Eagle

Yours has a serp belt? I haven't looked at the '88 2.5L I have for over a year, but my recollection is that it has two V belts.

CW, if 31s on stock rims and a Jeep axle rub the inner wheel wells sometimes, moving the tires and wheels inboard by 5/8" on each side will remove ALL clearance. It's not "much," but in this case "not much" is "too much." I realize the spacers do the same thing as less backspacing. But if you want matching rims, reduced backspacing on the rims also affects the front, in a negative way. Spacers get put on the rear only, so the front is unaffected. Yeah, I know spacers aren't D.O.T. approved. Neither are the halogen headlights a lot of Jeepers (and other people) prefer, but that doesn't seem to stop people from buying and using them.

Possibly, but probably not. But -- with one of the nibs broken/missing, it's likely that the disconnect is not operating properly, and that is likely the cause of your problem. I would highly recommend that you manually move the collar to the ENGAGED position and follow the instructions provided elsewhere on this site for locking it in that position. Once that's done, if the outside of the collar wears a bit it won't really make any difference, because once it wears away there won't be any more contact, and you won't need it to slide any more so the wear won't affect operation.

Stock Jeep 15x7 rims are 5-1/4" backspacing. Running those rims with 31x10.50-15 tires, even mild wheeling leaves black rub marks where the inside top shoulder of the tires rubs the inside of the wheel well. That's with a stock MJ rear axle. The Exploder axle is even narrower. You need enough difference in backspacing to offset the amount the wheel mating surface is being moved in on each side, which IIRC is about an inch on each side. So that gets you to 4-1/4" backspacing, maximum, to get you back to having 31s rub when articulated. To do away with that, you need to move the wheels out even farther, so I think you're looking for a maximum backspacing of 4", and 3-1/2" would be better. For the rear. Running less backspacing in the front eliminates rubbing on the lower control arms, but creates problems of the tires hitting the sheet metal. It's a compromise. For many of us, stock Jeep wheels with spacers like the ones in the photo above are the best solution. (Provided they are made from billet turnings, not castings.)

I had a '78 full-size Cherokee. Terrific truck. Back then they were a little short on "creature comforts" but it was reliable and unstoppable. I always felt I could just idle up to the side of a building and just push the building out of the way any time I wanted. Mine was a 4-door, my brother had a 2-door. We both used them for plowing. Worst thing about it was the gas mileage. Mine was a 2-barrel. L'l bro's was a 4-barrel and he got better mileage. The 360 AMC is a great engine, and if you get a 2-bbl you can easily put on a 4-bbl manifold and an Edelbrock AFB carburetor to get better performance and better mileage. There was one or two years (maybe 1979 and/or 1980?) when they also offered the FSJ with a 401 engine. If you're looking at towing and can find one of those -- grab it. Lastly, before buying put it up on a lift and CAREFULLY inspect the frame. Every single inch of the frame, not a quick "yep, looks good thanks bye" inspection. A few years back I stopped at the dealership for some parts and I was surprised to see a Grand Wagoneer being winched ONTO a flatbed. Being a curious type, and having owned a "sister ship," -- I asked. The deal was, it came in for an exhaust, and when they put it on the lift they couldn't open the doors. Inspection showed that there was so little frame left that it wasn't considered safe to drive it, even to a welding shop two miles away. So they had it trucked to a shop in town that specializes in frame repair and plating. (Not chrome plating -- plating with extra layers of steel for reinforcing.) The frame is the weak spot on the FSJs.

manche -- Ya know, it would help the rest of us a LOT if you could put separate thoughts into at least separate sentences, if not separate paragraphs. My poor old brain has a really hard time making sense out of a single sentence that starts off talking about gauges and then talks about high idle speed and then switches back to gauges without even a bloody comma to warn me you're changing topics. Do you have access to a multimeter? The ohm range for the temp sensor is 0 to 88 ohms. I believe that's zero when cold and 88 at full hot, but it could be the other way around. You should be able to take a reading when the truck has been running for maybe ten or fiftenn minutes, and see what the ohms are. Should be somewhere around 40 or 5o, I believe, for normal operating temperature. If it's the sender that's giving you the bad reading, you should be seeing 88 ohms (or zero ohms).

WHO LET THAT FORD LOVER IN HERE?

To repeat my first suggestion -- if you have a front axle disconnect, have you confirmed that it's connecting? Several years ago I couldn't make it up a snowy hill in 4WD, which surprised me greatly since I also have a limited slip. I subsequently found that the rubber nipples where the vacuum tubes fit onto the disconnect motor were so oil-soaked that they wouldn't seal. No vacuum ==> no 4WD. My solution then was to replace the vacuum harness. If I had the same problem again today, I would engage the axle manually and shim it to always stay connected. No more worries.

No offence, but I think you are mistaken. You had me a bit excited as I want to put a MPI Mopar V8 in my YJ project with the particular trans/T-case setup I have, but couldn't find any way to do it. I found this info at this link: http://theamcforum.com/forum/forum_post ... 0162#60162 "Note that while the 72 up auto trans is a Chrysler model, it won't bolt to a Chrysler engine, nor will any Chrysler trans bolt to an AMC. The bell is made onto the trans and AMC models have the AMC bolt pattern, Chrysler the Chrysler bolt pattern. All internal and external parts interchange, but the main case (with bell housing cast into it) is different for AMC and Chrysler versions. " I wish it wasn't so :( :idea: Guess I may have to do a MPI AMC V8 (with Magnum V8 EFI components and some fab work) Don't believe everything you read. I'm an AMC guy, dating to the days of Hudson, before Hudson merged with Nash to become American Motors. I raced and restored Javelins and AMXs with the early versions of the engines in question. The bell housing bolt pattern changed in 1970, when AMC switched from using Borg-Warner automatics to Chrysler. I know the Chrysler trannies bolt to the AMC blocks, because one of my Hudson pals just finished a Hudson street rod using a late AMC 390 engine mated to a 2WD Cherokee AX-15 transmission. The tranny bolted right up the engine like it was made for it (which, in fact, it was, since the late AMC V8s share the same bell housing bolt pattern as the late AMC and Jeep I6 engines).

No, it does not. Shift-on-the-fly is good up to 50 MPH (according to the factory owners manual - I've shifted at 55 or 60 with no ill effects). It doesn't require disengaging the clutch, but it does require that all four wheels be rolling at the same speed, and neutral throttle. It won't shift if you are in compression braking, and it won't shift if you are hammering the GO peddle. You just "feather" the throttle so the truck is rolling along with no real power being applied to the drive train from the engine, and it shifts very smoothly (usually). If the rear wheels are spinning at 40 MPH on ice while the front wheels are rolling at 5 MPH -- forget shift-on-the-fly. That's a guaranteed way to lunch a transfer case.

An 87 MJ is an AMC, not a Mopar. To be true to the brand, you should drop in an AMC 360, 390 or 401. They are all based on the same block, which is no larger than (and probably smaller than) the Mopar 318. And if the motor is 1970 or newer, the bellhousing bolt pattern is the same as Mopar (because AMC started buying trannies from Mopar in 1970).

And I forget to add that Chrysler changed things post-1990 and used 4.10s behind all the 2.5L engines, 5-speed or automatic. (And they discontinued the 4-speed manual.) Nothing is guaranteed with the XJs or MJs. What I posted is my general understanding of what you're likely to find, but ... as I think Ronald Reagan said ... "Trust, but verify."

If the upper radiator hose stays cold, the thermostat is not opening. Either that, or you are SERIOUSLY low on coolant. But ... if the system is low on coolant, usually you don't get any heat from the heater core so if you have heat, I would suspect the thermostat. I don't recommend anything but a factory Jeep thermostat in the 4.0L. I haven't yet found an aftermarket t-stat with the bleed check valve in the flange. The fact that so many aftermarket t-stats just don't seem to work is another reason. You should bleed the system, though.

For when the driver's side lock is intact, but only functions about 30 percent of the time. Like on my '88 MJ. If I couldn't get in through the passenger side, on many days I wouldn't be able to get in at all.

4.0L w/ 5-speed manual = 3.07 4.0l w/ automatic = 3.55 2.5L w/ 4-speed manual = 3.55 2.5L w/ 5-speed manual = 4.10 2.5L w/ 3-speed auto = 3.73 (?) 2.5L w/ AW4 automatic (MJ only) = ??? 2.8L w/ 5-speed manual = 3.73 (?) 2.8L w/ 3-speed auto = 3.73

How old is that model? Some of the memory sales sites also tell you how much RAM your motherboard can recognize. My desktop at home is a Dell Dimension 4100. It has two RAM slots and came with only one 256 MB DIMM. I was going to kick it up to 2 Gigs, but the site I found for memory said the Dimension 4100 will only accept up to 512 MB. I asked around and several sources confirmed that, so I just bought a second 256 MB DIMM and maxed the box out at 512. Interestingly, my computer at work is also a Dell, several generations newer, that has 1 GB of RAM but runs significantly slower than my desktop at home. Too much network overhead. But 512 is plenty of RAM to run Xp if you don't try to do too much multi-tasking. It's enough for "work," but probably rather limiting if you're a gamer (I'm not). See if you can find out what the maximum configuration is for that motherboard.

Best fix for the early Cherokee ABS is to remove it and install a conventional brake system. The system was so bad that the Feds forced Chrysler to put some of the more expensive parts on an unlimited warranty. But ... that doesn't cover all of the parts, and with the future of Chrysler looking "iffy," what good is a warranty if there are no parts available to back it up? Plus, my understanding is that the failure mode for that system is not to default to standard, non-ABS brakes, but rather to default to NO brakes. Let me put it this way: I would not allow my wife to drive one of those things, and I talked my ex-girlfriend out of one and put her into an '88 XJ Laredo with standard brakes instead.

Same thing happened to my grandmother. I sincerely hope your mother is able to come back from it. One of the biggest problems is going to be that she will feel incredible frustration while she learns to do things that used to be automatic. God bless.

If you have a front axle disconnect -- make sure it's engaging fully.

What's the reason for the question? Basically, the answers given above are all correct: "Yes." But ... There's also an issue that occasionally comes up as to what "the same" ratio means. Read enough about our Jeeps, and you'll see references to the 4.0L 5-speeds beiing a 3.07 ratio -- unless it's 3.08. The 4.0L automatics have 3.55 gears ... unless they have 3.54 gears. And the 4-cyl 5-speeds have 4.10 gears ... unless they have 4.11 gears. If the point of your question is that you have noticed you have one axle that says 3.54 and one that says 3.55 ... that is considered the "same" ratio. The discrepancy arises when the front axle has a smaller ring gear than the rear axle, so the tooth count is different. The gear ratio is the tooth count on the ring gear divided by the tooth count on the pinion, so it usually works out that the ratio on the front axle is "different" from the rear in the second decimal place of the ratio. That small amount of discrepancy is acceptable, because in any situation where you could/should use 4WD, there's enough slippage and tire tread "squirm" to cancel out the difference. What you don't want to do is mix a 3.07 rear with a 3.55 front, for example.

That's correct. But if you run 31s with 3.73 gears, the MPH per 1000 RPM is exactly the same as an automatic with 3.55 gears and stock tires. Which really isn't quite enough gear for 31s, and definitely isn't enough gear for 33s.

I put 3.73 gears in my '88 MJ to run with 31s. The overall final drive ratio is exactly the same as running stock tires with 3.55 gears. It's a good choice for street use, but not enough gear for off-road use with 31s, and definitely won't be enough gear with 33s. If you're even thinking about 33s, go for 4.10s of even 4.56s.

Your mistake was in believing Haynes. Aftermarket t-stat gaskets typically do not have the sealant factory applied, so for those you would need RTV. The factory ones don't need it. Haynes doesn't tell you that. If you plan to work on your rig much at all, do yourself a HUGE favor -- lose the Haynes, and buy a factory service manual.

Following up on Jacobs' idea -- also check to be sure the fuel pump has a good ground.

The tires only contact the LCAs on full-lock turns. But 31x10.50s on stock Jeep rims will tuck up inside the fenders and flares, even with NO lift. Once you kick the tires outboard by 2 inches, you solve the LCA "problem" but you create a host of interference problems everywhere else. The tires will hit the flares whent he suspension compresses, and more than likely they'll also hit at the front and/or the back of the wheel well opening when you turn. Either accept the slight reduction in turning radius (I drove mine like that for several years), or do as Pete suggests and go to WJ lower control arms.