Any Big and Tall guys made mods to fit in an XJ for Overland?

[Irongrave]

6'4" 200 ish. I've had a few XJs a ZJ and WJs. I was by far the most comfortable driving the ZJ. Both WJs had sunroofs and those eat up a lot of head room they always made me feel a little claustrophobic, not as bad as the WKs with the sunroof those are tight. The ZJ was just about perfect with the factory power seat.

 

[lacofdfireman]

Finally sat in an XJ today and to be honest it wasn’t horrible once you lay the seat back a little. It was like some of you have said that the worst part is getting in but once in I thought it wasn’t to bad. I also found something else interesting. There is a company that makes something they call big boy brackets that give you extra leg room. Link here http://www.misch4x4.com/cherokee-xj-bigboy-brackets.html

I really did like my WJ but I’m really leaning towards trying an XJ this time and just seeing how I like it. But I’ll have to sell my ADV Bike first.


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[lacofdfireman]

Also going to look at the WK’s. Never sat in one of those. But it’s an option.


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[ATC1128]

This is my xj and I LOVE IT. However I'm on the smaller side (plenty of room for me). If comfort is your main priority I'd say stick with the WJ. Not only will it have more room but the suspensions will be much smoother. My xj SUCKS on wash board roads but does AMAZING crawling. And something else to look for when looking at used XJs, is the cooling system. They work great when EVERY component works, but as soon as one thing fails the jeep will deffinetly let you know. Check around thermostat housing, hoses, plastic radiator side walls, and water pump for leaks. Lastly, turn on the heat and insure it gets hot.... If it doesn't the heater core is messed up and will need replaced. Check passenger side floor board for wet marks or "water damage." If the floor is wet or looks to been wet the 99% the Heater is leaking or has leaked. (Heater core also part of the cooling system and keeps your heater from catching fire by running coolant through it. It's essentially a tiny radiator.)

Other than that XJs are extremely reliable. I have 245xxx on mine and I DD it and wheel it pretty hard. Let us know what you decide.

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[BigDaveZJ]

Also going to look at the WK’s. Never sat in one of those. But it’s an option.


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I wouldn't even bother. The windshield slope makes visibility tough on taller people, and there isn't really anymore room than a WJ. And quite a bit less aftermarket support.

 

[Heavyopp]

(Heater core also part of the cooling system and keeps your heater from catching fire by running coolant through it. It's essentially a tiny radiator.)

******????

Heater core is a small radiator/heat exchanger -- coolant doesn't cool it -- the heater core doesn't generate any heat without hot coolant running thru it -- No coolant = no heat -- no chance of your heater core catching fire without coolant running thru it -- Just a cold heater

 

[ATC1128]

I know lol it was a joke. I was just trying to highlight that they will leak coolant.

(Heater core also part of the cooling system and keeps your heater from catching fire by running coolant through it. It's essentially a tiny radiator.)

******????

Heater core is a small radiator/heat exchanger -- coolant doesn't cool it -- the heater core doesn't generate any heat without hot coolant running thru it -- No coolant = no heat -- no chance of your heater core catching fire without coolant running thru it -- Just a cold heater

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[Heavyopp]

Sorry dude -- totally missed it

 

[ultraclyde]

OTOH, I'm not totally convinced that a Jeep COULDN'T catch fire from a water-filled heater either.... They're special that way.

 

[lacofdfireman]

Well I sat in a WK today and the room is good with the seat all the way back but no room for passengers. It’s tight behind the seat. So the WK is most likely a no go for me either. And I hear it has tons of electronics meaning harder to fix in my thoughts. Guess it’s back to the WJ, XJ or ZJ for me.


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[lacofdfireman]

Here is a pic of my 03 that I had. It was fun to build but it really had a ton of issues. After I sold I told myself never again but here I am looking at buying another one. Seems like it had one issue after another. But maybe that’s just to be expected from a 15 year old vehicle. Also a few pics of it pulling the Expo style trailer me and my boys built for it. Build specs for the trailer in my signature.

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[Cottontail]

Ok...to recap some of what we'd talked about back channel simply for the benefit of others that are participating in the discussion...

I have owned 3 XJs, 2 ZJs, 1 WJ, 1 WKII, and one XK (Commander). I am also 6'6" and 250 lbs

For comfort level - the ZJ, then the XK, then the WJ, then the XJ, then the WKII for long distance driving. I have no issue with feeling cramped in the XJ and actually with the slope of the windshields, I have much better viability out of the XJ and the XK than any other model I've owned. I did put the WKII last in this list because I think their seats suck.

If I were building a true overlander, I would undoubtedly look at the XK first. I can sit up straight in it and still have ample of head room. After that, I'd look at a V8 ZJ. The XK, for overlanding has an abundance of room, is fairly easy to lift a couple inches for clearance, and with the third row removed, has a huge cargo space. Interestingly, the WKII is longer and wider than the Commander, but the interior space is significantly less. WJ is just 7 full inches shorter and 2.5 inches narrower, but the headroom is the same as the WKII and the cargo space less. Commander also has 2.2" of additional headroom over either of them. Plus, the Commander looks cool.

If I were building a true trail rig, I would look first at the XJ, then the ZJ, then the WJ. The XJ, for trail riding, is simple, easy to modify, has a ton of aftermarket support, and can be found very inexpensively. I'm at 6" lift on 32's. Locked front and rear, full armor, 4.10 gears, Ford 8.8 rear axle, drop brackets, shackle relocation boxes...and I'm probably into my mods for under 4 grand - and that includes a new set of 5 MTs.

If I were looking for something to drive to the shopping mall, I'd look at the WKII and the WJ in no particular order.

And lastly, to drop the kids off at school - no doubt the beat up XJ with scratches and dents and creaks and groans - because the other dads wish they had a car that cool!!!

 

[Heavyopp]

How about the XJ with a set of ZJ seats...

 

[paroxysym]

I’m wanting to build an Overland type vehicle. I’ve owned an 03 WJ Jeep Grand Cherokee Unlimited before and it was a great vehicle and I fit decent but the aftermarket following was limited and expensive and nowhere as easy to modify as the XJ appears to be. Also I had a 3” OME lift on it and had issues with springs popping out all the time when getting twisted in the rocks which was a pain to fix on the trail. Also I had blend door issues, a/c issues and really wanted to put a locker in my WJ but it wasn’t a DIY project and the local off road shop wanted like $2k in labor to put a spartan locker in the rear. So I’m kinda sour on the idea of another WJ but the XJ also has issues for me. My issue biggest issue is it seems the XJ’s cab is not very big and tall friendly. I’m 6’5 and 250lbs and the one I sat in was tight for leg room and head room. Wondering if anyone has ever come up with ways to make these more tall guy friendly? The other vehicle I’m considering is a Land Cruiser. But the issue for the Land Cruisers is people want a mint for them. Also I would expect there more expensive to lift and mod than an XJ would be. I figure I’ve got about a $10k budget to buy the vehicle and build it out somewhat. I’m sure over time I can continue to throw money at it but that will be may starting cash. Seems like I should be able to pick up an XJ for under $5k pretty easy then it leaves me with another $5k for mods to get started. I’m not wanting to build a rock crawler here more of an Overland style vehicle that I can drive for a 2k mike trip of paved and dirt roads and do some semi technical trails. We also love Moab but I’m not much into anything more than Hells Revenge level of crawling.

Also if I do end up going this route what are some things I should check on a used XJ to make sure I don’t buy a lemon? Also what’s considered to many miles to buy like 150k or 200k? This will not be a daily driver. This will be a just for fun and Overland exploring vehicle. I doubt I’d do more than 3-5k miles max per year on it.


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so being as im 6'5, 350lbs+ and daily drive my XJ- I can say that I was skeptical on being comfortable in my XJ but after having the headliner replaced and got the seat adjusted just right, im actually comfy in it. granted the armrest is mine, I don't share it with my passenger and even with my 3 year old son in the back with a big ol carseat it still has plenty of room. seat all the way back, no gangster lean to the seat, still have a couple inches of headroom. ive driven it 3+hrs to the eastern shore and back before no problem. granted this thing is nowhere near as roomy as my WK was but for what it is, a 17 year old jeep- its surprisingly not bad at all.

funny you mention buying im actually selling mine, its the 2001 in the for sale section here- already lifted, daily driver friendly, has an OEM+ feel to it and has 138k on it.

 

[BigDaveZJ]

I know the WK has been already eliminated, but I thought of something else on the WK this morning that can be important to us tall guys. I had a rental WK at one point, couldn't tell you what year it was, but the ignition cylinder was on the dash, not really on the column like I was used to. When driving, I had to be aware of my right knee as it hit the key several times, and actual shut the Jeep off doing 70mph down the highway. I was able to restart it, but it went into limp mode and only allowed me to do about 35mph, on 494 in MPLS, not fun. Once I figured out what was happening I was able to prevent it, but it was still annoying.