Eagle

^^^ :agree: The factory spec is 13 psi minimum at idle with the engine at normal operating temperature. What's the pressure at 50 MPH in high gear? So far the photo isn't showing a problem. Also, what weight oil?

Grounding? The only ground involved for the headlights is forward at the lights themselves -- the ground connection behind the driver's side headlight bucket. If the headlights work when you flash the high beams, then the lights have ground. Your problem is somewhere in the power supply circuit upstream of the headlights. You can verify whether or not there's power to the headlights by removing one headlamp, turning on the headlights, and using a tester between the headlight socket and a known good ground to confirm whether or not you're getting power to the socket. Assuming you're not, then you start working back upstream along the power circuit until you find the point where there is power.

Lift reduces caster angle, and keeping caster angle around 7 degrees is important for resisting death wobble. The problem is, with a large lift if you dial in 7 degrees of caster you may increase the operating angle of the front axle u-joint beyond where it's happy (since there's a double cardan joint at the transfer case end, the operating angle at the differential yoke wants to be approximately zero). So generally setting caster on a lifted truck becomes a balancing act between getting enough caster without eating u-joints.

The guy in the shop clearly does not know what he is talking about. Tire balance is the primary cause of death wobble. Other factors just combine to dampen and hide the symptoms to a greater or lesser degree. In theory, an automotive tire is a gyroscope, which is inherently resistant to wobble -- IF it's perfectly balanced. If it isn't perfectly balanced, it will wobble. Secondly, camber in a solid front axle setup like the XJs and MJs is not adjustable, except by installing special offset ball joints. That's not so much an "adjustment" as it is a one-time fix for an out-of-spec axle assembly. Lifting the vehicle will affect caster, but will not affect camber. Lift also affects toe-in.

Also too hot for a Renix. With the standard 195-degree thermostat the gauge should show 210 degrees (straight up, mid-dial).

You have it backwards -- see post #3 above. You made me look it up in the factory electrical troubleshooting manual. It clearly says, disconnect wire, "Needle goes to H." Touch wire to ground, "Needle goes to L."

If there's any sure path to getting yourself flamed, it's jumping in after multiple people who KNOW how the system works have answered a question correctly, and telling them that what they wrote is close to BS. Before being so quick on the trigger, you might in the future stop to consider that some of us on this board are automotive professionals, and others of us have been serious automotive hobbyists for over fifty years. I also grew up before a/c in cars was commonplace. I think I was 35 yes old (or more) before I owned my first car with a/c. I understand that heaters will defrost the windshield without help from the a/c. That doesn't mean that a/c won't make it happen faster, and it certainly doesn't mean that the Jeep engineers didn't design the system to cycle the a/c when running the defrost.

Normal operation. The a/c runs in defrost mode. It's supposed to cycle.

In choosing any alternate filter for the Jeep engines, be sure the substitute has an anti-drainback valve.

Oyaji, I speak (okay, I write) not as a professional engineer (which I am not, although my education leading up to a master's degree in architecture necessarily included structural and mechanical engineering) but as an automotive enthusiast who has built and raced his own SCCA-legal pony car (1968 Javelin) and driven old military Jeeps, Cherokees, and Comanches both on- and off-road. I agree with you 110 percent about safety, which is why the first question I ask here when someone wants to lift their MJ is "Why?" The goal, IMHO (an opinion shared with any number of off-road experts) is to lift the vehicle as LITTLE as possible to enable it to go where you want to go. Any lift beyond the minimum necessary is wasting money, and making the vehicle less safe. That said, the bean counters at Jeep have decreed that they want to appeal to a wider spectrum of buyers. That means buyers who would not previously buy a Jeep because ... well, because it rides like a Jeep. It's not just a question of switching to independent suspension on all four corners. It's also things like spring rates, shock absorber valving, suspension geometry, steering ... a plethora of interrelated factors that all affect ride comfort, stability, maneuverability, and safety. The first Liberty was Jeep's first (modern) independent suspension vehicle, and it tipped over in a slalom course that previous, solid axle Cherokees had passed. That tells me something. I also know that when Jeep introduced the then-new 1999 Grand Cherokee (the WJ), they had to recall the export suspension due to some problem. IIRC (which is open to question at this point), the fix involved changing both spring rates and suspension bushing durometer specs. Again, to me this is indicative that even 14 years ago Jeep was already trying to make Jeeps ride like ... unJeeps. Your reference to the Ford debacle was another example. The problem wasn't the Firestone tires -- the problem was that Ford wanted what was basically a truck to ride as soft as a car, so Ford specified an insanely low tire pressure (contrary to Firestone's advice), and then Ford blamed Firestone when the tires began to explode due to [entirely predictable] overheating. I have no doubts that my wife's or my 2000 Cherokee would have no problem negotiating the evasive maneuver in the video you showed. The fact that a new Grand Cherokee failed so spectacularly simply confirms (for me, at least) my belief that Jeep is no longer building Jeeps.

Good info though, had never heard of the 18" offering. Knowing what they came on narrows down the search - thank you. Still need to find the backset and the width - if anyone here can contribute, sing out! 18" wheels with 31" tire diameter would give a 6.5" sidewall - plenty to prevent wheel damage, and would cut down on "tuck" during cornering (admittedly not a strong point of a truck, but you never know when you might be forced into drastic maneuvers). Some of you might think I am too mindful of safety... seen this? ;) I hadn't seen that one, but I do remember the original Liberty failed one magazine's slalom test in spectacular fashion by rolling over. That led Jeep to cancel the Up Country version of the Liberty until they could re-engineer the shocks and spring rates. That said -- a Jeep isn't a sports car. I am concerned about safety, but I have no illusions that any of my XJs or MJs will ever be the equal of my race-prepped Javelins or AMXs on a road course. I will comment that I once put the 2000 XJ Classic into a full lateral power slide at 60 MPH when some idiot cut my off on a highway. IMO the problem now is that Jeep has a newer generation of engineers, whose priority seems to be to make the vehicles "look like Jeeps but ride like limousines." Something has to give when you try to combine mutually exclusive goals, and it seems that Jeep's compromise has been to give up safety and handling.

Did Jeep ever offer any 17" rim with the 5 x 4.5" bolt circle? They started with the 17" rims when they brought in the WJ version of the Grand Cherokee in 1999, and those were NOT 5 x 4.5".

True. My 2000 XJ Sport came with 15" rims and 225/75R15 tires. Tire diameter is 28.3", cross-section is 8.9", revolutions-per-mile = 730. Wife's 2000 XJ Classic came with 16" rims and 225/70R16 tires. Tire diameter is 28.4", cross-section is 8.9", revolutions-per-mile = 736 (a difference of 0.8%).

Lol no where did I say I had flares, so I don't get your point... But since my finders are uncut, that's still a mute issue because the flares don't effect how much room there is, the sheet metal does No, the flares extend both down and outward from the sheet metal. Large tires on aftermarket rims that might not hit the sheet metal could very easily still hit the flares.

I always preferred cellos, personally :D (Just yankin' yer chain a bit. Typos we can deal with. At least you didn't spell it "wallah!")

First thing to do is to see if the gauge has connectivity with the sender. The oil pressure sender is located on the passenger side of the block, near the oil filter. The "go/no-go" test is best performed with a helper, but you can do it solo if necessary. Locate the wire that plugs onto the end of the sender. Turn on the ignition, but don't start the engine. Remove the wire from the sender and don't let the connector touch anything. Check the gauge and see what it reads. It should be pegged all the way to the right (above 80 psi). Now take a jumper wire and ground the end of the wire to a known good ground under the hood (or directly to the negative battery terminal). Check the gauge again. It should now read zero. If this test fails, you probably have a broken wire somewhere between the instrument cluster and the sender. If this test passes, then we think about testing the gauge itself, and/or the sender.

I can attest from bitter experience that the above statement is nor correct. A failing CPS can (and often does) send a weak and erratic signal, resulting in a number of odd behaviors. Weird starting is one of them.

I've never heard of a ceramic-lined clutch and I can't imagine it would be worth twice the price. The factory clutch on my '88 Cherokee (bought new) lasted 204,000 miles, and was replaced only because the slave cylinder went. The clutch itself looked like new. How much better could you ask than a 200,000 mile clutch? Be sure to get the hose assembly from the master cylinder to the slave cylinder. That was the only part I didnj't replace -- guess what failed when I was 100 miles from home?

MANY years ago, one of the early members of NAXJA (Ed Stevens) did a comprehensive investigation of what tire sizes would fit an XJ with stock suspension. The 31x10.50 originally came out of his research, along with the caveat that it requires factory rims, What Ed did was to rest the chassis on blocks, then remove the front springs. This allowed him to mount tires on the axle and use a floor jack to cycle the suspension from full droop through full compression. What he proved was that on factory rims 31x10.50s would tuck up INSIDE the fender flares and allow the suspension to reach the bump stops. Run aftermarket rims with less backspacing, and the tires hit the flares under compression long before the suspension hits the bump stops. For the rear, I think he just added weight to test compression. But for us MJers, the rear wheel wells are much larger than on the XJ. However, a 31x10.50 on factory rims does ride close to the inner fender liner and the leaf spring. The limiting dimension for the rear of the MJ is the tire width, not the height. I ran 31x10.50s on my '88 MJ for a couple of years after I removed the lift. I am currently running 31x10.50s on my '88 XJ -- at stock height. The only interference is the inner shoulder of the tire rubbing the lower control arm at full steering lock. The WJ LCAs would cure that, but it hasn't been a problem so I don't worry about it. What y'all need to recognize is that LIFT WILL NOT ALLEVIATE THIS ISSUE.

The upper mount isn't any standard bolt or stud. The part that fits into the shock bushing is smooth, and larger in diameter than the threaded portion. That's so the nut and washer can seat against the shoulder of the shank to properly compress the shock bushing without over-compressing it. If the nuts look badly rusted and don't seem to want to come off, don't even fool around. If you don't have a nut breaker, get out the Dremel and grind one flat of the nut until it cracks, and you can turn it. You do NOT want to think about replacing the shock stud.

Uncompressed height is only one of the factors (parameters) you need to know. You also need to know the diameter of the wire and the number of coils.

31s fit a stock XJ the same as they fit a stock MJ -- slight rubbing on the LCAs at full steering lock. I have 31s on the '88 XJ (on factory rims) and have had no issues (other than the LCA rubbing, which I don't consider to be an "issue") for two-plus years. The key is that the 31s have to be on factory Jeep rims. No aftermarket rims have 5-1/4" backspacing like the factory rims, so on aftermarket rims the tires sit farther outboard and hit the flares.

So what y'all are telling me is that I should yank the steering columns out of the hulks in the yard before I send the shells to the crusher?

Looks like it's specific to the 1986 model year.

The RENIX injection/ignition system is very simple (not complicated) and extremely reliable.