American Expedition Vehicles Preparation of the Jeep body tub User Manual
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A. PREPARATION OF THE JEEP BODY TUB
1. Clean the vehicle thoroughly. You will be spending a lot of time in, around, under and on top
of the Jeep. Spend the extra time, you’ll appreciate it later.
2. Align the doors, top, and windshield frame. This is the most important step in the
preparation process. (If you are starting with a tub or a wrecked vehicle, you WILL need to
install the sport bar, windshield frame, doors and top at this time.) Start with the top and full
doors on (soft top door surrounds are OK if the Jeep started out as a soft top), be sure the
sport bar is in the vehicle and everything is tight. What you start with is what you will end up
with. Take a measurement across the top of the tub at the front corner using a tape
measure and two straight edges. Write this measurement down. Check the door gaps from
the door to the body, the door to the windshield frame and the door to the top. If anything is
not parallel, flush or even, NOW is the time to correct it. Some builders find it is helpful to
visit a body shop prior to performing the conversion. This is especially true if the Jeep was
ever rebuilt, wrecked or uses doors that did not come with the vehicle originally. This is the
first step and perhaps the most tedious but also the most important, do not let your
excitement stand in the way of a quality job.
3. Remove the interior and other related parts. Mask the windshield, any sparks that hit the
windshield will leave a permanent mark and will ruin the glass. Remove the interior of the
vehicle; it’s not necessary to remove the instrument panel, shifter assembly or emergency
brake lever. Pull the wiring harness inside the body back to where it is located under the
driver’s door. Remove all the seatbelts and sport bar padding, speakers, rear fender flares,
wheel house liners, taillights, fuel filler, and anything else that’s in the way like body mounted
rocker guards. Remove the door strikers and the nut plates using a small screwdriver, you
will be reusing the nut plates later. DO NOT REMOVE THE SPORT BAR. It can also make
it easier if you can install stock size wheels and tires.
Your Jeep will look like this: