Eagle

1) You will probably need a 4WD rear driveshaft. I don't think the 2WD tailshaft is as long as the transfer case in a 4WD truck. Measure before buying. 2) You don't need the control arms with the new axle, because the 2WD uses the exact same control arms as the 4WD vehicles. 3) As to lift, a SOA is going to lift your truck 5 inches higher than it is regardless of what springs are in it. If it's an inch lower than a 4WD now, it'll be an inch lower than a converted 4WD but it'll still be 5 inches higher than where you started. 4) You can run 31s on a stock MJ with no lift. If you only want to run 31x10.50s, I would either keep it at stock height or maybe just do a 2" budget boost using an AAL in the rear and coil spacers in the front. Keep it simple.

How big are the pistons in the 8.8 calipers? It's possible that the stock MJ master cylinder just can't push enough fluid to the rears to move large pistons.

An 89 MJ doesn't have a 4.2, unless a previous owner bastadized it. It should have a 4.0L, but with the earlier AMC/Bendix/Renault (RENIX) injection/ignition system. Physically, the 4.0L block from a 2003 Wrangler is the same. The computer and injection system is all different, so to do the swap you should have all that stuff from the donor vehicle. The transmission from the 89 should mate up with the newer engine okay, but there might be a difference in the pilot bearing (which wouldn't be an issue if you're using an automatic transmission).

Change of plan. Rather than replace the clutch in the '88 4-cyl 4-speed 2WD MJ with a new clutch and then convert it to a 4WD, I've pretty much decide it's not worth the effort considering that the engine has 219,000 miles on it. I have an '87 XJ 4.0L 4WD auto with a little over 100,000 on the engine, so that seems like a more logical swap. Except -- I would sort of like the truck to be a 5-speed. I have three 4.0L 5-speeds (a Peugeot and two AX-15s) that are all 2WD, and all fubar. I do NOT have a functional 4WD 5-speed for a 4.0L ... but I do have a functional AX-5. 1) Does anyone know for sure how weak/strong the AX-5 is compared to a Peugeot? This little truck will be just used on the street, and I am not a high-speed low-drag kind of driver any more. If the AX-5 is even close to as strong as a BA 10/5 I think it would hold up to my driving. 2) Has anyone put an AX-5 next to an AX-15 for comparison? I have plenty of 4.0L bell housings, if the AX-5 will bolt up to them. Does anyone know if this would work?

I think I'll ask the wife for one of those left handed metric screwdrivers for Christmas. A man can't have too many screwdrivers. I didn't notice -- do they also have metric crescent wrenches?

I'm not sure, but I believe the LWB and SWB are the same, but reversed as to which side they go on because one mounts the shocks forward of the axle and the other mounts them to the rear of the axle. They are different from side to side, though (mirror image), so be sure you get the one that matches yours (unless you buy both sides off one vehicle).

It's a bad ground, and the dash indicator lights coming on is the clue. When the parking lights can't get a ground at the socket, they look for a ground anywhere they can find one, and back-feeding through the turn signal circuit is often the available path. Could be a corroded ground connection, or it could be bad sockets themselves.

Another "Aha!" That's a symptom of a bad fan clutch. When you're not moving, the only air through the radiator is pulled through by the fan. If the fan clucth is slipping, it doesn't pull enough air. Once you start moving, vehicle motion pushes air through the radiator. If it heats up at lights and cools back down when you start moving, the first suspect is the fan clutch.

I'm thinking it may have some drawbacks. I assume they are (or will be) functional? A friend of mine recently finished up a total makeover of his old high school coupe. The car is a 1950 Hudson Hornet coupe, to be exact. He thought it would be nice to have the hood louvered, so he sent it off and paid about $500 to have it done. It came out looking great. Except ... it's a show car, and he said any time it gets any rain on it, the rain comes through the louvers and then he has to detal the engine again ... and again ... and again. Plus he needs to waterproof the distributor. Are you seeing where I'm going with this? The TPS on a Jeep injection system doesn't like to get wet ...

Yes, that is what I am saying.

Just change the fluid. The "filter" in an AW4 isn't really a filter, it's just a screen. It screens out coarse stuff, but not fine particles. A couple of years ago an ex-girlfriend wanted a used Cherokee. We found her an '89 with 165,000 miles on it. It was pretty obvious that it had just been driven, without much maintenance. The tranny pan had never been off. Like a good boy scout, I bought a new filter and dropped the pan. First lesson -- the lower half of the tranny dipstick is an integral part of the pan. And you will NOT get it off the upper half without destroying the upper half. I had to hit three dealers before I found one in stock. The reason? Because they always have to replace it when they drop the pan. Once that was resolved, it was time to reassemble. Hmmm ... "Hey, Erich -- which of these screens is the new one?" "Ummm, I don't know. That one, I think." The old one, with 165,000 miles on it, was virtually indistinguishable from the new one. Since I had the new one I put it in, but in retrospect it was a waste of time, effort and money. The old one was fine.

I picked up an '89 MJ lasy year with steel rims. All four were pretty badly rusted onto the drums/rotors/hubs. I was able to get three of them off by putting a 2x4 against the tire and beating it with a sledge hammer. The right front, however, was not cooperating. I eventually gave up on the 2x4 and tried whacking the tire directly. No better. Then I looked at the numbers of alloy rims I have, and the number of steel rims that I'll probably never use or be able to give away ... and attacked the rim with the sledge hammer. I got it off, but there isn't much left of the rim.

Just clean it out as well as possible and keep on truckin'. What causes it is water. Brake fluid is hygroscopic -- it attracts and retails water. The brake fluid itself isn't corrosive, but when it gets contaminated with water, the water will attack the metal parts of the brake system. This is why you should bleed and fluch the system annually. It is also why I use silicone brake fluid. Silicone is NOT hygroscopic. (Unfortunately, it IS expensive. Everything in life is a trade-off.)

Ah. Now we're getting somewhere. You hadn't previously said what engine is in your MJ. Since you have a 2.8L, the logical swap for you is a GM 3.4L (must come from a rear-wheel drive vehicle such as a Camaro). The block is the same as the 2.8L, so you don't need motor mount adapters, you can use your existing bell housing and transmissions, etc. YMMV but if I were in your situation I would sell the 4.3L and buy a 3.4L.

I understand that you have the V6. My point is that the 4.3L GM V6 is a wide, 90-degree engine that is basically a Chevy small block V8 with two cylinders chopped off. There is nothing about it that's compatible with an XJ or MJ. By contrast, the GM 2.8L/3.1L/3.4L V6 is a smaller, narrower 60-degree engine. The 2.8L version was used in the 84 thru 86 XJ and the 86 MJ, and it's the same block as the later 3.1L and 3.4L. Being smaller, lighter, and narrower than a 4.3L, all things being equal the 3.4L is a much better choice for an MJ because you can use MJ motor mounts, transmission, transfer case, exhaust system, etc. Your original question used the expression "drop in." That suggested to me that you're looking for an easy swap. The 4.3L can be done and has been done, but it's far from being a "drop in" swap.

Is it possible to install a 4.3L into an MJ? Yes -- a guy I used to know did it in an '86 XJ some years ago. "Drop in"? Not a chance. Remember, the 4.3L is a shortened small block V8 -- it's very wide compared to the 60-degree 2.8L and 3.4L engines. It also doesn't use the same bell housing pattern as the 2.8L and 3.4L, nor the same as a Jeep 4.0L, so you either have to use a Chevy tranny and transfer case or buy adapters, which are the same as you'd need to use a small block V8. I asked the guy near me if he would do it again and he said "Hell no!" Basically, it's all the work of putting in a small block V8, with a less satisfactory result. If you already have the engine and feel it's worth the effort you can make it work, but IMHO there are better solutions to repowering an MJ.

His original post specified that he was asking about the '91. That has a conventional radiator cap, which he said has been replaced. How badly does it overheat? There is one last-ditch thing to consider, and that's an incorrect water pump. The 4.0L and the 4.2L engines use the same bolt pattern on the front of the engine for the water pump mounting. The old 4.2L engines with conventional vee belts rotated one direction, the 4.0L engines with the serpentine belt have the water pump rotating in the opposite direction. This requires that the vanes on the impeller be reversed, and if you look at a 4.0L water pump out of the vehicle, most will have a big 'R' stamped on the impeller. Dunno who installed the new water pump or where it came from, but if all else fails to resolve this, I would suggest removing the water pump to confirm that you have the correct one for a 4.0L engine.

:???: You just wrote that flushing didn't help it.

I'll go out on a limb and say you need a radiator. They don't last forever, you know. A 91 is now 16 years old. I had to replace the radiator in my '88 Cherokee in 1999, which was only 11 years. The replacement was a GDI 3-core. That one lasted until this Spring, and had to be replaced again. Flushing after 16 years doesn't accomplish much.

x2 what he said ^^^. There's a single bolt through the two halves, and IIRC the bolt is removed from the engine compartment side of the firewall.

I have unwittingly become the regional distribution point for a friend who is putting out a calendar. I need a way to track orders and "inventory." This isn't going to be a business so I'm not looking for a mega-bucks "point-of-sale" application, but I'd like something a little better than just making up a table in Excel. I have Access and Alpha Five, so I can probably come up with something, but database isn't really my "thing." Is there any inexpensive program out there that might be suitable? Maybe something from the "My ____" software people? I'd prefer to spend a couple of bucks rather than expend several hours reinventing the wheel (and not doing it as well as a $15 program could do it). Suggestions?

Then you should hook up with the North Atlantic Chapter of NAXJA. Paragon is closed, but as far as I know NAXJA-NAC still does runs at Rausch Creek, which is right down the road from you (so to speak).

Most likely the ballast resistor for the fuel pump is bad. The start circuit by-passes it, which is why the truck will start when you turn the key but not run when you let the key back to the RUN position. The ballast resistor is that white-ish ceramic block on the inside of the driver's fender, next to the air cleaner box. It has two wires coming off it. As a test, just jumper those two wires together and see what happens. (Note: it is safe to run it with the wires jumpered. The resistor was not used at all in 1987. It's there to slow the fuel pump down to reduce noise.)

When you reassemble it, put anti-sieze around the center of the hub where the hole in the brake drum fits over it. That's usually where they freeze on, and the anti-sieze will make future service much easier.

Correction: The 4.2L is the old AMC 258 CID, which began as a 232 CID (3.8L, although it wasn't referred to that way until many years later) in 1964. The 6-cylinder version of the engine preceded the 2.5L 4-cylinder by 20 years. I don't know why the urban legend persists that the 4.0L was based on the 2.5L -- the opposite is the fact.