BEFORE... ...AFTER
Pics after a thorough wash & wax and 'Back to Black' applications
(with some leftover snow on it)
Summer of '07 I had my mind set on owning a KJ (more specifically a black '03 Renegade.) After months of searching dealerships and countless dealers offering me everything other than exactly what I wanted, in October I finally found my immaculate interior/exterior, clean-Carfax, coming-right-off-a-4-year-lease '03 KJ Renegade..fully-loaded with all the extras..leather, power sunroof, overhead elec EVIC console, off-road extras and of course, 4-wheel drive... It was stock though and the way the 2-07 Liberties were made with such small tires in comparison to thei rlarge bodies it looked like a hippo on ballet shoes so those were the first to go! I upgraded to 245/70/16 General Grabber AT2s (probably could have went with 245/75/16's owell, next set of shoes) Anyway the tire upgrade alone made a night-and-day tremendous improvement in handling of the KJ, especially cornering as high speeds (which originally felt like I was going to tip over with the old, stock Goodyears) and these AT2s with their aggressive tire tread have proven to be superior tires on all kinds of terrain..although I have yet to test them in snow but I look forward to it, I'm sure they will perform great in those conditions as well! After the tire upgrade came the rest of the modifications, listed below...
MODIFICATIONS TO DATE:
- Tire Size upgrade from stock 235 Goodyears to 245/70/16 General Grabber AT2 tires
- Custom 3" Lift w/Old Man Emu Medium Load springs, shocks & struts
- Rocky road front strut plates (addtl 1/2" lift in front)
- Spidertrax (hubcentric) 1.25" Wheel Spacers = wider "stance", (tires just flush with fenders)
- Because of lift I ugraded the upper a-arms w/Jeepin by Al Upper A-Arms 4.5 Generation
- Replaced stock lower ball joints w/Moog Lower Ball Joints
- Gained back lost MPGs from bigger tires & lift by installing K&N Air Intake kit and
- Flowmaster 50 Series Delta Flow Muffler
next to a stock liberty:
post-lift pics:
OTHER MISC MODIFICATIONS:
Interior:
- mopar/jeep dark slate floormats
- custom quickfist maglite mounted on drivers seat
- Midland 75-822 Handheld CB Radio w/Cobra mag mount antenna
Exterior:
- 2 front hitch receivers w/cover plugs
- 2" blind spot mirrors added to sideview mirrors
- rear glass panel plastic push pad added (not standard on '03s)
- debadged sides "Liberty" emblems & hood "Jeep" emblem
- primed & painted radio antenna black to match body color
- Custom fishing pole rack
- Air Deflectors and front Bug Deflector
- AVS Smoked Tail Light Shades
Modification Details:
OME KJ Lift Kit:
General Grabber AT2 tire (size)upgrade
245/70/16 (pre-lift pic 1/17/08)
Rocky Road 3/8" Strut Plates
Spidertrax 1/25" hubcentric wheel spacers:
Moog lower ball joints upgrade (post-lift pic)
Upgraded from stock Upper A-Arms to Jeepin' By Al Upper A-Arms (painted black to match)
Upper A-arm mounting pockets trimmed for new a-arms, top & bottom,
to allow for maximum movement:
K&N Cold Air Intake kit:
Flowmaster 50 Series Delta Flow
custom rack:
Maglite mount w/adjustable rubber clamps
Midland 75-822 Handheld CB Radio
Elegant Two-Tone Seat Covers
"Spring" add-on, cooler/pole rack, refurbished by 4-part sanding process and Aluminum polish
Current vehicle product to swear by:
Mother's® Back-to-Black
..great for sun-faded exterior plastic bc it lubricates exterior vinyl & rubber trim completely back to brand new looking shiny black. And the more apps, the better!
