Hi! Does anyone take their young kids off-roading? My husband and I have an '81 CJ5 and USED to do several off-road trips every year. Now we have a 5 year old and a 4-month old...would still like to go on a trip or two this year. Obviously we will be getting the full rollcage, but we need seats that can accomodate carseats/booster seats with shoulder belts, etc. I'm wondering if we should get two bucket seats in the back instead of the bench that's there now. Just curious to see if anyone else has something custom with kids in mind.
Thanks!! Robin  

I've seen several jeeps set up specifically for young kids, check around on the JPmagazine.com.

I'll see what I can dig up also.
you can usse the same screen name and password on the jp forums also....

My kids have alway been in and around the 4x4's.  

I have mixed opinions about this. A CJ5 is a great off road vehicle stock but it has a very short wheel base and when you lift it it get a higher CG and together with the weight of a full roll cage it will become easier to upset and flip or roll. If it was my little ones, I would want a vehicle with a little more meat to it, longer wheel base for more stabilty, a little lower CG and a real hard top just in case.  

the hard top has nothing to do with it. if you have a full roll cage and the proper safety seats your kids will b fine. ive been to a couple of jeep jamborees and lots of people had braught there kids. from young to old. and a couple of my friends wheel with there kids. and ive also taken my oldest daughter wheeling in my yj. not so shure i would take the 4 month old cause of the neck jaring. maybe grandma would watch the little wipper snapper until you get back. im planning on taking my 3 yr old wheeling when i get my jeep done with latest mods. i think once they are old enough to hold there own head still and kinda roll with the punches its all good. but i have seen some people wheeling with little little ones. you just have to take it easy and use your best judgement. i think i would try to get a five point harness kind of set up so you know that they arent going anywhere. and make shure your gear is tied down so if you do roll it wont go flyin around and hit someone.  

mine have always been in jeep, when they were small I generally only ran trails and obstacles that had no surprises for me...they'll never know the difference some are amused enough with driving over a curb. now my oldest does most of the trail driving @13.  

jeepnut4life:
the hard top has nothing to do with it. if you have a full roll cage and the proper safety seats your kids will b fine. ive been to a couple of jeep jamborees and lots of people had braught there kids. from young to old. and a couple of my friends wheel with there kids. and ive also taken my oldest daughter wheeling in my yj. not so shure i would take the 4 month old cause of the neck jaring. maybe grandma would watch the little wipper snapper until you get back. im planning on taking my 3 yr old wheeling when i get my jeep done with latest mods. i think once they are old enough to hold there own head still and kinda roll with the punches its all good. but i have seen some people wheeling with little little ones. you just have to take it easy and use your best judgement. i think i would try to get a five point harness kind of set up so you know that they arent going anywhere. and make shure your gear is tied down so if you do roll it wont go flyin around and hit someone.

A hard top has a lot to do with it. A roll cage only works best on relatively smooth hard surfaces. It offers little protection against things that jut out like tree limbs and jagged rocks. Jeeps are not the most stable vehicles either and I have seen many of them wrecked because of it. (once I saw two wreck 30 seconds apart in winter and they hit each other with dire results too) It is your duty to protect kids not expose them to danger so you can play. Some when they get married and have kids still play like they do not. My kids are grown now and and youngest have been in college for a few years now. I used to play real hard when I was single and first married but when kids came into picture I changed my stride to do things for them, not to drag them into things that I still wanted to do. Older kids can defend themselves somewhat when things go wrong, very young ones cannot. Odd may be against one of them being hurt but to me it is not worth the risk. I have already been through that tunnel in life and coming out the other side and look at it and its risks and responsibilities different then someone just starting in that tunnel or that never really grew up.  

we should take these guys wheeling so they can see just how foolish you need to be to get the jeep to flop over on a trail. It's safer out there than on the hwy.  

amen. you can get down off your preachers box now snowman. you could also live in a safe plastic bubble and filter the air. not let them watch the news or any tv. and be afraid to leave the safety of your protected shell of a house. but what happens when there out in the real world and arent ready for it cause they have no idea whats out there. i know that sounds a little extreem but thats kinda what your preeching sounded like to me. im not 12 years old and im not 50 either im 30 years and i feel pretty wise for my years. street smarts and book smarts. i take pride in involving my kids in everything that i do and love. and also take pride in doing things that they love. i help out with my 8 year olds brownie troop and drive for school field trips. and so on and so forth. i also sit on the floor and play little kids games with my 3 year old. but kids are a product of there enviornment. they get into what your into. they just want to be a part of your life and spend time with you. there are alot worse things that you could do with your kids than take them wheeling. so dont make it sound like some kind of child abuse if i take my kids out and spend some time with them doing something that we all love. you could get hurt driving down to the corner store or even walking there for that matter. but you cant live your whole life in fear. obviously when i have my kids in the jeep wheeling its not like i try to climb all the crazy stuff i can find like anything you obviously have to use common sense. and that thin piece of sheet metal you call a "hard top" isnt gonna offer hardly any protection. a rock or a limb would open that thing up like a piece of tin foil. and in a roll the only real protection against being crushed is a roll cage. there is absolutely nothing wrong with taking your kids wheeling.  

I think I spent too much time playing with the kids myself, now they tell me I need to grow up!  

yeah! i think its great to get your kids involved, my 4yr old and my 8 yr old girls helped out w/the carpet pulling and interior cleaning of my 79 cherokee and this weekend there excited to take the frt and rr bumpers off to make room for aftermarket bumpers and to do some body cutting too!
my 8 yr old suggested flames on my paint job,my 4yr old wants blue flames and my wife wants purple...so how bout all black jeep w/ two tone blue and purple flames faded together...it looks good on paper!lol