XJ Cherokee Long Term Update: 365 Days Later

10. It didn’t take me long to bend the factory Y-link steering, necessitating some stronger stuff. I looked at a bunch of different solid tie rod kits before coming to the conclusion that the Currie Currectlync Y-link steering kit was the best way to go for me. It uses an angled tie rod end at the pitman arm with an additional 4 degrees of angle to it. The 1.25-inch solid steel rods and 1-ton tie rod ends definitely beefed up the steering

11. Instead of swapping out the front Dana 30, I decided to see how strongly I could build one to handle some prerunning and trail jamming. The first step was to order up a G2 30-spline chromoly axle kit to put in place of the stock 27-spline Dana 30 ’shafts. The G2 axles bolted directly into the housing and unit bearings, and accepted the factory tone rings so we could retain the functionality of the stock ABS brake system.

12. To match up to the 30-spline axles, I added a tried-and-true ARB locker in the Dana 30 centersection for full lock/unlock capability.

13. Even if you build the internals of a Dana 30, they’re still prone to housing bends with even a minor amount of go-fast play. The bombproof solution was a T&T Customs axle truss that welds directly on top of the axle and gives all new control arm mounting points. It turns a plain-looking Dana 30 housing into a custom-fabricated bend-resistant axle that takes up no more room under the front of a Jeep.

14. The T&T kit also comes with new 3/16-inch lower control arm mounts that my friend, Darren Ruzicka, welded on for me. These won’t bend and tweak like factory lower mounts.

15. With the T&T truss, the Currie steering, and ARB locker and G2 axleshafts inside, our axle was much more durable and ready for the rigors of off-roading.

16. The most recent modification I’ve done is to add an incredibly clean rear C-ROK bumper and spare tire carrier to my XJ. The bumper can be ordered separately, but since my spare 33-inch Cepek wasn’t fitting in the factory spare location, this was a great way to hold a 33-inch (or bigger) tire outside of the vehicle. The bumper comes with 1/2-inch clevis mounts and also has a Class-III receiver hitch built into it.

17. The C-ROK bumper is made to snuggly wrap around the rear quarter panels of a Cherokee for the best protection possible.

18. The spare tire carrier bolts onto the C-ROK bumper after some holes are drilled in the two corners of the bumper. There is a quick-release pin for one side of the carrier to swing the carrier open and access the tailgate, but I’ve found that I just don’t get into the tailgate as much anymore due to the added hassle, and instead just reach over the back seat for cargo unless I’m carrying something really heavy. The 33-inch Dick Cepek FC-II is sort of flying right in my line of rear sight, but I can still see out the back window. For easier daily driving duty, I’m thinking that I’ll probably start leaving the spare tire carrier portion off—unless I’m heading on an off-roading trip—so I can see out the back clearly and can more easily access cargo through the tailgate.