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Jurassic Park Jeep replica build has begun!
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jegner
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Joined: 30 May 2003
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Location: Texas, USA

PostPosted: Wed May 10, 2017 10:09 am    Post subject: Jurassic Park Jeep replica build has begun! Reply with quote


This has been 25 years in the making. LOL. I finally got a early 90's Jeep YJ, one thats only a year older than the ones used in the movies. Well, I have started working on it, to get it back to driving. When I finally get it roadworthy, I will paint it up and add the details that make it a JP Jeep. Watch this thread for updates.



Last edited by jegner on Thu May 18, 2017 1:20 pm; edited 2 times in total
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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 10, 2017 5:09 pm    Post subject: JP Jeep specs and work done so far. Reply with quote

Well this old Jeep is a 1991 Jeep Wrangler Sahara, with the 4.0L High Output I-6 engine, 5 speed manual AX-15 transmission.



The ones used in the movie were the 1992 Sahara's so this in one year earlier, and to my surprise a lot was changed from those two years. The main thing is the interior colors and the roll bar.



I have a lot of changes done already but they are not obvious. When I got this thing, the seats were trash as was most of the interior, the previous owner was big on loud radio, security, and not much else. Sitting in a barn for the past 5 years was not kind to it. None of the gauges worked, and that was a big deal for me. I have since gotten them all working after a good cleaning.



I found this Jeep on the Facebook marketplace for $2,500. When I got there it was not running. They could not get it to start. I put gas, fresh spark plugs and a fresh battery and it started up. I drove it home.

After hours of cleaning and throwing away crap that was not stock, removing a security system that caused it to be a PITA to start, and basically getting it back to as close to the basics as I could, I discovered it was basically a rust free Jeep, with 158K on it.



For anyone that knows much about these 4.0L motors, thats not too bad. Sadly, there is a lot of work to do to get this running reliably.

I have worked all the lights on it to make it legal to drive, and replaced the horn, and relay so it has a 'voice' now. I've replaced the exhaust, and o2 sensor, as many folks know that can cause all sorts of issues. It now sound great.

In Texas if your car is over 25 years old you can register it as an "Antique Car" with special license plates. As long as I don't used it as a daily driver, I should be good to go. This Jeep won't get driven much.

This had the factory air, and even after all these years, yes, it still works! Although the compressor clutch is about to go out. And the blower fan sounds like something from a horror movie.

I have tracked down and replaced the correct "family style" roll bar, I replaced the rusted out front windshield frame and got a set of the proper Jeep alloy wheels from a wrecked I found in a Tyler, TX junk yard.

I have replaced the hardtop rear window. Although I don't plan to keep the hard top or full doors. The movie ones used the spice color soft tops and half doors. I found a set of half doors in Kilgore.



Last edited by jegner on Thu May 18, 2017 1:02 pm; edited 2 times in total
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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 10, 2017 5:27 pm    Post subject: What's next? Reply with quote

The big stuff is next. The YJ Jeep I have, somewhere along it's rough life, a body lift was installed as well as pretty hefty leaf spring shackle lift. This thing rides like a log truck. Jeeps with leaf springs were not known for a smooth ride, but this thing is terrible. I'm going to have to replace the whole suspension.

The brakes are not great and will need to be repaired.

The previous owner replaced the wheels and tire with much larger and wider ones. I have the proper wheels, and will need to get the BF Goodrich All Terrain TA KO series tires in 235/75R15 or maybe go up slightly to 30x9.5.5R15.

At some point the driver's front fender has been replaced and the driver's side was painted a non-matching color. Since a new paint job is in order, that does not matter other than getting all that crappy paint off. I'm also looking at getting it painted a rare Sand Beige Metallic low gloss paint color that was used only one year in 1992. That means body work to fix the numerous dents, dings and scratches the old paint has.

This is not the typical thing Jeep folks do to their rids. In addition I'm looking at getting a carpet set, and repainting the interior dash parts a factory dark gray and the half door interior panels and seat trim parts will need a hunter green paint job.

After all that has been done, then I can start converting it to a JP Jeep.
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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 10, 2017 5:32 pm    Post subject: JP Jeep conversion Reply with quote

The big change will come when I replace the top with the proper soft top, and replace the full doors with the proper half doors. Then the correct wheels and tires.

Before the tire change, I have to remove a clear coat off the aluminum wheels and then paint them the Flame Red, that makes these JP Jeeps look so unique.
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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 10, 2017 5:48 pm    Post subject: New seats Reply with quote

As one of the signature elements of the JP Jeeps was the used of the "hunter Green" seats with the "spice" color accents. My old seats looked like this:



The old center console was a POS aftermarket rotted junk pile so I tracked down a 1992 hunter green center console, so now it looks like this:

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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 17, 2017 6:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well, here is my list of things to do next on this old girl. Here is what's in store for the future. Some things have already been done, and are indicated:

1. - Hard top repairs and rear window replacement. - I have some polycarbonate and the lift gate bar, so I'm cutting and fitting that this weekend. - DONE
I'm also doing some fiberglass repair on the hard top this weekend and some painting if I have the time. It's really beaten up and does not fit well to my windshield frame. I also have latches to install. - I'll just replace the top and worry with fixing the old hard top later. I wanted to sell the top to raise funds, but I'll have to wait.

1.5. - Replace serpentine belt and idle pulley. This may address some of the noise I'm hearing when the AC is running. - DONE

2. - Adjust roll cage to fit hard top better. I may need to 'egg out' the holes some on the drivers side.

3. - Front seatbelts. Yep, the ones I have now are torn, and held together with a dog leash and a pipe clamp. Not safe at all. I have some on the way that should be in next week. - DONE

4. - Brakes. I have the front driver side one seeming to lock up on me. Not sure what would cause that. I also seem to have a front end that is noisy. Wheel bearing are most likely going out, but will need to test drive more to make a better determination. I'm going to let my local repair shop take a look at that for safety maybe next week. There may be suspension and steering issues that are related as well.

5. - Install exhaust kit. I'm looking into a complete factory style kit. I'm leaning towards a Crown, mainly due to price of the kit. I'd prefer a a stainless kit, but I want a whole kit that includes the pipes, cat and muffler as well. DONE

5.5 - O2 sensor replacement. I have an check engine light and rough "hunting" idle which may all be related. I'm also gong to change the MAP sensor and inspect the vacuum lines. - DONE

6. - Research and determine issues with AC compressor noise. Does not make any when idle, but while driving down the road, it sounds like a bearing is going out. AC is a low priority but with Summer in Texas well on it's way I'm going to want this pretty soon. - DONE

7. - Soft top with half door uppers - I'm making a "fun runner" with this one, and I want a good soft top with frame kit. I'm just needing to figure out what to get. OEM if I can find a frame kit, or Bestop Supertop if I can't. Found a decent copy of an OEM frame kit by Rampage Parts, thats close enough, and a cheap top, Bestop's economy line Pavement Ends. - PENDING ORDER ARRIVAL

8. - Removal of the body lift kit and return to factory specs. I'm not sure what to get. Chris says the rubber is better than the denser urethane ones. I want a good ride, so again, he talked me into the rubber ones. I just don't know where to get that from.- PENDING TIME TO INSTALL

9. - Replace wheels/tires and return to factory size tires. I have the wheels I want, I just need to get the tires . I will end up doing this at the same time as the body lift removal. I now have the wheels. I'll install them when I get closer to removing the body lift. There are 2 sizes of tires: 235/75R15 and a little bigger are the 30x9.5R15 BF Goodrich All Terrain TA KO tires.

10. - Old Man Emu springs install. Chris talked me into these to improve the ride and handling of this Jeep. OME 37R springs with Skyjacker Hydro 7000 shocks all the way around.

11. - Paint - going to go with the low gloss Sand Beige Metallic that was on the 92 model. That my favorite color of YJ's.

12. - Seats recovered - When I get this thing back on the road, I'm going to have my local upholstery guy look into what he can do. - I found a set of good condition original 92 Sahara seats, so I installed them. - DONE

13. - Carpet kit. Right now I want the Sahara green, but not many carpet kits come in that color.

14. MAP sensor may need to replaced. - DONE

15. The gauges need to have a good cleaning. Maybe this weekend, time permitting. - DONE

16. Paint interior dash gray. - PENDING TIME/WEATHER TO PAINT

17. Paint door skins and plastic seat parts - PENDING TIME/WEATHER TO PAINT


Last edited by jegner on Thu May 18, 2017 2:33 pm; edited 2 times in total
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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 17, 2017 6:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A new top is needed to bring this old Jeep back to life. Somewhere along the way a cheap hard top was installed, and it has taken a beatng. Cracks and chips and missing parts, it's time to let that go. I have found a OEM style frame kit made by Rampage Parts.



And a new Pavement Ends top:



Now these are replacements, as the original parts are too hard and expensive and worn to want to deal with. I hope soon these parts will be in my possession so that I can bring the old Jeep back from the brink. That old top and doors is not doing it any favors.
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jegner
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PostPosted: Wed May 17, 2017 6:50 pm    Post subject: Paint for the interior parts Reply with quote

I did some paint test for the green to be used on the door panels, and seat plastic sides. I'm still on the hunt for the best technique to paint these so that they wear tough and not scratch easily.
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jegner
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PostPosted: Thu May 18, 2017 2:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm not going to lie, I'm getting pretty excited. I'm closing in on most of the cosmetic restoration of the Jeep. With the top getting replaced and the body lift getting removed soon, I can really start to see that the restoration of the Jeep is getting close to done, minus the paint, interior carpet and suspension/lift work.

http://www.dinojeep.com/images/moviejeep/jplayoutfulllight.png

So what makes a regular Jeep YJ Sahara a Jurassic Park Jeep? Well here is the run down:

The red stripes- I can do this myself
Red painted wheels - I can do this myself, I'll have to remove the clear coat first, then paint and clear coat
5 BF Goodrich All Terrain TA KO tires - at $150 per tire... yikes
the JP logo door decals - need to purchase part of a $95 kit
The hood decals - need to purchase part of a $95 kit
the fender numbers - need to purchase part of a $95 kit
the 102" whip antenna with ball mount and spring - waiting to all parts to arrive
Ramsey REP6000 winch with winch mount plate - basically hen's teeth now a days. A 9.5e is an option and other similar models are available. Super winch LP8500 is the close one thats cheap.
Factory fog lights on bumper - more hen's teeth
JP license plate - already have
KC Hilites LE series amber fog lights mounted above the rear brake lights. - Harbor Freight has an alternate thats cheap until a vintage pair can be found.


Last edited by jegner on Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:29 am; edited 1 time in total
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Fredo
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PostPosted: Thu May 18, 2017 10:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's good to see you back.... Great looking jeep you've got there...
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it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun...The Dalai Lama..Seattle 2001
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jegner
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PostPosted: Tue May 23, 2017 7:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks Fredo!

I've been out these past few weeks with a herniated disk in my back, so I've not had the gumption to do much.

I did take it for test drive after swapping out the intake air temp sensor, MAP sensor, and serpentine belt along wth the idle pulley. I must have gotten some oil on the belt as I have an annoying squeak now. A full tank of gas and some injector cleaner may help some with the idle issues I've been having.

I did a short test run of 11 miles. Brakes work but seem to pull to one side slightly, hard right turns make a clunk noise, and the AC works but then blows room temp air then cold again. Seems to be cycling oddly. I can't be for sure but the steering may be having issues slightly after making the hard right turns.

I have the soft top replacement frame, and now I'm waiting on the top itself. I can hardly wait to swap that out.

I have the half doors ready to paint the interior panels once I get them good and clean. I did track down the proper Rustoleum Hunt Club green satin.

Dome lights are working now that I replace the door switches.

I'm still fighting something that drains the battery if I don't start it every day.

I have everything but time to do the tire swap and lower the body lift. Maybe in the next week or so.

ACC makes a carpet kit that is the right green, available through Morris 4x4. http://www.morris4x4center.com/dark-green-mass-backed-complete-carpet-kit-acc-1957-7980-mb.html but that picture shows a terrible photoshopped color.
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jegner
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Some updates to my restore efforts I have forgotten to post here:

These were really nasty looking faded door panels from a 95. I repainted them after a massive cleaning with TSP, and paint prep and scuffing. Paint was Rustoleum Hunt Club green satin. Pouches are replicas made by a guy in Houston, TX. http://www.projectjp12.com/door-panels.html
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jegner
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Here is the carpet sample https://www.accmats.com/commerce/1992/Jeep/Wrangler/Flooring/18092/"]ACC:





The best price I can find for this kit is from
http://www.morris4x4center.com/dark-green-mass-backed-complete-carpet-kit-acc-1957-7980-mb.html"]Morris4x4 Dark Green Carpet Kit
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jegner
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Oh, great! Now I have a leaking water pump. After the belt chirp, a good cleaning with carb cleaner, and tightened the belt real good, I noticed some drips from what I think is the water pump. The fan when I wiggle it, has a lot of play in it, so I suspect the bearings are gone causing the squeak, and the tight belt is putting enough tension on the pulley that radiator fluid is now dripping...
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jegner
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2017 9:08 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Argh! Today, I was driving around and watching the water temp, and feeling pretty good about the recent water pump installation, when the steering went all to crap when I hit the brakes! My front driver's side brake caliper has messed up. Each time I pressed the brake it would cause a severe pull to the right side. By the time I got back home, the front rotor was sizzling. Now, I gotta see what I can do to fix this darn thing. I'm ready to pull my hair out. I thought I had gotten this Jeep to a point where I could finally drive the stupid thing. Now this. I'm feeling very frustrated right now. Anyone else feeling the same way?
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