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Cage it or body swap it?

Cage it or body swap it?

  • Cage my current set up and keep it in the garage.

    Votes: 9 42.9%
  • Body swap/swap my stuff to a new body and be normal again.

    Votes: 12 57.1%

  • Total voters
    21

JoshC

Only rolled it once honey
Joined
May 1, 2000
Messages
4,330
Reaction score
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City, State
Culloden, WV
Year, Model & Trim Level
97 4d OHV
So what do you think. My financial situation literally changed over night which puts me back in the game. My wife still doesn't like the idea of wheelin, but she's lived with it for 3 years now, so deal with it! lol We talked about and i've been talking with a friend of mine on here and he had a good idea. He said something about swapping bodies or putting my stuff on a different explorer. I like that idea. I want to be able to park it outside, lock it up and drive it the next day. I also like the idea having a cage, more hard core and not having to worry about body damage.

My wife doesn't like the idea of having a "new explorer" because of body damage again and she's afraid i'll end up where i am now down the road. Good point, i understand that. Plus it's going to be alot of work to transfer my crap to a new rig or pull a body to put on mine.

She also doesn't like the idea of spending the money on a cage (money that i have put aside just for that) because she's not into the whole offroad thing. I respect that and she lives with it, just a little bit of complaining every once in a while. I can live with keeping it in the garage out of the weather i guess. And since i'm having the cage done, i could have the truck back in a few weeks with me not doing 100% of the labor.

So what now? I like both ideas really well but i just want to see you opinions.
 



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Josh.. pulling the body is simple. If you can find a '97 exactly like yours, it would be a weekend job. That's what route I would go. Find one with a blown tranny or engine. Pull the body. Sell the chassis and drivetrain parts. You might come out even.
 






I forgot you have done a few of these. Can you tell me how to get the body off?
 






Then cage it. :cool:
 






I looked on ebay and found some nice canidates if that's the route i go.
 






Also, you're going to want the cage anyway so if/when you roll again, you'll be safe. It will be money well spent, so your wife can still have you come home alive from a wheeling trip. You got lucky yours was just a "tip" over. If you're going to have this as a hardcore wheeler only and try harder stuff, you're defenitely going to want the cage as well as the "new" body.

I agree with section that the body swap is the way to go.
 






body swap and cage :thumbsup:
 






Just remove the body bolts, steering shaft, brake lines, tcase harness, radiator and tranny lines, throttle/cruise control cables, etc. (it's not a whole lot of stuff). Lifting the body will be the hardest part. I lifted from the top on the rear, and jacked from the bottom on the front. My Dad's shop has a 10ft ceiling so we had plenty of room. Looking back at my write-up, it took me 5hrs to get the entire body off and the chassis rolled out.

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BODY SWAP, its not as huge of a project as you think, but make SURE you get the same year as there are subtle wiring changes that can make it a PITA.

Also if you are going to wheel CAGE it no matter what, at least some roll protection if not a full cage. This makes wheeling a WHOLE lot easier on the wife as well.
 






I agree with 410. Get a new body, then put a cage in it.
 






I like the response.

I have access to a huge garage that every tool you'd want and lifts all over the ceilings, so getting the body off should be an easy thing. I was thinking it wouldn't be that hard.

On the subjects of cages, on an internal cage, how do you get the full welds around the pillars and up against the roof.
 






If i get a 95-97 body style, what is going to be different. I've got a manual tranny, manual tcase, and an OHV motor. If i get an OHV vehicle and swap the body, the wiring is all still there for that vehicle, so the wiring harness under hood, would that be different?

If the price is right, i'd pick up a V8 one, and if i went that route, i'd just chop the front suspension off and put on mine, more fab work, but a better setup.
 






new body and cage unless you really want the new motor, but i also like your other idea of picking up a V8 one though because i wish every day i had the V8 instead of the 4.0.

some help i am....
 






LOL, i was actually taking to section earlier on AIM about a V8. So we'll see. I actually found one that has a little bit of front end damage, but i who knows. Plans still in the works and will change a hundred times.
 






I'm curious as to who voted for the cage it? I've got to votes up there, i'd like to hear what you've got to say.
 






If you cage it i would do the internal cage. I caged mine and have had the doors off since i did it. I personally liked it better with the doors, they also add structural support to the body. My vote is for a cage inside the cab..
 






Well the poll was for cage it as it sits now which is:

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Wow, i didnt realize it was that chopped already.The way i am i hate having to look at mine in the garage, i also hate not being able to take it hunting/camping cause its to dam cold here.
 






I'm one of the ppl that voted to cage it now. I personally think it would be nice either way, but I think it would be cooler to cage it like it is now. One: it's different from everyone else. Two: don't have to worry about body damage much at all. The only thing I'd do though other than the cage is put a windsheild on it, and have a soft top made (saw a Cherokee like that at Tellico. They rolled it, cut it off the way yours is, and put on a new windsheild/windsheild frame and had a soft top made for the rest of it... looked awesome.)
 



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Cage it. get a lexan window shield and a custom top made for it and drive-er (i.e kind of like a heep but better causes its not)
 






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