Howdy all, Well after having a 2002 wrangler for almost 9 months, i traded in for a 2005 KJ Sport. The wrangler was fun, but it sure had some limitations. the lack of space was killing me. i didn't mind the ride, but the ride in the liberty is much better, more comfortable for sure, and of course the lack of security in the wrangler. i'm hoping MPG will be a little better as well. overall i am really happy with the KJ. i did do some wheelin with the wrangler, and don't think i will go the same places as i did with the wrangler, but i would be interested in heading out with some of ya'll for a test run...something simple, to see how the KJ handles.
-Thunk

I'll go ahead and hijack this thread here and give you all a big first wave as well. In the process of purchasing an '02 Cactus Green Renegade for the soon to be wife. Already ordered some Renegade hood decals for it, we'll be slapping an EGA on the rear and from what I can tell the KJ has a 2-2.5" lift and is in pretty darn good condition for the 59k on the clock. Looking forward to doing some light off roading with the Jeep and the gal, we're both new to the 4x4 world, however I have plenty of experience in the speed/mod world with my SVT. But soon that's going out too and I'll be purchasing an Acura TSX for myself. Just been soaking up knowledge here and enjoying all the info here. Only mods I have planned for now are probably to install heated mirrors, perhaps replace some interior trim from the flat black to the factory silver/aluminum pieces and that pad for the rear window, nothing big. Can't wait to hit some dirt with the Jeep though!

Thunk, where you from?

My Patriot's co-owner, Denise, and I were out almost every weekend last year and had a blast. It's nice to see some northerners interested in going out this year. Denise works at the Aurora Sports Park and, consequently, will be working many weekends throughout the summer. I think we're going to focus more on quality not quantity this year and go on a once-a-month (or so) camping trip, but we'll be sure to post here and let every one know where we're headed. The more the merrier!

We've put 15k miles on our '07 Patriot since Memorial Day last year and need to tame that down a bit... We also got some battle damage that we're looking to mitigate this year as it is Denise's daily driver (I've got the '08 Legacy 2.5i Limited). We're looking to coat the lower half with a tough-coat product and maybe have the top half re-painted after our 'brush' with the sage and shrubbery out hunting.

I would recommend, even for the light off-roading, that you have, or get, full skid plates and maybe even rock-rails, especially if you don't lift it. You don't have to beef it all up with bumpers, winches, lifts, etc. to have a good time, but rocks can and will jump out at you even on flat terrain (hence a costly bit of damage on our Pat). Just a tip to save you some dough.

Looking forward to meeting up. We'll probably have a get together up here sometime in the next couple months. I know it's hard for the Springs guys to get up here sometimes and visa-versa, so it'll be nice to have some locals to play with. You'll be VERY impressed with what your KJ can do, even stock.

Rock On!

-Bill

Take a look at the pictures of what we have done in our KJ's and you will learn that you can go where your Wrangler went (unless you had one that was on 35" steroids , fully locked, and armored).

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New KJ Gear - Desert Armor Flak

2004 Renegade Light Khaki - 4" JBA Lift - Rock Lizard Products: Komodo Dragon Rear Bumper, Prototype Winch-mount Front Bumper, Super Skink Sliders - All J's Super Tranny Skid II - 31" Firestone Destination AT's on Moab wheels - Cobra 75W CB w/ stock Antenna mod

[b]Retired, US Military

Thanks for the warm welcome. I live in up in Longmont. Last summer was a blast with the wrangler, i am not looking for the adrenaline rush, but the GF and I like to get out and camp in the summer, and what i love about jeeps is they are so reliable on rough terrain. i checked out some pix. where does one get a roof basket? they are cool, plus it would be a good place for a hi-lift jack. look forward to meeting up.
-thunk

i was just looking at this and realized "oh crap, they can look at the group photobucket page and see what weve done", but thats at home and the site is blocked so i cant verify the ino that id give you off the top of my head, lol. ill get that up for you guys tonite

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2007 Jeep Liberty XSport Competition Edition
Cragar Soft 8's
Alpine iDA-X300
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