Yesterday Chad showed off a Ford truck that looked hell-bent on ripping up a desert path somewhere and it got me thinking about the same thing. Desert rompers rule! What part of “hauling ass in gravel and sand” doesn’t sound like fun to you? I agree wholeheartedly: jumping the hell out of a truck at high speed sounds like the perfect way to spend a day. But what would I use? I would say the Kibbetech-built Crown Victoria, but that’s not up for sale anytime soon.

Luckily, my answer was only a few clicks away: this unknown-year Jeep Cherokee. This isn’t an all-looks, no meat and potatoes truck…it’s a three-tinme Jeepspeed champion XJ that was built by Currie Enterprises, the home of axles that the company dares you to try and break. That’s a good start to what this XJ is all about! The rig is SCORE legal, BITD legal, comes with the full pit package, and is ready to rock. The 4.0L inline-six is a HESCO race mill and is part of the $15,000 drivetrain rebuild that saw action from the engine to the transfer case. A Currie F9 front axle and Currie Dana 44 rear that’s fully trussed. You even get a fully prepped front end setup for when you don’t want to run four-wheel-drive. Two 22-gallon fuel tanks give you range, two Beard seats with Crow five-point harnesses keep you in place, Auto Meter gauges keep you informed, and an onboard water system will keep you hydrated. You even get the radio and intercom system, the spare onboard equipment and recovery boards.

The only thing this sucker is missing is license plates! (Good luck with that…)

Racing Junk Link: 19–? Jeep Cherokee

(Courtesy: Bring A Trailer)