phenryiv1

All new tie rods, drag link, etc. ordered and received. Also picked up a new rear bumper from Nates 4x4. I had the rear receiver slot sleeved to hold the drop arm to tow my track car. I also had some new Metric Ton springs made up by General Springs. With me towing, plus with the age of the vehicle and some side-to-side sag that I am noticing, I decided to bite the bullet an dbuy new reather than rebuilding/repacking the current springs. I have a LOT of installation to do in the spring.

Personally, I like the yellow.

I just went with what I could buy off of the shelf locally and get a big discount using the online coupon codes. Had I known that there was an OEM part number available I might have gone that way but I actually had no idea that the Dorman part was an OEM replacement. Good info for the next person, however.

Do you have a model number for yours? Is it modular like mine, with removable end plates or is it all welded construction?

If I decide to purchase a new bumper I will probably sell my hitch. If you'd be interested in it, drop me a line. thanks, when and if ya decide and i haven't made for found a hitch by then i'll deffently be interested :) Redwolf PM sent

Even I had to go look it up.

My Hidden Hitch mounts to the bottom. http://comancheclub.com/topic/35828-did-i-get-the-correct-hitch/

thanks for the link wombat, that'll help A LOT if i make my own hitch If I decide to purchase a new bumper I will probably sell my hitch. If you'd be interested in it, drop me a line. thanks, when and if ya decide and i haven't made for found a hitch by then i'll deffently be interested :) Redwolf I should know by the middle of next week, so I'll keep you posted.

If I decide to purchase a new bumper I will probably sell my hitch. If you'd be interested in it, drop me a line.

Interesting. I'm guessing this is for longbeds only? I have read that on here, and since I only have a LB, I can only confirm that it matches up on the LB frame. But that seems to be the working asumption.

What year is it from? Any pictures?

but it's held my 6 bolts, 3 on each side right? Redwolf Yes. You can BARELY see them in the picture here: I candy-caned one of the stock bolts that has to come out to mount the hitch and gave up at that point until the weather was better and I had more time...the weather improved but I never made more time. That looks like an XJ-specific hitch, not an MJ. MJ hitch sideplates mount up to the framerail like so: I wondered the same thing after I bought it, and even started a thread about it: http://comancheclub.com/topic/35828-did-i-get-the-correct-hitch/ I later confirmed that the 3 holes per side do line up with frame holes on the MJ, however I broke off one of the bolts that I need to replace to mount it to those 3 holes. Apparently only Hidden Hitch used that mounting configuration. Some time soon I hope to either utilize the holes put there by Hidden Hitch or to actually drill the side-mount holes used by other hitches and mount it the way most brands mount. The flanges actually line up properly with the outside of the frame in the same manner as the mounting flanges form other brands of hitches, however they are not drilled to mount that way.

but it's held my 6 bolts, 3 on each side right? Redwolf Yes. You can BARELY see them in the picture here: I candy-caned one of the stock bolts that has to come out to mount the hitch and gave up at that point until the weather was better and I had more time...the weather improved but I never made more time.

I hunted for months before finding my MJ-specific hitch. I have now had it for at least 6 months and never got around to installing it. I found the original hardware list through the manufacturer and bought all new hardware and still have not found time to mount it up.

Not that anyone who can help would need to see this, but the axle in question:

I undertook ball joint replacement in my '88 MJ, making use of a few oddball posts on other (XJ) forums for guidance. Even with those and the Haynes, I still had some minor snags. Because of that, I am working on my own How-to in an attempt to help other owners, but in an ironic twist, I need some clarification before I finish my how-to-replace-ball-joints post. I don't drive the MJ too often and right now it is parked until I get this straightened out, but I need to drive it this coming weekend. So in the course of the ball joint replacement, I removed the passenger side axle without complications and there was a small amount of gear oil that drained out of the axle tube when I removed the inner shaft. What was that? Was it inside of the differential? ANd how/where do I replace the fluid? To ease the install of the axle I used a small amount of 75/90 as lubricant but for actual driving I want to be certain that I have the right fluid in the right place and with the right volume. Thanks!

I was not worried about it either for the last 6-7 years that it had the crack but it failed the required annual safety inspection so I am stuck fixing it. I had wanted an excuse to justify buying a PaceSetter but now that I have one I am still not thrilled to actually do the install.

THAT is what I needed (no offense to previous posters) - the recommendation to do the mounts at the same time. I actually have a mod-rise lift (48" lift with my door open) in the garage so it may make life a little easier versus crawling under the trick. My cat section and muffler are both fairly new so nothing downstream should be too tough to detach.

I recently replaced the mechanical fan in my project car with an electric fan and used an adjustable fan controller as well. It was about a 30 minute job, including running the wiring to the trunk (car has the battery in the trunk for weight distribution) and and adding the relay. I went with a basic fan controller and cheap electric fan from Advance Auto. Both are Imprerial parts- I believe the setup was around $80 after using a couple coupon codes. I mention this in the MJ forum because after adding a transmission cooler to the MJ I thought about how easiy the fan mod would have been on the MJ, had I not already added the trans cooler in fornt of the grille.

Fortunately the MJ is not a daily driver, so downtime is not too much of an issue (other than losing a parking spot in the garage for my daily driver) but I took one look at it and had no misgivings that this was an easy undertaking. I don't have concerns with it being an in-depth job (I rebuilt the motor on one of my projects and did a full rebuild and motor/trans swap on another) but in both cases I had a good guide to walk me through. I have the FSM for the MJ (somewhere) and the XJ Haynes and Chilton's manuals (hmmm, I just realized that I have those...maybe I should check there) but in my automotove life I am rare to find that books/manuals do a better job of explaining the task than do fellow enthusiasts.

I have a crack in my exhaust manifold on my Renix 4.0L '88. I purchased a Pacesetter header to replace the cracked stock part but I could not find a how-to on any of the XJ sites or in the forums here that detailed the removal of the manifold and install/re-install of the header/manifold. 2 Questions: 1. Is there a how-to page/post/thread that I might have overlooked? 2. What else should I consider doing while I have the exhaust manifold out and am upgrading? Obviously the gasket, but anything else? Thanks!

Bump. Also has to be from a column shift automatic model.

Posted in his thread. Thanks.

I don't have a way to cut the center hole in aluminum or i'd go that route. As for the material that I do have, it is used in bulletproof windows and in the windows in racecars. I plan to leave as much material as possible around the edges of the 4 screw holes.

Looks good!