jeepfan.com Mike's Jeeps, 78 CJ-5, 80 CJ-7 89 Wrangler, 70 CJ-5

78 CJ-5 I bought this Jeep In July 97 with all kinds of ideas in mind. Amazingly it came almost as you see it above, pretty much a redone stock Jeep, an excellent starting place. The equipment list is below. You can see more on this Jeep throughout jeepfan.com.

AJ's Fiberglass Tub and Fenders, steel grille and hood.	Fresh AMC 360 V8, Edelbrock Performer manifold and cam, Holley Projection
33x12.50 BFG Mud-Terrains	T18A 4 Speed Transmission.
Rancho RS9000 Shocks	Rock Equipment Granite Kit
BDS 3.5" Wrangler Glide-Ride Lift	Warn X8000i Winch
Hedman Hedders	Custom Spare Tire Carrier
Hi-Lift Jack	K&N Air Filter
Dynomax Super Turbo Mufflers	Cobra 40 Channel CB
Bestop SuperTop	Centerforce Clutch and Disc
Tomken steering brace	Firestik CB Antenna
Durango 4X4 Front Bumper	ARB Air Lockers Front & Rear
ARB Air Compressor	Hella 500 Fog Lights
Wide-Track Axles	Auto-Meter Sport-Comp Tach

70 CJ-5 1972-1993. My Dad bought this Jeep in 1972 (I was 3), it saw its share of trail rides and plenty of highway driving. I remember a lot of broken parts and bloody knuckles. It was originally green and had a Buick 225 V6 with a 3 speed transmission with a Warn overdrive. In 1984 the original steel body was pretty much gone so it was replaced with a 4WD Hardware fiberglass body and a one-piece front end. After a while with the new body we decided that the old V6 needed to be retired so a Chevy 350 was added. The 350 was completely redone. It had a Edelbrock Torker II manifold, a Competition Cams 292H camshaft, and a Holley 700 double pumper. We also got a set of Vette fuelie heads that had been reworked. The 350 was pretty quick, we estimated 375 to 400 HP. The new engine was backed by a TH400 with a shift kit and a B&M Holeshot converter. After the engine upgrade I moved to bigger tires. In the picture below (Taken when I was about 17) you can see the 33X12.5 Revenger Radials with chrome steel rims. I was sad to sell it after all the time and work in 1993 but I just looked forward to the next project. By the way we kept the engine. Check out the pics below. This picture was taken by my buddy Mike in my parents driveway probably in 1986.The rubber is gone today but the ditch I dug in the driveway is still there!

80 CJ-7 1988-1989. This was one of my favorites, when I first bought it it had been in an accident and had a slightly bent frame, after that was fixed by my buddy's body shop I pretty much just drove it for a while. Unfortunately it had the dreaded Iron Duke 4 cyl engine that should have been taken out back and put out of its misery. So, like the previous Jeep a Chevy was the only choice. I picked up a used 307 and installed a Crane Fireball II cam and an Edelbrock Performer Manifold topped with a Holley 600 4bbl. Also this engine was backed with a TH400. I finally sold this Jeep in 89 because I was driving back and forth from college and it was not very good on gas, but at least I gave this up to buy a 89 Wrangler (Not much better on gas and not as fun to drive).

89 YJ 1989-1991. I used this Jeep to drive back and forth from college and cart around my girlfriend. This Jeep was very classy looking, it was a white Laredo with a black hard top and aluminum rims. I only got off-road with it a few times on account I did not have much time on my hands. This jeep remained stock with the 258 6cyl and a 5 speed transmission.

85 CJ-7 1994-1995. This Jeep was an accomplishment. It originally was two Jeeps part 85 part 86. The 85 was hit extremely hard in the drivers side and the 86 burned completely in a fire. After completely disassembling the body from the burned Jeep, which was in great shape, although the paint was burned off, it was sent to a local sandblaster and came back clean and primerd. I cleaned up the frame and used the engine and transmission (258 6cyl and a T176 4speed) from the 85. The axles were from the 86 which was lucky because this 86 had a Dana 44 rear. I used the rims from the 86 and bought new 31X10.5 BFG All Terrains. The hood, grille, windshield, wiring and the whole interior were from the 85. Luckily the hard top was not damaged in the accident but the driver's door was toast. I picked a set of doors from a Wrangler. After the Jeep was assembled it got a fresh coat of paint (Veridian Green) by my buddy Mike. The Jeep looked great but the 258 was not in the best of shape and the carburetor was driving me crazy. Remember I kept the engine from my 70 CJ-5, well it was about to come to life again. First I decided to calm it down a little so I replaced the intake and cam with an Edelbrock Performer Kit. Since I was driving it everyday I added a Holley 670CFM Pro-Jection. The engine was adapted to the existing 4 speed with an adapter from Novak. I installed a full dual exhaust system to control the noise. In 1995 I got a different job that I have to drive alot of miles so once again I had to sell my pride and joy, luckily for me my buddy Glenn (that's with 2 Ns) bought it from me so I get to visit now and again. But as before I knew that getting rid of one meant looking forward to another.

94 Cherokee Sport This was my daily driver and was equipped with a 4.0 Liter, 4 speed automatic, K&N Air Filter, 235/75R15 BFG All Terrains, and a SmittyBuilt Grill Guard (Not shown in this picture). It has been a great vehicle I used for work and I occasionally used it off road. I also looked forward every year for a good snowfall to play in. I have to say that it sure worked great on a few 4-Wheeling trips. Although it is a little lacking in clearance and could use a lift kit but this vehicle was not my main off-roader. I sold the Cherokee in September 2000 and I will miss it.