Meet Nikki Little, or we should say meet Little’s 1998 Jeep Cherokee. It’s not so little. While it still has the stock 4.0L I-6 engine mated to an AX-15 five-speed gear box, it rides on IROK 39.5×13.5×17 Super Swampers wrapped around beadlock wheels. And in Little’s own words, “The rear suspension consists of sagged 5-1/2-inch Skyjacker Softrides with a homemade shackle relocation with the shackle sitting at about 40 degrees.”

Little continued, “The rear shocks are 10-inch travel Bilstien 5100s mounted on a 45-angle. The front suspension is a home-brewed 3-link, mid-arm setup made up of mostly Ballistic fabrication brackets and joints all damped by Bilstien 5150 10-inch-travel shocks.”

The engine’s power is transferred to the diffs through a NP231 transfer case with a TerraFlex Tera-Low 4:1 low range kit. It currently has Tom Woods Driveshafts connecting to HP Dana 60s out of a ’79 F-250 Camper Special. The diffs are filled with 5.13 Yukon gears and the back has a selectable OX locker, while the front has a Lock-Right auto locker.

Steering consists of a WJ power steering pump plumbed to an external cooler. The steering linkage is also a home-brewed setup made of mostly Ballistic parts. For protection and reinforcement, Little has TNT Customs stiffeners and a C-Rok setup next to the steering gear box. There is also a brace going from the box to the opposite unibody rail.

The rockers have been cut out and replaced with 2×4-inch tubing and steel plate running down from them to the unibody rails, and the underside has been belly panned from the transmission on back. The front fenders are plated with ¼-inch steel panels. The front crossmember was cut out and replaced with 2×4-inch box tubing that was tied into the unibody rails, and a similar setup has been created on the back end that allows for tow points to be welded on.

The interior is mostly stock other than a Rhino Linings sprayed floor, CB radio, fire extinguisher and tire carrier in the rear cargo compartment. There are full-tube doors for the Cherokee waiting, but they will not be installed until winter is over.

As of now, the Cherokee serves its purpose playing in the South Jersey washouts and trails, yet Little said it still handles fine at 75 MPH going down the highway. Future plans consist of a pink paint job with black accents, narrowing the front and rear, an exo-cage, and suspension-seats with harnesses. The drivetrain will also be switched out for a high-clearance 14 Bolt in back and an RCV axle up front. The plan is to also get rid of the 1310 U-joints and upgrade to 1350s.

Little is also looking at upgrading to coil overs and stretching the wheelbase a couple of inches out toward the back as well, while replacing the rear springs with some Deavers at the same time. Putting in some air bump stops front and rear are a possibility then, too.

With the nose and rear narrowed Little hopes to be to replace the current rubber with Sticky 43-inch Super Swamper SX tires without lifting the Cherokee any higher or loosing up travel. That way it can maintain speed on rutted trails, keep reasonably low center of gravity and still be able to cruise trails without a harsh ride.

Little is 22-years old and from Berlin, New Jersey. She fell in love with the woods and four-wheeling when she was 16. Her family and her Jeep are her pride and joy, and she loves the occasional bonfire in the woods, having fun four-wheeling with friends on the weekends, and she hopes to be entering competitions soon.

If you’re wheeling’ out in the South Jersey area, you just might see her and her friends, so say hello to Off Road Xtreme Girl Nikki Marie Little!