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FEATURED VEHICLE
60
THE ACCESSORY DREAM GUIDE
Year/Make/Model:
1991 Jeep Cherokee XJ
Owner:
Colin Hudak
Location:
Grande Prairie, AB
STORMTROOPER
Colin Hudak clearly has a great sense of humour. One of
the favourite targets of this Jeep owner is Toyotas. When
asked what his favourite accessory on his dream ride is,
he quipped: “My windshield decal that reads ‘Toyota
Recovery Vehicle’ LOL”. Colin loves being a member
of the Grande Prairie Jeep Club: “It’s a great wheeling
community! Everyone is friendly, the runs are family
oriented with choices for all skill levels and we have a lot
of laughs, usually when the Toyotas get stuck ha ha!”
Like a lot of Jeep people, Colin is brand loyal and has
been since childhood: “I always wanted a Jeep! There
were so many cool builds at shows my Dad and I would
attend. I always thought: “I must build one.” Then one
night after sitting around with some buddies, I made a
bad financial decision and ended up with one (laughs).
I’ve been hooked ever since.”
He loved his 1991
Cherokee XJ from
the moment he first test drove it: “Even though it was so
beat up, it had so much character that I just fell in love
with it.” He bought his dream ride stock and started
from there: It was everything you’d expect from a stock
XJ… rusty, full of holes, mixed with some more rust, LOL.”
All that rust didn’t matter to Colin because he could
see what he could build his Jeep into: “Cherokees are
known for having flexy unibodies and lots of rust. The idea
with this build was to create a comfortable Cherokee with all the amenities that could ‘go
anywhere’ and be bulletproof. The rust had to go. Or-Fab’s wrap around competition
bumpers allowed a large majority of the rusted quarter panels to be cut away and armored
up. The rocker panels were cut out in favor of 2X8 steel channel rock sliders and the rusted
fenders were cut away to allow for larger tires. Bushwacker Cut-out Fender Flares were add-
ed for fit and finish.”
Colin is a true Do-It-Yourselfer, or as he calls himself, a Gear Head: “I think being a Gear Head
is something you’re born with. What type of Gear Head you end up as has many determining
factors, but you will always see us walking together. The sense of family between us as a
culture is incredible and it’s interesting to see the mass differences between designs and
ideas among us. It was seeing all the crazy ideas out there that made me want to try out
some of my own.” Like a true Gear Head, he is a bit of an experimenter, so it is no surprise that
Modifications & Accessories:
- 91 AW4 Auto Swapped to a
98 AX15 29 Spline
- Custom Pilot Bushings from
NOVAK Adaptors
- 96+ Bellhousing and External Slave
- Built NP 231 in Place of Old NP242
- Bushwacker Cut-out Fender Flares
- 4.5’ Rustys Short Arm Lift on
33x12.5r15 Duratracs
- Cut Rocker Panels Out and
Installed 2X8 Steel Channel Sliders
- Cut Front and Rear Quarter Panels
to accept Orfab Comp Cut Front
and rear Bumpers
- Hidden Smittybilt 9.5XC Winch
- Custom Roof Rails and Basket
with Kayak Mounts
- 360 Degrees of LED Exterior
Lighting
- 98 Center Console Swap with
Modifications to Accept the
Manual Transmission
- Custom Sunroof
- Custom Overhead Switch Bank
- ARB On Board Air with 5 Gallon
Air Tank for Air Tools
- Rear Interior Racking
- Cell Booster