So it's May 2003 now...it's been awhile since I wrote here...more or less because I haven't had a Jeep! I knew I would get another one though, and, I'm sure you've figured out that if I'm writing this, it means I must have gotten another one! Yes, you are correct! But first, what happened to the Spec? Well, lots of things, but mainly it comes down to this: I'm not a car guy, I'm a truck and SUV guy and of course a JEEP guy! The Spec was nice and fast and fun but I got like 5 tickets with it...driving fast isn't realistic. I had run over a spare tire in the middle of the highway in September which did some body damage to my new car, threw off the alignment, ripped out the fenderwell liner and the windshield washed bottle. Now had I hit it in my Jeep, maybe, MAYBE the alignment would be off, but that's probably all. I had lowered it too, which made it a huge PITA getting in/out of my apartment complex which has like 50 speed bumps. Driving in Atlanta in general with a lowered car just plain sucks. Also, I lost my ambition to work on it and drive it. I missed my Jeep and wanted another one bad. So what did I do? I got rid of it. I made my money back on it which was nice. So the search was on for a new Jeep...here's what I decided I wanted:
1) Something with fuel injection (which unfortunately pretty much knocked the CJ's out unless I could find one with an MPI kit on a 4.2L or one with an engine conversion)
2) Full Hard doors! Those half doors and soft doors suck, I still have nightmares about driving down the highway with the doors flapping.
3) AT LEAST a 6 cylinder, I'd take an V8 conversion if I found one that was well done.
4) Under 30,000 miles - if I'm gonna go through this again, I want it to last this time
I was really hoping to find a 4.0L TJ that I could afford. What happened though, of course, is that I found the perfect Jeep and wound up breaking the bank for it (But that's okay, because I like it and I'm happy) he he. One night, the wife and I went to Carmax in Stockbridge because it happens to be a Chrysler dealer as well and they had lots of new/used Jeeps. I was thinking about maybe getting a new Wrangler X. We walked all through that HUGE lot, and didn't see anything really great. But then, all the way in the back, we saw it: the perfect Jeep. A 2001 Wrangler Sahara, forest green with tan hard top, 3.73 gear ratio D30 and D44 with trac loc, NV3550 5 speed, NP231, new 30x9.5 Goodyear Wrangler GS-A's on 15x8 Canyon rims, Full doors and DUAL TOP option. The Jeep looked brand new, no scratches or chips anywhere and it only had 22,800 miles. The door was locked so we couldn't look too much into the interior, but it looked just as good as the exterior. We came back the next day and looked at it again in the daylight. It looked even better. The interior was perfect as well and had that great, typical "Jeep" smell. I test drove it down the highway and on some back roads and it drove great. I couldn't believe how much power that 4.0L has. You can really tell the difference on the highway. So far, I haven't done anything to it. But I've got plans. The first mods will probably be small while I decide what direction I want to take this project. I plan on covering the floor pan and wheel wells with Herculiner truck bed liner and installing a M.O.R.E. 1" body lift in the near future. I'm taking my time with this Jeep and getting everything right. This one I plan on keeping for life.
Check out the project page for the actual build-up of the new Jeep...the offroading stories will stay in this section though so keep checking back!