One thing I wanted to do was to keep the dash and interior as original as possible. Here you can see the original steering wheel and the Autometer Phantom gauges, which are of course not original.
Dash
Here's a shot where you can see the stock AM radio and the Uniden CB-SSB radio. Of course, the previous owner cut out the ash-tray in the dash, but it worked out to be the right size for the CB. The glove box even opens with the roll cage being so close to it. A replacement glove box made out of ABS plastic was inserted in to replace the old cardboard one and really adds some space.
Seats
The original seats were modified by welding a brace under the buttocks are, so no more sagging. The seats were also covered in the same woven fabric as my Isuzu trooper, as was the the center console. I was also lucky enough to find some doors at a junk yard with the deluxe interior, so I cleaned them up as much as possible. They turned out pretty cherry.
Carpet
Some creature comforts were also added like a full carpet kit from the Jeepsterman in NJ. His phone number is listed in the Parts Resources page off the Main AJC web site. The price was like $325, pretty steep, and the quality wasn't OEM. I ordered charcoal-black and by a year later the color was charcoal-green for some reason. I have since sprayed it black again with five cans of carpet spray paint and all is good again.
About three years after carpeting the Jeepster, I lifted up the carpet in order to start taking out the rollcage so I could add a family cage. It was then that I discovered surface rust forming again. All that hard work to remove the rust and it just came back. The primary reason was due to the carpet trapping moisture underneath it and it continually soaking the paint. The only solution was to repaint the interior and then apply a special rubber lining to it, similar to Rhino or LineX lining, but bullet-proof. My friend has a paint shop and did the application for me at his shop. We choose to do a black with white and gray speckles for a really cool look that is very easy to keep clean. It is on about 1/4 of an inch and does help with keeping the heat down inside the cab.
Rollcage
When I purchased the Jeepster, it came with a 6-point rollcage made by SmittyBilt, but they only make a 4-point cage now. If you want a 6-point, you have to buy theirs and add a front loop that they will sell you, but fab'ing it up is up to you. When I first got the rollcage out and unwrapped from the layers of electrical tape, it was rusty and the paint all chipped up, so I sandblasted it at my friend's shop and then had it powdercoated gloss black. After about three years, I wanted to get a more serious rollcage made so that it would better protect me and my family on our 4wheeling trips. I contacted Mike Maier Racing (510-581-7600 in Hayward, CA.) to do some custom fabrication for the Jeepster. Mike is a Ford Mustang race car builder, but he said that he could do the work I wanted, especially since I had the SmittyBilt to use as a base cage.
I wanted Mike to make it strong, but also look trick, so we put in the rear family cage,
dual stringers front and rear, a cross bar in the front and gussets in all four corners. I also got some old WWII Jeep handles and had Mike add them into the cage on both sides. These are great to grab onto as you pull yourself into the Jeepster. Mike then trucked the cage over to the powdercoating shop to get it's present coating of gloss black on it.
When I had Mike modify the rollcage, I also had him add in the middle stringers so that I could put in a console unit. Originally I wanted to move the CB-radio up into it, but that just didn't work. I ended up putting all of my electrical switches, which were under the dash before, up into the rollcage. After putting in the ARBs, I also added the ARB compressor switches into the overhead console, as well as two overhead interior lights and an external speaker for the CD-Radio. I re-wired the in-dash speaker back into the original AM radio so that I could listen to 'some' tunes while driving.
Heater Modification:
Living in California means that I don't have to worry too much about the cold, but it does snow in the mountains and that means that my heater had to be over-hauled. Not just over-hauled, but improved. The original Jeep heaters are not very effecient and mine was no exeception. The first thing to do was to remove the heater box and open it up. I removed the old heater core and replaced it with a new one which I wrapped the edges with insulating foam tape. This helps to direct the air thru the core, not around it.
To improve the air flow, I cut out the side of the heater box and installed an adjustable flap. This allows a more direct and efficient air flow through the core. The stock air inlet directs air onto the top of the core and not through the fins. This setup also allows you to reuse the warmer interior air instead of the colder air coming in through the cowl.
Next, the four or five heater outlets were covered shut with sheetmetal. These holes were sending air to the wrong places. To improve the flow and be able to direct the air, bought two ABS 90-degree angle plumbing elbows. These became my adjustable air outlets. I drilled two holes into the bottom of the heater box which fit a pair of ABS end caps. The end caps are the ones that fit inside the pipe, not the outside. Next, I drilled out the centers of the end caps and placed them inside the heater box.
The elbows were then rivetted to the end caps which allows the elbows to pivot in any direction. This way I can point 100% of the hot air to myself. If I have a passenger riding with me, I could give them 50% of the air, but may be not!
KayLine Full Soft Top
A Kayline soft top ($375) was also added so that I can survive the tough 60 degree winters here in California!
