What is the greatest project car money can buy? The answer is simple: a relatively common one that also happens to be deeply cool. I’m talkin’ VW Beetle, Renault 4, Ford Mustang, Jeep Cherokee XJ, etc. This may seem a bit surprising to some; aren’t rare cars like old Renaults Dauphines and Jeep Gladiators and Saab Sonetts the ultimate project cars? No, and this man who owns hundreds of Jeep XJs is a good example why.
I’ve already written about why rare project cars are a bad idea unless you’re swimming in funds. The big thing is: parts availability on rare cars is a nightmare. I’ve had to drive halfway across the country to buy parts for my rare, one-of-2000-ever-built 1985 Jeep J10; I’ve had to attend swap meets; I’ve had to join Facebook groups; I’ve had to scour online parts listings. It’s rough, and even when I do find something, it often costs an arm and a leg.
Meanwhile, on the other side of my Jeep stable sits a 1992 Jeep Cherokee XJ that I have owned since 2010. Jeep built 2.8 million of this model between 1984 and 2001, so the parts are just hilariously cheap and easy to get a hold of.
Times are changing a bit, and some special trim pieces are starting to cost more than they ever did — as is the case with any aging platform — but the aftermarket is picking up much of the slack knowing there are still so many of these things on the road.
But the joy of owning an XJ project car goes far beyond parts availability, vehicle and parts pricing, the reliability and torque of that mighty inline-six motor, the lovely five-speed AX-15 shifter, the chassis’ incredible off-road chops, or the handsome styling — there’s also loads and loads of expertise out there. And one guy, Dex, is taking things to the next level.
Lewin wrote about Dex in his November, 2023 article titled “How A Tennessee Man Amassed The World’s Largest Junkyard Of Jeep Cherokee XJs,” and you should definitely reads that if you can (or watch the clip above as it gets across just how deep Dex has gone down the XJ rabbit hole; a whole video about a single-model-year-only 4.0 block that has a moderately better oil filter location! He even goes on a wild goose chase around his 1000-Jeep fleet just to figure out when what block was offered!). But while Lewin’s story was an intro to Dex, I want to talk a bit about what I’ve been watching a lot of lately: his mythbusting videos.
He doesn’t specifically call them “mythbusting,” but that’s basically what he does. Because he has literally almost 1000 Jeeps (mostly XJs), and because he has the space and means and time, he is possibly the only man in the world able to do justify doing Jeep XJ experiments.
Yes, Jeep XJ owners not only have Chilton and Haynes manuals and factory service manuals and various how-to YouTube videos helping them figure out how to fix their machines, they’ve now got a Jeep XJ scientist on the job.
Just look at the videos above; in them, Dex is trying to dispel the commonly held myth that the reason so many 4.0-liter motors are noisy is because of bad lifters. Pistons, he contends, are oftentimes the issue, especially on 1996+ Jeep XJs with hypereutectic pistons.
Here’s another myth he’s trying to bust: Is the Dodge Durango steering box an upgrade?:
Is a new timing chain worth putting in when you have the motor torn down? Dex shows how a high-mileage original chain has just as much slack as a lower-mileage replacement chain:
Because of the sheer volume of XJs built, Dex can afford to specialize in these vehicles, and in the process he has become a genuine expert, not only noticing common XJ issues and their causes, but showing clever repair tricks that he’s learned over the years:
Here’d Dex showing the differences of all the Jeep 4.0 cylinder heads throughout the years:
Here he’s showing that a rather ugly hole in the engine block casting is actually normal:
And here he is running a bunch of various oils through the 4.0 to see what it does to the sound:
Now, to be clear: Quite a bit of Dex’s “experiments” don’t exactly follow the scientific method, and some of his conclusions are dubious at best (it’s also worth noting that he sells pistons, which is why he talks a lot about piston skirt issues on 4.0s). But one thing is for certain: This man, with almost 1000 Jeep XJs, has unparalleled access to a variety of variants of the same model, meaning he has incredible insight into model year-changes, maintenance pitfalls, special repair tricks, and so much more.
Combine his access with the power of YouTube, and the amount of knowledge out there now when it comes to maintaining a Jeep XJ has reached an absolutely absurd level; that’s only a good thing for XJ fans like me.
People like this are how the phrase “doin’ the Lord’s work” came to be coined.
I’m dying to know what these magical parts David needed for his J10 that weren’t also used on any 80-85 J10/J20, 80-83 Cherokee, or 80-85 Wagoneer/Grand Wagoneer.
Not to be a wet blanket, but, as long as I live, I will never understand the complete obsession people have for these.
It’s a Land Rover thing, where you’re spending absurd amounts of time and energy keeping this thing running only to have a very mid SUV at the end of the day.
The big thing is that it is one-of-one. No other SUV ever combines its lightweight unibody construction with true rugged off-road capability/modify-ability and reliability. Especially on a budget.
I had a ’94 GC and then a ’06 Honda CR-V and I don’t think I ever came close to using their full capabilities. I’ve read some GC adventure stories. I don’t know what the CR-V was capable of, off-road, but they were both unstoppable in the snow. (So was my ’84 4X4 Tercel, but she hated that car.) They were both bought to make my wife feel comfortable when it snowed. And making one’s wife comfortable is a very good idea. It’s Job 1. As Ford used to say.
A FWD car with decent tires is usually enough to get around, but happy wife… you know the rest.
As far as extreme (Moab level and beyond) off-roading, it’s just never been my thing. I just want to get where I want to go.
Compared to other off-road vehicles, with the unibody it’s relatively small, light, and nimble, while still having a lot of capability and utility, even stock. It’s also simple.
These are probably a lot of the traits that makes the Miata popular, when someone could just buy a Mustang or something that has a lot more power and such.
If you think these are “very mid” you’re misinformed.
My family has had two. They do nothing better than a comparable 4Runner of the same era while being less reliable.
I don’t believe you’ve really used an XJ to its full potential. Go to the local 4wd club and ride in one that’s bouncing off the redline all day on stock suspension and an old set of OG goodyear wranglers. They are impressive little beasts. Not saying the Toyota is a bad vehicle, just saying the only way I can understand someone not having respect for the XJ is because they haven’t experienced one being used at 10/10ths.
The irony of their comment is I legitimately don’t get the 4Runner/Taco love. Slow, expensive, rust prone, unstable… I guess they’re arguably reliable but that’s really the only positive I can say about those, generally.
They’re faster, handle better, are more stable, are more comfortable, and more efficient. They’re also generally less expensive. Beyond that, I agree, they do nothing better than a 4Runner.
The best project car for anyone is the project car they want and can afford.
The rest of it does not matter.
Nobody should EVER pick a project car because of any factor beyond the fact that they want it for a project.
If you do not truly enjoy the foundation on which you started your project, you are never going to truly enjoy the work you put into it.
While I appreciate a good XJ, what compels a man to buy 100 of them and still think “just 900 more and I’ll be good”?
Lottery win?
If I hadn’t met my wife I’d probably have a pole-barn full of derelict motorcycles by now.
I feel like following this guy even though I don’t have an XJ.
THIS was the purpose of YouTube, IMHO. Well, this over AI generated reaction videos to reaction videos.
I wouldn’t care if he was determining better cast angles and hooks to get blu-gilled spotted crappy carp on Tuesdays; he is in it and invested.
Well, invested in selling pistons, but so what? Everything is an ad these days.
You might be surprised at the size of the community around the first generation Ford Maverick. AutoKrafters even has a Maverick-specific catalog.
Where do I find this community in the US? I can’t find any Mavericks anywhere, and I’d give my left kidney for a clean 4-door with a 3 on the tree.
The web address is
maverickcometclub dot org
I own a non-running 4 door automatic in special-order-only Metallic Brown.
Awesome, I’ll have to drop by and look for stuff there. I also need some door sill panels for a maverick 4-door that my uncle is restoring, so that may be the place to look as well
I’ve been subscribed to this YouTuber who pretty much exclusively has 2nd through 4th gen Mopar minivans as project cars. Regularly does 2+ hour long videos of working on and restoring them. I think he’s got like 6 at this point.
Link?
Sorry, should’ve included it in the original comment. The channel is called MN Mopar Minivan. https://youtube.com/@mnmoparminivan?si=ZPc86KGnmId3MSRb
Similarly – sleeper enthusiast/project car – Honda Odysseys – huge loyal following, massive forum support, there are so. many. of. them. and they are super useful. And pretty easy to work on too. And pretty powerful too!
I keep thinking an XJ would be fun but it would still be several thousand dollars I can’t really spare. On the positive side I live where cars don’t rust and dirt trails abound
Worth it then.
I really want an old XJ or ZJ, but I live in the land of rust and very little public land access. It’s not something I’d want to daily, so without access to trails close by it’s not worth the money.
The WJ is what you’re looking for. All the capability of an xj or zj but you do want to daily it. On the days when it’s not broken.
I must say that the best project car is the one you are willing to work on. Everybody has their own tolerance for different tasks that are a part of the project. For the car I want to work on, I have a high tolerance for expensive and rare-ish parts. What I don’t want is to fight rust or deal with something in less than decent condition. I enjoy doing some work, but I don’t have lots of free time and would rather have something that won’t take up space for an open-ended amount of time. The point of tradeoff between time and money has shifted as I have gotten older.
Preach.
The other variable that has gone down is my desire to lay on my back under any vehicle, as I don’t have a lift in the garage.
So true, this is the reason I am considering buying a third BMW e36. I’m so comfortable working on them at this point that they don’t intimidate me.
I’ve had two 1969 Saab Sonetts. The problem with them is it seems like two old greybeards own ALL of the Sonett-specific parts, and price them like polished unobtanium. And then a couple of different old greybeards hoard the parts that are shared with Saab 96s and 95s, and they merely price them like rusty unobtanium. No fun at all. And not much is shared with any other car on the planet. Even though the V4 was bought in from Ford, parts for it are tough to come by.
My Spitfire much easier – can order almost anything for cheap from multiple places. And even for weird stuff like the two-year only electric cooling fan that my car has some other Triumph Club member will hook you up for a few bucks.
I must admit, I LOVED the ’92 XJ my folks leased new when I was in college, and I would LOVE to have a nice example in my little fleet.
I had a ’73 96 and I found the community to be very generous. I didn’t buy a ton of parts for the thing, but I never had to spend that much on things I did.
Of course, if you want Monte Carlo parts (like the hubs), you’ll pay through the nose for it, but for basic 96 and 95 parts, the prices seem about the same as my ’65 Chevy.
That being said, there’s far less aftermarket options and finding the parts is harder than my Chevy. Replacement sheet metal for the Saab entailed buying drawings from Ashcraft and then either making them myself, or having a local sheet metal shop fab them up, which is very expensive. Meanwhile, I can buy just about any sheet metal part for my Chevy, which is still expensive, but is at least reasonable. What I can’t get new, can usually be found within a month or two of looking online for used stuff.
I had a very different experience with my Sonetts. <shrug>
It’s nice to have a choice of vendors where you can get pretty much anything you need delivered within a few days at a reasonable price. But that is the difference between a car that was sold in handfuls vs. a car that was sold in the hundreds of thousands.
I’ve found the same generosity in the Jeep MJ (Comanche) community. Most parts are shared with the XJ but there are MJ specific pieces like the parking brake pedal that are challenging to find without a great forum to support the vehicle.
I have one of the many “1 year only” (underneath they are mostly all the same) Imperials of the 60s. And there is one guy in Ohio who has cornered the market on parts. Sure, he’s a nice guy, makes time for the community, and I understand he is running a business; but the price he charges for some things feels like he is just sticking it to us all. $1600+ for a front calipers and a rotors when you paid 5 large for the whole car felt like a kick to the shins.
In the small chance the rust in David’s bloodstream wakes from its dormant state and re-feralizes him, we could have our own man who owns hundreds of jeep Cherokees!
Think of all the content!
Mrs. Tracy will put a stop to that. Because Baby Tracy needs a college fund.
To be fair to the Renault Dauphine, it’s probably a really good project car if you live in France…
Doubtful, there really aren’t many old French cars in France.
You sir have clearly never been to a car gathering in France.
Many models will be a PITA but 2CV, R8, 205 GTI and the likes are a plenty.
Actually, I have.
Come to a car gathering in the US sometime. And here you don’t need to go to a gathering, old cars are just everywhere, all the time, in a way that they simply aren’t in France. Especially in the dry states where they don’t rot out.
Au contraire, there are a lot of old French cars in France, only you don’t see them regularly. They are cherised by family for decades, safely stored in garages and barns and come out only a couple of times a year.
Compared to old cars in the UK or the US? There aren’t any. Sure, there are always going to be a cherished few, but the French just don’t seem to have the same sort of old car culture that other countries have.
Well, sure, I’m not saying car culture is as vibrant as in the US, but I just came of Le Mans Classic and it’s not like the event was empty.
Here classics are indeed more weekend toys than dailies, but there are vibrant car communities.
Saying “there are no old cars there” isn’t the same as saying “you don’t see as many as in the US”.
It’s literally a couple orders of magnitude (at least) difference, but yes, I admit to a bit of hyperbole. I still say it rounds to “there aren’t any” even if there are *some*. <shrug>
There’s a guy like this (though definitely not to this degree of ownership) in northeastern Indiana as well. My dad has been to his place frequently to get parts for his Comanche. I don’t know how many Jeeps he has on hand but I think it was close to a hundred? Would have to ask dad again, was originally told a couple years ago and he mentions it occasionally when he gets parts.
This helps explain why I got out of the Volvo 240 scene. Parts sources just dried up and they rarely appear in junkyards anymore. Parts that were once under $20 went through the roof. It quit being a cheap, fun hobby.
BMW E90 is at that point now. Lots of parts available and cheap enough to tinker with. But some parts are starting to become quite precious. Luckily lot of them in junk yards to pull from!
The newest 240 is now 32 years old, and they were only ever relatively common cars in a few parts of the US. Then add in the changes of ownership at Volvo (the new owners are not particularly interested in supporting the old cars, unlike the Germans) and it should be no surprise at all.
I had a PILE of RWD Volvos (13 in total) when they were good, cheap used cars, but that ship sailed long ago. And for me, it was preceded by Peugeots going the same way. They were great when you could buy a nice used one for half the price of an equivalent used Volvo.
I don’t want to be anywhere near when DT and this guy finally meet up. It may result in Elise NHRN in becoming a Jeep widow
DT is glad someone is doing this. ENHRN is glad it’s not him.
As a professional jack-of-all-trades, I deeply admire a person with a highly specialized set of knowledge. It isn’t just that they have rare bits of helpful information and are almost always willing to share; it is that they develop new ays of processing information that have evolved to fit their unique intellectual ecosystem.
We had a guy like this in my old MX5 scene. If you needed a weird sensor or had some strange idle issue, you’d go to him. He’d know exactly what you were tangling with, had seen it four times before, and usually had the part to fix it, too. Very rewarding to know him!
I figure all those issues (idle, etc) were just because everything’s upside down there, plus the toilets flush backwards, right?
Yeah, there’s definitely something to be said about picking a project car that’s common since it means you’ll have a lot of resources and expertise which makes thing easier. My own project car is both easy and hard to find parts for. It’s a 1985 Ford LTD which is a Fox platform car which means practically endless options for aftermarket *mechanical* parts for Mustangs, with new parts still being developed 30+ years after the last Fox Mustang rolled off the line, and tons and tons of knowledge about the platform. However pretty much all exterior and interior parts are now very hard to find because LTDs were generally throwaway cars back in the day.
I had a serendipitous but sad moment involving rare parts for my car last weekend. I bought it in 2001 from a guy I’ll call “J.” In recent years I was still in contact with him and would occasionally run into him and his teenage son who I’ll call “C” at car shows around town. In fact a couple of years ago we all drove to the Japanese Classic Car Show together because we all enjoy old Japanese tin. Last weekend I took my LTD to a local cars and coffee event and while walking around I randomly ran into C and his mother (J’s wife), but J wasn’t present. We got to talking and were BSing about cars but I chose not to ask where J was. Unfortunately in course of conversation C informed me that J had passed away about a year ago, which was a sad realization considering I had known him for more than half of my life.
C said he tried to get ahold of me to notify me that his dad had passed but didn’t have my contact info. He was also trying to contact me because he found some leftover LTD parts in the garage. Two of those parts are a pair of great condition tail lights for my car, which are very hard to find in good shape. It just so happens that a few months ago I broke one of the tail lights on my car. I had a spare in my stash but it’s not in great shape. I bought another one from someone in a FB group but it’s not much better, so I’m stoked to finanlly have some good ones. I can’t help but think that this random interaction was J still looking after his old car 🙂
What’s the Holy Grail XJ? Has this been discussed?
Most people consider the ’99 models the high point. Still has the high pinion Dana 30 front, 29 spline 8.25 was available and still had the distributor ignition but the newer body and 99+ intake manifold with the better power curve.
Others prefer the 96, which was a mutt because it was the only year with OBDII in the older style. Had the better rear axle available and other benefits but the classic styling.
I think 1991-1994 are the best. 1995 brought the hideous airbag that ruined the interior, 1996 brought OBDII which compliced things, 1997 brought the refresh which lost the ability to swap the fuel pump in-vehicle, 1987-1990 were Renix fuel injection, and pre-1987 ain’t worth your time.
Find yourself a Renix expert and they’ll claim they can get that to run circles around the HO. Factory transmission is that awful Peugot 5 speed, my neighbor rebuilt his regularly. The 91+ with the AX15 is much better. Lesser axle options though.
At this point though, everything is swappable and still relatively cheap to do so. If you prefer the cosmetics of the older ones it’s easy to give it the best drivetrain you want. Or swap the steering wheel on a newer one for the classic three spoke, because nobody is driving these at this point for their safety record.
I actually like the airbag steering wheels of the ’95/’96 model years, but I’m biased because I’ve owned a ’95 for (checks calendar) exactly 30 years this month.
WOW! Congrats!
That is absolutely epic. 30 years with one car!
Nice job! I have owned my Spitfire for 29 years this month, but obviously I didn’t buy it new. Especially since I was five when it was built.
Hoping to still have my e91 BMW in another 16 years when it turns 30. Dog willing and the creek don’t rise. At the current rate of miles being put on it, it might get to 75K by then, LOL.
Yep, HO engine, no airbag interior. The interior refresh that accompanied the airbag steering wheel really cheaped everything out significantly. We had a ’91 Laredo with the luggage cloth interior and went to look for getting a new ’97, and the interior quality on the newer XJ was so bad in comparison with our car that we ended up with a Grand Cherokee Laredo instead, which wasn’t the original plan.
My son keeps asking me why I chose a 99 XJ. It was so long ago I forgot but I just sent him your response 🙂
We lucked into it, our first was a 99 two door with the 4.0/AX15. I fell deep down the rabbit hole.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/y3eB5iPvFSfuFxy97
I had a ’99 Classic – HP D30, 8.25 rear, NP242 TC. Great vehicle, although being a MN one it was an all day event to replace the rear leaf springs. That front bolt was seized hard in the bushing – finally managed to break it free with a lot of penetrant and a 6′ long cheater.
I got lucky when I did the leaf springs on our ’99, I knew that bolt was going to be an issue after it had spent it’s life in Mass and Maine and started PB Blasting it early. Fortunately, it came loose pretty readily when the time came.
I just did a custom leaf pack on my ’97 using S10 leaves and the stock XJ main leaf, which prevented me from having to fight that bolt.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/2wqC1Mg3xuiVXzZu6
With 250k miles, my leafs are pretty saggy. Hearing these bolt nightmares maybe I should throw a short add a leaf in and just deal with the axle U bolts instead? It’s pretty much bone stock so I’m not looking to lift it.
An add-a-leaf is definitely a way to go, but I’d go long leaf, not short. The short will help briefly but eventually the leaves will look like a W instead because the main leaf isn’t very supported.
If you do decide to take on the main leaves, the biggest issue is usually the bolt is frozen to the collar on the leaf. It’s not that the captured bolt in the frame is rusted to the bolt (though that does happen!). It’s that the bolt will turn freely, rotating the frozen bushing collar, and just can’t back it’s way out because the collar can’t fit through the spring hanger. If you can get the bolt to turn but you see the spring hanger starting to spread apart, it’s the collar.
Usually the solution is to cut the bolts between the spring hanger pocket and the leaf on each side so the leaf drops out, then trying to turn what’s left of the bolt out of the frame side. A reverse drill bit might be all you need. However, if the bolt is frozen to that nut then you are cutting an opening in the floor to access the bolt and hating life…
Alternatively, the S10 leaf springs work pretty well, you can mix and match leaves from the factory XJ pack and S10 leaves to help support the pack. If you use the S10 main leaf with the eyelets cut off it goes almost the entire length of the factory main spring. However, it will also likely put you up higher then stock. A budget boost in the front might end up being desired. If you can find some, the ZJ V8 coils are worth a bit of lift as well. Or at least they were when the coils were newer; I got 1.5 inches out of them. All original factory ZJ coils may be old enough they are getting saggy, too.
He owns hundreds of jeeps, but does he have a holy grail?!?
According to DT all 1000 are Holy Grails.
He does, but you have to go there and pick out the right one. If you pick the wrong one you’ll die and he tells you you chose poorly.
That’s why I always carry an extra shrubbery to be safe…
Those piles of rust aren’t old XJs, they’re the remains of people who chose poorly.
There’s something really beautiful about a person developing this kind of expertise.
Even more so when they give it away for free.
I’m so glad people like this populate YouTube. I would not have the wherewithal to spend the considerable time and effort to script, film, and produce video content like this. I imagine it’s quite literally a full time job, and a great leap of faith to quit your other one to focus squarely on it. Not many people have that kind of opportunity.
Those people who make instructional videos about how to fix some obscure problem, with 6 views, are my hero when, somehow, I also have that obscure problem.
I love them more than the bigger video-bloggers because I don’t have to wade through a 10-minutes introduction to the history/theory of what brought me to this video in the first place – I know why I’m here, and I just want to fix it.
I always make sure to give them a thumbs up. They earned it.
Highlander rules – there can only be one. I think David has to fight this man now