So I have a 1999 TJ that was originally from Boston, the salt belt of the US. Needless to say my jeep has its fair share of rust. I’ve got a big cancerous hole of rot in the front drivers fender. I don’t always get to go out with the club wheeling but when I do I don’t have to worry about trail damage as my passenger front fender shows the result of an altercation with a tree while coming down off a rock. Now these types of superficial wounds usually never bothered me, but one day as I was cruising into work I was following a Porsche and a Challenger, I forgot to mention that my jeep is also my daily driver. As I pulled into a parking spot I had this weird feeling of embarrassment as I crawled down from my jeep and walked past those blemishes. I thought to myself, my rig doesn’t have to look like this just because I wheel it.
In steps Mike, from Modern Classic Enterprises. About a year ago MCE came out with their flat fender kits. These were a great economical way of getting a bit more room up front and customers raved about the flatties. Soon to follow the flattie release, industry and various state laws screamed for a flattie with a flair . Months and months went by, teaser pictures surfaced and tentative dates released. I have to be honest, I email and called Mike on a regular basis because I was ready to transform my Jeep, oh and I was ready to go to 35’s. Well, MCE delivered and about 2 weeks ago, sitting on my doorstep was a big ol box.
Tearing into the box first thing I noticed was how well MCE packaged their product. Second thing I noticed was how great these fender with integrated flairs looked and how ridged yet flexible the material was that they were made out of. I looked over the well written instructions and made sure all hardware was present. I’m ready for the install!
I removed the flairs and the hood latches. Side note here, If you are going to do this go ahead and get new latches.. One of mine was siezed and turned within the plastic base making it impossible to remove. I had to break the base and get a pair of vise grips on the head of the bolt. I then used the supplied template and marked out my lines to be cut. Another side note, you may want to leave a little more on than the template bc I’ve found that the last bolt doesn’t have much fender to attach to. Out came the cutoff disks and air saw, make sure you have at least 4 disks because the double part of the fender eats them up.
After removing the cut off fenders I decided I wanted to drive around for a day like that because, well it looks dang cool. Ok back to work. I mock fit the MCE fenders and realized my rockers were going to be in the way. I decided it would be easier to notch the flairs so out came the dremel and a small cutoff disk. I also noticed that the transition from the top of the fender to the factory fender was pretty blocky so I filed the edge down to a nice sooth angle.
I prepped the fenders and then sprayed a plastic paint adhesive/primer. In between coats I trimmed the rear flairs and prepped and sprayed primer on them also. I used Duplicolor match paint for my jeep and sprayed both fenders and rear flairs. In between coats of paint, I drilled 3 inch holes in the grill and installed JK directionals. A couple coats of clear and I let them sit over night.
The next morning I installed the red MCE fenders, shut the hood and stood back to admire. My Jeep looks so aggressively clean, MCE fenders were the perfect remedy for this transformation. Of course I had to go play in the back yard.
Overall the MCE fenders with integrated flair is a great alternative to tube fenders. MCE’s customer service is top notch and ready to help. I believe that these fenders are best suited for the person who wants to clean up their trail scarred jeep and gain a little wheel room. Installation was fairly easy that most wheelers could do at home. These fenders netted me roughly 2 extra inches and so now come some 35’s.
