Soooo freakin stoked over this! Kit's really coming along! We have the IRO 3 link as well. Love love love it! Let's plan a Rubicon run this summer in the XJS!!!!
Loved seeing XJ build! Fun fact: the lower control arm axle brackets on the TJs have cam bolts opening but XJs have the adjustability on the body end of the bracket.
Love the build Will. It's very much what I want to do to our future XJ that I'm going to build for my daughter (she's 9 going on 15 really fast). Raffi and crew at K Suspension are great. I'll be out there this Wednesday for a quick ECU re-programming on my JKU. Can't wait for the Budget Build finally...
Great video! Filming style and however much editing you did.. impressive. Link to the kit you used from them? Looks like multiple versions are available. Was it just a 4”?
This vid was a lot of fun to watch. I’ve been looking for some local talent here in the Treasure Valley for some JK Rubicon love. Definitely going to check out K Suspension and the audio guy. BTW- my money is on the XJ. It’s looking like a beast of a build.
Yes! The Iron Rock long travel kit is on my build list, and I cant wait to see how it does for you! What springs and steering setup did you end up running (if I missed it)?
Oooo! All about the XJ's, good choice ... I have a feeling you'll be presently surprised. I'm only 4:22 in, but I was going to say, "what's with K Suspensions (Raffi's) new shop?" Maybe we will get to see it later in the video!
Nicely done!! If you get a code,most possible,it will be from the "trick" on the baterry temp sensor.The PCM is expecting to see the values change as the engine runs so it will returned an error indicating it did not see a change in value.Better find a way to insulate the battery from the engine heat.
What a great series. I can attest to the quality of workmanship at American Muffler. Those guys are great. Can't wait to see the rest of the drama to unfold. Who will spin the wheel of death woohahaha
I have the Iron Rock 5.5" 3 link with the 4 link rear long arm conversion. That kit is amazing! I'm in Kuna so let me know if you ever put together a XJ run.
I gotta do the ole "Slash n Bash" on my XJ's fenders, too. The front for sure needs some trimming, the back, I might get lucky and have minimal bashing to do. So many little projects to do on mine. Has been in one shop or another for like half the time I've owned it since October! Eventually will be a decent rail rig. 4 1/2 inch longarm lift, 33 MT's, posi rear diff, so far, bumpers, winch, rock sliders to go. I need to find someone Spokane-ish who can do the electrical magic, I'd love a couple cameras etc.
Ordered my K suspension injectors a few days ago. Should I send him my old ones? All working. Im doing a full build on a 2000 xj that almost ended up at the wreckers. Wish i could go as will as yours.
The best person to contact is Walker Audio Design. Sam is the best and I'm sure he'd be happy to help advise you. All I know is that it is a Boss Elite...and I love it. walkeraudiodesign.com/ or call (208)-600-7779 tell them you want to know what stereo they put in my XJ build!
The best person to contact is Walker Audio Design. Sam is the best and I'm sure he'd be happy to help advise you. All I know is that it is a Boss Elite...and I love it. walkeraudiodesign.com/ or call (208)-600-7779 tell them you want to know what stereo they put in my XJ build!
@@Venture2Roam Thanks for the reply! I’m doing a 2000 XJ sport build for my fiancé and she liked the Boss head unit a lot. Keep up the work, I don’t know how I haven’t come across your channel sooner
This was a great video. My only critique is that there are a lot of product plugs. Being an XJ guy i can see that you didn't have to replace this or that but it was a great opportunity to showcase a product and thats why it "needed to be replaced". But it seems like you were pretty honest about your budget. I like iron rock offroad but you paid $2300 for a lift kit that didn't even come with full leaf packs or brake lines. I hate that companies cheap out on the little things when you pay a premium price for their product. I haven't had good experiences with IRO costumer service, so they probably just take care of K-suspension because they push their products. I really don't want to be negative here. I just like to be honest. I really love seeing XJ's getting built and used like they should. They are amazing vehicles than can take a ton of abuse and all on a budget. You cannot go wrong getting an XJ!
Honesty is much appreciated on this channel (as long as you're not being a jerk). One of the things I didn't do well was go in depth in each of the categories we're competing in. One of them is the comfort aspect on long trips. So for example the stereo replacement was my attempt to do well in that category...but you are 100% right that it wasn't "needed." Also I'm hoping XJ guys like yourself keep commenting on this so the community can share/learn more on this subject.
@Venture2Roam you just need a disclaimer that states "this is a youtube production and does not accurately depict real world pricing and features product placement". Then you can do whatever you want. Lol
@Venture2Roam i didn't see the azzy's shifter in the breakdown and that alone is $100. Finding a set of axles with gears and lockers for $600 is like finding a unicorn. People want $300 a piece for stock axles. Drive shafts are around $360 each and a slip yoke eliminator is $120. Finding a t-case with the sye and both driveshafts for $600 is crazy cheap. I sold a tcase with an sye and one driveshaft for $800. I always see people find these amazing deals in videos like these and i know they are getting hooked up because i have never seen deals so good. I pride myself on building my jeep cheap so i get it, i just don't want people to think they are going to find those deals everywhere they look. Anyway, its not a bid deal, i am happy if you legitimately found those parts that cheap! I guess it shows people they really can build a decent vehicle on a budget. In reality we have to do the work ourselves or pay a shop oodles of money to probably mess up what they were supposed to do. Its nice that you have such a competent team there at K-suspension. Maybe to make it more realistic, ask them to show you what they would have charged a regular customer to do the same work. The shop time alone would be thousands of dollars. That is why i do everything myself. I can't afford to pay a shop to do it and probably more importantly, i know everything about whats done to my XJ. If something is messed up, its my fault. Lol. I think people are missing out on the joy and sense of fulfillment that comes from working on your own vehicle. Whatever that may be. I understand that some people don't want that, they just want to pay people to do it for them and some people can afford that. Even if i had the money, i would want to do it myself, and thats why i started my channel, to hopefully inspire others to build their own vehicle and offer some help along the way! Like i said, i loved the video, so thank you for making it. For showing people how great cherokees are and how much fun they are to build. Thank you for your comments and your honesty and openness. Keep up the good work!
@@ProjectXJ awesome comment. I’m tracking the actual shop cost and will show that in the next episode…because I want to show the actual cost of the build. It was total luck that I scored those axles and t case. Literally just shooting the breeze and it came up. It helps that Raffi is very connected to the XJ community here, so that’s probably an unfair advantage I have over others. But because I know I got a great deal, I tried to pay it forward, and gave my old axles and t case free to someone I met through the shop who was just starting and XJ build . He Azzys shift link was actually included in the T case purchase. I honestly knew it was a good deal…but didn’t know just how good those upgrades would be.
I'm not sure it's that LCOG...we definitely raised it up..but I'll also say that we'll probably keep going with this build and look to put bigger tires and potentially swap axles on it later. On 35s...it really feels almost unstoppable though. This build definitely leans toward a crawler vs and overland build...so the lower COG the better. And to be totally honest, I deferred to Raffi on most of this stuff since he knows XJs so well.
@Venture2Roam I'm definitely going to follow your build. I got forced into early retirement last April after 29.5 years as a medical firefighter and cop bc of health issues so my build is going to be super slow just bc of $$$. But I've built.a.few play toys in my life growing up in a repair shop and parts house, but they were mostly for other people. If I could just find sponsors in my area to help me build this one and start my own channel on here.
Yep we skipped it…for now. We didn’t have the time. I was ok with it since any damage from the competition would likely be cut off when we do the 2x6 mod anyway.
@@Venture2Roam i took 2 2x4's made a 2x8 for mine .. you can't just climb in to my xj you kinda have to hop.. lol also the 4:1 rubi transfercase was a nice change.
Man, I have a 91 XJ. I took almost the entire engine apart and spent $2k in parts for the engine, and then out of nowhere, some hardship came in, and it has been sitting for almost 2 years. Makes me sad to look at it. Hopefully, 2025 is the year that I can finally start up the project again.
@@Venture2Roam the banana has a posi in the rear and a lunch box in the front with locking hubs and it goes everywhere. That’s the way I built my XJ a Dana track Lok in the rear with a Spartan locker up front and I can go a lot of places with the posi and all u have to do is turn the hubs in 4 low and you’re locked up front with out an air hose or wiring plus when the hubs aren’t locked u save the front axle and get better mpg
Excellent video, and everyone loves Raffi because of his expertise, quality of work, and disposition. I'm glad I found your channel. I have a 1999 4 door as well. It is getting mild changes compared to yours. I am surprised to not see three things. One, no cross-frame brace for the dropped track bar. It will break the frame mounts. Not if, but when. Yeah, when you are deep in a canyon in a bad way already. Two, no rock sliders. Three, no mention of lockers. 4wd without lockers is 2wd. Good luck on the competition. It will come down to driving, which is line picking and throttle control. Lastly, hated the stuff you call music.
Great analysis, thank you! I need some advice: My OKX wallet holds some USDT, and I have the seed phrase. (air carpet target dish off jeans toilet sweet piano spoil fruit essay). What's the best way to send them to Binance?
Thank you for including small businesses. Its a great use of your reach.
Thanks for mentioning that. It's important to me to try and do some good out there while making videos.
What an awesome build im jealous. 😂😎 also love the variety of music in your videos! Love all the videos ! Can't wait to see what's next.
Thank you! This was such a fun project. Depending on the series does, we might make it an annual competition.
First! 💪
Awesome build man, super pumped to be a part of this adventure.
It was a ton of fun watching you guys work!
Awesome to highlight local businesses. and I was waiting for this episode also!
The local businesses were so good..it was a pleasure to show them off. I only wish I could have put them in the video more.
Klearly those guys need to change their names to Kaine, Ken, Kian, and Khris
Klearly. 😂
Continue with this series we like it.
Episode 3 coming soon!
Woot Woot!! Good Luck Will!!! We're rootin' for the XJ!
👍👍
Your videos continually have the best soundtracks!
Lol...thank you. I've been loving adding interesting music lately.
Soooo freakin stoked over this! Kit's really coming along! We have the IRO 3 link as well. Love love love it! Let's plan a Rubicon run this summer in the XJS!!!!
I'd love to get Kit on the Rubicon.
@Venture2Roam let's do it! We're going in July but want to make 2 trips out this year.
XJ should win by default. With upgrades it will be unstoppable. Love my XJ and how easy it is to drive on trails.
This thing is soooo much fun to drive now.
That XJ will do great, Nice build
Thanks!
Woohoo. Nuttin wrong with the "mullet of Jeep" XJ for the win!
Mullets are making a comeback!
Cool looking XJ. I am looking forward to the next video and feel sorry for Nate!
The competition was really fun. Looking forward to sharing it!
Loved seeing XJ build!
Fun fact: the lower control arm axle brackets on the TJs have cam bolts opening but XJs have the adjustability on the body end of the bracket.
Good to know!
Good luck…to me! Lol.
😂
Love the build Will. It's very much what I want to do to our future XJ that I'm going to build for my daughter (she's 9 going on 15 really fast). Raffi and crew at K Suspension are great. I'll be out there this Wednesday for a quick ECU re-programming on my JKU. Can't wait for the Budget Build finally...
Thanks man. Hope your daughter is doing well, I had fun hanging with you two this Fall.
SHOUT OUT to IRON ROCK of Minnesota!! WOOP WOOP!!
They were great partners on this build.
Great video! Filming style and however much editing you did.. impressive.
Link to the kit you used from them? Looks like multiple versions are available. Was it just a 4”?
good luck Will, great job
Thank you!
Both built equally, the XJ will be way more capable off road!
This vid was a lot of fun to watch. I’ve been looking for some local talent here in the Treasure Valley for some JK Rubicon love.
Definitely going to check out K Suspension and the audio guy.
BTW- my money is on the XJ.
It’s looking like a beast of a build.
You can't go wrong with K Suspension and Walker Audio!
Yes! The Iron Rock long travel kit is on my build list, and I cant wait to see how it does for you! What springs and steering setup did you end up running (if I missed it)?
it's a great product. Can't wait to show it off a little in the next vid.
great video will!
Thanks man!
Would love to see more on that 47k ohm resister mod.
Oooo! All about the XJ's, good choice ... I have a feeling you'll be presently surprised. I'm only 4:22 in, but I was going to say, "what's with K Suspensions (Raffi's) new shop?" Maybe we will get to see it later in the video!
The new shop should be open really soon....they just had some construction delays.
@@Venture2Roam I bought a few things from them... including a couple you did. Ask about the headlight upgrade
Nicely done!!
If you get a code,most possible,it will be from the "trick" on the baterry temp sensor.The PCM is expecting to see the values change as the engine runs so it will returned an error indicating it did not see a change in value.Better find a way to insulate the battery from the engine heat.
Great insight...thanks!
What a great series. I can attest to the quality of workmanship at American Muffler. Those guys are great. Can't wait to see the rest of the drama to unfold. Who will spin the wheel of death woohahaha
Ditto. That muffler they put in is bomber and sounds rad.
I have the Iron Rock 5.5" 3 link with the 4 link rear long arm conversion. That kit is amazing! I'm in Kuna so let me know if you ever put together a XJ run.
Awesome.
I gotta do the ole "Slash n Bash" on my XJ's fenders, too. The front for sure needs some trimming, the back, I might get lucky and have minimal bashing to do. So many little projects to do on mine. Has been in one shop or another for like half the time I've owned it since October! Eventually will be a decent rail rig. 4 1/2 inch longarm lift, 33 MT's, posi rear diff, so far, bumpers, winch, rock sliders to go. I need to find someone Spokane-ish who can do the electrical magic, I'd love a couple cameras etc.
The cameras are really great to have on the trail.
Nice build ! You’re representing Jeep vs Toyota and your buddy has a vid titled Toyota makes the best jeep so rock on
That's hilarious.
Ordered my K suspension injectors a few days ago. Should I send him my old ones? All working. Im doing a full build on a 2000 xj that almost ended up at the wreckers. Wish i could go as will as yours.
Awesome. I can attest the rigorous testing they do on those things...I watched Kaden do it all week lol.
@@Venture2Roam you have the dream build! Hope you win overall!! Team XJ!
WHAT BRAND AND MODEL IS STEREO HEAD UNIT?
The best person to contact is Walker Audio Design. Sam is the best and I'm sure he'd be happy to help advise you. All I know is that it is a Boss Elite...and I love it. walkeraudiodesign.com/ or call (208)-600-7779 tell them you want to know what stereo they put in my XJ build!
Great job and video guys! The only thing I didn't like was the xj leaf spring setup. Kinda disappointed. But other than that it looks great.
Ya, we might change the leafs out it the future..but didnt have time or budget to convert to coils for this one. So glad to hear you enjoyed it!
@venture2roam owvelanding. Could you please post a link to the stereo setup. I wan to do the same to mine
The best person to contact is Walker Audio Design. Sam is the best and I'm sure he'd be happy to help advise you. All I know is that it is a Boss Elite...and I love it. walkeraudiodesign.com/ or call (208)-600-7779 tell them you want to know what stereo they put in my XJ build!
Should have saved the audio money for frame stiffiners. I do second Falkens!
Does zeff have a Chanel id love to follow that build!!!
He does, but I don’t know how much he’s filming. youtube.com/@gageboysgarage6059?si=GCYelJY9ZH3VuSBG
@ Thankyou that’s unfortunate
This Cherokee is looking badass! What is the size of the screen on that boss headunit? Looks like it would block the vents?
I can't tell if i heard 9"
Ya it’s a 9” screen. I really like it.
@@Venture2Roam Thanks for the reply! I’m doing a 2000 XJ sport build for my fiancé and she liked the Boss head unit a lot. Keep up the work, I don’t know how I haven’t come across your channel sooner
@@AustinKeathley 2000 is a great year. So glad you found the channel!
@ You can slide the screen up and down too...I find it blocks the AC controls more than the vents.
Is all that armor bare mild steel? Won't it rust?
A little. I'm going to let it rust a bit before clear coating or painting it. I like the rust bucket look.
This was a great video. My only critique is that there are a lot of product plugs. Being an XJ guy i can see that you didn't have to replace this or that but it was a great opportunity to showcase a product and thats why it "needed to be replaced". But it seems like you were pretty honest about your budget. I like iron rock offroad but you paid $2300 for a lift kit that didn't even come with full leaf packs or brake lines. I hate that companies cheap out on the little things when you pay a premium price for their product. I haven't had good experiences with IRO costumer service, so they probably just take care of K-suspension because they push their products. I really don't want to be negative here. I just like to be honest. I really love seeing XJ's getting built and used like they should. They are amazing vehicles than can take a ton of abuse and all on a budget. You cannot go wrong getting an XJ!
Honesty is much appreciated on this channel (as long as you're not being a jerk). One of the things I didn't do well was go in depth in each of the categories we're competing in. One of them is the comfort aspect on long trips. So for example the stereo replacement was my attempt to do well in that category...but you are 100% right that it wasn't "needed." Also I'm hoping XJ guys like yourself keep commenting on this so the community can share/learn more on this subject.
@Venture2Roam you just need a disclaimer that states "this is a youtube production and does not accurately depict real world pricing and features product placement". Then you can do whatever you want. Lol
@ but it does reflect real world pricing. We did hide any of the pricing.
@Venture2Roam i didn't see the azzy's shifter in the breakdown and that alone is $100. Finding a set of axles with gears and lockers for $600 is like finding a unicorn. People want $300 a piece for stock axles. Drive shafts are around $360 each and a slip yoke eliminator is $120. Finding a t-case with the sye and both driveshafts for $600 is crazy cheap. I sold a tcase with an sye and one driveshaft for $800.
I always see people find these amazing deals in videos like these and i know they are getting hooked up because i have never seen deals so good. I pride myself on building my jeep cheap so i get it, i just don't want people to think they are going to find those deals everywhere they look. Anyway, its not a bid deal, i am happy if you legitimately found those parts that cheap! I guess it shows people they really can build a decent vehicle on a budget.
In reality we have to do the work ourselves or pay a shop oodles of money to probably mess up what they were supposed to do. Its nice that you have such a competent team there at K-suspension. Maybe to make it more realistic, ask them to show you what they would have charged a regular customer to do the same work. The shop time alone would be thousands of dollars. That is why i do everything myself. I can't afford to pay a shop to do it and probably more importantly, i know everything about whats done to my XJ. If something is messed up, its my fault. Lol. I think people are missing out on the joy and sense of fulfillment that comes from working on your own vehicle. Whatever that may be. I understand that some people don't want that, they just want to pay people to do it for them and some people can afford that. Even if i had the money, i would want to do it myself, and thats why i started my channel, to hopefully inspire others to build their own vehicle and offer some help along the way!
Like i said, i loved the video, so thank you for making it. For showing people how great cherokees are and how much fun they are to build. Thank you for your comments and your honesty and openness. Keep up the good work!
@@ProjectXJ awesome comment. I’m tracking the actual shop cost and will show that in the next episode…because I want to show the actual cost of the build. It was total luck that I scored those axles and t case. Literally just shooting the breeze and it came up. It helps that Raffi is very connected to the XJ community here, so that’s probably an unfair advantage I have over others. But because I know I got a great deal, I tried to pay it forward, and gave my old axles and t case free to someone I met through the shop who was just starting and XJ build . He Azzys shift link was actually included in the T case purchase. I honestly knew it was a good deal…but didn’t know just how good those upgrades would be.
What made you go with that lift is a LCOG lift? Just curious. Starting my 98 2 door xj build.
I'm not sure it's that LCOG...we definitely raised it up..but I'll also say that we'll probably keep going with this build and look to put bigger tires and potentially swap axles on it later. On 35s...it really feels almost unstoppable though. This build definitely leans toward a crawler vs and overland build...so the lower COG the better. And to be totally honest, I deferred to Raffi on most of this stuff since he knows XJs so well.
@Venture2Roam I'm definitely going to follow your build. I got forced into early retirement last April after 29.5 years as a medical firefighter and cop bc of health issues so my build is going to be super slow just bc of $$$. But I've built.a.few play toys in my life growing up in a repair shop and parts house, but they were mostly for other people. If I could just find sponsors in my area to help me build this one and start my own channel on here.
Is it really a challenge?
What do you mean?
you skipped the 2X6 rock slider mod !! ??
Yep we skipped it…for now. We didn’t have the time. I was ok with it since any damage from the competition would likely be cut off when we do the 2x6 mod anyway.
@@Venture2Roam i took 2 2x4's made a 2x8 for mine .. you can't just climb in to my xj you kinda have to hop.. lol also the 4:1 rubi transfercase was a nice change.
@ ya I wish I a better crawl ratio, but the build isn’t finished yet.
Man, I have a 91 XJ. I took almost the entire engine apart and spent $2k in parts for the engine, and then out of nowhere, some hardship came in, and it has been sitting for almost 2 years. Makes me sad to look at it. Hopefully, 2025 is the year that I can finally start up the project again.
I hope 2025 is your XJ year too.
Some lockers in the XJ and that IFS Toyota won't hqve a chance when the trail gets to actual rock crawling.
Lockers would make such a huge difference...but learning to use that Pozi is good for me...I want to learn the hard way first.
You need a older vehicle than that to leqrn the hard way.Start out with a carb, drum brakes and no power steering then😂
@@JW-cn6op Lol...ya "the hard way" is probably a relative tern.
@@Venture2Roam the banana has a posi in the rear and a lunch box in the front with locking hubs and it goes everywhere. That’s the way I built my XJ a Dana track Lok in the rear with a Spartan locker up front and I can go a lot of places with the posi and all u have to do is turn the hubs in 4 low and you’re locked up front with out an air hose or wiring plus when the hubs aren’t locked u save the front axle and get better mpg
Team XJ !!
no lockers? really?
pozi rear that's it...for now.
@@Venture2Roam spend all that $ on useless body armor and fenders and not $150-300ish on a locker... why
Excellent video, and everyone loves Raffi because of his expertise, quality of work, and disposition. I'm glad I found your channel. I have a 1999 4 door as well. It is getting mild changes compared to yours.
I am surprised to not see three things.
One, no cross-frame brace for the dropped track bar. It will break the frame mounts. Not if, but when. Yeah, when you are deep in a canyon in a bad way already.
Two, no rock sliders.
Three, no mention of lockers. 4wd without lockers is 2wd.
Good luck on the competition. It will come down to driving, which is line picking and throttle control.
Lastly, hated the stuff you call music.
Toyota for the win always
Nice to see some Toyota love in the comments. I think that cruiser will surprise a lot of Jeep fans…it certainly surprised me.
❤
the raw armor is super cringe for us Midwesterners. clear or paint it please lol
It's a rust bucket build!!!
Azzy’s is a joke. Makes a great part you can never buy. K-suspension should start making their own version of it.
Sorry to hear that.
Great analysis, thank you! I need some advice: My OKX wallet holds some USDT, and I have the seed phrase. (air carpet target dish off jeans toilet sweet piano spoil fruit essay). What's the best way to send them to Binance?
Goggles would have been much cheaper than a new windshield... 🥸
😂😂