GonzoTheGreat

This thread has some useful, but slightly confusing information. Theres a specific way you need to eliminate the valve. You need to plug the distribution block bottom, front port, and make sure the front, front port (facing the front of the vehicle) runs to the T on the axle. Is this how yours is set up now? Another option, is to get an XJ or YJ distribution block and use that, because they never had these valves, but I'm not sure how the used parts market is in Sweden. Some guys on here prefer to eliminate the block, T in the front brakes directly to the master cylinder and run an adjustable proportioner to the rear. If the valve is eliminated correctly, and youre still having problems, i think youre on the right track playing with the pushrod adjustment.

How did you bypass the load sensing valve? Also, pictures of any of the parts in question would help a lot.

Not a huge project, but I was tired of leaving a puddle everywhere, and finally bought an aluminum valve cover with a silicone gasket.

I had really bad luck with the doorman ones. After two years the rubber hardened, cracked, and caused leaks. I ended up using decent ones from a junkyard that werent as loose as my originals, but I am also interested to hear if anybody has found a better brand.

I've got a Comanche too!

I have the 2 rear XJ AVS "Smoke" guards brand new. You can have them if you need them, for the price of postage. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001EW03A?ref_=ppx_hzod_title_mob_b_fed_asin_title_0_0

Same. I went zero to hero with that car. When I bought it I didnt even know what a torque converter was. A few years later I was manual swapping it. That really raised the fun factor. I'm glad it rotted out before I got into any real trouble

In high school I learned to drive in my moms toyota sienna, and to drive stick in my dads corolla. Immediately after I bought a clapped out old bmw e30 as my first car, and I had a lot of fun with that thing.

I also vote "HAF JEEP"

I took an electric worm out of an XJ (rear door because I figured it had less wear) the trolley assembly is completely different, but the worm is the same, (just a little longer--maybe the front one is equal length. ). Manual on left, electric on right: To take the worm out, you have to uncrimp the end of the tube, I used pliers, then recrimp when the new worm is in. I drilled out the rivets on the electric regulator trolley and drilled out the stamped bits on my old manual regulator. I was able to bolt the new worm onto the old trolley, just slightly off-centered, but its been working great so far. The problems with the old one were obvious. A bunch of hairs had fallen off and caked up with grease and rust. I had sprayed it wil pb blast a year ago, and it was a bit better, but it didn't help for long. I have a lot more confidence in the worm swap as a permanent repair.

If you swap to a 4.0, you don't need to make custom motor mounts, crossmember, tranny mount, exhaust, standalone wiring, etc. like you would with a different drivetrain. You end up with a good, reliable engine thats engineered for that chassis. Also if youre completely devoid of any load, on flat ground, and not crossing 55mph, there is not much difference in pull between the 2.5L and 4.0 because the 2.5 has deeper axle gearing, but under ANY normal driving condition the 4.0 has LOADS more power, and gets as good or better fuel economy. I have a 2.5 and a 4.0. I like them both for what they are, but I would say if you have a good deal on a donor vehicle, and you plan to do more than just drive around town, I wouldn't hesitate to swap up.

No, I think the gm style has a stamped piece of metal sealing the housing shut. I think the later, chrysler tumbler is the one where you can change the blocks.

Kody is on eBay now

An update here is long overdue, and ill come back to the suspension situation later, but this week I got my brothers old jetta TDI running to investigate the engine swappability. Its been sitting for awhile and the turbo actuator is seized. We initially thought the turbo vanes were coked up, so I had the pleasure of removing the crusty old manifolds and cleaning everything. All in all it has potential, so I'm gonna soup up the engine while its still in the jetta, then strip down the wiring to be stand-alone, and mate it to the ax15/np231 out of the '88. This will all be dropped into the donor '89 chassis. For those familiar with that scene, its an '02 ALH engine getting .260 injector nozzles and a Burpod tune, keeping the stock turbo, for now, which should put the torque output somewhere around 230-240ft/lbs, which is about the same as the stock 4.0L, but with half the weight. This is not going to be a quick process, but I will try to provide updates as often as things occur.

Last week I put in a '95 dual diaphragm booster, and it made a night and day difference in braking. I waited way too long to do that. Feels a little naked now without the cap on, but I really like being able to see again. (Also take note of where the cap is, and the Jetta TDI in front of it... )

Like this?

Haha, as always, I wish I took better pictures, mid-process. I think that worm came out of a 97+ XJ, possibly even a rear door, but I pulled it from a junkyard like 3 years ago. Maybe someone can recognize the window attachment part and confirm?

Ok, the part about painting the studs, marking the header panel radiator support, and drilling 6 holes is wrong. I read this walk-through, and tried to do that part before realizing that those studs are meant to mount the top isolators, and the upper radiator support has holes, pre-drilled, for the two isolator studs (at least it did in my 89). Also the 6 little studs will never reach the the top crossmember if you install The bottom isolators and drop the radiator into the punched holes in the lower radiator support. Also, if you only keep the stock mechanical fan, with no shroud, you're not going to move enough air across the radiator at low speeds. I installed a stock, 97+ electric fan with a sensor in the lower radiator hose. The electric fan proved incompetent on very hot days under heavy load, so had to add a second one on a toggle. In the end I found a system that works, but it begs the question, was there actually a problem here in the first place? In hindsight, I would prefer to have a well-maintained stock system over this expensive re-invention of the wheel.

I found out the "worm" gear from an electric window regulator can be made to fit a manual one. It's been a long time since I could open my window all the way.

When I was in Italy, I used autodoc.de and ebay.de. I don't speak german, but with google translate, and part numbers, I found what I needed, and germany definitely had the most parts available from within the EU (no need to pay VAT or wait for transatlantic shipping).

Do you want commentary here, on those threads specifically, or otherwise? The radiator one is way off. Also the end result doesn't really seem necessary, I kind of wish I'd left mine stock.

Sorry Mike, I haven't forgotten you. As I mentioned, it's quite primitive. The cooking situation is a single-burner stove for one-pot meals and coffee. It's pretty snug in the bed. We upgraded along the way to a 3" foam mattress on plywood, across the top the the storage bins, but the tent was still the preferred locale, weather-permitting. We've got just enough space at the foot to keep backpacks, and daily-use stuff. I put a 12v socket in the back, running off the auxiliary battery to run the Coleman electric cooler. That sits in the back while driving, and up front at night. The shower tube holds about 6 gallons. I made that in Costa Rica, because everyone else down there has one, and I got jealous. I have a ~20' female-female hose to fill it from the spigot, the top valve is just a vent, and it's about a 10' regular hose with a spray nozzle, and a shrader valve in the end cap for the Stanley compressor to attach and build pressure. I had planned to upgrade from ratchet strap mounting, but then I kind of preferred looking like a contractor versus a tourist. All in all it's super basic, but we mostly stayed at real campgrounds with real facilities, and only roughed it a few times.

I hadn't planned on being as far north as Chicago, but since we ended up there, I hopped up into WI for a day to visit a friend, then I ended up swinging by Kenosha to see the site of the old AMC plant where the 4.0L was made. Not much to see nowadays, but I couldn't resist the detour. I also stopped by my favorite museum: From there it was back down to Chicago, where we hopped on US Rt. 20, which, in addition to being the longest road in America, and celebrating its 100th birthday this year, also runs right through my hometown, so I figured it'd be a good way to get home with better views than I-90. That plan eventually changed. I detoured into Toledo, so see where the MJ was made. We visited the old Willy's Overland factory smokestack, and took a quick pic at the Stellantis factory. That detour, turned into a trip to Detroit (I had never tried Detroit-style pizza, and I am sooo glad that I did). And then we pursued my ferry interests with an international ride across the Detroit River. Canada was the only remaining North American country that had not been included in this road trip, and I just couldn't let that happen. So we drove across Ontario, and spent a couple days at Niagra Falls. I had never been to the Canadian side, and I was always skeptical of those who claimed "the Canadian side is better," but no joke, it's way cooler. The view of the falls is a little more complete, but there is also just tons of stuff to do. Of course, there was plenty of Molson and Poutine to be had, but there's also a huge wine culture in the area, and the Welland canal ended up beeing super cool. Now, we had been to the Panama canal visitors center on this same trip, and we paid admission, squeezed in with thousands of tourists, paid way too much for a cup of coffee, and basically stood in a cage to watch the ships. And yes, it was historical, unique, and I would do it again, but, at the Welland Canal, you literally park just a few feet (meters) from the lock, and the museum, parking, everything, is free. After that, we were on the home stretch. We jumped back on rt 20 in Buffalo, and followed it all the way back. We stopped at the Historic US 20 visitors' center in Seneca Falls, NY to get a little Rt 20 swag (I didn't know such a thing existed a month ago). And then that was it. Home. over 2 years and 20,000 miles later, back in Mass. I had 3 days from arrival to get my (deferred) annual inspection sticker on the truck. Of course I took a rock in the windshield in upstate NY. So monday and tuesday saw a new power steering pump, a windshield, and a sticker. Now we're unpacking 2 years of vagabonding, and hopefully now that this is done, I can give some much-needed attention to my '88