Gjeep

I’ve been holding my breath for the past 5 years hoping the measurements and work I did on the support bracket between the front crossmember and bumper was spot on for my hidden winch setup. And thankfully it was – just bolted it all together. My youngest helped me with this whole hidden winch setup back when she was in 4th grade (and she starts her freshman year of college in a few weeks). Crazy how time flies – and how long sometimes these projects take to get done! The go-between support bracket itself has weld nuts just behind the front bumper for the fairlead and Maximus winch line hanger bolts to thread into. Nothing is bolted down tight but wanted to do a test fit before taking everything to get powder-coated. Mounting hardware for the fairlead will be the same stainless steel bolts I used on for the factory sport bar. There will also be a ‘dust brush’ (shown below) just behind front bumper to keep the winch line clean and bug-free. Warn Epic fairlead and hook both blacked out will adorn the front. Getting back to it!

She's my daily. 88K on the clock now. Bought it at 85K.

Got around to cleaning up and painting the MJ-specific SnugTop I found a while back. Decided satin black was the way to go to keep the Chief graphics poppin'. Next up... rebuilding and gearing the D44.

Looks like the aftermarket is modifying 97+ XJ style evaporators to work with the slightly older setup with threaded nuts. There was no difference in the AC HVAC box HO years r12 to r134. I see though why you need to modify.

Seems like you're on the right track... Just know you're going to want to keep it to the renix years (87-90) as this is where you started from a pulling parts perspective. 91 was a different set up; '94.5 year-'96 got r134.

Looks sharp. Like the rims also. Era appropriate.

I've wondered about that also -- the only thing that came to mind was maybe a potential diesel variant in some other market?? Hard to say as that clock shape is unique to MJ/ XJ only.

At first I thought this was an R/C MJ, as the flares are kinda nuts... But I see these taillights are available on both Etsy and eBay. Not so much a fan of the American flag version, but having the flexibility of including amber (especially for European MJs where it's required at the rear) is nice. Good first effort on this. I don't think the lenses look quite right yet, but different. And not sure what the little turquoise piece is for. Possibly locks it all together? I've never been a fan of the 3 section factory taillights; always thought a smoother design would have looked better on the MJ. https://www.etsy.com/listing/4521337669/jeep-comanche-mj-taillights?gpla=1&gao=1&&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_us_-electronics_and_accessories&utm_custom1=_k_Cj0KCQjwornRBhCrARIsAON5exF-mKh0CTGcAtxvi8vty8SPhAFOb1cPe8k6as2unxzM97M4QIIFppgaAjyOEALw_wcB_k_&utm_content=go_21500569338_164907277163_707558291657_aud-2545588685997:pla-315906365651_c__4521337669_12768591&utm_custom2=21500569338&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21500569338&gbraid=0AAAAADtcfRLj7PteAPUDdUbbRjBQcpQ9O&gclid=Cj0KCQjwornRBhCrARIsAON5exF-mKh0CTGcAtxvi8vty8SPhAFOb1cPe8k6as2unxzM97M4QIIFppgaAjyOEALw_wcB

Jeep did it a couple different ways over the years. As mentioned, a blank cover attached to the dashboard overlay and also, but less common a full pod that was screwed in (similar to the at left fog/ cargo light pod) but with an adhesive blank cover (this was more commonly found on Renix era plain Jane XJs).

There was a car show in town recently, so I set out to get the name of a good powder coat shop. I had gotten lots of thumbs-up on an in-town shop over the past year, but the guys whose restorations were top notch at this show universally said – don’t go there, go to Outlaw powder coating (little ways away). And so it is. The MJ’s bumpers will be dropped off this week. I decided that the factory black trim taillights just didn’t look right with my graphics. Majority of the lines on the lights are vertical while my graphic breaks are vertical. Going with solid red lights. Also, with the MJ having a clear theme of silver and black, I’m thinking there is a good chance I’m going to run Marchal black fog light covers over the white. Will see. Just finished polishing the custom Buick GNX billet center cap sleeves (difference before to after) and then will modify the Nissan Titan center cap to fit atop the sleeve and finish it off with a domed logo’d ‘Jeep’ emblem. Instead of a having white logo, I went with silver & black to keep with the theme. Lastly, the alternate grille is just about ready for paint. Finished it off with 1000 grit this morning/ ready for black trim paint. I think the grille to go with will be a modified all black setup. Got the screw inserts back side permapoxied into place and flat top screws will be used to fasten the mesh insert into place.

Power still runs to that connector even with out the blower motor installed. The dividers of the connector melt essentially connecting (typically) 3 of the 5 wires.

Don't know you're truck but only time I've smelled burning plastic in an MJ and XJ was the HVAC control connector to fan speed selection. Both Jeeps were over 200K at the time.

Those are the ever so rare Marchal DRIVING lights (typically what was run on the factory rollbar).

Graphics are finito. I decided to do modify the original design a bit for those with a keen eye. The bedside stripes were run so they now tuck under the rear flares versus stopping 1/2” prior to the flare. (There were just too many starts and stops visually on the flanks.) And the top of the bed looked naked as compared to the nose-end of the truck, so added vinyl on the side lengths and tailgate ridge. Also, the tailgate blackout as I envisioned it just wouldn’t work because of the stamped ‘Jeep’ lettering. The ‘e’ cut-out/ recessed areas are too small for the lettering to look proper. Thanks to 3M cut tape, I went with a different design that looks more fitting with the rest of the graphics. Excited about the finished look – slightly modern with a nod to the MJ’s of an era gone by and its variety of vinyl visuals. Next step is getting the 15x8.5 Vectors wrapped with 31” BFG’s.

What about JP LIFE

My opinion is to replace all components so you know your starting point and it's reliable.

HO era has temp sensor/sender back of block just like renix era. This changed/ disappeared OBD2 XJs.

That's not the original steering column -- especially as a stick. I don't see the toggle lever to release the ignition cylinder into the position the key can be removed. Unless I just don't see it. I don't think that's an MJ XJ column.

Hard to say but yes its not right. And you’ve got the dashboard support studs through the column support? And this is where the column sits? Have you looked at you subframe and firewall and no damage/ pushed in? And the end is properly seated in the steering shaft? Maybe its not a true jeep xj/ mj column? I would at this point measure the length to a certain point and ask a CC member to measure a column they don’t have installed and see if its a match. If your comanche was a column shift, I’d have a column for you free of charge.

Yep dash is mounted up like it should be, but that the bolt in firewall is clearly the problem. At least from the photo I see that steering column flange looks to be bent -- and that steering column flange metal may be thicker than the firewall metal. You might flex the firewall sheet metal before you bend the column flange. Try, but it fire wall starts flexing, remove the bolt on the steering shaft engine side and the one remaining interior firewall bolt, unplug electrical and pull the steering column/bend the flange back to shape. Possibly the nutsert threads on the firewall the column mounts into are stripped? You'll have the remaining bolt for reference, but I believe it's an M10. If the threads on the fire wall are stripped, you'll need a longer bolt and flange nut for engine side (and a helper to hold that nut) to mount it back up.

That is way off. And how does it look at the firewall it's bolted to? Also, I tried zooming in on one of your pics but couldn't see -- can you take pic of where dashboard bolts to kick panels.

Can you attach a pic of the situation.

My most recent build (Slippery Slope) has the Crown variant of the 97+ XJ door seals. Bought them new. I've barely driven the truck since installed, but throughout the build process of approx 9 months they/ve broken themselves in -- I guess from sitting with the doors closed. I did need to adjust the strikers slightly and driver door because I wanted perfect fit/ no slamming and proper break-in. My 97+ XJ Mopar seals on my other MJ build (Son of Stink) are much firmer/ give less. I don't need to slam the door, but a firmer close than the other MJ. That MJ too has sat for the most part so not a ton of open/close door action. The Crown's are great for daily drivers. I have them in my 3 daughters XJ's and no issues/ leaks/ slamming after first 6-8 months of use.

I peeled off the driver side graphics related to my other Comanche build and finished laying out the Chief graphics that go with this project build. Finito. (Photo a bit pixilated for some reason.) When I got to installing the new step bumper driver corner there was a noticeable (over 1/4”) wider gap body to corner on the passenger side. Since there’s no ability to adjust the bumper itself, I cheated. Added 1/4” thick stainless steel washers. When I did that, I needed to re-drill the bumper topside holes that retain the 2 bumper corner push pins. The gaps are the same now. Success.

If you look at my builds I found a good amplifier for the MJ. Nothing crazy. Slippery Slope project probably best. You can see some of the wiring; and the creativity around it. Feel free to DM if questions.