1stDeuce

No need to peel off a diff cover and try reading through gear oil... To get gear ratio: Block front tire. Jack up ONE rear tire. Put the trans in N. Rotate raised tire till valve stem is at the bottom. Make a mark on the driveshaft that you can watch as it spins... Then rotate the raised tire exactly two full revolutions while counting how many times the driveshaft turns. Driveshaft revolutions is your gear ratio. IE, if the driveshaft spins just over 3 turns when you spin the tire two turns, you have 3.07 gears. Driveshaft just over 4 turns, then you have 4.11. About 3.5 turns = 3.55, and you can probably guestimate if it ends up at ~3.75 turns that you have 3.73 gears. Pretty good chance that it's 3.55 if it's 4wd, and 3.7 if it's 2wd. Easiest axle to put in is a D44 out of another Comanche. Good luck finding one. Next easiest is a D44 out of an XJ. Again good luck! Then a Corporate axle from an XJ, which is easier to find. Then the 8.8 out of an explorer, which is easy to find, but requires the most work/parts. Added bonus of explorer axle is that they all have a LSD, and disc brakes. Downside is you'll need to buy a conversion yoke, and the driveshaft may need shortening, and you'll want wheel spacers unless you like the really narrow rear look. (Comanche's are already slightly disadvantaged in this respect, as the rear of the body is wider than the front, but the axle widths are the same, so you can run 1" spacers and it looks pretty good...) Good luck!! Chris

I'd suggest you're on the right track with looking into the 3.4L out of a camaro. Putting a 4.3L or any GM V-8 in an XJ/MJ is a LOT of work. (I had thought about a nice 4.8L, but it's not an easy swap at all from what I've read...) You can strip and swap over all the 2.8L stuff to the 3.4L, and it'll run better than the 2.8L ever did, but I'd recommend taking the time to bring it out of the horseless carriage era by keeping the 3.4L FI setup. (Or the 3.1L setup if you find a 3.1L instead...) I have a 3.4L out of a '95 camaro in my truck. I put an XJ fuel pump in the tank (bent slightly to reach the bottom better) and re-used the factory fuel supply and return lines. (They're steel, so pressure is not an issue.) Put the Camaro computer on the pass side inner fender and hooked up the wiring. It runs great. I used a Taurus 2-speed fan, since I didn't have one around that would fit the Camaro engine easily, but I'm on the lookout for one that will work. (Perhaps off a later 2.8L S-10? Probably have to swap the water pump too...) Downsides to this route: The throttle body is about 1" from the underside of the hood. It's going to leave a mark if you really thrash it. The Camaro oil pan gives up about 1" of clearance to the axle also... A 4wd S-10 oil pan off a later 2.8L fixes this issue, but they're almost impossible to find. You'd have to bottom it HARD for it to be an issue... You'll need an A/C eliminator bracket. The Comanche motor mount uses bosses that the Camaro A/C pump covers. I will probably try to make a new mount using the Camaro bracket, and put the A/C pump back on, but the eliminator bracket works fine if you don't care for A/C. Comanche exhaust bolted right onto the Camaro manifulds. Radiator for the 2.8L works fine. Bolts up to everything else, no clearnace isues to frame or steering. I did have to make an intake system with elbows and a filter... Your 2.8L flexplate will have some weights on it, and that's no good. You MUST use a flexplate/flywheel that's not externally balanced. I used an S-10 flywheel for an '88+ 2.8L, which was internally balanced. I'm not sure what flexplate would work best, but perhaps Google can help... Good luck!! Chris

The 1" hole is probably to clear the steering box bolt on RHD models. Check your LH plate to see if anything is there. They just use two of the same plate, so it doesn't matter if your truck is RHD or LHD. (Many RHD cherokees out there!)

Your comanche build is coming along nicely! I should move my build thread over here too... Just a quick FYI, I was running a 242 in my 5-speed TJ for several years, and I'll probably put it back in soon... You'll find that in "full time" mode, there's a lot of bucking when you turn because of the front axle u-joints not transmitting rotation at a constant velocity. With an auto, you don't really notice it much, but with the manual, it can get pretty severe. I ended up changing to ZJ CV style front axle shafts. I'm never going back to U-joints. :) With the wheels straight, the CV is about as strong as a U-joint. With the wheels turned to lock, the U-joint is about 40% of it's original strength, and the CV is still at 100%. I've not broken one yet, in almost 10 years of wheeling. I run a front truetrac, and I stand on the brake pedal at times to get it to lock up. I HIGHLY recommend swapping shafts if you have the opportunity. I got them from one of the big auto parts stores for $50 each back when I did it. Wait for a sale on CV shafts and then go get a set. :) They also keep the tire from yanking at the steering wheel if you spin it with the wheel turned. Very smooth!! :)

Thanks for the pic!! So the plate extends back and grabs the frame through-hole that that tow hook brackets use. That pretty much takes the place of what I referred to as a kicker on my TJ, and just takes to rotational load of the very front of the frame, were the three bumper bolt holes go. Intersting that only two bolts hold the lower cross frame to the side plates, and they're fairly close together... My TJ mount uses three, and they're much more spread out. But for sure overkill... As is all of the Meyer mount system. Then again, if it never breaks, it was at least built heavy enough, right? :)

Isn't that where the sway bar goes? Would be faster to install the new way, but I can see where the extra metal would add to strength. Unless it's 3/8" thick, like the side plates for my TJ. Then it's so stupid strong that it really doesn't matter... :) I really need to find some place to cheaply burn stuff out for me, or get my own plasma table... C

There were only about 80-100k made per year, so they are a little rarer. They're also more often fixed with a salvage title than scrapped out entirely, probably due to scarcity, as well as ease of repair compared to most vehicles. When they do show up, they're usually picked clean in just a short time, so that nothing but the unusable bent metal is left.

Put the rubber piece in the tank first, then use some sort of lube (like white grease, or chassis grease or really slimy boogers) on the plastic and the rubber ID and push the plastic piece through. It should go with a bit of fiddling. Good luck!!

No, the problem started when you "shunted" the wires together. :) That's actually called SHORTING, not shunting... you hooked positive and negative together to create a short circuit as soon as you turned on the switch. Figure out where that switch got it's power from and start from there... Look for more melted wires and blown fuses... Five blown fuses means there's a lot more damage somewhere else most likely. You may have burned a wire across several others. Check the fusible links near the battery too. (The mess of green really flexible wires just behind the battery on the firewall. Pull on all of them individually. Any that are stretchy are in need of replacement. It's likely that not all of your problems are related, and highly likely that your problem is NOT your engine controller, but rather some melted wiring that you just haven't found yet...

Fellas, I don't want to beat this to death... Everything I read above is correct for one case or another. But alignment is an art in many cases, and every case is different. Eagle, your manual is correct, and is how most cars in that era were aligned. But if you look at truck specs from that same era, what you'll see is caster between 1 and 3 degrees, and camber most always at +1.5°. This was done for the exact reasons your manual outlines... Adding more caster for better centering made the steering difficult or heavy, while using camber added centering without making the steering heavy. That's why Toyota and GM set the front camber slightly positive, and run fairly low caster... gogmorgo, positive/negative camber DOES affect "pull" or centering, just like caster does, and it does affect tire tractive capability in corners too, as you suggest. But the difference in tractive capability in the "near zero" range that we're talking about is not detectable with tires like ours on trucks like ours. If we were taliking about a FSAE car, you're correct, but for our trucks, you're talking theoretical differences, while I'm speaking in practical terms, that's all. While I agree that for road holding, return to center, and on center feel, Caster is the primiary driver, I'll still point out that Camber can and does have an effect also. Oftentimes a "pull" can be attribued to a cross camber situation rather than cross caster, and it can be fixed with cross camber as well, for example on macphereson strut cars, where caster can't be changed, but camber can. Or our jeeps, where we can't do much about cross caster, but you can use camber shims to correct a slight pull or drift that might even be caused by a cross caster problem that isn't as easy to fix. I'm just saying there are many ways to skin a cat, and sometimes they're effective even if they're not common practice. :) Whatever happened to the OP?? I'm still waiting to hear if swapping the tires L-R changed his drift or not... ??? Perhaps he got scared away... :)

Drop brackets and springs are most surely not original, but part of a lift kit installed at some point. (The front of your truck is pretty tall...) Mopar did sell a Meyer plow up until about 2000 for tje xj and the tj. Mopar also sold air shocks for the front to help with the plow weight. They worked very well.

Wow, so I totally lucked out finding a tach cluster for my '86 2.8L comanche in an '86 2.8l Cherokee at the JY. The cluster was a perfect match in terms of the gauge face design, so I swapped my speedo over to retain the miles that my truck worked hard to earn, and plopped it in. Since then, I've not seen a single cluster like it. I guess all it means is that if you're getting a cluster from a pre-electronic Jeep, you should also get the speedo drive cable just to be sure you can hook it up. The trans/T-case end is always the same from what I've seen...

Actually, no. The lathe only turns the rotor, not the pad. These shims require the pad friction material to wear to a slighty (0.5-1.0°) tapered condition. Not helped at all by turning the rotors, other than that the freshly turned surface will help them seat in to the proper angle faster. :)

Wow, that's a new one on me. I'd always seen it used to denote C-clip, vs. the non-c-clip axle. Here's a link to an article that suggests exactly what you're saying. So all jeep D35's are D35c's, but some are c-clip and some aren't... Great, that's not confusing... :) http://www.jeeptech.com/axle/d35c.html

Very intesting thread... sounds like someone had a stuck IAC valve, and set idle with the stop screw instead... You created a fast idle then when you put the unrestricted elbow on the large PCV vacuum line, basically allowing it to suck WAY more air than it should have. Then you replaced the stuck IAC valve with a new one, but it still wasn't able to lower the idle becasue of the stop screw being too far out, and the PCV elbow in the wrong place... You've fixed those issues, and now idle speed is correct, but it's still surging... It's entirely possibly that you got a bad IAC valve... A sticky one will cause surging. If you've already tried plugging all the vacuum ports at the manifold, one at a time to see if the surging goes away with one of them plugged, then you might try taking the IAC out and getting another one. More and more I find that the replacement parts we're getting from the big auto parts stores, even with name brands sometimes, are junk. YMMV. Chris

Correction: You have a Dana 35, NOT a Dana 35C. (The C is for C-clip...) Rock Auto lists two kits, one with timken bearings, and one with torrington. Just looked up an '86 XJ. $12. I would think Napa can get one of the two p/n's. Possibly AZ or O'R too. ?? USA STANDARD GEAR USA10004 R1563TAV Axle Bearing & Seal Kit, Torrington Brand, 2.250" OD, 1.400" ID. Rear; 4WD; AMC Model 35

Unfounded concerns on all accounts. 1. The difference in cornering grip between -0.3° and +0.2° on a Jeep with lots of sidewall isn't even worth talking about. Remember, on a vehicle with IFS, you start with whatever you set camber to, but when you corner, the body leans, and so does the tire. So on IFS, you get better handling by setting things fairly negative. On a solid axle, the tire doesn't lean at all when cornering, even if the body does, other than deflection of the rubber. If I was setting it to +2° or something like that, it'd be different, but LOTS of vehicles run with ~+.25° of camber as the preferred setting. (All Toyota trucks, All GM trucks...) Neither you or I would be able to tell the slight difference in ultimate handling on a Jeep. (I did chassis dynamics for a large portion of my career in the auto industry...) 2. Pads wear in VERY quickly. Because they are rotated toward the top slightly, they wear largely across the short dimension of the pad, not the long dimension. On my Jeep, I noticed a little extra brake travel for the first couple of days, then it was right back up to normal. (My Jeep has a very high and fast acting pedal for some reason, so it was very easy to tell there was a difference.) 3. Even if you rotate it, you're not changing king pin inclination at all. The shim is outboard of the ball joints, not inboard. You're only changing camber if you install it correctly, and if you rotate it, you're mostly changing toe.

It was very commonly done on older cars and trucks with manual steering. Lots of them had very little or even negative caster and a degree or so of positive camber to provide return to center. Gm and Toyota trucks still use lower caster numbers with slightly positive camber (like a quarter of a degree) to keep steering efforts down and still have good centering feel. <edit> I thought of a great example!! A deuce and a half (As in M35 military truck) actually has lightly negative caster (-1.5° or so) but lots of positive camber (+1.5° or so) and has good return to center and on-center feel, while being totally steerable by manual steering with ~6000lbs on the front alxe, so long as the truck is moving. Bias ply tires also helped with on-center feel, but if you've ever driven an older muscle car with radial tires, you know how light the steering is, but they still track straight and have some return to center. Most all of those older cars had pretty much zero caster, and slightly positive camber. It works. It was very common practice, and to a lesser degree, is still done on some platforms to keep steering efforts light for parking lot type maneuvers. Wow, we're way off topic aren't we... Well, hopefully it's still good info for anyone reading along...

Hmm. So perhaps XJ/MJ doesn't use a kicker. Two less things to make! :)

Braces on each side that angle back and up to the frame.

"... for meow." Hahahaha Stupid auto-correct. :) I'm a shock snob. I've gone through several sets of shocks on my TJ in the last year trying to find a decent ride, and I'll give you my experience: I started with OME Nitrocharger Sport shocks becasue they discontinued the old normal Nitrochargers, which came in "comfort" and normal (HD). (I REALLY wanted the comfort shocks!!!!) They sucked unless I loaded 500lbs into the jeep. Then they rode OK in the rear, but the front was still pretty stiff. I found a set of gently used front N66 shocks in the old style. (Not N66C "comfort".) They're a tiny bit softer, but not enough to make me happy. OME seems to have fairly firm compression damping compared to most other shocks. That does NOT help the ride quality, but keeps you from bottoming out as much with softer springs. (OME TJ springs are as soft or softer than the factory springs, so their shocks may ride better with their soft springs, but I'm running V8 ZJ springs, so I need less compressin damping...) I read that Skyjacker Hydro shocks were "too soft" in a lot of online reviews. Great, that's probably what I want!!! Ordered up a set of H7018/H7016's. Put them on. They ride almost exactly the same as the OME shocks. Compression damping is a bit softer, but rebound is as stiff, or even slightly stiffer, so the overall ride is about the same offroad, and on-road is slightly better. (Note: these are a great cheap alternative ot OME if your Jeep is heavier than stock!) Finally, after putting some replacement Bilstein 4600's on my truck and LOVING them, and riding in a TJ with 5100's that rode really nice, I ordered up a set of Bilstein's for a 2-3" lifted XJ. (24-185622 / 24-185639, which have the same extended/compressed length as OME and Skyjacker shocks above.) I'd rate them as having a slightly better ride on-road, and they work fairly well when driven hard, but the low speed damping is still WAY too stiff for comfortable trail speeds over rougher trails. To show how stiff the low speed damping is, I am currently driving around with my sway bar disconnected and I can't really tell. Very disappointing. I just want a decent ride on rougher trails at lower speeds. And I haven't found it yet. :( I'm honestly not sure where to go at this point. I'm fairly disappointed becuase the Bilstein TJ damping for 3-4" 5150's is much softer, and I was hoping the XJ shocks would ride similarly soft, and be the length I needed. (Bilstein offers shocks for TJ for "stock" height, which are actually WAY too short even for a stock TJ, and 3-4" lifted, which are too long for a TJ with only 2" of lift like mine. The XJ shocks are the perfect length for a 1-2" lifted TJ...) Given that my TJ is a bit heavier than most XJ's, at 4000lbs, I thought I'd found the ticket. Instead what I have proven is that most of the aftermarket offroad shocks are horribly stiff, and most people somehow think that's how it should be. I'm evidently not one of those people. I'm heading to SEMA in a few weeks, and I'll be visiting the Bilstein booth to discuss this with someone there. So disappointed I can't find a decent riding shock for my non-skidplate/bumpers/sliders/corners/+ other heavy junk equipped TJ.

TJ's use a very similar rubber strap... I should try mine to see if it fits. Not that you'll find any TJ's in a junkyard, but you might be able to order it still... Took me forever to figure out how to get it all mounted correctly... I could have used the factory diagram posted by MJ Junkie, since my truck didn't have one... Thanks!!!

If the bolts broke off flush, and they can't be removed by grinding a small slot and turning them out, just put a nut over them and weld in the middle. That usually also heats them up enough that they come right out. Used that method many times on broken exhaust manifold bolts... Of course, it requires a MIG welder, or really good stick skills... Not sure how well even the aftermarket mounts do if you don't use any of the original holes, but if that's what you did, I guess we'll find out! :)

I don's see how ford springs can work unless you're spring over... I wouldn't think they have nearly as much arch as the comanche springs need when mounted spring-under. ?? Both General Spring and SD Truck Springs sell replacements for Comanche, in normal (3+1 leaf) and Meteric Tonne (3+2 leaf) versions. They are not cheap, but I found a reference a while ago on another site that suggested they were quality units. FWIW, I'm a firm believer in adding one full length leaf to the pack as a great way to boost the carrying capacity and add a little lift w/o making the pack too stiff. Any competent spring shop can make you a pair of leaves based on easy measurements for reasonably low cost. (Like under $100...) I do NOT recommend using short "add-a-leaf" type kits intended to raise the ride height, as they generally kill a spring pack by concentrating load where it's not wanted, and they seem to always ride like crap unless you're really loaded. Full length add-a-leaf kits are better, but not many out there... Long and short kits all rely on using an extra thick, over-arched spring to do more than any individual leaf should, IMO. That's why I recommend visiting a spring shop and having a matching leaf made from material of a similar thickness to your factory pack, to work as part of the pack. Good Luck!

Nope. YJ and TJ are different because the YJ mount has to get around the spring shackles. :( Well, I suppose that does mean a YJ mount might work on a TJ though, doesn't it... so perhaps :) is more the case for that direction. I can tell you that the TJ center section (For Meyer plows) is also fairly close to the right width to use in a XJ/MJ if you make new side plates. Or possibly if you just buy the right ones... I have one I could measure if you like. The TJ center section is a different p/n though... And you'd still need the "kickers" if the XJ uses them. (The TJ does, and I'm pretty sure the YJ does too, so I'd think the XJ would also.) For light use, the meyer 6' poly plow is working well for me. But the price was very "right". If I was looking to replace it, I'd go with a Western plow,and I'd opt for a 6.5'. Western plows are just built a little heavier in all the right places from what I've seen,and I often wish my plow was just a tiny bit wider... Regardless of what plow you use, be sure to drain and refill the hydraulic pump reservoir once a year to prevent water from building up in the fluid, or you may have issues when the weather gets really cold.