Pete M

I had that happen in my 88 once. The problem was the latch mechanism was stuck and no amount of messing with the rods was going to free it. I sprayed the latch as best I could with lube but eventually had to reach in with my hand and push/pry/pull the levers on the mechanism directly with my fingers. If you wanted to, you could open up the drivers door in order to see what is going on inside. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the doors are mirror images of each other.

Try using the address in the "Direct Link" box

Mine weighs a lot. :D Someday (when it's drivable again) I'll putter over to the scrap yard and see. I'm betting that the official curb weight numbers don't take any gasoline into account.

That's what I've read. Unfortunately, I buried my spare axle under a pile of crap in the garage before I read it so I've not been able to confirm.

Were you in the truck when it was weighed?

Torq steer? I guess I don't understand why that would happen in this situation. As I understand it, if you're not in four wheel drive, then your front axle is just a passenger and not pulling in any particular way. Especially if you get an automatic locker where it's sorta "open" until you apply the gas. Even a posi should have enough slip so as to not inhibit steering.

Optimas are a sealed battery. I'm guessing they shouldn't be hissing. But I seriously doubt an optima can explode. (Of course I've been wrong before.) Are you sure it's the battery making the noise and not something close by like a vacuum line or tire?

More and more I hate living in the land of salt and rust. :(

No one said that we're always successful with the first round of repairs. ;) I snapped off one of the steering box bolts when I wanted to install my custom front bumper and use 2 of the 3. Then I had to drain the box and drop it out of the truck in order to try and remove the broken bits of bolt. A 2 minute job became a 2 day job. In my opinion the best money you can spend on your truck is a factory shop manual. :thumbsup: They can be found on ebay.

87-92 Comanches came with the NP-231 command-trac part-time t-case. In 86 there was a choice of the NP-207 part-time or the NP-229 (I think that's the number) full-time t-cases.

XJ leafs won't work on an MJ and most XJs sit 1" lower than a 4x4 MJ so the coils wouldn't do any good either.

Unlockable hubs are overrated. I would just wait and save that money for a complete aftermarket front axle if that's in your future.

There are 3 different tank size choices. Two for the longbed; 23.5gal and 16 gal, and one for the shortbed; 18 gal. I believe the 16 was eventually phased out.

If my dad's CRD ever gets totalled... :brows:

I've researched the tire size thing and found that, well, it depends. Some owners have been able to fit a 245/70.

No, you just need to shim the little shifter fork inside the CAD in the front axle. There are a few ways to do this, including washers, a hose clamp, or installing the CAD cover upside down. You could also install the solid shaft from a non-CAD front axle into your current axle. No. Your t-case lever is what shifts you into 4wd and 2wd. Engaging the CAD fulltime will make your Jeep just like any other Jeep made after Chrysler abandoned the concept.

I just wanted to chime in to say that even though the owner may not ever do any "extreme" wheeling, 6.5 inches of lift should be considered an extreme lift. That's way more than the factory suspension design was ever supposed to handle. Also, everyone keep in mind rule #1. :cheers:

I recommend simply eliminating the CAD and keeping it locked all the time. It's simple and ultra-reliable. :D

Take the opportunity to do disks in the rear. If you haven't seen them yet, here's a couple links for ideas: http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=229934 http://fordfuelinjection.com/bronco/brakes.html

Finally got the garage cleaned out enough to bring it in (for being a "small" truck, I need a surprisingly large amount of available floorspace). If I get some free time tomorrow I'll be checking it out.

We currently have a CRD libby in the family and my sister had a v6 one a few years back. It's an ok rig, but I'm not sure I'd personally want one that wasn't CRD. The best thing about the other libbys (cause the best thing about mine is the engine :D ) is that, IFS or not, it seem much better built than the other small SUVs I've been in. It has a solid rear axle for goodness sake! Far too many of the other ones have IRS and feel too lightweight. Admittedly the lesser rigs do get a bit better gas mileage, but the libbys feel tougher and more, I don't know, substantial.

Unfortunately the decision isn't easy. Even though I didn't get my "ultimate power plant", I still have a quality block that should provide years of service. And it's more than just an engine, I have half of a corrosion-free Jeep sitting in the garage and I own 2 MJs that have hacked and corroded engine compartments (technically 3 but the 86 doesn't count in this). It doesn't matter when I'll finally be able to get around to it, because there will come a day when I get to work on my MJs (and it's looking like this new engine/wireharness will likely be going into my 90 rather than the 88 because I need that one running sooner). There is very little that I'd want to salvage from the engine compartments of my trucks. They are piles of rusty crap and the components are likely to make the new engine run poorly. I have to consider the un-likelihood of getting all that (and a new engine) again when I'm ready to start swapping. Besides, I think you'd be happier with that 5.9L drivetrain (if the inclusion of the harness pans out). :brows: I have a 5.9 in my Dakota and she absolutely screams! The XJ trans is a bit too long for your YJ (your rear driveshaft will have to get even shorter than it is now) and the wiring harness is completely different than a YJ. It'll be custom everything just to make it work. And if you're going to go custom, by golly you should get yourself a V8 man. :D

The Dana 30 is a pretty good axle. It just needs bigger U-joints and has been known to handle 33s or even 35s if the driver can be gentle with the application of the skinny pedal.

95-01 are all essentially the same. Another point I forgot to mention is that the v6 and v8 axles are identical inside. They differ only with the outside bracketry and you'll be cutting all that off anyways.

The only vehicle to pull an 8.8 out of is the Explorer/Mountaineer. The others are either the wrong width, wrong bolt pattern, weaker or a combination thereof. 95-01 explorers have disk brakes. Earlier models are just as strong but have drums.