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PM'ed you, I have one in NJ in good shape, 4.10's. $125

Wow, thanks. You're a lot more handy with metal than I am, so I'll have to purchase my parts. It looks like you kept your stock UCAs/LCA's. Maybe I'll try the drop brackets before I buy anything else. Looks like they centered your front wheels better on the fenders. Mine, at 3" of lift, sit a little rearward too. I'll evaluate the ride then, and see where I'm at. I don't hate the 3" lift, I just figured if I'm pulling things apart, I'll just go higher -- it's dangerous! :nuts: I PM'ed lead_not_follow, I didn't finish my order of his kit. I read some really nasty, unflattering things about Motion Offroad on NAXJA and Pirate4x4. Seems like here, he's done well, so maybe the business has smoothed out over the years. Can anyone give me some info about their experiences with Motion Offroad? -Tom

Thanks for the advice; I will look into the Billsteins...I should have gathered all this information when I did the lift 5 years ago! I was on a serious budget then. Not that I'm "rolling in it" now! :brows: So drop brackets relocate the control arms? Upper or lower or both? If I go to 4.5" of lift, you would recommend these? Anyone know about the popping while steering when going slowly? The track bar is only a few years old, I wouldn't expect the Heim joint to be worn out...can the bracket itself make that noise? Thanks-Tom

Cool.....we gotsta party now :cheers: Jeff Yeah, man, I'm only a couple hours away now. Ordered the motion offroad lift kit, it was $100 off, so I've got plenty of wrenchin to do, and beers to drink :thumbsup:

I believe they all came with the reservoir to at least run the HVAC system. You could just have a ball, my MJ does, but mine also has A/C. Still needs the vac res to open/close the doors. Previous owner may have removed it!!? It's IN the front bumper. I have the same problem, vacuum lines look good on mine. Someone said that canister can go bad, too....are they still available??

True! I'm definitely going to replace the shocks when I dig into this, whenever that is! Anyone recommend a brand of coils that will give a softer ride and a 3" lift? A brand of LCA's? My plan is to get a heavy duty track bar bracket to get rid of the clunk, replace the shocks, damper, do the LCA's and now maybe the coils. I just want a little nicer ride up front, now that I'm driving it so much. Just moved to DC, so it's been a workhorse for me, moving things and driving 400mi/round trip every weekend back to NJ!

Thanks, Jimmy - do I need just LCA's or should I do both?? Hi Pete - I just got some knockoff 3" lift coils, a RE adjustable track bar, and some Rough Country cheapo longer shocks (which I'm gonna replace with Ranchos when I get into this project). So, no kit, really. Any idea about the PS - idle circuit?? Thanks Tom

I just went through this with my amc20. Go to a good mom n pop parts store, and let them look in the book for the "heavy duty axle" parts in the brakes book; all the parts are still available. Some of the stuff is the same as the d44, some is not; I know for fact the e-brake bar is NOT the same. The adjusters are. I have a whole box full of spare parts off my d35 you can have, including the adjusters, which are the most expensive (and the same in d44/amc20 and d35). Send me a PM if interested. Tom

Just lining up a few projects, now that the drivetrain is taken care of: 1. I replaced all the ball joints, tie rod ends, really rebuilt the whole front end, but still get a "clunk" when turning the wheel at low speeds. A mechanic casually told me that it was the trackbar mount (I have a 3" lift and an adjustable track bar). Could that be it, since I've replaced everything else? 2. Speaking of steering at low speeds, the engine bogs down. I removed the PS sensor that, I assume, speeds the engine up when you put the drag on the PS pump. I jumpered the two connectors, and the engine doesn't speed up. So what now? 3. Last question: I did the 3" lift a few years ago, put longer shocks on, and kept the stock control arms. The front end has a real stiff feel to it (almost like a "bottom out") when I hit bumps. Would longer/adjustable UCA's/LCA's make it ride better? Do you need to do LCA's and UCA's? Totally ignorant on the subject. Thanks! Tom

hmmm good points....thanks would bottoming out cause the "over compression?" Also, should I just take it to a shop and ask them to shorten it by an inch, since it appears from our database that all of the HD rear diffs had 1" shorter shafts? Or, should I take a measurement, and if so how to I measure what length is optimal? Thanks Tom

it's a pain. you have to remove the axle shafts, the carrier you have to remove the pinion nut, pinion and, pinion gear/race put on new bearing, pound in race, reassemble. you doing this on or off the truck?

thanks. the guy around here I'm SURE would be twice that. I re-connected everything, put the wheels on, and I was able to sneak the driveshaft on by taking off the bearing caps, then putting them back on when it was clear of the pinion. I'm back on the road! Though we weren't totally happy with the backlash and the gear pattern (after going through 3-4 crush collars!), it's "good enough" and is nice and quiet. So I have a 4.10 LSD AMC20 under her now! Who wants the D35?!

OK, local parts store wanted none of it. I looked up the parts on the pdf, and both the shaft and the yoke are different for d35 and amc20/dff. I was hoping to just get the yoke that came on the shaft for an 86 MJ 4cyl longbed 4x4 with the amc20 rear, part # 83500143. Would be a hell of a lot easier/cheaper than having the shaft shortened. The question, then, is, is that where I would make up the length difference? anyone? Thanks Tom

OK, measured center-to-center of the U joints and it's 53.25". From the database, it looks like the HD rear axles always had a shaft 1" shorter. Going to the parts store to see if I can find a yoke 1" shorter! Tom

from my 87 MJ: lwb,_2.5,____ax5,______4wd,____d35= 53.25" About to shorten it 1" to accomodate the AMC20!

I swapped in the AMC20 I rebuilt this weekend, and found that my driveshaft is a couple of inches too long now. Can I pop out the front U joint and replace the front part of the driveshaft, that slides over the TC output shaft, with a shorter one? I only need 2-3 inches or so. Also, while I have the shaft out, where should I take the measurements from to add to the database? I have a 2.5/ax5/np231/long bed, so before I change anything I can get that measurement. Thanks! Tom

Thanks! Lots of good information here...

Eagle - thanks I'll look that up. Rob - yes, something like that sounds great Tom

Hey Guys, Pulled the carpet and padding out of my MJ a year ago, it's in a bag in my basement. Carpet is a little shoddy, the padding is good, and thick, except where some was rusty and wrecked over the driver's side floor. I'm trying to de-clutter, and I'm not ready to put it back in yet. My interior is maroon ("cordovan") and none of the aftermarket places sell that color. Just thinking of getting some black carpet new, tossing out my old stuff, undercoating the floor after I do the repairs, but is there a product out there that will give the sound deadening and heat-resistance the original stuff has? I just have a big bag of mouse food at this point, and would love to throw it away! Thanks Tom

going hunting for some better, and power doors, next weekend at Harry's Pick and Pull (PA) 3 questions 1) For my 87, 86-93 4 door cherokees will fit, correct? 2) what is the easiest way to get a door off, and what tools will I need? 3) aside from the speaker wires, are there connectors for the windows and locks that can be disconnected under the dash? Don't want to cut and slash if I can salvage the whole shebang. Thanks guys Tom

hey, does anyone have the valve for heater core? Mine's missing, want to replace it, I can feel the hot water going through the core when it's hot outside. Thanks Tom

Thanks, yeah, I am going to buy a new shim kit. This guy does know what he's doing, I was just trying to do some research. The kit I bought did come with some shims, the pinion bearing, the carrier bearings, races, etc., a Timken kit. I'm trying to find the axle bearings/seals. Guy at the local parts store looked it up for me and it listed (Federal Mogul) a d35 and d44 for a 1986 Comanche :fs1: He thought it might be that they meant the heavy duty axle. Going to press off the old bearings and find out if they're the same. If someone already did this, and knew the part #s, that would really help. Tom

hey- I got the rebuild kit for my amc20, and I have a trac-loc carrier, rebuilt, all set to go in. I have a buddy who is a mechanice who is going to show me how to do it. The kit I bought came without shims, and he said that if we weren't changing out the carrier, he would just re-use the same shims. The new carrier COULD change things, he said, so I'm just wondering if anyone knows something about this? Thanks Tom

Update: Had the exhaust guy install a mandrel-bent, all stainless 2.25" system from the header, through a high flow cat and Magnaflow "1 in 2 out" 2.25" muffler. Sounds great, and he left enough room to wind my spare tire back up into place! It's a low rumble, quieter than I had with the cherry bomb, but I like it. It hasn't noticeably changed performance one way or the other. After I have her painted, going to install some flat black tips on there!

No offense intended, Eagle, just asking me if I'm kidding, or suggesting I'm blind doesn't help. I do respect your opinion, and will take your example (your Speedy Muffler experience) and learn from it. I re-ordered the muffler. I think I'm going to go with an all 2.25" (including single in dual out muffler). I think all the bends and extra pipe, and the more powerful motor than stock, are going to even things out. I spoke with the exhaust guy, a very experienced guy, and he said, "I honestly don't think it's going to make a difference either way." Then I started thinking why go bigger if it's not going to gain me anything, and could actually hurt the performance, so I settled on 2.25" with dual outs.