses front and rear, 95-96 XJ master/ booster, complete hand-made brake lines, Wilwood 4444/30 260-11179 Proportioning Valve, rear height-sensing valve delete

 

 

Lighting- 

Stock sealed beam headlights w/ harness update, Euramtec interior lights, all else stock except addition of Hella 550 fog lights

 

 

Exterior- 

Working on correcting clearcoat in some places, came with a headache rack

 

Wheel & Tires- 

Cheap black 15x8 -19mm offset steelies wearing Centennial Dirt Commander LT 33x12.50R15, 1.5" spacers in rear only

 

 

Misc- 

Added a quartz clock, foot well lighting. Exhaust is a mixed bag of later XJ parts, Magnaflow OBD-I cat and a massive FlowMaster 70 series muffler (deep, quiet). It runs and drives, but there's still a lot to do before I can DD it reliably. I'd love to get a Dana 489 from ECGS (they're local-ish, no shipping) and a new helical gear LSD carrier/ re-gear for the Dana 30. For now, I'm just thankful it's a complete vehicle at last!

 

Best MJ story- 

First CC member I met, @Dandxj in our local salvage yard. I was lurking politely out of the way while an older guy (like me) was pulling some door moulding pieces from the A-pillars of an 89 XJ. I was wanting the steering column and cruise parts out of the XJ. I decided to chat him up and found out he was a member and introduced myself.

 

CC is Awesome! Why?

The people here are the best of the best. No such thing as a dumb question. Good/ old/ new ideas abound. There are members who make things just for our trucks, and I've had the pleasure of buying from several of them. @Eagle_SX4 gave me a CSC to bellhousing grommet for my trans, for the cost of shipping. @500 MJ hooked me up with the unobtanium hood prop clip I needed. My engine bay looks even better and I have 6.5" rear speakers mounted thanks to @boxyjeep.Everybody here seems willing to go out of their way to help someone out with knowledge, experience and parts. That's why CC is Awesome!

[boxyjeep]

Very nice!  And that engine bay looks mint!

[neohic]

[fiatslug87]

Nice truck, love the front license plate.

[Eagle_SX4]

This is a very nice truck. Glad to help with the part. I hope my truck will be this nice someday.

[Gojira94]

13 hours ago, boxyjeep said:

Very nice!  And that engine bay looks mint!

 

It wouldn't be complete without your work!

 

13 hours ago, fiatslug87 said:

Nice truck, love the front license plate.

 

Thanks! I saw it and had to have it, for reasons in the build thread...

 

12 hours ago, Eagle_SX4 said:

This is a very nice truck. Glad to help with the part. I hope my truck will be this nice someday.

 

I'd say you're way ahead in some aspects. Wish I had your paint and welding skills!

[GonzoTheGreat]

I love the super detailed work, followed by excellent documentation. This is one of my favorite builds on the site. Very well-deserving MJOTM. 

[olddude]

Perfect!

[Gojira94]

On 2/2/2026 at 7:32 PM, GonzoTheGreat said:

I love the super detailed work, followed by excellent documentation. This is one of my favorite builds on the site. Very well-deserving MJOTM. 

 

Thanks! I'm a little jealous you have 2 MJs lol. They've both come a long way.

 

On 2/4/2026 at 8:29 AM, olddude said:

Perfect!

 

Thank you, sir!

[pizzaman09]

Quite clean!  Now go out there and get it dirty putting some miles on it!