Jeepspeed XJ Inspo - Prelander Camper

[craftsmancollab]

Somewhere between van-life, Jeepspeed, and overland inspired on the 2000 Cherokee build.
More and more it's headed towards a prelander build - keeping things simple and strong.


Everything has been one big DIY project - apart from the cage and sliders that were professionally built.
The camper top was the biggest project. What started as a rough retrofitted Westfalia top turned into a full garage fiberglass build.



Little by little things continue as a home builder learning along the way.

More background on the build can be found here: Jeepspeed XJ Inspired Build

 

[craftsmancollab]

12" King 2.5 on the rear. Fit up a Kenworth shift boot and aluminum fender boxes to keep the elements out.


Unibody stiffeners were a necessity - plated bumper to bumper w/ 1/8" steel.


Front seats went more camper than race. Fold flat Sequioa retrofit to allow for maximum camper space.

 

[craftsmancollab]

 

[craftsmancollab]

Got real into fiberglass work during the camper build and built some more parts.
Grew tired of busted OEM tailights...

 

[troysladeck]

This thing is rad! The fiberglass roof/ tent is something ive never seen on an XJ before. The shift boot idea is badass. When I built the shock towers for the rear of my XJ i went with 1/4” plate that acted as both the mounts and kept the cab sealed.

Whats the front suspension setup?

 

[craftsmancollab]

Appreciate it - this build years ago grafted a westy top onto an XJ, but other than that it's been a first.



That steel plate job is clean too! In hindsight I've thought about going that route - Boostwerks makes a similar kit.
The tube and aluminum box is all bolt-in though if I change direction on shock size or configuration down the road.


The front has a set of the King 2.5 OEM, IIRC they come out to around 10".
I have a set of bumps that need to go in the front too... one day.

 

[BlackJacket705]

This is actually a really cool idea, great execution!