Pete M

swap in an axle(s) with a better gear ratio and you'll get better performance and better fuel economy. :D

there's no extra room in front of the shortbed tank. if the 23.5 is several inches longer in front of the fill, then the fill won't line up in the shortbed and that will push everything back towards the rear axle..

:waving: take lots of pics at the museum!

according to my 88 dealership brochure, the big ton package is not required for 5k towing. What's required for 5k lbs: -class 3 hitch -prep package with heavy duty rear axle -auto trans -heavy duty cooling system -p205 or larger tires -full size spare -heavy duty battery -power steering and any trailer over 1k should have a separate brake system on it. Otherwise it's a 2k/class 1 towing capacity.

did it have the sticker?

right click... save-image-as... awesomeness. :D

PA? why does his truck have a Georgia plate and a sticker that says "keep east atlanta weird"? :hmm:

I'll have to look around some more.

back in 97 I needed a DD for my new 3 hour round trip commute. I wanted a Jeep, but I wanted a truck. But I wanted a Jeep. Then I learned that Jeep made a truck. :D So I hit up the classifieds. Bummer. Not a single 4x4 MJ in my price range. But I did find a 2wd MJ with the 4.0, stick, with A/C. Went up to see it. Bald tires, ugly aluminum cap, and clearly was a smoker's vehicle (and an uncoordinated one at that). But one drive around the block and I was hooked. dang was that truck fast. It was the undersized bald tires that made it feel that way since the 30" BFGs I bought made it a slug. stupid 3.07s. But the dana 35 blew up within a year and I swapped in a 44 with 3.55s so all was well. :D no photos exist of its "day 1" condition. :dunno: here's one a few months later after a whole mess o' paychecks were sunk...I mean invested in her. :D

I'd start from scratch. gut all the wires and install parts from an XJ. but I too am concerned about water intrusion. water in the rockers/frame/doors can quickly undo that "rust-free" status.

Hellcreek has an AAL kit that should bump it up an inch or so. Did you align the front after the lift?

have you tried adjusting the linkage? as far as the t-cases, yes they should interchange with minimal effort. I don't know for sure what the cutoff date is, but the 95 might not have the seal rear output.

is it doing this shaking while you're in 2wd or 4wd?

but if you do need some, I believe it's just plain ol' 75-90 weight.

adding a 8.25 will push the yoke in a bit, adding lift will pull it out a bit. there are some variables involved here (like pinion angle) that will alter the numbers a small amount. bottom line though is that having the yoke pulled out of the t-case 1/2" more than stock will not hurt anything. :thumbsup:

both t-cases run without vacuum. :thumbsup: the vacuum in your old t-case was used to power the CAD in the front axle. You shift the t-case into 4wd, and the vacuum is switched and diverted to the CAD, which engages the funky 2-piece front axle shaft. If you still have a CAD front axle, you can just shim the CAD to be engaged all the time and then everything will work properly. :thumbsup: But make sure you plug the originating vacuum line where it comes out of the engine or you'll have a vacuum leak.

mmmm....green MJ.... :drool:

yeah, I've always been a bit perplexed at the prices that company wants to charge. :dunno:

no MJ is immune to floor rot. :(

who said anything about the front clip? it's the rockers and bed that rot out first. :thumbsup:

bring a small magnet with you to check for bondo. :thumbsup: and pear up at the insides of the bedsides, the floors and frame, and the inside lower edge of the doors. and pull back the carpet as best you can to check for rust, moisture or funny smells.

If you've got 4.5' up front I say go for it and use a full XJ pack with the MJ main in SOA configuration. Then tell us how it does. :D The idea has come up before, but I don't know if anyone has actually gone through with it. Explorer multi-leaf packs could also be tried in that configuration since they have less arch than MJ leafs but about the same length.

have you crawled underneath and rotated things by hand? could it be a bad U-joint?

there should be a post about ride height near the top of the DIY forum :thumbsup: