Eagle

"Jeep" has created a linguistic/grammatical break-through. It's the first time in the history of language that a noun has a tense -- PAST tense. The last of the solid front axle WJs was arguably the end of Jeep. Personally, I regard the end as either the end of the XJ Cherokee, or possibly extending it to the end of the 4.0L engine in the Wrangler. The current Wrangler is an abomination. It's big, it's ugly, the axles need beefing up for even moderate off-road use, and the engine is a high-RPM passenger car engine that's not well suited to off-road use. I plan to keep my XJs and MJs running for just as long as I possibly can. If I can find a decent 4.0L Wrangler Unlimited (the original, 2-door version) I'll add that to the stable and then stand pat. Jeep has NO vehicles today that interest me in the slightest.

Yes, a bad oxygen sensor can (and usually does) cause bad gas mileage. On a '99 (I assume you mean an XJ), the first one controls the mix to the engine ... the second one only checks to be sure the catalytic converter is working. If either one is bad, it should throw a check engine light and a code.

Not without serious modification. They are totally different.

I'll never understand why some people (most of whom are allegedly intelligent enough to know better) seem to think that THEIR vehicle (or THEIR superhuman driving skill) makes them immune to the laws of Physics that have just obviously put 20/30/50/??? vehicles in the ditch. Antilock brakes have only made it worse.

Except that the MJ doesn't use a headlight relay. My vote is that one or both headlight sockets have corrosion that's causing some kind of cross-connection or backfeed.

Clifford Performance Research used to have headers for the 2.5L. Don't know if they still offer them.

The whole grille is different. Chrysler revised it starting with 1990, to make the trim strip across the front of the header (above the grille) an integral part of the grille rather than a separate trim strip.

I think it's more than just voltage sensing. The car originally had manual door locks. The install added electric locks that are locked by the alarm (and sometimes by driving -- and sometimes NOT, which I really wish I could figure out), so I think it's a full-fledged alarm system. Unfortunately, the instruction manual is in Chinese and Spanish, and I don't read either language so I can't use it to try to understand how the thing works. If I can find the brain, where would I look to adjust a shock sensor, and which way should it turn?

I'm posting this in The Pub because the major question involves the Skoda sedan we're using while stuck out-of-country. My wife had it fitted with an aftermarket alarm system because vehicle break-ins are almost guaranteed in Santiago. (Very low violent crime rate, but VERY high petty theft and burglary rate. The alarm has a habit of setting itself off between five and ten minutes after parking the car and setting the alarm. My wife has tried to blame it on a neighborhood cat, but last night it happened while parked outside a pizza restaurant. No cats in sight, and being Christmas night the lot wasn't full and there was nobody near the car. Anybody got any ideas what could be setting this thing off? Second question (XJ-related): At home we have two 2000 XJs. A long time ago I bought a pair of add-on alarm systems, but I never got around to installing them. Once I get home I think I will do so, but ... the engine room on a 2000 XJ 4.0L is rather crowded. Has anyone installed an alarm on a newer XJ or M? Where's a good place to mount the siren, and where should I mount the control modeule -- under the hood, or under the dashboard? Thanks.

Not MJs, XJs. The last time I was here was five years ago, and on that trip I saw a lot of older (pre-97) XJs, but only a very few MJs. My amigo, Mike from Chile (whom I met through NAXJA), explained that putting a winch on the front turns a pickup or SUV into a "work" vehicle and qualifies for some sort of cheaper registration. As a result, nearly every Cherokee I saw when I was here before had the hidden winch option. I've been here five weeks this trip, and I've seen exactly one old-style Cherokee and two 97+ models. They were all spotted from the rear so I couldn't check out the winch.

Hey, Guys - Still alive. My wife aqnd I are stranded in Chile. For those who don't know, we came down here to finalize the adoption of my wife's granddaughter. The court hearing was November 18th and the adoption was approved ... but in the month since then Chile hasn't managed to produce the documents they have to send to the U.S. Consulate so we can get a visa to bring the kid home. We already missed our original flight date on December 12th, and now we have our fingers crossed we *MIGHT* be able to get out of here by mid-January. Not that Chile is a bad place. The weather is warm (after all, it is summer here), Santiago is a major metropolis, and my wife gets more time with her family. But ... I need to get home so I can get back to looking for work. I hope all your MJs are running well. Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrate same, and I'll be looking forward to getting home and getting back to active status on the forum.

Silly me. When you wrote "coffee can" I foolishly believed you meant a coffee can. If you want accurate answers, it's helpful to ask questions using correct terminology. It's okay if you don't know what something is, but don't describe something as a coffee can if it isn't a coffee can. Coffee cans have often been used as makeshift oil sumps on XJs and MJs so your question was very misleading to us literal-minded olde phartes.

It isn't a vacuum canister. It is an owner-installed, makeshift catch can to collect the oil forced out through the CCV inlet tube when the system stops working normally. The purpose is to interrcept the oil before it drips into the air cleaner.

Renix ones have the three piece hose with the flex hose in the middle. In 91 they went to a one piece plastic hose. Yep. I overlooked the fact it's a '92. So how were you able to buy a master and slave without the line between? I thought the late model setups came with everything preassembled, filled, and pre-bled.

If the problem was around before the work, the problem could be the hose. The upper and lower ends are metal, but the middle portion is a flex hose, similar to the flex hose from the body to the front brake calipers. And, just like brake flex hoses, with age the hoses can get weak. It is possible that the hose is expanding under the pressure of the fluid, which would result in incomplete disengagement of the clutch. I would start with a new hose, and see if that makes a difference. The bad news is ... you'll have to bleed it all over again after replacing the hose.

Your friends ... let me guess, they ride bicycles, right? They obviously don't know jack about trucks.

Darren? I find that VERY hard to believe ...

If you are referring to the "difference" between 3.54 and 3.55, or 4.10 and 4.11, that's not considered a different ratio. That's just the end result of differentials with different size ring gears. Dunno what you mean by the reference to two-wheel drives. Obviously, they don't have a front differential.

For two miles I don't think it's necessary to remove the rear driveshaft. Just put it on the dolly and go.

Gearing is the same for 2WD and 4WD.

Looks like JeepcoMJ and I are on the same wavelength ...

If it worked for an hour and now it doesn't work, it has air in the lines. Either that, or the flex hose between the master and slave is cracked and leaking.

Dealer is probably the ONLY source for those bolts.

Cite the law, Pat. I know there are laws that protect consumers, but I seriously doubt there is a law in any state that requires an insurance company to pay whatever value a vehicle owner decides to assign to his wrecked vehicle. And remember, unless RustyBucket lives in your state, anything your state's law says is irrelevant.

Bleed the clutch ... again.