Eagle

That's a great price for the complete set.

I've posted this before, but we'll do it again. As before, this comes from the manuscrip of a book I am (or was) writing, and this IS copyrighted. In posting this exerpt here I am NOT releasing it into the public domain and I am NOT giving anyone permission to copy it or to reproduce it on any other site or forum. Please have the courtesy to respect my copyright. For some reason the quote function isn't working for me, so the following will not appear in a quote box: In general, the parts to be concerned with in keeping the front brakes compatible are the steering knuckles, the hub/bearing assemblies, the rotors, and the calipers. (There is a more complete enumeration of the interrelationship of these parts in Chapter 6, Axles.) Only two steering knuckle designs were used: 1984 through 1989, and 1990 through 2001. Left and right side knuckles are different part numbers within each group. Three different hub/bearing units were used. The hub/bearing units are the same for both sides of the vehicle. The different years for hub/bearing assemblies were: 1984 through 1989; 1990 through mid-1999 (composite rotors); and late-1999 through 2001 (cast rotors). Three rotor types were used: 1984 through 1989; 1990 through mid-1999 (composite); and late-1999 through 2001 (cast). Only two caliper types were used: 1984 through 1989, and 1990 through 2001. Left and right side calipers are different part numbers within each group.

The screws and nylon clips usually come as an assembly. All the aftermarket ones I've seen were too short, and I had to buy genuine Jeep parts. That was awhile ago, and I don't know if Mopar still has them in the system.

Oops. That's right. I completely forgot that the 2.5L got EFI a year earlier than the introduction of the 4.0L.

But the 2.5L was introduced in 1984, in the Cherokee. Yes, it was carbureted in 84, 85 and I believe in 86.

Interesting, but not responsive to the OP's request.

I don't consider the MJ brakes to be marginal. The base payload for an MJ was 1475 pounds. Your original post said the car will weigh 2100 pounds. I don't think a dolly weighs anywhere near 900 pounds. As I wrote, I towed a complete LWB MJ on a dolly behind my SWB MJ with the stock brakes (Dana 35 axle, so I have the smaller 1-3/4x10" brakes). My tow was farther than 20 miles and involved hilly terrain (which is all we have around here). I had zero problems.

Obviously, something about the way you connected the wires for the '99 front clip isn't compatible with the original chassis wiring in your truck and you have a short circuit. That's the easy part -- the trick is to figure out where. I think I would begin by removing ALL the light bulbs in the front -- the headlights, parking lights, and side markers. Then try stepping on the brake and see if the fuse blows. It probably will, but -- if not -- replace one bulb at a time until it blows, and that will tell you what circuit to trace. Since shorts typically occur upstream of devices (light bulbs, in this case), the above may not show you anything. If not, then the next step is to unplug the connectors feeding each light bulb from the harness. Step on the brakes. Hoefully no blown fuse. If that works, plug in one light at a time until you find the one that causes a blown fuse, then trace that circuit.

That's about a 32" diameter tire. I couldn't fit a 31" tire under mine. So I'd say it won't fit. Odd. I carried a 31x10.50-15 under my '88 shortbed for several years. It fit fine, but I don't think anything larger would fit.

Quadratec or any of the on-line body parts vendors should have the headlight bezels and the front flares. There is no known source for the rear flares for the MJ -- only junkyards. If someone tries to tell you that the rear flares for a 2-door Cherokee work -- they don't. Cherokee rear flares are smaller, and the 2-door and 4-door Cherokees used the same flares.

You mean "driveshaft." The driveline (or "drive train") is everything that connects the engine to the rear wheels.

I thought the trim was stainless.

Chrysler 8-1/4 from a 97 or newer XJ. If it's from a 4.0L auto you get 3.55 gears, if you find a 4-banger you get 4.10s. Width is perfect, yoke is correct for the MJ driveshaft u-joints. Just relocate the axle perches and bolt it in. It's less work than the Ford 8.8, and very nearly as strong as the D44.

I actually bought a set of NEW tires today -- for the first time in over 20 years. Since then I've always rolled on either whatever came on a Jeep, or run tires that were either bought as used tires, or that came on Jeep alloy rims I bought. But ... The new-to-us 2001 XJ was wearing a set of the OEM Wrangler RT/S tires. They still had decent tread, but my friend Eric noticed that the sidewalls on a couple were cracking. When I looked more closely, I saw that all four were cracked. And my wife is currently using that vehicle so I don't want to take any chances. So, I went shopping. And I found that Goodyear no longer offers either the original Wrangler Radial or the Wrangler RT/S in a 225/75-15 size. But Wal-Mart has in stock original Wrangler Radials in 235/75R15 for $87 each. Did some research on Tire rack's web site and found that the Wrangler RT/S and the newer Wrangler they're putting on Jeep Liberties get horrible reviews, but the original Wrangler Radial gets great reviews. So ... I bought a set of five. The speedo previously read a bit faster than true road speed anyway, so this should make the speedo just about dead nuts accurate, and provide a scintilla of extra road clearance. Why is it that the good stuff always gets discontinued, and the replacements are never as good?

I think you need limit straps on the suspension.

There is no reason to put a Centerforce clutch in an XJ or MJ, and several NAXJA members who did so later posted that they regretted the decision. The Centerforce clutch is a performance clutch. It is designed to generate high clamping force AT HIGH ENGINE RPM while requiring moderate peddle pressure to engage in normal driving. Considering that a street MJ, especially on big tires, will rarely see higher than 2500 or maybe 3000 RPM, you won't even get into the RPM range where the Centerforce starts to increase the clamping pressure. So why waste the money. Go with the Luks. It was good enough for the factory. The clutch on my original '88 XJ pasted over 200,000 miles, and that included wheeling all over the northeast. When the internal slave/release bearing went bad, I replaced everything just because it was accessible. I asked my friend the retired Jeep service manager (and former stock car racer) what clutch I should use. His response was classic: "How many miles did the factory clutch last?" Good enough for me.

Except that the XJ wheels arches are shorter than MJ arches in both length and height. And the 2-door XJ are the same size as the 4-door -- they both take the same flares, which are smaller than MJ rear flares.

Of the readily available axles, 4.10 for sure. What I can tell you from my own experience is that 3.73 gears with 31x10.50 tires works out to exactly the same overall final drive ratio (RPMs-to-MPH) as stock tires with stock 3.54 gears. I ran my '88 MJ on 31s with 3.73s for several years. It was great on the road, and passable off-road but not really enough gear. I had actually bought the gears to run in my XJ with 30" tires and I think that would have been a good combination. But the MJ came along, it needed gears, and I had the 3.73s so I threw them in. 4.10s will be good for your purpose. They'll be perfect with 30" or 31" tires, and if you don't live on the Interstate at 80 MPH 4.10s are even good with stock tires.

If you have idiot lights, you almost certainly don't have a clock. The panel to the right of the steering wheel, where the clock normally goes, is perfect for mounting a single, round gauge.

Yep. It's a little (??) dangerous, but it is a way of forcing a bead to re-seat if you lose a bead when wheeling at low pressures. If you actually have a flat (a puncture -- a hole in your tire that loses air) this won't do anything for you.

The video sounded to me like a rod bearing. But ... I can't say that I've ever heard piston slap, so I don't think I could tell the difference.

Could be gearing. My brother had an early 90's Nissan 5-speed V6pickup that had (IIRC) 4.11 gears from the factory. He now has a somewhat newer Nissan 5-speed 4-banger and I think that has 4.56 gears. You could also have a clogged catalytic converter.

You use a rocker panel from a 4-door Cherokee and cut off the back end. Needs a bit of massaging behind the doors, at the cab corners, but from the B pillar forward they are the same.

You do realize that they put transmissions in vehicles so we can change gears, right? Sorry to be sarcastic, but there's a perception among (primarily) younger drivers that once you hit 5th gear you should never have to downshift unless you get to a stop sign or red light. Think about what an automatic would be doing on those same hills -- more than likely, downshifting, right? Then consider that an automatic has 3.55 axle gears and your 5-speed has 3.07 axle gears. Needing to downshift when going up "decent" hills is a normal part of driving and does not necessarily indicate a problem with the engine.

Also, if it's an auto, check the flex plate. They like to develop an annular crack, and the resulting clunk sounds a LOT like a rod bearing. The test is to start the engine in neutral and let it idle. Blip the throttle (gently, don't floor it) and let it drop back to idle again. If you hear the noise, that's step one. Put the tranny in drive with the brakes on. Give it just a tiny bit of gas, to put a small load on the torque converter. If the noise STOPS, there's a very good chance you need a flex plate.