Eagle

http://www.autozone.com/fuel-delivery/fuel-injector/jeep/comanche-4wd/1988/4-cylinders-h-2-5l-tbi

The manual remote mirrors ((joy stick) were available on MJs not just XJs. Yes, but both my '87 Pioneer and my '88 Chief have the dual side mirrors that don't have the joysticks. Both types are what can be characterized as "manual" mirrors, so the question had to be asked. The type without the joystick was never used in the XJ (AFAIK), so that's why I referred to them as XJ and MJ types.

Did you buy the XJ manual mirors with the joy stick controllers, or the MJ manual mirrors with the blank interior plate that requires opening the window and reaching outside to adjust?

Some of us are perhaps more sensitive about some of this stuff than others. Late this afternoon I had a phone call from a friend. I'm not sure how it came up (I guess something about Veterans' Day), but he reminded me that I went on a rant over a bulk e-mail his company sent out to clients just before Memorial Day, thanking veterans for their sacrifices. I wrote to him immediately to remind him that Memorial Day is to honor those who gave their lives, and that we veterans who survived have our own day, in November. What we agreed on is that our schools today are woefully negligent (intentionally so, unfortunately) in teaching kids today what the meaning of these holidays is, and teaching respect for the flag and for the Constitution. Yeah, I do get a bit preachy about that stuff sometimes. Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain in the corner.

It's a good thing we all speak the same language, isn't it? Just think how confusing things could be if we didn't ... :)

The heater blower controls use a pack of resistors to control fab speed. There are three different resistors, each for one of the intermediate speeds, and then a circuit route with no resistance for high speed. I wonder if your resistor pack burned out and a previous owner just wired in an external resistor rather than replace the resistor pack. When the fan runs, how many speeds do you have?

Easy to say. What's the best fuel mileage you ever heard of from a 4.0L XJ or MJ? Low 20s -- maybe? I got 28 MPG on a road trip in my '88 XJ 5-speed when it was fairly new -- ONCE. Must have been a helluva tailwind, because I never got mileage like that again. Go back 20 years. I had a 1966 Rambler American, 3-speed, no overdrive. No fuel injection, just an old-fashioned 1-barrel carburetor. I routinely logged 28 MPG for highway mileage in that car. And a Rambler American wasn't any more aerodynamic than an XJ.

First, to mount a transfer case to a 2WD transmission you'll need a different tailshaft and tailshaft housing, which effectively means buying a 4WD transmission anyway. Also, the AX-15 will work, but the 2000 XJ didn't use the AX-15, the correct tranny is the NVG 3550.

Yes, they did. And the carb was widely regarded as a piece of [bleep]. If I go ahead with a carb conversion, I may seek out an '84-'85 intake manifold, but that's one carburetor that's not under consideration.

The vehicle is a 1988 2.5L MJ, with the throttle body injection. If anyone has priced that injector, it's crazy what they cost. I'm starting to consider a backwards conversion, to a carburetor instead of TBI. Not sure, but I think I can leave all the injection wiring intact and unused, and continue running the factory Renix ignition setup. Does anyone know anything about sizing carburetors? My numbers indicate that at 5,000 RPM a 2.5L engine nominally flows 220 CFM. I'm accustomed to 4-barrel carbs on V8s, running in the 550 to 750 CFM range. I'm guessing for normal street driving and economy, I should be looking for a carb in the 250 to 300 CFM range. Does that sound about right? One barrel, or two barrels? Does anyone offer a small 2-barrel carb that's set up like half a 4-barrel, with a small primary venturi for economy and a larger secondary that opens when the engine needs more air?

That does not sound like factory equipment. I've never seen an external fuse or relay for the blower motor. Can you post a photo of it?

The brushes inside are worn out, which is why it won't run -- and the bushings are dried out, which explains the squealing. Basically, you need a new blower motor. You can try one from a junkyard, and hope it'll last for a year or two, or you can spend a few $$$ more and get a new motor from Auto Zone or similar places.

I did remember to check. Hole spacing is 6-1/4" for both front and rear, as well as for the higher-end front "hockey stick" armrests. But the rear armrests are a bit shorter than the base level front armrests. I suspect if they were used, nobody would ever notice the difference, but it is there.

"Know thyself." I know me. That's a hint for you to remind me.

^^^ What he said.

I'll try to remember to check the heaps tomorrow. I think one of the MJs has base trim. For the moment, I'm going to guess "Probably not." The front stubby armrests are side-specific, and the part number is different from the XJ rear armrest.

Are you asking about the stubby, base model arm rests or the rear hockey stick armrests?

A "few hundred" to do a head? Is that if you carry it in, or does that include them taking it off and reinstalling it? What's included in their price? Is that a valve job, valve guides, and decking (truing) the head surface? "A few hundred" is a very imprecise number, and to me it sounds a bit on the high side.

It'll run for awhile with no alternator. The battery will wear down, though, and at that point it will stop. There's also the problem of overheating.

I had a '78 SJ Cherokee (the full-size Cherokee). I'm in the salt belt and it was losing the rust battle so I sold it, but I often regret having done so. I loved that truck. Mine had the AMC 360 engine, and I felt like it had enough torque to pull down a good sized house. I used mine mostly for plowing in the winter. Check the frame for rot. If the frame is solid, anything else can be fixed.

WHY do people try to be "helpful" when they have no idea what the [bleep] is going on? I have three parts XJs in the yard. Knowing that the hood release cables are frozen I carefully and intentionally left the hoods partially open, held down only by the safety catch in the center. Went out this afternoon to grab a part for a fellow Comanche Club member and found ALL THREE hoods have been fully and firmly closed. I'd sure it was done by the Mexican guy my wife brought in to cut the grass. He's a nice guy, but he doesn't understand American gearheads and why we have piles of car parts lying around where there could be grass. I can't even yell at him, because he doesn't speak English and my Spanish isn't up to the task. Damnit! Now what should have been a 5-minute job is going to take hours of futzing around. I am NOT a happy camper at the moment.

Ah. Are you absolutely certain that you ordered and received parts for your year MJ? There have been several permutations and combinations of hubs, disks and rotors. In general, they can't be mixed. They have different offsets, so mixing them results in no-roll wheels.

I believe what we have here is a failure to communicate.

It sounds like either you're not really getting 4th gear (overdrive), or your torque converter isn't locking up. For reference, the overdrive ratio is (IIRC) 0.72:1, so your direct (1:1) RPMs for any chosen speed would be the overdrive RPM divided by 0.72. The overdrive 1600 RPM (which is incorrect, on stock tires 55 MPH in OD should be 1733 RPM) would be 1600/0.72 = 2222. The torque converter not locking up would also raise the RPM, but there's no way to calculate that mathematically. Nope. Reference: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pHFuhGgj6dQDfzyfFJH5z7NCDLW2KX3ABQgAJr3lBvM/pub?hl=en&hl=en&output=html

The 4.3L is basically a SBC V-8 with two cylinders cut off. It's much wider than the 2.8/3.1/3.4 and barely fits the MJ engine compartment. Back in the early days of NAXJA one of the guys who lived near me had an XJ that he had put a 4.3L into. I asked him how much work it was to do it. His response was: "Let me put it this way -- I love working on cars, but NEVER AGAIN." Once you decide to go with a 4.3L you might as well go all the way and do a SBC.