Posts by Andy in Pa

Quote from YJpotter91

I’ve cleaned grounds, replaced IAC, looked for vacuum leaks I’m not finding anything. Pretty sure it has an ax15 but I’d have to crawl under to confirm. Been a couple years since I’ve been under it

Replacing the IAC will cause some high idle issues as well. I would disconnect the battery for a few minutes, reconnect and try it again. There also could be a vacuum leak at the throttle body, or possibly the brake booster line. Also, sometimes an idle issue is compensated for by the small set screw that sets the idle on the throttle body, under the tab on the piece the cable pulls on for the accelerator. If this has been messed with, then it may need to be turned back down again. Is it idling smoothly, just high? Have oyou checked the vacuum ball? Its typically under the pass side front bumper, but since you have an aftermarket bumper on there, it could be anywhere along that side.

And FYI, its highly likely it has an AX-15. 89 was a transition year for MJ's for that tranny, with only the VERY early ones having the less desirable BA/10 Peugeot tranny.

So, if it is that Comanche, and everything works, and it has bucket seats, even with some floor repairs needed and minor maintenance, its worth $3-4K. These guys would confirm that... http://www.Comancheclub.com

If its an 89 YJ (like the text in your post says), then yes probably $1-2K

That said, do you have more pics of the Comanche?

I have a set from an XJ D44 rear. 30 spline, factory shafts. Even set up to run discs. If no discs, the spacer can be easily cut out and removed. Good bearings, Sold as a set. $100.

A.

Quote from vbquick1

Im interested. Let me know what model it is. I was leaning toward fuel injection, however it seems that most of the affordable kits out there right now are having issues. It seems they are getting close to a good product, but for right now I am going to stick with a carb. The Fitech, Holley Sniper, MSD Atomik, and Fast kits are using ECU's that are being mass manufactured and the reliability doesnt seem to be there yet.

Ok, I'll pull it out this afternoon and report back...

I have an older used but relatively clean and in great shape Edelbrock carb. Its in a box and I haven't looked at it in a while, but its meant to be a Quadratec replacement. I can dig it out if your interested.

Does the oil pressure gauge on the dash read anything? If so, its likely your just burning off old oil and junk from the motor. As other have said, 210*F is right where the Cherokee should be running, and yes, things do get very hot under the hood and even on the outside surface of the hood.

As long as you know the oil pressure is good (telltale sign of a cracked manifold is low or fluctuating oil pressure) I would let it run and see if it eventually burns off whatever is smoking.

Quote from altierior

In all matters XJ or MJ: When Andy responds, you have your answer.

Lol, what can I say... The very first XJ I had (88 XJ. Bought it off a dealer lot in 97), I bought it with a 4" Trailmaster lift. Drop brackets were the shiznit back then, and this Jeep had them already!

Yes, drop brackets will be perfect for maintaining on-road drive-ability, and also help with flex off road too. As was mentioned before, any drop brackets you get, you will eventually land on when offroading. The nice part is the drop brackets are typically very hefty, and mount to one of the stronger and more re-in-forced sections of the XJ unibody. If you do land on them and have to use them as a skid, they will take plenty of abuse. I ran them for a long time on my first Jeep, and besides loosening up occasionally from taking multiple hits, they held up just fine.

I did this a few years ago, but had lots of connections for parts so it didn't cost me much at all. I can't imagine it costing more than $1000 even with junkyard parts. The hardest part is finding the rear 4x4 MJ driveshaft. And, of course, this changes depending on if its a long bed or short bed MJ. Also, you need the floor shifter, which MAY be interchangeable with a similar year XJ, but I am not positive on that. I found a 4x4 SB MJ in a junkyard and pulled the rear shaft and floor shifter from it.

Not for nothing (and I have no idea why John doesn't want a real roll cage) but that "show bar" that Rustys offers does serve a real purpose in an XJ. It helps to keep the unibody rigid by tying into the seatbelt mount. It works fairly well for that, as long as it is supported well at the floor.
The later model XJ's had adjustable seatbelt mounts though, so I am not sure how effective it would be on a 97-later XJ. The adjustment would have to be fixed in place before counting on it for support.

== no driveline vibes after a lift!!! But the (much needed!) rock rails would weigh 150lbs each!! It is probably one of the very few TJ's that WOULD NOT fit on the trails at RC.

Quote from quadna

Thanks Andy. I looked at the RE HD version but seems a little overkill as well for a mainly street Jeep with 3.5" springs. Even their website says for 4.5" and higher...so I may be stuck with the axle still shifted past center due to being too low of a lift and too long of a trackbar. Same thing goes for the Clayton trackbar as well as the RK trackbar. I think I will give Clayton a call and see what they have in the 3.5" spring range that might not be on the website. I'm not too concerned about the "next stage of the build" as this is the highest it'll ever be with the current owner. I'm leaning more towards Bilstein now....hopefully people aren't just shouting it out as the next hotness because it's popular...

When you talk to Clayton, ask them if theirs will work with 3.5" lift. If it won't work, they can probably shorten up their track bar a bit. I am sure he can build you something somewhat custom to work with 3.5" of lift, and he can probably use poly bushings or something to keep the $$ down a bit too.

For the track bar, RE makes a HD version (puts the frame mount of the track bar in double shear) that comes with a new frame bracket. I would go this route, along with the RE lift you've specified. Other options for a track bar is Claytons setup and Rock Krawlers setup. Both would be overkill for your usage, but also do the same as the RE kit by replacing the bar and bracket. Since you need to replace the track bar anyway, its worth the extra expense to spring for one that puts it in double shear. And you've probably heard, but its very likely you'll need an sye.

If you call and talk to Clayton Offroad, I am sure they can put together a competitive lift for the RE. It will be a bit more $$ and overkill for your plans, but it should last until your ready for the next stage of the build.

... and Bilstein shocks are the way to go. 5125's for the budget-minded.

No worries, I didn't forget, just haven't wheeled with you in forever and had no idea what your running anymore. That steering, even with its slight looseness inherent with an inverted T design, is strong and not easy to bend. I can see that steering having enough play (especially if the locknuts are loose) to allow some death wobble. I don't think I ever had that problem with it either when I was running the D30 in my XJ. It sounds like you looked it over already and decided it was OK. Wow, those bushings do look like a great idea.

I guess its time to try the brakes then... :-\ Only other I can think of is maybe a bent outer knuckle... I would want to put the front axle up on jack stands, put the heaviest tire/wheel combo you have on it (tires off the ground), then just start checking every last joint. Probably covered already, but what type of steering is on it? Is it an inverted T where the tie rod could actually be twisting, adding more play in the steering?

Quote from altierior

Despite it's retirement from wheeling? It's no longer being subjected to crazy flex.

Hmm, good point. You'll have to see how it looks when you take it out. Might be worth it...

Yep, those are the bushings. I broke my 1920's 100lb vise trying to press those suckers into the track bar for the WJ... they are hard!!!

I would actually be tempted to replace the bottom end of the track bar with the JJ version. I think JKS offers this... (?) When you take the track bar off, take a very good look at the axle mount/coil buckets/LCA mounts. Having DW has a tendency to weaken factory mounts/welds pretty badly.

I am sure you know this, but think of DW as a progressive problem. It happens once and in the process weakens other components. Then you fix one thing, but other components have been weakened to the point that they will now also cause it.

If a caliper is sticking, its very likely you would feel it when you spin the wheel/tire with it off the ground. If you don't feel a caliper dragging when you sping the wheel/tire with it off the ground, it could still be a caliper if it wasn't bled properly and there is air trapped in one of them. Basically, one caliper would get more braking force than the other causing a pull to one side. You would feel that pull to one side though while driving if that were the case.

Just some more food for thought.....

Irony sucks doesn't it? I recently had this happen on the WJ I owned. Is that the ACTUAL track bar you own? If so, I am betting that is where your problem is. It could be one of two possibilities...

1. No matter how tight you have made the track bar bracket, once under load it is finding a bit more movement. There has been enough corrosion behind it that it has extra space in places that should be against the sub frame. Solution-- Weld it to the frame.

2. If that is the EXACT track bar you have, then its likely that the poly bushing is bad on the one end. Its hard to tell by horsing it around with a pry bar, but I can almost guarantee that is your problem. That track bar is a JKS track bar (that is what Kevins Offroad sells), and Kevins Offroad actually offers a heavier durometer bushing for that style because many folks with WJ's have had this problem. This new bushing is the closest thing to STEEL that any plastic can actually be. You can hardly dent it with your finger nail. Get that bushing, and it should fix that problem. Keep in mind, the new bushing is TIGHT AS HELL to get in, but it works. If you have poly bushings on BOTH ends, then replace them both. Let me know if you need help sourcing these. Look under the WJ stuff on their website and you should be able to find them.

I had crappy tires on my WJ, and I hit a bump wrong and got death wobble. Once it happened it kept on happening because it wallowed out the track bar bushings enough to create space. You may have had another problem that initially caused your death wobble, but since it happened once it was enough to "make room" in the bushings.

A.

No idea, I don't have a JKU. They will fit on my "darkside" SUV though... Just wasn't sure if you were aware of this size. Also, have you seen the "Fierce" brand of tires? I think I saw that they are made by Goodyear, but not 100% on that. Looks very similar to the Duratrac, with slight differences, and I think they come in lighter load ranges.

Also FYI, (and I am sorry if I am muddying the waters a bit for you, its just ironic that I have recently been looking at the same size/range of tire) a 305 70 16 is approx. 33" tall, but around an inch wider.

There are many folks out there putting all sizes of tires on their factory JKU's. I would dig around a bit more on a few of the national Jeep sites and see what works.

I have been searching for the same size/type of tires as well to put on an SUV. I am settled on the General Grabber AT2 because they are the only ones that are not load range E. And, they seem to be the best for my application too. Mostly highway driving, but definitely needs to hold up to trail duties.

Not sure that makes a difference to you, but typically load range E tires are for full size pickups that haul weight and/or do lots of heavy towing. I have never put a set of load range E tires on a lighter vehicle, but it seems that they would ride harsher with the heavier sidewalls.

Also FYI... The General Grabbers come in a 295 75 16 size. Approx. 33.6" tall, so slightly bigger...