Eagle

And base 15 x 6" rims. But it's only 75,000 miles. I know we're Jeep guys and we expect people to pay us to take their old vehicles away, but realistically ... what does a new Ranger sell for these days? What does a clean, 5-year old Ranger with 75,000 miles on it sell for these days? We're spoiled. In reality, that's not a bad price.

How do you know it's broken?

Either type

The fuse box is not the PCM. PCM is the acronym for Powertrain Control Module -- i.e. the computer. Did you read the diagnostic codes or not?

Did you check for fault codes as described by Hornbrod?

Do you have a long bed or a shortbed? If the wheelbase is used, obviously that matters. The track is different depending on the factory wheels. With the base 15 x 6 rims track is 57". With any of the 15 x 7 rims track is 58". Wheelbase for the longbed is 119.9". So using a longbed with 7" factory rims as the base I get 58 x 119.9 / 2200 = 3.16 I believe the shortbed wheelbase was 112.9". If you use the narrow track and the shortbed, you get a worst case of 57 x 112.9 / 2200 = 2.93

I used to own a 1971 CB350. It was a great bike ... my first ... but a little on the small side for my 6'-2" height. But it got great gas mileage, and since I was living in West Philadelphia at the time (graduate school) it was perfect urban transportation. However, I long ago moved up to a Honda Nighthawk, and even that has been gone for many years. I never had any mechanical issues at all with the 350 so I couldn't begin to help you diagnose what the problem might be.

Let's go back to basics. Your opening post says it cranks and it starts, then it dies. That's saying it starts. Now you are saying that it is not starting at all, which would mean it is NOT starting. I don't mean to sound insulting, but do you know the difference between "cranking" or "turning over" and "firing"? It's difficult enough to diagnose problems by remote control with an accurate description of the symptoms. When the description of the symptoms is self-contradictory, it's impossible. Do you have spark, or not? Also, your opening post says you can hear the fuel pump. Is that with the key in the RUN position or in the START position? Because if it's with the key in the RUN position, then the fuel pump IS getting power and the problem is not with the ballast resistor. However, it could be that the fuel pump isn't pushing enough fuel to keep the engine running. If you can hear the fuel pump running when you first turn the key to RUN (not START), does it run for 5 or 10 seconds and then stop, or does it keep running? It should shut off after a few seconds because the fuel rail has pressure. If it doesn't shut off, either the pump is bad or the fuel pressure regulator is bad. According to the '94 XJ FSM, as of 1994 the ballast resistor was no longer used, so that was a bad call on my part. You can stop looking for it.

??? Toe-in (or toe-out) is the difference in track between the front of the tire and the back of the tire. You can't have ONE wheel toed in or out. If you unbolted the steering box, did you mount something between it and the frame? If so, you moved the box and changed the effective length of the drag link. That doesn't change the toe-in, it just changes the centering of the steering wheel. {EDIT] Wait -- you unbolted the power steering PUMP? The pump isn't in any way connected to the steering or suspension. Unbolting the pump could not possibly affect your alignment.

Your signature indicates that you HAVE a new clutch. So before you replace a new clutch with another new clutch, how about seeing what went bad? I would suggest first looking at the hose between the master cylinder and the slave cylinder.

The CPS controls the ignition, and the injection pulse. If the CPS were the problem, it would not start. Not at all. If you have spark, the problem is not the CPS. Assuming you have fuel because you have spark is a VERY bad assumption. The CPS does not in any way control or affect the fuel pump. But the ballast resistor does. The ballast resistor reduces voltage to the fuel pump during running. For starting, the start circuit bypasses the ballast resistor so you get the full 12 volts to the fuel pump. Which means the fuel pump will pump as long as the key is in START because the circuit bypasses the ballast resistor, but when the key is released to the RUN position the bypass circuit goes away and the power to the fuel pump goes through the ballast resistor. If that's bad, the fuel pump stops pumping as soon as the key goes to RUN, and the engine dies as soon as the residual fuel in the system has been used up.

If the problem was the CPS it wouldn't fire at all. If you are certain the fuel pump runs when the key is in the RUN position, that should eliminate the ballast resistor as the problem. I would look next at the ignition switch. However, I think first, just to be certain, I would jumper the ballast resistor to make absolutely sure that's not the problem. A '95 has OBD. Do you know anyone with a scanner that can read '95 Chrysler codes?

I definitely plan on keeping the truck. Its in great shape for its age (other than the engine). That's one of the options I'm considering. I don't want to dump money into fixing a 24 year old engine if it isn't prohibitively expensive to swap in a new or rebuilt engine. I'm just trying to find out what my options are and what the costs could be. The trouble is that it IS prohibitively expensive to swap in a 4.0L if you are not set up to do it yourself. You basically have to gut the truck and replace everything. It isn't just the engine. The 4.0L will immediately require a different transmission and transfer case. You'll need a different radiator, and the radiator supports have to be ripped out and replaced to accept the 4.0L radiator. Hammering the firewall is the least of the issues. To use a 4.0L, you will have to rip out the entire engine room wiring harness and replace it with the correct one for the engine you'll be installing. Easiest would be a Renix 4.0L, but even then the donor harness will probably come from a Cherokee and that harness won't mate up to a Comanche body harness without some customization. And the newest Renix 4.0L will be a 1990, so that's 20+ years old already. For the work involved, it would make more sense to swap in an HO, but then you have even more wiring issues to deal with.

Before you start throwing money at it ... please read this: http://www.auto-repair-help.com/auto_di ... ailure.php You have high CO (carbon monoxide) AND high HC (unburned hydrocarbons). That's not very usual. Look for things in the lists that occur under both categories and start there.

No. The spacing of the spring perches (the distance between them) is different for the XJ than for the MJ. Even if you want to go to a spring-over in the MJ you still have to remove the XJ perches and re-weld them in the correct locations.

Unfortunately, my nephew (my sister's only child) is a classic yo boy. Fortunately, he lives several hundred miles away and I see him at most once or maybe twice a year.

New Brunswick? Check the frame -- CAREFULLY!

I always thought it would be interesting to do up an MJ in that style.

You most likely need an oxygen sensor. You may also need a new thermostat -- running a cold thermostat can affect emissions.

I don't have a '96 wiring diagram, so I can't look at it. I'll take your word for it. So if it starts okay and then pops the fuse after starting, your conjecture would appear to be spot on -- there must be a short somewhere in the RUN circuit that's being by-passed in the START circuit. But ... when you initially just turn the key to ON, that is the RUN position. The circuits are all connected the same, whether or not the engine is running. So if he just turns the key to RUN (but doesn't start the engine) ... does the fuse blow? If not, the answer must lie in what's different when the engine is actually running. The circuits are all connected the same ... the ONLY difference is that the alternator is producing electricity when the engine is running. So maybe the alternator or voltage regulator is bad?

I don't have a '96 but my immediate reaction is: WHAT 60-amp ignition fuse? I have never heard of a Cherokee being equipped with an ignition fuse. However, the '96 is a unique year, because it's the year when the factory sliced and diced the old wiring harness to implement OBD-II, but they did it as a kludge because they knew they were coming out with a new body style and new dashboard the following model year. When you say it blows the fuse "as soon as it starts" ... is that what really happens? Does the engine actually start before the fuse blows? Or is there a fuse on the starter itself and it blows when the starter tries to crank the engine?

The "Dana 44s" off new Wranglers are a combination of a Dana 44 center section with the outers and hubs from a Dana 30. If the front axle comes off the latest model Wrangler, when they widened the track they did NOT beef up the axle tubes and they are prone to bending. Over a year ago one of the 4x4 magazines did a write-up on a company that sells a kit to strengthen these axles. It involves a tightly-machined sleeve that gets pressed inside the axle tubes, basically doubling the wall thickness, plus some gussets to reinforce the 'Cs' to the tubes on the outer end.

My advice is as it always has been ... remove it. Since mine exploded in a panic stop I consider it a liability to have one in the truck. I would much rather have to deal with too much braking in the rear rather than none.

Two points: 1) It isn't "a" badge. The '86 should be four separate letters. 2) The '86 should use the pin-through style. The stick-ons didn't come into use until the 90s. Does your truck have the original header, or a replacement?

The other problems are that (a) most junkyard donors will be XJs, and the XJ harness is not the same as an MJ harness so there will be splicing and adapting involved, plus (B) most junkyards cut the harness at the radio anyway, so good luck finding a donor harness that's any better than the one you're trying to replace.