rustybottoms88

I bought new plugs they had to order plug wires. i came home pulled all the plugs turned the engine over w/o plugs then set the gap on the plugs and installed them. cranked it over and nothing. Then I busied myself with other things and installed the driveshaft. then i tried to start it again. It kinda started to hit alittle so i held the throttle open and it came even closer to starting. I cranked on it some and let the starter rest. Then finally it caught up and started. it bellowed white smoke for a min. i drove it around abit but it never got to where it would idle. It would restart if i feathered the throttle. Thoughts?

I have been posting up in my project thread and appreciate the feed back and help I have gotten there but thought I would post here to see if any one can suggest something I have not tried or thought of. For more background info if you care to look is here : http://comancheclub.com/topic/44995-ems-mj/ So far I have replaced the ECU (the old one had a burnt circuit), CPS and have done the # 1,3,4,5,6,7 and 9 of Crusiers's renix tips and had the truck running for a few days. It got harder and harder to start and would not idle util warm. Then last time i had it started i drove the truck about 1/4 mile down the road i held the throttle wide open and the truck backfired, stuttered, picked up again and then back fired and then died. I looked under the truck and the muffler had blown out. It may have had a exhaust restriction? The muffler was in like new condition but some critter may have built a nest in it from it sitting for a few years. After this I have been unable to get it started. My first thought was a fuel problem so I pulled the tank and the fuel pump. The pickup sock had fell off i reinstalled it and reinstalled the tank along with a new fuel filter I then tested the fuel pressure. I am gettin around 36 psi while cranking and 39 after cranking. I have listened to the injectors with a stethoscope and they are seem to be spraying...maybe some more pronounced then others tho. I have also checked for spark at each plug and they are all getting spark. Altho i thought it seemed to be a weak arc and the plugs were wet so i replaced the cap and rotor. Still no start. Next step I am planning for this evening is to replace the plug wires and plugs. I hate to throw money at it, but so far i think most of these things needed replaced anyways. Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Diagnosis on the Comanche continues. Could there be enough "resistance" through the cap and rotor and spark plug wires to cause a low spark condition? I am getting a healthy spark at the coil. The spark at the plugs seems weak and my plugs are wet. I also took the intake tube off and sprayed starter fluid down the TB and it didn't do a thang. After removing each plug one at a time and checking for spark it kinda acted like it wanted to start when I had the whife cranking on it. but then I got in the truck and cranked it and gave it alittle throttle and nothing. I listen to each injector and I could hear a spray on each one. Some sounded more faint then others tho, or so it seemed. My Fuel pressure was right around 36-39 psi. Soo this evening after work I replaced the cap and rotor but not the plug wires. Still no start. Did not get to pull a plug and check for spark tho with the new cap as I was at it alone. Guess plug wires are next and then go from there.

I know what your saying, if it's 1 thing then its 10 more! I am perplexed. I bought a fuel pressure guage and tested the fuel pressure. When the pump primed it read about 31psi. Then I cranked the engine over for a few seconds and checked the gauge and it read 34psi. From what I have read in the Haynes manual that within spec? Next logical thing be my injectors? I need to read up on how to bench test those I guess.....tomorrow I am going to check all the spark plugs for spark just to make sure and pull the vac line line on the FPR and crank to see what the fuel pressure goes to. According to Haynes it should go up to 39psi. I will also use my stethoscope and listen to injectors see if I can hear them click or spray. Any other suggestions?

Well over the long weekend I pulled the fuel tank off the Comanche. There was some rubber pieces and some other gunk in the bottom of the tank but not really as bad as i had expected. I also noticed the strainer sock was off the pump inlet. So i drained the tank and sloshed out what trash i could. I put it all back together reinstalled and put a new fuel filter on. Still no start. I have done some reading this morning and found a thread here on Comanche club where a guy had similar problem. He noted that when he finally pulled his pump and he also found the rubber pieces in the tank and that it was the seals from the old pump, once he installed a new pump it fixed it. I am getting spark I have verified this over and over, because I get paranoid about these renix electronics. Anyways I am going to pickup a fuel pressure gauge and see what I have pressure wise at the rail. I am getting fuel to the rail and I can hear the pump running but I am thinking similar prob that my VW Passat had, fuel but not enough pressure! I meant to test fuel pressure before i pulled the tank incase I needed a fuel pump but I guess I like doing things twice!

You bet!

Here is what settled out in the the 6 oz. of fuel I caught in the water bottle. Kinda nasty.

Thank you for the well wishes. I am hoping I don't have to pull the tank but maybe best thing to do. I may try your method first and run the half tank of fuel out that I put in it and throw on a new filter. Ic your from Gentry this jeep came from Elkins area, that's where my inlaws live. I am near Harrison.

Ah, I got thrown by your username :) Ouch! Oh lol Ya my name is from a 88 YJ I had. It was from New York and rusty as can be....around the bottom. Ya the blown muffler sucks because my wife's dad had just put new exhaust on before it quite him.

Thank you I have that page saved in my favorites. This truck does not have the C101 connector because it is a 89. I went to do the #6 sensor upgrade and it was already done. I didn't test the new CPS as I am gettin Fire to the plugs. I really think I have a soiled fuel system. I got it started after some cranking and holding the throttle wide open. It blew a lot of white and blackish smoke at start up and would not idle. I drove about 1/4 mile down the road and when I gassed it hard it took off then back fired and sputtered then back fired again then died. I took the fuel filter off and back flushed it and what flushed out was some nasty looking, cloudy fuel with small particles. I still need to test fuel pressssure and that will tell me if I have a partially clogged fuel filter. I will probably put a new fuel filter on anyways. I will let you know what I find. Thanks! Casualty of the back fire.

Back to a no start condition. Only symptoms leading up to it was no idle when cold and high idle when warm. I am gettin Fire and fuel to the rail but I do not know what the fuel pressure is I will have to buy a fuel pressure guage. I can hear a very faint click of the injectors but not a definite spray. My first thought was IAC valve but I do not think it would cause a no start?

Installed the CPS today cranked it over and it did not start. Checked for fire and no spark to the plugs and none coming out of the coil. So I pulled the coil sanded the prongs and bent the receptacle slot thingy so they would grip the prongs tighter and reinstalled the coil. Had the wife crank it over and it fired! I got in the truck turned the motor over and gave her some gas and she roared to life. We drove it around the farm abit and it did not want to idle but after it ran for awhile it was purring like a kitten. Next is to get it road worthy in 2wd form. It will need a new battery and a set of tires. Once I finish the EFI of my cj5 I will start the 4wd conversion on the Comanche.

Well I have been taking vacation time for the past two weeks and I have been busy with automotive repairs here at the house. I deleted the Egr on my ford 6.0 and replaced the oil cooler while I was at it. I have worked on the Comanche alittle at a time and today I was able to dedicate most of the day to working on it. Last Monday my wife and I tested for spark and detected no spark at the plugs. I listened to the injectors and did not hear them clicking. My father inlaw felt like the ECU had went bad because my wife had smelt a burnt electronic smell when the jeep had quite her a few years back. We also tested the CPS and no voltage registered on my HF multimeter, I take that reading with a grain of salt given the tool I was using but we decided to get a new CPS anyway. My wife also changed the motor oil that day. Yesterday we picked up a salvage yard ECU. Today I unplugged every electrical plugin in the engine compartment and sprayed it with electronics cleaner allowed it to dry and then added some dielectric grease before I plugged them back in. I also refreshed all the grounds including the sensor grounds and the fuel pump ground. I replaced the battery cables and also added the two supplemntal chassis grounds cruiser suggest. I installed a new fuel filter and the junk yard ECU. Out of curiosity I took the cover off of the old ECU. I found two burnt circuits. I then then took the cover off the original ECU that my father inlaw replaced several years ago. It had one burnt circuit in the same place on the board as the ECU I just removed today. The red circle shows where the circuit board was burnt. My father inlaw associated the use of the a/c with the ECU failure. As the a/c was in use both times the ECU was damaged in the past. I also took the cover off the new to us junk yard ECU, it looked good. I removed the CPS. The wife brought home a new CPS and we will install it tomorrow and hopefully we will have a running Comanche!

ECM in my wifes 89 Commanche has two burnt spots on the circuit board. What relays or fuses do I need to check before I put the new to us ECM in? Thanks! EDIT: this is the second ECM that has been in this jeep. When we got the jeep from her dad he sent the original ECM with it and i just cracked it open as well and it is burnt in one of the same places as the second ECM. I have refreshed all the grounds and I have added the two chassis to engine grounds cruiser suggest.....if that would help.

We are going to pickup my wifes (Emily) first vehicle(the 2wd Comanche) this weekend from her parents and bring it home. Finally, I will be able to get started and see what its going to take to get it running and ready for the conversion. More pics and info to come.

Thanks for the confirmation. I had come to that conclusion but was not sure.

I was actually buying the truck assuming it had a D35 in it and when I went to pick it up the PO was like ya it's got a AMC 20 in it....I was like Waaaaa . Then the icing on the cake was when I got it home and found the CC stamped on it.

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i have decided to hang onto this truck alittle whiile longer but I can not figure out how to delete this topic?

Thanks again for info. The wheels I found do come with tires but according to the seller only two of them are usable so I will probably be buying a new set of tires. As of right now the truck does not and will not have a lift because it's the wifes truck and she says she doesn't want it lifted.......but she may not notice a Rusty's 3" inch lift you think? Heh

Thanks for posting the back spacing information thats what I needed to know. I think it's a go on the JK wheels. Nice MJ! Thanks for the pics and replies.

Sorry if this has been covered but a quick search did not render results. But I would like a set of TJ rubicon wheels for my MJ but most folks around are pretty proud of them. However JK wheels look similar and JK take offs are in good supply. I have found a set of 5 JK wheels for $75. So my question is with 1.25" spacers to convert to the correct bolt pattern does this work well or does it make the track width to wide and "goofy"looking? If anyone is running them and have pics please share thanks!

Man that is tempting. But my XJ isn't running too great lately. I can relate!

always room for one more! I can store it for you no charge.

Pm returned and email sent.