Eagle

You're going to find that the AMC-era Jeeps tended to develop issues with the light sockets and/or grounds going bad. The part about the brakes lighting up your dash indicators is a clue. If your brake and tail lights have lost their ground, when you apply the brakes and power goes to the brake lights, the angry pixies (to quote from a guy on YouTube) look for any available path to ground -- which may turn out to be the parking light or turn signal circuit. Clean up the grounds for the tail/brake lights and for the parking lights, and then pull all the sockets and clean them out with a wire brush (they make -- or used to make -- brushes specifically for cleaning parking light sockets). While you're cleaning them, test each socket to be sure there's a good connection to ground.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pHFuhGgj6dQDfzyfFJH5z7NCDLW2KX3ABQgAJr3lBvM/edit#gid=0

Aluminum can be welded by TIG. I would certainly try that before hunting down a blown tranny and taking two of them apart nto move the rear housing over to yours.

How are they bent the wrong way? I dodn't see that in your photo.

Sorry -- It's been one of those days weeks months years.

Of course you can. Jeep stopped using the CAD in later years. When it snows, I shift my 2000 XJ into 4WD before I even try to get out of my driveway.

The grinding is the transfer case, not the front axle disconnect. If you are stuck, the wheels don't turn. In 2WD, if you start spinning the rear wheels and then shift into 4WD ... what's going to happen? The rear wheels are spinning, but the front wheels aren't turning. Something's gotta give -- and that something is going to be your transfer case. Eliminate the CAD, then shift into 4WD when you're NOT spinning then rear wheels.

Wrong.

I own two, and I just sold a third.

Take a look down the bore with the engine off. The throttle plate should be closed. Idle air should be delivered through a by-pass port that's only there for idle. If there's a gap between the throttle plate and the bore, the idle speed screw isn't allowing the throttle plate to close completely. Or it might be held open by the choke. Does it idle too fast when fully up to temperature, or only when first started cold?

IIRC, the MJ center bolts are larger than XJ center bolts. I want to say they're 5/16" but I'm not certain of that. Pro tip -- do NOT try to use the bolt and nut to pull the leaves together. Use a heavy duty C-clamp (or two) to clamp the leaves, tighten the nuts on the through bolts, and then release the C-clamps. If you buy socket-head cap screws at Lowe's or Home Depot (or probably anywhere), the head diameter may be sightly too large to fit the hole in the u-bolt plate. Be sure to check that first, and grind them down to fit if necessary.

You should be able to get a replacement cord (universal) from Lowe's or Home Despot. With a plastic body, I would not be surprised if that saw uses sintered bronze bushings rather than bearings. (Like the XJ/MJ fan motors.) Try oiling the bushings or bearings and see if it helps. Ultimately, you may have to replace.

Auto theft goes high tech -- thanks, Apple. https://www.fox4news.com/news/man-finds-apple-air-tag-tracker-on-his-dodge-charger

Another

What do you mean by "I replaced all the ignition"? And how long does it take to start? Have you driven THIS vehicle through other winters? If so, is it significantly worse than it was last year or the year before? Gasoline is less volatile when it's cold, so it's normal for starting to take a bit more effort when it gets down toward (or below) freezing.

The good freeware programs are all updated regularly. I use several of them.

I'm looking for some feedback on a potential book concept. I'm not a master of science fiction, or any fiction genre. I enjoy writing, but I seem to be more of an explainer than a creator. Having lived on a rather limited (and limiting) budget for a number of years, I have become a huge fan of freeware software. Although some freeware is complete dreck, some of it is really excellent. I don't know how many people are even aware of freeware, or just how prolific the freeware community is. Since I use several freeware programs in my home office (and could use more if I shed a few commercial programs that I still use), I have what may be a better appreciation than most for what's out there. The thought occurred to me that there might be a potential market for a book informing people who might be looking to set up a home office or small business on a tight budget of what programs are out there that can be used to equip a home office -- for free or nearly free. The intended target audience would probably be older folks (like me), who are maybe retired or soon-to-be retired, who have used Microsoft Office at work and who don't want to shell out big bucks to buy MS Office for home, and don't want to get sucked into a subscription for Office 365. So I would be discussing office suites, and then also get into graphics programs, CADD programs, possibly video editing programs, and accounting. Does anyone think there would be a market for such a book?

Whether you keep it or sell it, it's definitely not worth paying a shop to make the swap. IMHO it's definitely worthwhile if you do the work. There's nothing complicated about it -- it's all bolt-in parts except for having the rear driveshaft modified. Find a Cherokee donor vehicle and just move the parts over. Just be certain that the donor vehicle has the same gear ratio as your 2WD rear axle.

The first option above - just eliminating the rear height sensing valve - will leave you with 100% full braking power to the rear wheels at all times. Since normally about 60% of the weight is on the front wheels, and that increases when you brake, having full power to the rear brakes at all times often results in premature lockup even with the factory drum brakes. With rear disk brakes I would expect it to be worse. The problem with premature rear lockup is that it usually causes a spin-out. The WJ proportioning valve is a proportioning valve, designed and intended to reduce premature rear wheel lockup. If you are going to rear disks, IMHO you definitely need some kind of proportioning valve. Whether the WJ unit is the best choice, I don't know.

Try to salvage anything that's unique to the MJ, such as the parking brake pedal assembly, the seat brackets (even if the seats themselves are toast), the rear proportioning valve, spare tire winch (if it works) -- things like that.

I agree. I don't care if they know your mother. If that's the kind of work they do for friends, just think what they do to customers who aren't friends. Either find a decent shop, or figure it out for yourself. I wouldn't allow that shop to touch my truck, ever again.

You have a vacuum leak somewhere. There's a rat's nest of small vacuum tubes under the dashboard -- I think you're going to have to go hunting until you find the one that's causing the problem.

Auburn offers three different types of replacement differential. The one we used to see when I was active in NAXJA-NAC was the "Grip-N-Loc," which is a standard, clutch type limited slip that uses a cone-shaped clutch pack. Then there are two flavors of "Select-A-Loc." One runs normally as a clutch-type limited slip, and has an electrically-activated locker function for more positive locking. The other is an electrically-activated locker that is an open differential, rather than a limited slip, when not locked by the electrically activated locker. The lockers in both Select-A-Loc units are mechanical, not clutch operated. For a D30 front axle, I would go with a Detroit True-Trac.

The Auburns are limited slips, and use clutches. The G80 is a locker. I don't think it uses clutches. https://www.topspeed.com/cars/car-news/deep-dive-general-motors-g80-locking-rear-differential-ar169064.html

It hasn't happened to me, but there have been reports of the frame cracking at the steering box in both MJs and XJs. There are aftermarket parts to brace the steering box, and kits to plate the frame in that area for extra strength. What size tires do you run, how much rock crawling do you do, and how often do you turn the steering wheel when the vehicle isn't rolling?