It evolved into an identifying characteristic of the Jeep but it's not like some scar that you can't get rid of; it can be fixed, I just hadn't bothered to do it. When my radiator hose sprung a leak, I had to drive my TJ for a couple of months while my XJ just sat. Once I replaced the hose and began to drive it again, I realized how much I love to drive it. To top it off, people have made comments about how much nicer the TJ is than the XJ. Since that doesn't have to be the case, I'm determined to get it looking good again.
I've been inspired by the hardcore XJlovers out there - and there are a ton of us out there. These guys have their rigs looking as good as my TJ so it can be done. I don't want to sacrifice ride quality or gas mileage for looks, but there are some things I could do. But first things first… gotta get The Chief functional. The culprit:
I took the endcap off because I was sick of it grinding into my tires. Also, the XJ is capable of looking ruggedly stylish with some very, very minor adjustments. Removing the endcaps is one of them. I've taken both of them off so it has a little balance. Here are some better views:
I'd been going to Pull-a-Part in vain to find a passenger-side tail light. Once pick-n-pull I went to a quarter mile south of one of our Pull-a-Parts had a '99 XJ that had only been on the lot a couple of weeks but, alas, they'd picked it (mostly) clean. I spent about 30 minutes scavenging and thought I'd found one but it was actually a driver's side tail light that someone had removed and discarded. Fuckers.
After calling around to some junkyards I found this:
Finally. I went ahead and coughed up the $35 they were asking. I could have gotten it for $20 at Pull-a-Part but after 3 different trips with nothing to show for it, I'm sure I've spent a good $20 or $30 on gas alone. Fuck it, they can have the extra $15. Here are my tools:
I actually didn't use the wrench. The flathead was used for prying. The Philips was used unconventionally as well. 3 10mm bolts on the outside, one small (7mm, maybe?) bolt on the inside, plus about 15 minutes and it was done.
Shitty pictures I know. One of my neighbor's car is on the right and you can see the front end of my TJ (the sexy bitch) on the left. For my next trick, I'll be replacing the liftgate supports. Should arrive in the middle of next week. Not really a repair but it needs to be done.
In terms of short term repairs/replacements, I hope to have new front and rear bumpers in the next couple of months. I'll likely just get black and stick with that color. I've also decided to remove my front endcaps as well, as I've seen some people who've done so on '97 & newer XJs and capped them with pre-'96 endcaps. I like it. I also saw a guy put pre-'96 fender-flares on his '00 XJ. They actually fit and they look good. I like that they're flatter. Plus, I'm fairly certain that I can find a good set at PnP/PaP, as they seem to have a ton of earlier XJs out there.
Until next time…
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