Bornindesert

I know the feeling, my 88 MJ is a hybrid too, has a '91 motor and engine harness. If the alternator is putting out, that's a good sign. If the battery is not picking up the charge it should be fairly easy to find the bad connection, should see like 14v at the + terminal at idle. Might need to understand if the battery is discharging too when the motor is shut off. This stuff always happens when its either freezing cold or raining out...

None of the rear d35 seals or bearings were available at the Autozone that I checked in Phoenix (which i thought was strange given the number of XJ's out there). I picked up the unit bearings for the front axle from Autozone tho, and they were USA Timken. Of course, had to pay them and pick up a few days later...

Could be a number of things, first place I'd look is terminals, grounds and connections at battery, alternater, block and starter. Beyond that, probably looking at trouble shooting from the tech manual? Assuming it's all stock wiring...

I found 88' Dana 35 rear axle wheel bearings at Quadratic & RockAuto, wound up buying SKS brand from RockAuto which are decent quality. Everything installed perfectly. SKS BR9 Wheel Bearing (comes pre-packed and with spacer/collar) SKS 16747 Seal SKS 13671 Seal If you are doing it yourself let me know, just did mine last weekend - not hard but having a press helps.

Just an update - went with General Springs (3/2) Metric ton / Military wraps from another thread on here and Chevy Drop shackles. The ones I bought from AutoZone were around $40, and once flipped gave almost 3" of lift, in addition to the 2-3" from the new leaf's. If I modify the shackle, could bring it down about 1 1/2" but for now I'm leaving it at 3". Had to grind a 1/16" off the poly bushing end, the heavy steel insert would have pushed the shakle perches open. That and shimmed the other end where it attached to the leaf spring, was about 1/8" too wide. Now the truck is sitting with about a 2" rake! Not sure how adding length to the shackle will produce good flex, but we'll see...

Nice build and agree with al the comments, really appreciate some of the help and advice you've provided on ComancheClub formus!

Got it - thanks. Didn't get a chance to get back on the front this weekend but did finish setting up the d35 and the truck is finally sitting on all four tires! Will post up once I try the tire trick on the front axle.

Thanks Mnkyboy - turn the wheel with weight on the front axle or weight off with jacks under the frame?

Will probably finish the rear axle and get it back under the truck this weekend. Front lift is finally all together and ready to go. Next week i'll start looking for a shop to get the front alignment done. Up front, rebuilt axle, new adj UCA/LCA's, JKS track bar, Currie Correctlync steering. No drop pitman or drop track bar bracket. Tires are 31 10.5's on 15's with 3.75" backspace. It's sitting around 4-4.5". Geometry looks pretty good, axle is about 1/2" off center left to right, tires are centered on the wheel well opennings. Pinion angle seems a little low but close. Steering is cracked over less than 1/4 turn off center. It's close but not close enough. Everything is super tight, will be a pain to jack around. Questions - anyone in the Phoenix Arizona area have a recommendation for a front end shop that knows our Jeeps, can get the lift set up and aligned? Pinion angle set? Also, how close do I need to get the front end, like centered and tow-in before I bring it in to a shop? I can use the porta-power to push the axle to center and lengthen the track bar, but if they are going to adjust it anyways...

I'd say it's the mud first, acts as an abrasive and water second, once the windings/insulation breaks down the water can short out the winding. Bearings can be a point of failure too, more sensitive to mud than water.

Agree, if it's getting submerged the splash shield wouldn't be as effective. Only other recommendation I've seen is to flush, hose off or power wash the alternater after wheeling it. Goal is to remove the grit or sand so it's not just grinding away at the windings or insulation.

Just curious but has the rubberized splash shield been removed from under the engine and radiator support? That thing deflects some of the water or mud away from the alternater.

http://i.imgur.com/z8ZDg91.jpg

Are the axles retained when they snap or do they walk out - non C-clip D35 question?

I found Koyo's installed from the factory on my 1988 HP D30, believe they were used when Dana orginally built the axles for AMC. The DANA OEM set up kits I bought came with plenty of shims, and Timken bearings. I didn't like the sharper radius on the back side of the Timken race. When you shim the carrier for final assy and pre-load, they would hang up on the corner edge and remove metal if you were not real careful. The Koyo's had a nice radius, would slip right in with a couple hits of the mallet.

Seems like you've been through the process - thanks for sharing!

Posting a couple of suspension related questions - looking for a good source of OEM style UCA fasteners... When I broke down my stock D30 front axle and front suspension, two of the fasteners for the UCA's had mashed threads. I'd like to replace them with metric or OEM style bolts. They are a custom headed internal TORX metric bolt with a locking washer nut. Generally, I'm reusing any OEM bolt that cleans up when I install the lift, reusing the locking nuts that came off it. First question, I think the two damaged bolts came from the UCA to Axle bushing connection (didn't tag them). The UCA to frame bolts (or, the two other bolts) were metric washer hex bolt and locking washer nut. So, does that special bolt go on the frame end or axle end of the UCA? Second question: What's everyone using for sources of the OEM bolts for UCA's and LCA's? If not OEM, a good quality metric bolt, with washers, with nylon lock nuts? thanks!

I had it visualized upside down, got it now thanks! Have you fit the e-brake cables and brake hoses? About to pull the trigger on your p/n's...

Nice work, will definitely help me out as I finalize my build list. With the sway bar links and adapters, what goes on at the connection to the axle? The bushing is eliminated, replaced with a U bracket? Does the adapter ride off to the side or straddle the connection point. Thank!

Planning to replace the inner axle seals?

that's an idea and supposedly available at Autozone. I will be making some measurements - thanks!

Resulting in negative lift - thanks that basically answers my question!

I used the MJ to trailer hay to the auction and hay customers for almost 10 years. Average loads of hay ran around 3,000 lbs with the heaviest load just under 3,600 lbs plus the trailer weight. The trailer was a heavy duty single axle 8x14. It was a great set-up, with the 4wd in low you could get in and out of some tight barn yards and maneuver it in reverse. Just gotta take it easy on the roads which was never a problem in rural Indiana.

I was looking at an adjustable rear leaf shackle to get about an inch of fine tuning for a 3" rear leaf spring lift and a 4.5" front lift. They are available but the supplier did not know if the XJ application fits the MJ? I think the width may be different. Does anyone know if they interchange?