Eagle

Tire balance ... tire balance ... tire balance. The shake starting at 55 MPH is the clue. That's when tire balance always kicks in.

You don't remove the rubber from the cups -- you unscrew the cups from the tower.

Sorry I was half asleep when I posted last night. I have a dana 44 with LSD. The limited slip is pretty much gone since it doesnt have the correct spider gears. I'm not entirely sure how it works but when my buddy took out the mini spool he told me some of the clutch plates were cracked and the retaining clip one side was broken. Then when we dropped in the gears they didnt fit snug since they were made for an open diff. Same thing with the mini spool. The gap in size is causing the rear end to clank and pop. I was mixing up stock "Trac Lok" with the Detriot "TrueTrak". My carrier as far as I was told is fine. The reason I'm so interested in this is for one I would like to have a half decent locker in that I can use for a daily driver and the detriot is what most people suggested. Getting another Dana 44 is damn near impossible here since Hawaii has $#!&e for junk yards and everything here is gutted for Toyotas. I was thinking about stepping it up to a ford 8.8 but I have the alloy shaft upgrade in my rear end. But if dropping in a detroit is going to cause me to have to regear and what not then its not worth it. don't have the money or the time to do that since I'm getting stationed back in the mainland soon. Just sucks I'm going to have to drop almost as much cash getting new spider gears and clutch plate as I would for a locker. Damn sorry I linked the wrong detriot : http://www.4wheelparts.com/Drivetrain-Differentials/Dana-44-Detroit-Locker.aspx?t_c=12&t_s=237&t_pt=101501&t_pn=EAT187SL16D You don't HAVE to use new gears when installing a locker. Some people do, but in general I've only seen it done when the owner is changing the gear ratio. The TrueTrac in my '88 MJ was installed with new gears because I went from a 3.07 ratio to 3.73, but when the factory TracLok wore out in my '88 XJ I replaced it with a new TracLok and used the original gears. That was over 100,000 miles ago, and there have been no problems. If you don't replace the ring and pinion, all you have to do is set the ring gear backlash to match what it was and you should be good to go. However, in your case that's not possible because your diff has been apart twice. So in your case you would use gear marking compound and look to duplicate the wear pattern that's on the ring gear teeth. I have no idea why you need a locker in Hawaii. Lockers are not street friendly. A limited slip seems to me to be a far better solution in a truck that's going to be regularly driven on the street. It'll be quieter, and your tires will last longer. I happen to like the factory TracLok limited slips. If you needed only the clutch pack, I'd say to go for that and call it good. However, the cost for the clutch pack is now approaching $100. You also need a complete spider gear package, and I have no idea what the cost for that would be, or how easily available it is. IMHO the best and most cost-effective solution for you would be a TrueTrac. It has its own internal gears so you won't have to replace the D44 spiders, and it's quiet on the street. Under other circumstances I would have suggested just buying a complete new TracLok unit, which would be cheaper than a TrueTrac, but that would require buying new spider gears, so the final cost in your case might not be any different (or might even be more).

That e-Bay listing says it's for a Dana 44 and a Chrysler 9-1/4" axle. I don't know if both of those differentials use the same rebuild kits. I suppose it's possible, but I sort of doubt it. I'd suggest shopping at a place that knows Jeeps, such as Quadratec. If your Dana 44 carrier housing isn't broken, I don't see why you can't rebuild it. The Jeep parts manual confirms that the spider gear set for a TracLoc is different from the spiders for an open diff, but the right parts should just drop right in. The other point is that your entire post is confusing. You don't have a TrueTrac. You have (or had) a TracLok, which was the factory limited slip differential. A TrueTrac is a gear-driven limited slip differential made by the Detroit Locker people, but it's not as noticeable driving on the street. It does not use clutches, so it doesn't require additives for the gear lube. Your second listing is not a "Detroit Locker for a TrueTrac," it is a listing for a TrueTrac differential. It's a great choice for street-driven vehicles that don't see hard-core off-road use, but it isn't a locker -- it's a limited slip. I have one in my '88 MJ and for my use and driving style it's ideal. But prices have gone up a lot. I paid around $350 for mine. It's now nearly $500, and on top of that you'll need an "install kit" (shims and bearings), and you'll have to pay someone to install it since you apparently don't know how to set up a differential. Overall, I think it would be worthwhile trying a rebuild on your Dana 44 TracLok unit before doing anything else.

Do you have warning lights for oil pressure, voltage and coolant temperature, or do you have actual gauges? If you have lights, those are "idiot lights." If you have actual gauges, that's a full cluster. The clusters with gauges may or may not also include a tachometer. If you have idiot lights, the lights should be lit when you first turn on the ignition, before starting the engine. If they aren't, check the bulbs. If they light up when you turn on the ignition, the sender may be bad. (Or they may be working properly and you don't have a problem.)

Actually, the 4.0L was based off the 4.2L, and the 2.5L was the 4.2L with two cylinders removed. Yes, I know the 4.0L didn't come out until three years after the 2.5L. The engine family that ended with the 4.0L Jeep engine started in 1964 with the AMC 232 c.i.d. in-line six. A couple of years later they added a 199 c.i.d. version. In the mid-70s they stroked it some more and came out with the 258 (4.2L). That stayed with us until the early 90s in the Wrangler. They are all the same basic block. The block has seven main bearings for six cylinders, which means every crank throw is fully supported. There is no flex in the crank, which is why the engines are basically indestructible. The 4.0L version is the first one where they reduced the stroke and enlarged the bore. ALL the other versions used the same pistons, with different cranks and different length connecting rods.

Don't fool with the power steering hoses. If the high pressure hose bursts, it'll spray power steering fluid (which is essentially ATF) on the exhaust manifold, where it will start an engine room fire. Not fun.

^^^ This. Back when these were the current offering in Cherokees and Comanches, a very good friend and racing buddy was the service manager at the dealership where I bought my '88 Cherokee. I stopped by often just to say hello. It was very rare NOT to find a 2.8L Cherokee with a rod or two sticking out the side of the block.

Save your money. An ignition upgrade on a 2.8L would be a complete waste of resources.

ES2222L has a left-hand thread and goes on the pitman arm, at the upper end of the drag link. ES2221L (left-hand thread) and ES2223R (right-hand thread) are the two on the actual tie rod. If you keep the long adjusting sleeve (the tie rod) oriented the way it's in the vehicle now, you can't put one on the "wrong" end because it won't thread in. If you pull the entire tie rod assembly, it doesn't really matter which goes where because the studs are the same -- the only difference is that one has a left-hand thread.

Advanced Auto sells Monroe, you should be able to look them up there. Not Auto Zone or Pep Boys -- they sell Gabriel. Gabriels are also excellent shocks, but I don't think they have a coil-over load-carrying shock.

My 30x9.50-15s do rub, but not much. Generally, 235/75-15 is the largest tire that doesn't rub but, once in awhile, even those may rub the LCAs just a little bit (usually only on one side). If you want 100 percent certainty -- 225/75-15. I would rate 235/75-15 as about 95 percent certainty, and that's my choice. One reason is that Goodyear still offers the original Wrangler radial in that size -- and that size only. You can buy them in any Wal-Mart for $87 per tire, and IMHO they are far superior in just about every respect to the several new "Wrangler" lines that have followed the original.

That's a start, but not a good one. Doing the adjustment with the wheels off the ground is not a good idea, because if there's any play in the ball joints that can affect the setting. If you do it with the tires on the ground, you have to compensate for the resistance of the contact patch to moving. I just went through this today after replacing a drag link (the long tie rod "end" from the right steering knuckle up to the pitman arm). IMHO the only way to do it is to adjust some, then start the engine, back up several car lengths, then pull forward again before checking to see if you moved it enough. It took me about half a dozen tries to get it where it should be. You can turn the adjusting sleeve with a pipe wrench, but there's a special tool made for the job:

Heat. The door post switch is in the ground side of the circuit. The courtesy lights are always hot, and the door post switch just closes the ground side of the circuit when the doors are opened. When wires and connections are cold, they conduct optimally. Heat increases resistance, and current flow generates heat. So ... my guess is that there's still a bad ground, or a bad connection somewhere in the circuit, and as the lights run for a couple of minutes that connection heats up and the resistance increases at that point, thus lowering the voltage. :shrug: That's the best I can come up with on short notice.

Camber isn't the only thing that can cause uneven tire wear. The only adjustment for camber is to install offset balljoints. Have you had your alignment checked? Incorrect toe-in/toe-out can easily cause wear on the tire shoulders, and toe-in is the only setting that is usually adjusted on these vehicles. You can do a pretty decent job of checking and setting toe-in by yourself, with just a tape measure.

They do run off the same drive gear. But ... the odometer has a completely mechanical connection all the way from the transfer case through the cable to the number indicator in the cluster. The speedometer head isn't a direct, mechanical connection at the head. The dial needle is mounted on a steel cup that's free to rotate, and has a spring on it. Inside the cup, there's a slightly smaller diameter magnet that is driven by the speedo cable. As the magnet rotates faster inside the cup, it pulls the needle against the spring. There is no mechanical connection between the cable and the needle. It's actually unusual for an old-style speedometer like this to be 100 percent in agreement with the odometer. As the speedo ages, the spring may lose tension, which allows the needle to rotate easier and to read faster than the actual speed. The only way to get the speedo calibrated to/with the odometer is to take the speedometer head to a speedometer repair shop (if such even exist any more) and have it recalibrated.

The FSM says it should be a Model YFA carburetor. I believe that's a Carter, but I don't rightly remember. That's a computer-controlled carburetor, so if yours doesn't have computer-controlled air/fuel mix, it isn't an original Jeep 2.5L carburetor.

If it has a carburetor, it should already have a round air cleaner. (I think -- says me who hasn't looked at a carbureted 2.5L engine for something like five years.)

86? 2.5L? Carbed? Are you sure you don't have throttle body injection?

Y'all made me break out the tape measure. Dana 35 axle tube = 2-1/2" Spring pack (3-leaf + overload) = 1-1/2" Perch offset = 5/8" (x 2 = 1-1/4") So a basic spring over using a Dana 35, and reusing the stock spring perches (or aftermarket replacements that aren't offset farther from the tube) will generate a lift of 2-1/2 + 1-1/2 + 1-1/4.= 5-1/4 inches ... that's less than I have generally seen quoted, but I think most people use a Dana 44 axle (larger tubes) and aftermarket perches that don't fit as tight to the tube as the factory perches.

I can't tell you what it is. Why don't you measure it and tell us? The official measurement, from the factory service manuals, is taken from the top of the axle tube straight up to the underside of the frame rail, inboard of the bump stop. The stock measurement is supposed to be 9.2 inches (+/- 1/2 inch) for 4WD trucks, and 8.2 inches (+/- 1/2 inch) for 2WD trucks. Take that measurement on yours and then everyone will know exactly how much your SOA generated.

Gear oil is for ... gears. Transmissions have gears.

No, it won't ... it can't. The truck starts off with a "factory rake." To keep the same rake, the front and the rear would have to be lifted by the same distance. Doing a rear SOA conversion lifts the rear by the diameter of the axle tube plus twice the offset from the tube to the spring perch (because that gets moved to the top) plus the full thickness of the spring pack. That's more than 5 inches, so using a 5-inch lift in the front will increase the rake.

If you are going SOA in the rear, that's going to lift you more than 5". You will probably need a 6" to 6-1/2" front lift to even out with the rear. Plus, unless you plan to run either offset rims or 33x9.50 tires, you'll need wheel spacers on the back because a 31x10.50 is the widest tire you can run on factory rimes -- and even those make contact with the inner wheel well walls off-road. Personally, I think 33-inch tires are too big for a 4-banger. Your life would be a whole lot simpler (and a whole lot less expensive_ if you were to run 31x10.50s. Then you could run a budget boost, or no lift at all. No problems of being top-heavy. Far fewer problems with tire clearance. No need for SOA in the rear.

A 30x9.50 is almost the same size as a 235/75-15. A 235/75-15 is 28.9" diameter (that's one brand -- call it 29") and 9.3" in cross-section width. A 30x9.50-15 is 29.5" diameter and 9.5" in cross-section width. A 30x9.50 will not touch the flares if run on stock Jeep 15" rims. As commented above, there may (or may not) be slight rubbing of the tire shoulder on the lower control arms. If so -- either shim the steering stop, ir just live with it. A lift will NOT cure this. However, if you use 1-1/2" spacers, then you WILL rub the flares.