dasbulliwagen

I'm not saying I'm a fan of the Dana 35, but how badly do you guys have to be drivin to be tearing up 35's or even 20's??? As far as I know, my truck had the original untouched 35 in it untill I swapped in one with 4:10 gears at 340,000 miles. The MJ AMC 20 is extremely rare. Its not unheard of for a shop owner to not know the difference if they don't dealve into the specifics like we do here each day. If you tore one up behind a 2.5, there had to be something else wrong. Ive heard that the AMC 20 is as strong as the dana 44 if not stronger, and I can't confirm it, but I heard a version of the AMC 20 modified to Independant suspension was used in the Hummer H-1's.

The upgrade kit for the AMC 20 is for the CJ's with the two piece axles. The MJ AMC 20 already has the one peice axle upgrade. Same goes for the AMC 20 as used in FSJ Waggy's.

I havent seen that combo, but I did get a combo of my own. A WK2, next to my MJ, next to a Jeepster!

If you could, at least get the VIN so we can see the build date and add it to the registry! If you post the VIN, I can look it up for us thrrough Chrysler.

After seeing the title, I was expecting (hoping) for something a little more adult themed. Oh well. Cool anyways!

Another fun thing with Ranger rust is the rear springs front perch will rust off and set the truck on the axle!

The 2.5 shrouds are the only ones you can use. The 2.8 uses the same radiator, but the shroud is different as one of them is offset compared to the other, but I can't remember which. One thing you could do is get rid of the engine driven fan, and install an electric one with a fan controller. This would free up a few extra ponies as well. Another option would be to repair your old one with some two part epoxy. Ive used this on mine and it has held well for a few years now. As for the axles, there is a picture guide somewhere here on this site that will give you a positve identification for whats what. They each have their own look in the center section. There are also ways described to get a close estimate of what that axles gearing is. Good luck!

Who did the alignment? if you did it yourself, did you adjust the caster? If you didnt do it yourself, go to whoever did it and ask them if they did. If you don't have enough positive caster, it will make it MUCH easier for something to set DW off. When I added the 4wd front axle to mine, I originally just set the toe and went, but got DW at certain times. I put it back on the rack to to do a caster swing to check that, and I was at about 4 degrees. Spec is 6.5 to 7.5 degrees. The adjustment on mine was at the rear bolt of the lower control arms. I was able to adjust it to 6 degrees and no farther, so I went with it and havent had DW since. I know this is only one factor in a long list of things, but It is one that you need to make sure is right before throwing any more parts at it. If you can't get a proper caster reading with this adjustment, then I highly suggest a new set of adjustable control arms, so you can get these readings where they need to be. That and maybe some control arm drop brackets. At 6 inches of lift the control arm angles will be high and the drop brackets will bring that angle back closer to stock for better angles and better ride quality. Some people hate the idea of drop brackets, but if you arent doing heavy wheeling, they may be just what you need. Good luck.

The shirts are cool, but I HATE that font youre using. It just yells cheesy and homemade. Sorry, just my 2 cents. Try keeping the font the same as the jeep lettering to make it all go together better.

I did this conversion on my 87, with a complete 86 donor. You'll need all the parts from a like engined and similar model year donor, including the compressor, compressor mounting, new serpentine belt for AC, all lines, condenser, entire HVAC box under the dash and half of the dash wiring, and heater/ AC control head. The under dash wiring on mine plugged right up to the main dash harness with no other mods. But the dash does have to be removed to change out the HVAC box assy that includes the evaporator and all the other added controls. Under the hood I had to do a little custom wiring, but some of it was already there, including an unused plug for "dealer installed AC". I worked off that plug with a factory wiring diagram to finish the wiring I needed under the hood, but I'm not sure the 4.0L trucks have this plug or not. Mine is a 4 cylinder. Somewhere on comancheclub is a link to a downloadable factory service manual with all wiring for an 88 model that helped me a lot. Its a big job, but can be done. Good luck.

There are writeups here and elsewhere about changing the brake booster and master cylinder to a 96 XJ double diaphragm type, or to a WJ Grand Cherokee style booster and master. Another upgrade would be to WJ front calipers and rotors which also need the whole "spindle" outer "C" changed, as well as some custom made or other vehicle parts. There are also writeups here for doing away with the MJ's rear height sensing valve. This would allow full brake pressure to go to the rear wheels, thus adding braking, but also maybe causing rear lockup. A different style proportioning valve can be added in that case if you wanted one. Then there are rear disc brake conversions using various donors that could help. As far as which is best, I couldnt tell you. I would start with the dual diaphragm booster and master, and then go from there with the other stuff. If you know how to do brake system work and bleeding, and running new lines, any of these mods can be done with little other in depth experience. Its all out there if you do a little research. Good luck.

The dealer doesnt have them either. But they do still have them for the YJ, which is made similarly and may be made to work. Or you could pull yours out and see if the locking latch spring is still in place. It could be that the spring just isnt there anymore and won't let it hold. If thats all it is, you install a new small spring, and that might just fix it. Though Ive heard of the teeth wearing off to, so if thats your problem, youll just need a new assy. Good luck.

And my experience has been that the most common cause of death wobble is tire balance, followed in a distant second place by insufficient caster angle in the front suspension. I'm not sure I would say that those are the cause of DW. They are more like instigators of DW. There has to be other parts bad for these items to get DW started. Though these issues being good could make it so it never happens to begin with.

I just read through the comments on the pic, some idiot wrote this: " that is killer deff diggin the 80's style dodge dakota short bed and the 2nd gen xj front end !!!!!"

Welcome to the club from Asheboro! Death wobble has a ton of different things that can cause it, from worn ball joints, worn tie rods, worn track bar, worn control arm bushings, bad wheel bearings, improper wheel balance, improper alignment including toe and caster. Without seeing your truck it would be hard to give any kind of estimate as to what youll need to take care of this. It could be just one of those things, or it could be all of those things. Get under there, look for stuff that looks like it might be worn or bad and start there. Also, to eliminate it, get your wheels balanced. Let us know what you find, and ask any more questions you have to get this done. We are mostly all happy to help. Good luck.

Basic instuctions are: Install the fittings, use a vacuum pump with correct hookups to pull a vacuum on the system for about an hour to remove any old remaining oil, install new R134a refrigerant, and add new oil to the system. Youll also need to find the original spec for the amount of R12 and convert that amount to the needed amount of R134a. If your old system didnt have any refrigerant left in it, its possible that it leaked out, and that your new refrigerant will leak out as well. Then youll need to figure out what parts are leaking and replace them and start over again. Then theres the procedure for the valves on top of the compressor.... I can't really explain those right now. Thats how you do it right.

Will the barcode actually work with each individual VIN? Being in an inspection state, we actually use that barcode to make it easier to enter vehicle data. It would be a nice touch if you made the barcode actually read out the individual VIN.

Sounds like a good time to swap if youre going to, but consider that most modern V powerplants are overhead cam and are really just too large physically to fint in the engine bay. I think the 4.8 GM is not overhead if I remember correctly and may be the easiest swap as there are conversion harnesses available for that family of engines into all kinds of vehicles. I'm not sure about the Toyota, but I know the Chrysler 4.7 is overhead and just too wide to fit. Just something to think about. Keep it alive any way you can, and let us know what you end up doing.

I shouldnt have to tell you, the allmighty Jimoshel, that back in "THE DAY", they used to use Jaguar independant rear diffs in hot rods. Not sure if they would be any easier to mount or get than a corvette rear diff, but may be something to conider.

It wants you to bid more because "RESERVE HAS NOT BEEN MET". Sorry not yelling, just quoting.

The mentioned Chevy truck shackles are the same length as stock MJ shackles, but just built heavier. The ones you need are Chevy truck DROP shackles to lower said truck. I know about the shackles becasue I had a friend give me some and I ended up lengthening them. The chevy truck shackles will however lift an XJ slightly, but not an MJ.

:drool: :popcorn:

I can fully imagine either Pete or especially Automan, selling their souls to the devil to try to get this thing, or in Automans case, substitute "soul" for "Diesel MJ"!

Nice trailer. Love it! On a side note, every time I see a forum like that with advertising all over the place, I'm happy I spend most of my time at Comancheclub! Thanks Pete!

To swap in a 4.0, you will need a similar year COMPLETE donor Comanche or Cherokee. Since Cherokee donors are hugely more common, they will be easier to find but won't have everything youll need.... Meaning youll need a new rear drive shaft from a similar Comanche or have one made. I say get a complete donor because the engine, trans, engine compartment wiring, under dash wiring, instrument cluster, transfer case shift linkage, radiator, core support...... and probably some other stuff I can't think of, need to be swapped over for a 4.0 swap. Its a HUGE job. Keep looking for a 2.5, or search online for a complete rebuilt unit from any number of different manufacturers. You could also try http://www.car-part.com and search on there for a good used one in either a Cherokee, Dakota, or a Wrangler. Get it and swap over all your existing intake, exhaust and accessories. The models from 90 and older and 91 and newer have different operating systems, but from what I know, the long blocks are all the same relatively speaking. Good luck with your search.