There is a gob of custom body...
There is a gob of custom body work on the CJ. Some of the work, like the pinched tail, front stinger, rear bumper, and rollcage was fabbed by Wood. He also fabbed the rig's frame in his driveway from 2x33/16-wall steel. The other body work was courtesy of Moab, Las Cruces, and other trails that Wood has explored. Yup, those are 20-inch wheels and they're pressed into 49-inch IROKs. A Warn 9.5xp winch is mounted up front.
Jeff Wood says that it took him one year and "one trainload of beers" to complete the build on his '66 Kaiser/Jeep CJ-5. Apparently you were impressed by the outcome, because you made this New Mexico CJ the 4th biggest vote-getter for TTC '08. It's clear that the rig was built with virtually no fat that would get in the way of off-highway performance. It must've been light beer.
Specifications
Owner name/city: Jeff Wood/Fairacres, New Mexico
Occupation: Owner of fire-truck repair company
Vehicle model: 1966 Kaiser/Jeep CJ-5
Estimated value: N/A
Engine/aspiration: Propane-injected Cummins 4BT direct-injection turbodiesel
Transmission(s): TH400
Transfer case: Jed's Machining-doubled NP203/205
Suspension (f/r): Three-link, coil springs, Rancho RSX shocks, '70 Wagoneer sway bar with custom links/Four-link, coil springs, Rancho RSX shocks
Axles (f/r): Rockwell 2 1/2-ton, Detroit Locker/Rockwell 2 1/2-ton, Ouverson Engineering Ultra Locker
Axle ratio: 6.72:1
Wheels: 20x14
Tires: 49x21.0-20 Super Swamper IROKs
All the springs under this CJ are of the round variety. Up front a homebuilt three-link coil-spring front suspension with Rancho RSX shocks and a '70 Wagoneer sway bar with custom end links locates a Rockwell 2 1/2-ton axle. This axle features an owner-built pinion brake with Wilwood calipers and discs. The big 49s are pointed down the trail via a unique steering system that utilizes a TRW steering box and pump from a semi truck. Wood says this system gives the street-legal CJ very good road manners. The beefy drag link and tie rod are fabbed from 1.5-inch-diameter 0.250-wall DOM tubing.
 The interior is surprisingly...  The interior is surprisingly nice for a hard-core trail rig and all switches, levers, and gauges have been positioned for optimum ease of use. There is a pair of Corbeau SS seats with safety harnesses, full instrumentation using Stewart Warner and VDO gauges, a 1.750-inch-diameter rollcage, homemade triple-stick shifter, Art Carr transmission shifter, and a Distinctive Woods-built Mexican walnut console. |  A propane-injected Cummins...  A propane-injected Cummins 4BT 3.9L turbodiesel, most commonly found in commercial vehicles like step vans, is anchored under the hood. Wood installed this engine more than 11 years ago, before the swap became popular. This direct-injection engine produces 105 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque according to Wood. Also under the hood is a 210-amp alternator and a pair of Carquest NGT Extreme batteries. Engine power is channeled through a TH400 automatic transmission to a Jed's Machining-doubled NP203/205 combo. |  Like the front, the rear axle...  Like the front, the rear axle is a 2 1/2-ton Rockwell with an owner-built pinion brake, but the rear axle differs from the front axle in a couple of ways. First, it has a homebuilt full hydraulic steering system, and second, it has been beefed with Ouverson axleshafts and an Ultra Locker. The rear suspension is also similar but different. It utilizes coil springs and Rancho RSX shocks, but it's a four-link system instead of a three-link like the front. All of the link bars front and rear are threaded and use polyurethane bushings. |