mjeff87

There was a TJ in my local yard a month or so ago, when I grabbed those KJ tow hooks. Every once in a blue moon one shows up there. I looked at it just out of curiosity to see what might be left to salvage. There wasn't much left but the paint to take. But I just learned from this thread to not underestimate just what somebody might need.

Thanks. I'm going to dig into it this weekend, once I get it back to my place and into my (warm) garage. Others report that the wiring harness breaks right where it enters the hatch area. It's got to be something simple like that, or crud as you mention. Ummmm, yeah My wife isn't happy with me buying it in the first place, let alone if I did something like that. I'd be looking for a new place to sleep, probably inside of it LOL.

Re: any Ford Focus owners here? Like I said, it's got a couple little cosmetic things wrong with it (the whole passenger side inner fender/splash Gaurd is missing, lol....probably from when the A/C work was done). Cigarette lighter is missing ala Jake Blues. Headliner is meh. One of the rear hatch cover clips is snapped off, no biggie. The rear hatch button on the dash is inop, I've been reading up on that as it seems to be a common problem. I'll track that down and fix it. Sunroof button is inop too. I'll get to that eventually. The most annoying thing is the "door ajar" light flickers/illuminates while driving. I'm not sure if it's related to the rear hatch release or not, or is just a bad door sensor or what. I need to track that down and fix it, quick.

I picked up on the H and the O. At first I thought it was a glitch, but then I put 2 and 2 together and came up with 5

That. Is. Awesome. Abbey, if you find some time in the next several months, you should read some of those 20,000 posts your dad made here. He was SO proud of you, and bragged on you quite a bit

Well, here she is. I gave $1101 for it, the owner had an offer of 1100 and I said I would top it, so I went all The Price Is Right on her It has new tires, brakes, battery and a recent A/C job done with evac and recharge. There's a few little cosmetic things wrong with it, but nothing a quick junkyard trip can't fix for cheap lol. Gotta get it retitled and registered here in VA this week, then do a timing belt and fluids flush.. But she scoots along just fine as is. Its stashed in my buddy's driveway for a couple days till I can get to the DMV.

If you do end up boogering up the flared fittings, you can use a small (6") pipe wrench to turn them. I carry one in my toolbag, and that's exclusively why I carry it (especially in junkyards).

I figured out my paypal, monies are inbound

No, I think that's a Starbucks.....

This is a really cool idea. Granted, it won't make it there anywhere close to the funeral, but I think the Club should do this. Don's family will have time to process everything, and if the card shows up a couple/few months later I think it would bring them some happy memories. I'm happy to go find a card and get it going somehow. We all can post up who wants to participate, maybe work out logistics thru PM's. edit:. Sorry Nate...we cross posted at the same time. I'm so sorry for your loss Abbey's suggestion is great. If that's what would help more than a card, I'm all in on that. Take care, friend.

Il get some $$$ towards the arrangement.....give me a little bit. I can't remember my paypal credentials. If I can't do that, can I at least send you a check via snail mail Pete? edit:. See if the shop can put anything (bow or ribbon) on it that's chrome?

I'm just saying that this whole situation sucks. There, I said it. Might be the beers talking now, but whatever. I feel terrible for the whole family, I really do. Don was an integral part of this CC family, as I'm sure he was also on other, good-old-fashioned posting boards. Facebook, Instagram, and all of the rest of the new social mediums be damned. They are just not the same. Don was an OG member of the Yahoo group that started this whole thing. He and the rest of us are a vanishing breed, sadly. Sorry about the small rant, I feel better now. RIP, Cheif

Cool. Service records show that the AC evaporator was replaced last fall with a full evac and recharge (at the dealership....) so I'm assuming that system is good to go. This vehicle is coming from Georgia, so rust really shouldn't be an issue. It was involved in some kind of low speed front-end altercation several years ago, as I see receipts for some minor front end replacement parts.....marker lights and plastic body panels, but nothing major. Thanks mang. I should be picking it up this weekend.....I have to get it retitled here in VA, with new registration/plates and insurance so I can (legally) drive it back to my place about 1/2 hour south of where it sits now. I'll probably spend the better part of tomorrow afternoon at the DMV getting all that done, lol. I'll post some pics here in a day or so. I'm buying it sight unseen, and all I know is that it's red. :)

So it turns out this thing has the Zetec in it, per the VIN code. That's good. ive got the full service history on it via paperwork, everything done @ the dealership. The only thing I don't see is a timing belt replacement, which should have been done by this time (200k+ miles). It's a non-interference engine, so I'm not too worried about it failing. I'll probably throw a belt/tensioner/idler pulley on it in short order just as a preventative measure.

Long story, my older brother is in a real bind and I'm lending him my KJ for a few months. Picking up an 04 Focus (don't laugh, lol) from a coworker to beat around in for cheap. All I know about it is it's a single owner (proverbial little old lady car, it's her ex-husband's mother's car), 2004, 3-door (hatchback), 5 speed. Not sure what engine is in it, split-fire or Zetek, and it has a ton of miles on it. It was driven up here to VA from GA this past fall and has been parked since. New tires, battery, and has a current GA inspection sticker on it. I've done a little googling about them, and can only see potential issues with motor mounts, crappy auto transmissions (this one is a 5 speed manual though) and dropped valve seats on alot of the split-fire 2.0L engines. Hopefully this one is a Zetek. Anyone have/drive one (willing to admit it ) have any tips/tricks/words of caution? My mother had a 4-door auto Focus before she died, which I drove a bit. It seemed ok, if not a little cheezy/cheaply built. She gave it to my neice who ended up grenading the engine and junking it.........I'm guessing that was from a dropped valve seat or two. My wallet is cautiously looking forward to decent MPG with it, compared to my KJ.

Abbey, thank you so much for letting us know, however painful it is for you and your family. I think I speak for most when saying I'm truly shocked by the news. I never met your dad, but we had many, many conversations via forum posts and private messages over the years. He truly was a great man, and will sadly be missed by the community here. I hope you and your family can find peace, knowing he's in a better place now. Jeff

I'll second (or third) that^^^^ That rubber line turns into swiss cheese and you gradually lose pressure, until it breaks. Then you have zero pressure (but can still hear the pump running, so you don't think it's a pump issue). Been there, done that, got the tee shirt. LOL.

Just hit totality here at 11:42 EST. It's soooo dark here (no streetlights in my subdivision), you can see so many stars that you otherwise wouldn't see, it's really cool.

If I remember correctly, there's a couple dowel pins that the intake manifold aligns with. Make sure it's seated properly on them.

Get real hardened seats installed, versus the crappy pot metal OEM ones. Install updated keepers for the lash adjusters.

Can't beat staying local if you can. I will say my brother had a 4.7 in a Dakota, with a 5 speed, and that thing screamed. I had it up to 105 on a lonely stretch of highway one night, spinning about 2500 rpm in 4th gear....still had a gear to go and I backed off it. The only problem that truck ever had was really hard starting/extended crank time later on in its life. He isn't local to me so I couldn't get the chance to diagnose/fix it, but I'm betting it was just a crank or cam sensor that needed replacing. He ended up trading it eventually. My KJ is an 02, with the 45RFE trans. It's boring as all hell, but the only engine issues I've ever had with it was a couple bad coil packs and a leaking radiator (OEM, and it lasted 16 years....it didn't owe me anything). I need to drop the tranny pan and change the filters, that will probably be my weekend project. I had the dealership flush the trans @ 60k, I'm about 10k past the 120k service interval on it now

Yank, check out: https://www.powertrainproducts.net/Jeep-Grand-Cherokee-Engines-s/449.htm http://knowledgebase.powertrainproducts.net/about-dodge-3-7-4-7-5-7-engines/ These guys seem to know the in's and out's of 3.7/4.7/5.7 engines and their failure points quite well. I have them bookmarked for if/when my 3.7 craps the bed. Knock on wood, I'm only at 130K, and I am religious about coolant and oil maintenance, but you just never know.....

^^^^same as our 3.7's in KJ's. The 4.7 is the same basic design, just with 2 more cylinders.

I've always wanted to visit Colorado, and I have tons of vacation time to use up this year. My wife might not be so into it, but I could drop her off somewhere to shop or otherwise waste our monies. Id be in some kind of rental, would need to ride b*@ch if there was a ride planned.

Nice. We'll use the above as the "before" picture......just waiting now on the "after" pic (did you just pull off a random highway next to a homeless encampment and snap a pic?) LOL.