building the ultimate wagon - eer PART I
The objective is to build the ULTIMATE WAGON. One that is comfortable while cruising the Autobahn, the Interstate, traversing the backroads of America or Canada, but is still capable off road on a trail lined with rocks, mud or sand. Ultimate is a subjective thing. It's not the same for everyone. The items I've identified meet my needs and desires. I'm into mild, not wild. I'm aware of the fact that my wheels are on asphalt more than basalt or clay. I'm interested in decent fuel economy. I'm interested in good handling of the "go around corners fast" type. I want my wagon to last a long time without a lot of wrench time on my part. I want my wagon to be cool looking, but not gaudy or all mangled. I seek a balance in what it can do and what it is. For me the ultimate wagon is air conditioned, has all the goodies inside, a roof rack for carrying stuff that won't fit inside, a hitch so you can pull a trailer or a stuck trail companion. Of course it must have FOUR doors, four tires and four wheel drive. For me, Jeeps have always filled that niche beginning with my first ever 4x4, a 1967 Indian Ceramic colored Wagoneer. But others have found satisfaction in rigs produced by other makers, even the ones from across the Pacific. So what goes for my ULTIMATE WAGON will work for others as well. The basic concepts are mostly universal. With that said, this article will cover the SJ and XJ wagoneers, but if your rig just happens to be a 4 door Blazer, or a Nissan Pathfinder, or a Ford Explorer, or a Toyota Four Runner, Land Cruiser or Lexus, then most of this information will be useful to you as well. The results may not be the same because of variations in wheelbases, centers of gravity, weight distribution and other design related issues. I won't parrot Jeep commercials. In addition, we're not talking about starting out with a $30,000 plus rig and then modifying it. We're talking about taking a solid used wagon for $1,000 and up and making it what we want it to be. Old Blue cost me $1,000 and the little wagoneer $6,000. Old Blue didn't run. The little wagoneer had 162,000 miles on the clock. Both rigs are worth more today because of improvements, repairs and new components. Basic How-To's will be presented along the way, or can be found on both Cherokee America or the Full Size Jeep pages, access via the javascript at the top and bottom of most every page. building the ultimate wagon - eer PART I
SJ, XJ or whatever...
WHERE TO START?
Typically one starts at the beginning. IN this case, it would be with the aquistion of a wagon, or determing what you have if you already have one. Money, time and what needs fixing usually directs the project. As parts wear out, upgrade them. If you have a newer rig, then you subjectively determine what good part gets thrown away first. Maybe the local parts or four wheel drive shop is having a sale. This process is event driven. I've tried to logically establish a plan, but the wagons have not cooperated with those plans. So, let's just jump in. In real life one must first consider the ramifications of modifications. If I want to add bigger tires then I must make sure they'll fit, and I may have to change the Ring and Pinion to allow the driveline to work properly with the engine. It's often a snowball event. This can be viewed one of two ways. One, if you do this, you must do that, if you do that, then you must do this, and so on and the items and processes (and the associated wad of money) continues to snowball. OR, two, if you ask your spouse for permission to do this or that you may have a snowball's chance in Phoenix in July.Go fast for cheap
For starters let's look at a way of making a typical fuel injected late model engine get some get up and go. These same practices will also help a carb-breathing engine some as well.First: cheap and easy!
The first thing I do to any vehicle in my fleet is to install an AMSOIL Lifetime or TWO STAGE Air Filter. Typical cost is less than $25. I became a dealer back in 1983 when I was introduced to these splendid little jewels. AMSOIL makes quality products and lubricants, but some of them can be downright spendy, but the Air Filters are the BARGAIN OF A LIFETIME. I've often thought about quitting the AMSOIL dealership, but the filters keep me involved. On one rig I was faced with the purchase price for a low end, low quality paper air filter that was going to cost me $45. I wasn't going to keep the rig and couldn't justify paying that kind of money for something I was gonna chuck a year later. So I went home and dug out my AMSOIL catalog (the same one you can download off of my personal website, or obtain from ANY Amsoil dealer in your area) and found the correct part for about $16. Yep, you read that right. SIXTEEN bucks versus FORTY FIVE! You can see why I'm a lifetime dealer, and why I like these filters so much. The AMSOIL filter is available for most rigs. It is an oil-soaked foam filter resting on a metal housing or cage. It is easily washed with soap and water and then reoiled with tack oil you can get from AMSOIL or use regular engine oil. It has superior filtering capabilities over both paper and oil-wetted cotton gauze. Click to view a chart showing performance characterisics of paper, foam and gauze filtersThe Proof is in the clock...
To give you an idea of performance gains lets compare the improvements I experienced with a 5.7L Diesel, as Diesels are very dependent on air intake and will significantly display the effects. PAPER element, new - 0 to 60 mph - 26 seconds AMSOIL element, new - > 0 to 60 mph - 19 seconds I ran this test several times over the 15 years I owned the vehicle, always came out about the same. I would expect similar performance gains with a cotton gauze style filter as well. The additional benefits of the AMSOIL filter come in SIGNIFICANTLY easier care and maintenance AND SIGNIFICANTLY better engine protection due to better filtration. If you don't care about your engine and all you are after is greater CFM, and you don't mind paying two to three times the amount for a unit that requires a more difficult cleaning process, well then by golly, I think you should get the cotton gauze unit. Oh, yeah, it is easier to buy because a lot of stores carry it. With AMSOIL you have to find a dealer, a store that carries it or call a toll free number to order it. BTW, that was a 27% increase in performance, for a filter that costs one half to one third of the cotton-gauze unit, and about twice what a paper element costs. I must admit that I have not experienced that kind of performance increase on every vehicle, probably because most engines are designed so that the carb, or intake manifold is the limiting factor, or because of other limiting factors, say like the exhaust...Uncork that bottleneck! Exhausting it may be...
With big brother living with us in many locals the days of total freedom under the hood are all but gone. Even the suggestion I'm going to make here may have to be approved, depending on your local regime. As far as I know the uncorking of your exhaust system may be accomplished legally most anywhere. I had a catalytic converter fail on my little wagoneer. So in that case I had a perfect legal right to replace it with the HIGH FLOW CATALYTIC CONVERTER. Old Blue had an old pellet type, and I suspected it was clogged, but had I lived in an areas with even more restrictive emission regulations I may have had to prove that it was clogged, and replace the old unit if it wasn't. With the little wagoneer I was able to replace it on my own as it bolted in. Remember to save the certificate that comes with the new converter to verify that the part you're installing is certified and CARB approved. I purchased one through Summit Racing and another through JC Whitney. I paid around $85 to $90 for each one. I believe that JC Whitney was a little less because of a sale. Both converters appeared to come from the same manufacturer. The next step in unclogging the system was to replace the stock muffler with a free breathing turbo type muffler. On the little wagoneer I initially installed a Dynomax Super Turbo kit with a 2.5 inch tail pipe setup. The pipe is aluminized metal but is very thin, and as a result does not do a good job of suppressing noise. It is well shaped and fits in perfectly. I believe the muffler and tailpipe, with clamps, ran about $100 retail. However, after installing it one of two things happened, one a weld inside the baffles broke, or two, my catalytic converter failed and spewed chunks into the muffler. Because the muffler shop said that Dynomax has a history of bad internal welds I was able to return it for a replacement at the local Schucks with no problems. Since I needed to replace it, and couldn't replace it until I gave them the old one for return, I decided to try the FLOWMASTER. I ordered my Flowmaster through Summit Racing, on sale for about $55. When it came in I had Snohomish Airport Welding install it. I immediately noticed a significant reduction in the noise level. I LOVE MY FLOWMASTER. It's sleek looking and produces a very solid tone. The 2.5 inch aluminized tailpipe from Dynomax will be replaced by a custom 2.5 inch tailpipe that Airport Welding will make for me, soon as I have some extra cash. With the left over Dynomax Super Turbo, just replaced from Schuck's in Snohomish, I ordered up the other High Flow Cat and took all the goodies down to Airport Welding. The removed the old pellet type converter and rotted muffler from Old Blue and installed the new parts for around $85. The tailpipe on Old Blue is in good shape and already 2.5 inches.THE PROOF is in the clock...
I neglected to do a 0 to 60 test on the little wagoneer, primarily because his repair was mandated by a failure while I was out of town getting trained as a web master... I only ran one test prior to the failure, but it was not a valid 0 to 60 mph test in that I sat there spinning my tires in sand at the start, and then ran the rest down the hill in Clearview... NOT a valid test. I can say subjectively that the little wagoneer benefitted greatly at higher rpms and is now capable of burying the needle while going up a steep grade. Again, not a very valid (or legal) test. However, with Old Blue I had a good running motor, a level stretch of highway, excellent weather conditions and was able to run the tests within a couple of hours of each other. LOCATION: SR 9 between Lowell-Larimer Road and the Marsh Road ELEVATION: about 10 feet above sea level DATE TIME ELAPSED TIME TO 60MPH 5/2/97 0920 16.05 seconds 5/2/97 1120 14.76 seconds That's a 8% increase in performance for about $225. Old Blue does have a very humble carb, rated at 290cfm, a two barrel, and is being pushed around with some very tall gears, 2.72 to be exact. I'm sure that the performance increase experienced with the little wagoneer is comparable. Combine the AMSOIL air filter with a free flowing cat and a turbo muffler and you have a cost effective legal means of improved power and economy. Now, if we can only get that power to the ground...it's about traction, right?
After the dismal performance of the little wagoneer during the freak snowstorm of December 1996 I knew I had to do something about his traction. (for the stories associated with that see: escape from clearview ) I quickly determined that the factory limited slip was shot, the victim of 165,000 miles and larger than stock tires. To repair the Trac-Lok would cost about $65 to $180 for the parts and around $200 or so for the labor. During this time my hard-core wheelin' buddies kept talking about lockers. I had read some articles on how lockers were not suitable for street use and so on. I rode in their rigs and did notice a slight difference, but nothing alarming. In addition, they'd often politely invite me along on various trail runs but mention that the trail is best run with large tires and a locker, and, well, I was welcome to come along but to be ready to ride a strap through parts of the trail. When they'd get to the part about sheetmetal damage I'd politely bow out. I just couldn't understand what the big deal was about a locker, I mean I had a limited slip in my rigs before and they worked fine. In my 85 Cherokee Turbo Diesel I even had a Trac-Lok installed and had been very pleased with it's peformance on the road and on the trail. Since I had a winch I was not concerned about getting stuck. Well, years later, winchless and with a worn out Trac-Lok I come into contact with Randy from Ring and Pinion Service in Everett, Washington. I mentioned my Trac-Lok problem and I began discussing my plans to go to an ARB in the front and repair my limited slip. I also mentioned that I had plans of going with an ARB fore and aft on Old Blue because of his full time transfer case. (a NP 219 Quadratrac system). Randy explained some of the problems he'd seen with similar setups, and confirmed stories I'd heard from others. Sure it was a good plan, but expensive and it did have a few issues. Randy described a better scenario using a Detroit Locker in the rear and a True-Trac in the front. I protested explaining that both systems are full time units and that I wanted a mild street capable setup. Randy explained how the various components worked together well and carefully showed on paper or with the various components laying around his store why this was a good strategy. I even talked with the folks at Trac Tech about my concerns and they confirmed what Randy was saying. With the encouragement provided after such careful explanation I took the plunge. I wheeled the little wagoneer into the Ring and Pinion shop on Airport Road in Everett, just west of Highway 99 on a warm, sunny summer day. With me was my son and my camera. We wandered around among all the cool stuff, with my son wanting to purchase axle components for his soon to be brought home 77 Cherokee. Randy explained how various components worked to my son. Randy and his staff were very friendly and helpful. The shop and warehouse are impressively clean and organized. Someday I'd like to be that organized... It took Chris about 6 hours to install the Lockers, True-Trac and the new 4.10's gears. The little wagoneer drives a little bit differently, in that upon sudden acceleration or deceleration, changing the throttle position that is, there is a slight tug to the right or to the left. There is also the characteristic chirping around corners and so on. But what is gained in exchange is TOTALLY AWESOME traction. I literally drove PAST a herd of another brand of four wheel drives that were stuck in 4wd low and had to air down and use a comealong to get through a steep section of trail. I drove through in TWO WHEEL DRIVE, tires at street pressure, 30# and my sway bars connected! It was awesome, totally mind blowing awesome! For a more detailed account check out the story on the trail below. A locker is incredible on the trail or on the road. I have been driving the little wagoneer for several weeks and thousands of miles with this setup. It works well as Randy and Trac Tech said it would. I'll be rolling Old Blue in for the same treatment as soon as his transmission transplant is completed. This winter's snowy hill climbing contest ought to be very interesting! Randy may be contacted at Ring & Pinion Service at 1-800-347-1188 or you can wander over to his web site at http://www.ring-pinion.com
The ultimate wagon project is proceeding well for both the little wagoneer and Old Blue. Part II of this project will deal with converting both wagons to Synthetic Lubricants, selecting good CB locations, stereo systems, and auxillary lights. And will review lifts, tires and other systems as I think of them. john meister Snohomish, Washington October 4, 1997
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