I bought the vehicle in Salisbury 2 years ago. The 500 mile
trip home averaged 12 miles per gallon at about 85 mph. I haven’t
dared to check the fuel mileage since then.
The vehicle was put together in 1995 by B&H Autokraft in
Yorkshire. They used the chassis of a 1978 Jeep CJ7 and the
body of a later model Jeep YJ, with two inch lift blocks between
them. It’s a good combination: the later body is galvanised,
and the early chassis is better off road.
Power is a Chevrolet 5.7 litre V8 (350 cubic inches), as fitted
to almost everything produced by General Motors since the 1950s.
This one appears to be an early ‘80s engine (dip stick
on the left side) and in its present state of tune (Holley 4
barrel carb, Edelbrock manifold) produces perhaps 270 - 290
bhp. Whatever the power figure is, it’s enough, believe
me: the handling is atrocious… The Holley is nice and
simple, but I change the engine oil frequently to compensate
for frequent flooding on steep slopes.
Other bits fitted as bought: JCB radiator, twin batteries,
power steering fluid cooler, flash seats.
On its first competition the V8 minced the standard front diff
(a pathetically weak Dana 30). A replacement, much stronger,
Dana 44 axle from a Ford Bronco was cut to the necessary narrower
width and freighted from California (yeah, that was cheap…)
This replacement diff included an ARB air locking differential
which works very well, and helps to make up for the lack of
axle articulation from the stiff 4 inch lifted Superlift springs.
The rear diff has a much cheaper Lockrite locker. This item
normally stays locked, unlocking only when coasting during turns.
The vehicle is a bit hard on tyres. I saved money buying them
in the States while flying there as airline crew, getting some
funny looks while rolling them one at a time through the terminal
at Boston International and up on to the flight deck…
I have carried out the following modifications:
· Stripped out all the unnecessary electrical gismos:
such as stereo, fuel injection system wiring (system itself
removed by previous owner unfortunately), interior lights, etc,
and all the carpets. (Carpets?!!! In a Jeep???!)
· Fitted the new front axle.
· Lost the key for the locking wheel nuts – so
I welded ordinary nuts on the end of the locking nuts.
· Fitted a competition ignition switch system when the
original fell apart inside the steering column.
· Fabricated a complete new fuel tank. The original was
supported by a metal tub which was full of mud: naturally the
tank had rusted badly.
· Rebuilt the very corroded rear chassis.
· Fitted 35 x 12.5 BFGs.
· Built the rear swing away spare wheel carrier.
· Drilled various oblong holes in the chassis to allow
access with a pressure washer to remove all the mud that would
otherwise sit inside the chassis and rot it away.
· Fitted a Kenlowe engine pre-heater (brilliant item).
· Welded up new spring mountings on the rear axle. The
torque of the V8 had rotated the entire axle in the mountings,
severely damaging them.
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