GonzoTheGreat

Pushed in=hazards on. I just checked.

If this doesn’t happen before August I can throw a battery in my 88 for testing, but I haven’t run that one for a couple years. I’m outside of Worcester.

No place is as cheap as the states. Except maybe Venezuela. I miss the cheap gas at home, but all in all, it’s not too bad here. It’s better than Europe at least. Mexico is 23 pesos/L which is $5.15/gal Guatemala is 35 Quetzales/gal which is $4.51 and El Salvador is $4.35USD/gal Thanks! I don’t mind being a little unstable.

I'm a little less embarrassed knowing that other people have made this same mistake

Ok, once again, I'm a bit past-due for an update, so here goes. We finished up Mexico with a couple days in Oaxaca (super cool city, definitely worth a trip). Met some "overlander" types. I highly recommend the iOverlander app to anyone who plans to travel like this. You can guess from the pic who had the easiest time driving through the tourist districts and parking in garages. I have had no regrets about driving a 35 year old mini-truck on this trip. outside of Oaxaca we saw some pre-hispanic ruins I also drove some of the most exhilarating roads of my life. The mountains around Oaxaca are extreme. The grades are extreme, the temperature is extreme (max temp was 107F on the little thermometer I keep under the glovebox INSIDE the cab), the drivers are extreme, the road construction is extreme. Granted, I typically opt for the road less travelled, but one of these windy roads was completely torn apart for repaving, so it was brand-new asphalt, and smooth sailing one minute, then one-lane dirt construction site, with an unguarded cliff on one side, and not a single sign anywhere, just piles of rocks in the right lane, to let you know the lane ends. All was well, except another alternator altercation. The front case bearing gave up the ghost, probably in part from the blistering heat, but mostly because I bought the cheapest one on rockauto. Thanks "BBB Industries" This one is 100amps to keep up with my silly accessories, but I still had the old 60amp as a spare, so that got us into town, where I found a local guy who could source a new bearing, so we're back in action with 100amps. That was it for Mexico, and honestly, I grew up hearing a lot of negative stereotypes about this country, but I didn't find any of them to be true. I had a great time. I never once felt unsafe. The people are great. The countryside is beautiful. I'm excited for the eventual return trip! A few days ago, we crossed into Guatemala. We got the vehicle permit with no problems, just administrative BS. I felt like I was back home in MA at the RMV. We were only in Guatemala a half hour and I found a friend. I couldn't find anyone there, but I got the VIN and put it in the registry. Somebody's definitely put some work into this one. We spent some time at Lake Atitlan, in the "cloud forest." The people there are super chill. The weather was nice. The coffee is amazing. It was cool. The little 2.5L has really pulled its weight with all these elevation changes. I never wanted a stick shift more though. The AW4 can't decided between 1st and 2nd when it's in low gears, but I've only gotten the brakes hot enough to smell once, which I didn't love, but considering we've been back and forth between sea level and 5000+ feet like 8 times in the past 2 weeks, I'd say we're doing ok. Yesterday we climbed an active volcano, and camped on the inactive one next to it. This was my view over coffee this morning: So that was pretty cool. Guatemala is super beautiful. The roads are trash, and the locals drive like maniacs, but I kind of get a kick out of the challenge. I'm REEEEALY glad I put in new suspension and steering before I left though. There have been many poorly maintained roads, and google maps does not know this country. I've been routed through some pretty back-woods "streets" including countless wash-outs and one river crossing, but the best was when I drove though a mile-long dirt path with 12" deep ruts through a broccoli field that google maps told me was a public roadway. I'm well over 8k miles on this trip, and they have not been gentle miles. I can't imagine driving anything less rugged than a Comanche. Also this morning I got another tire puncture, so, shout out again to Safety Seal for the high-quality plug kit. I don't like a plug on a steering tire, but it's between tread lugs, so it should be fine. Next stop: El Salvador. We're still shooting for Costa Rica by the end of the month. And thanks guys for the comments! I'm glad you enjoy the silly shenanigans!

Another Central American beater, this one is on rt 13 in Coatepeque, Guatemala at what is now a heavy equipment mechanic. I couldn’t find anyone there, or I might have tried to trade grills or wheels. The factory roll bar is missing, and the body is in rough shape, but it’s registered, and looks like it’s been moved recently. its been there for at least 7 years according to google street view.

Ok. It's been a busy week. I've got a few updates. First off, the title of this thread is way off. I've clocked over 7k miles since Massachusetts, and I'm still only in Oaxaca. Second, some progress: We've taken the MX200 all the way from Puerto Vallarta to Oaxaca, and if anyone here plans to travel to southern Mexico, you've gotta drive this route. It's amazing. There are alpine mountains one minute, then palm trees and beaches the next, with a lot of jungle between. There are tons of little pueblos with all kinds of trinkets and fresh fruit for sale, then absolutely nothing but nature for miles. The coastline here is pristine and largely untouched by society. Calamity also struck finally. I've been getting nervous that there were no major disasters with the truck, so I feel a lot better now that something broke. I was going down one of said mountains, and the brake pedal got real soft. I never wished more that I had a stick shift, but the AW4 low gears worked great, and whatever that weird magic is that happens in the brake proportioning valve worked. I had blown the hardline on the rear passenger side. The fluid didn't drain all the way out, and I didn't totally lose braking, so I limped a half mile to a gas station to investigate. The line had cracked and separated at the fitting on the wheel cylinder. Flare stayed in, line snapped off. How could this happen to brand new lines? Well... The guy who installed them left the entire hardline completely unsupported, and proceeded to drive several thousand miles on rough roads and cobblestone. Bad vibrations. The beach boys would not approve. There was a parts store across the street by some incredible good fortune, though I cried a little when the guy said he could only sell me a compression fitting and some preflared line, and did not have a flare tool. I do not like compression fittings. They are not DOT approved, they are not capable of withstanding the maximum pressure created in hydraulic brake systems during panic-brake situations. However, I didn't want to stay at that gas station forever, so it is what it is. Later, down the coast, we camped at this crazy Canadian dude's pizza shop on the beach. And while all of that sounded cool enough, when he let us into the back yard, I see a CJ-8! It's a work in progress. Someone had swapped in a forklift engine and tranny. He's sourcing parts to put back a 258, or maybe a cummins 4 cylinder. I also had to stop when I finally saw another Comanche. It's in rough shape, but the owner still uses it to haul water. And yes, I got the VIN, and put it in the registry. There was also this laundromat I couldn't use, for obvious reasons And finally, a pic of the MJ under the palms, because it looks damn good here.

I saw this MJ at a mechanic shop/junkyard(?) on MX200 in San Pedro Cacahuatepec, Guerrero, Mexico. It's being used as a water truck locally (and I mean locally. The fuel tank is a 4L water bottle in the engine bay.) The TBI set up is swapped out for a carburetor. It's beat up pretty bad, but still functions. The owner offered to sell me parts off of it, but there's not too much desirable stuff, and I was afraid if I stripped all the MJ specific parts, it would be in the fast lane for the crusher. It's the one on the left...

Their pics are from all over the states and Canada. I did message the page, and they confirmed that they are in Chicago, which matches a google search, but looking at the street view and satellite, they don't look like the kind of place with an online presence, and definitely not a place that does specialty part-outs. Someone can call the junkyard and ask. Or if anyone is local to Chicago they could drop by.

I had some time to get into the door cards this week. The driver side door check was never functional, so I put one in from a later XJ with the rubber stopper. While I had one door open, I figured I’d open the passenger side too, and put in the pair of ~96 XJ vinyl vapor barriers I had been carrying around. it stopped the draft I was getting around the door handle, and maybe it’s a placebo effect, but I think it cut down on road noise. I also really didn’t love the look of the bed cap at first, but it’s kind of growing on me.

Oooh, I can’t forget this one:

10/10 I would go back to Real De Catorce. It was a cool town. We also coincidently arrived on good friday, and since latin america goes all out for "Semana Santa," we got to see some religious ceremonies. From there, we kept going through the mountains. we drove through "Tequila" Mexico. We finally arrived on the west coast a couple days ago. It's nice to see the ocean again. Not nice to find a flat tire yesterday morning, but I was prepared for the occasion. Shoutout to Safety Seal by the way. I will never use one of those autoparts store plug kits again. I'm always afraid the plastic handle is going to shatter and impale my palm. The safety seal kit has solid metal t-handles, replaceable insertion forks, and plugs that don't slice in two when you insert them. I'm also really glad I bought that stanley jumper/compressor. It's nice not even having to dismount the wheel to get me back on the road.

Ok, I've been super busy, but I'm past due for an update, so here goes: We crossed into Mexico at Laredo. It was super confusing where to go for immigration. I think that's how it always is there, but it was compounded by construction at the immigration office. All of our paperwork was in order though, so once we figured out where to clear in, there were no issues for us or the truck. I didn't want to hang around the border zone too much, so we headed straight for the mountains. The scenery has been pretty epic. We spent a couple days outside of Monterrey, and then I found this little Pueblo called "Real De Catorce." There was a pic of a Willy's Wagon on there on google, which may or may not have influenced my decision to visit As it turns out, in addition to being like, the peyote capital of Mexico (I did not inhale), this town is FULL of Willy's Wagon-like "Jeeps" (and one SJ and one CJ-5). And although only one local tried to buy my Comanche on the spot, I think the truck got a lot of local respect. I kid you not, there are more than 20 of these things there as part of a tour agency. I'm not sure what they actually are though. It looks like a modified full-sized Ford chassis, but I really don't know enough about Fords or Willy's Wagons to know exactly what I was looking at. My Spanish is absolutely pitiful, and the lady friend speaks fluent Spain-Spanish, but is illiterate when it comes to automotive, so communication with the locals was a challenge. If anyone else wants to visit and find out more, it's pretty easy to get to. Only several hours from any major airport, then a 15 mile drive on cobblestone, followed by a 1.5 mile single lane train tunnel-turned-roadway, which dumps you into a densely packed pedestrian shopping zone, which you are expected to drive though to find parking on the other side. Needless to say, there were not a lot of gringos in this town.

I don’t have a pic, but both of the full gauge clusters involved in the surgery were not originally column shift. I think all renix full clusters are the same, but don’t quote me on that.

Mexico doesn’t recognize any other country’s, so I had to get a one-month policy just for them. I’m still figuring out the rest Also, here’s some pics of the more touristy side of the trip. Primarily the food-tourism the last pic is fried gator on a stick. I had to try it I couldn’t believe it actually DID taste like chicken! I know some of this is no big deal for some of you, but as a traveling mass-hole I get a kick of this stuff.

A few updates: I finished wiring the fan, lights, and third brake light in the cap. the fan and lights run off the house battery. The DC-DC charger has performed flawlessly. In February, I also replaced the steering linkage with all new Moog parts I didn't like the exhaust being all hodge-podged together, so I put in a new Walker tailpipe, and shoehorned a "stainless" KJ muffler in there because it's a lot bigger than the MJ one, and then welded everything solid. The tailpipe is whisper-quiet now, but it doesn't really matter with all the added noise from the header. When the engine got hot, the power steering pump whined pretty loud, so I put in an auto parts store fluid cooler, and it's been fine since. I also added cruise control (I'll tidy up the wiring and vacuum stuff later ), which hasn't worked, but I haven't had a chance yet to figure out why.

Thanks All! It's been a great trip so far, visiting friends and family, and doing touristy stuff. I haven't always had service or laptop access while camping and vagabonding, but I've got a chance for an update now, so here goes. I was due for an oil change when I got to my buddy's place in Charlotte. So that worked out great. Once I got into warm weather, my coolant temp was climbing a little in traffic. I hadn't tested the electric fan set up in hot weather yet, but I had brought a couple spare sensors at different temps, just in case. I had a 200F sensor in the lower radiator hose, which I changed out for a 190F sensor in Louisiana, and that's working much better. The temp gauge sits at 210 all day now. We're currently as far as San Antonio, so I think that's roughly halfway. I got the final piece of paperwork today for driving across the border, so if I actually have my ducks in a row, we'll be in Mexico this week. Plans include: mountains, oceans, and jungles. Hoping to spend about 10-14 days there before reaching Guatemala. Some pics, because I know that's really what everyone wants: Absolutely! I've got a whole pile of new, and "good used" stuff, and most of the hand tools that I own in the toolbox part of the shell. There's a noticeable lean to the driver's side but I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. Yeah, that might be why it doesn't work. But I started the install the day I left and, and finished it en route, so I haven't really had time to diagnose. I'm from Oxford, just south of Worcester. I won't be home for a bit, but I'm totally down to say hi when I am. Also, @The86manche I just helped my buddy bring home that blue '89 from your pal in Sterling.

I'm taking a little time off to travel, and the opportunity arose to visit Costa Rica. I know flying is the intelligent man's method for this kind of travel, but since the silver '89 was almost ship shape, I decided to make this much more epic and just drive there. I'm native to MA so from Boston to Guanacaste, with some stops in between, we're looking at approximately 6000mi. I'm not big on social media, or even picture taking, for that matter, but I thought it might be fun to post a few updates on here along the way. Here's a map that very loosely tracks the route. For those that do not know, I've been rebuilding the silver '89 since last October. The build thread is linked in my sig (and needs an update), but some highlights are, a new-to-me 2.5 engine, new floors, new suspension all around. I also added a bunch of options that it did not come with, ie power steering, courtesy lights, cruise control. As well as a few mods like bluetooth stereo, bigger alternator, REM clock, and a bedcap with standalone house battery, roof fan, and lighting. We've made it to Fayetteville, NC, and only had a couple hiccups. I had to install a power steering cooler while here, because the ebay header pipe was cooking the PS pump and it would whine really loud when it got hot. I had to swap the pulley on the alternator because the existing one came loose and chewed itself up a bit. I also got a windshield chip from a rock that kicked up outside of Trenton, but i got that filled in Virginia Beach. Otherwise, no major issues! Today we start heading west, and we'll spend most of the week in TN. If anyone has suggestions on things we should see along the route, or knows of any good (cheap) campgrounds, or even just wants to grab a beer and talk Comanches, shoot me a message! As far as getting my truck back to MA, that's a discussion for next fall/winter.

You need to change the switch in the column. If you have a tilt column you can still get a switch new. If it’s a non-tilt column it’s almost impossible to find. You’ll probably need to buy one used. This is the tilt column switch: https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/standard-ignition/standard-ignition-windshield-wiper-switch/std0/ds572

I think we should go back to the fact that it could idle with the MAP unplugged. If someone adjusted the ISA to compensate for that, and with the brake booster grommet leak, and others, the ISA will not be set for a properly functioning vacuum system. when you are 100% sure that all vacuum leaks are gone (if you don’t have a gauge, use starting fluid, propane, etc) then you need to make sure the ISA is adjusted correctly. Before spending more time and money on sensors, I would throughly go over the vac system and ISA.

The fuel gauge hadn't worked since the full cluster was installed, and both the gauge and the sending unit tested good. Turns out the diode that's soldered into the ribbon board on the back of the cluster was blown. I figured it'd be easier to swap the ribbon than modify another gauge cluster for the column shift auto, and change the odometer. Now I know how much fuel I have, which is pretty important to me. For an update on the bedcap, I hacked in an RV fan, mounted a deep cycle battery in the toolbox, and put a Victron DC-DC charger under the hood. It felt a little silly doing this when it was below freezing, but when I get to Central America, and I'm trying to sleep in there, I won't regret it. The battery also powers the LED strips in the cap. I also wanted the bedcap to be keyed to match the ignition. This is just me being anal, but there are few limits to my OCD when I get started on something. New lock tumblers for the cap weren't available to match the old GM keys, but the less old GM keys from 91-(i think)94 were supported, so I ground a notch in an ignition lock cylinder from a 91, so I could use that, and got all new tumblers for the cap that accepted the later key. I probably spent way more time, effort, and money than it was worth, but now I have one less key to worry about. Also, I was down by the ocean this week, so I took a quick glamor shot.

I'm prepping for a road trip to Costa Rica, so there have been a lot of little details that don't really have to be done, but I'm telling myself they're important. I don't need a trailer hitch on a 2.5L truck, but I wanted one, so I burned one together with some plates from @krustyballer16 and pieces of a spare hitch I had laying around. Of course, the fay bumper had been installed low, so it interfered with the hitch plates. And I found out why it had been installed that way. not a lot of options So I fixed the rust, drilled new holes, remounted the bumper, and finished the hitch. Now the bumper sits tighter to the truck, mounts with 4 bolts instead of 2, and I'm happy with fitment. I also spliced up a trailer plug with that Cadillac connector that fits the rear harness.

I’m excited to see how this one plays out. Whether it gets lifted, lowered, or stays stock, I have full confidence in your attention to detail. I know everything will be either done well, or well hidden.

@Wouter Any updates on this one? Even if you didn’t go on the trip, I’d love to see any progress on the box.