cruiser54

I've got 31s on the TJ canyons on my wife's 88 with an auto and stock gears at mile high elevation. It's fine.

Mine are 8" also and they're great. There are some slight cosmetic differences between the ZJ and TJ canyons. I should go look. I've got both out in the yard.

On an 87, do Tips 1 through 5 with no shortcuts. Consider 27 at some point. What parts did you replace in the "tune-up"?

This. Certain fuses will be blanked out if the equipment is not present on the vehicle by using or not using different terminals on the block. So the best bet is to find a block from a highly optioned out vehicle and use just the fuses you need. Like the Laredos I seem to always get?

well that was easy. Ever do my Tip 3?

I'm parting out a few and was wondering.

Here's a question. Anybody know if 84 to 90 fuseboxes are interchangeable?

Check this connector. Image Not FoundImage Not Found

Grab a set of TORX bits.

I knew I shouldn't have quit my Thursday night yoga class..............

Lock it in and wheel it like wesley says. Make the big decision later after you've played with it for a while. At least you'll know your front end will engage when you get back in the boonies.

Once my back recovers from contorting around under the dash last Sunday, I'm gonna take a peek at what you did. Maybe I can find a replacement spring at true value that has a part number also.

There's only the negative post attached to the ground cable. Here's something to look at. Renix Ground Refreshing The Renix era XJs and MJs were built with an under-engineered grounding system for the engine/transmission electronics. One problem in particular involves the multiple ground connection at the engine dipstick tube stud. A poor ground here can cause a multitude of driveabililty issues, wasted time, failed emission tests, and wasted money replacing components unnecessarily. The components grounding at the dipstick tube stud are: Distributor Sync Sensor, TCU main ground, TCU “Shift Point Logic”, Ignition control Module, Injectors, ECU main ground which other engine sensors ground through, Oxygen sensor, Knock Sensor, Cruise Control, and Transmission Sync signal. All extremely important stuff. The factory was aware of the issues with this ground point and addressed it by suggesting the following: Remove the nut holding the wire terminals to the stud. Verify that the stud is indeed tightened securely into the block. Scrape any and all paint from the stud’s mounting surface where the wires will attach. Must be clean, shiny and free of any oil, grease, or paint. Inspect the wire terminals. Check to see that none of the terminals are crimped over wire insulation instead of bare wire. Be sure the crimps are tight. It wouldn’t hurt to re-crimp them just as a matter of course. Sand and polish the wire terminals until clean and shiny on both sides. Reinstall all the wires to the stud and tighten the nut down securely. While you’re in that general area, locate the battery negative cable which is fastened to the engine block just forward of the dipstick stud. Remove the bolt, scrape the block to bare metal, clean and polish the cable terminal, and reattach securely. Another area where the grounding system on Renix era Jeeps was lacking is the engine to chassis ground. There is a braided cable from the back of the cylinder head that also attaches to the driver’s side of the firewall. This cable is undersized for it’s intended use and subject to corrosion and poor connections at each end. First off, remove the cable end from the firewall using a 15mm wrench or socket. Scrape the paint off down to bare metal and clean the wire terminal. Reattach securely. Remove the other end of the cable from the rear of the head using a 3’4” socket. Clean all the oil, paint and crud from the stud. Clean the wire terminal of the cable and reattach securely. A suggestion regarding the braided cable: I prefer to add a #4 Gauge cable from the firewall to a bolt on the rear of the intake manifold, either to a heat shield bolt or fuel rail bolt. A cable about 18” long with a 3/8” lug on each end works great and you can get one at any parts store already made up. Napa has them as part number 781116. A further improvement to the grounding system can be made using a #4 cable, about 10” long with 3/8” terminals at each end. Attach one end of this cable to the negative battery bolt and the other end under the closest 10mm headed bolt on the radiator support just forward of the battery. Napa part number 781115. For those of us with Comanches, it’s very important to remove the driver’s side taillamp assembly to access the ground for the fuel pump. Remove the screw holding the black ground wire. Scrape the paint from the body and corrosion from the wire terminal. Reattach securely. If you want to upgrade your grounds and battery cables in general, contact Jon at www.kelleyswip.com. He makes an incredible cable upgrade for a very reasonable price. Revised 03-04-2013

Here ya go. The whole shebang, soup to nuts..... Cruiser’s HO into Renix Swap This swap is easier than some will lead you to believe, generally those who have never done it. Those of us who have done it, like myself, will share with you the things that need to be done for a successful swap. Just think of it as swapping in a long block. The HO and Renix have some differences but none that can’t be overcome very easily. Any HO engine from an XJ or ZJ through 1999 can be used. One running change was that the rear of the head was no longer drilled and tapped for the temperature gauge sender beginning in the 96 model year. The sender can be relocated to the threaded hole in the thermostat housing taken from the HO engine. You’ll have to extend the wire to that location. Some brave souls even drill and tap the HO head for the sender. You will be using the intake and exhaust manifolds from your Renix, along with all your sensors and wiring. Since the intake ports of the HO are slightly different, you use the Renix gasket. Exhaust ports are identical. You will need to use your Renix distributor as it is different than the HO because they use different fuel management systems. The flywheel or flexplate from the Renix must be used so your CPS gets the correct signals. The valve cover from the Renix allows you to keep your CCV system intact and requires no modifications. The HO block will have a plug in the coolant galley on the driver’s side of the block, closest to the front, which needs to be removed so your Coolant Temp Sensor can be installed in it’s place just as it is on the Renix. It requires a 5/16” square drive or a modified 3/8” drive that has been ground down to fit. Do this before installing the engine. As for the knock sensor, which is located just above the oil pan on the driver’s side of the engine about mid way, all the blocks I’ve seen are threaded for it. If not, I’ve heard they may be drilled but not tapped. Tap the hole if that’s the case. Revised 03/28/13

My input on the cAD. I advocate locking it in at a bare minimum. The big issue is that the CAD system only fails when you need it the most. Kinda like when you don't realize your wiper blades need replacing until it rains.... I know somebody’s system works and he advocates keeping it stock, but my exposure to the failures is probably hundreds of times greater than his, as a result of being Service Manager at a Jeep dealership from 1980 through 1992, and being a current XJ and MJ owner. CAD stinks. Every Jeep I work on with it, I eliminate it. Guess what I find in the process? 25 year old busted vacuum lines, bloated vacuum line connectors, bad vacuum reservoirs and piping, bad transfer case vacuum switches. In other words, had the person gotten into a sticky situation and needed 4WD, they would have been screwed!!! That's the tip of the iceberg. The factory went through 3 revisions of the shift fork also. The fork issue is non-existent if you just slide it over and leave it. See the link below for complete instructions. Takes less than 1/2 hour. http://www.cherokeeforum.com/f51/fre...ss-91-a-38629/ ,

Test your TPS on the Trans side. Also be sure the dipstick grounds are perfect. Remove, clean and reinstall. RENIX TPS ADJUSTMENT Before attempting to adjust your TPS, there are two things that need to be done. 1) Be sure the throttle body has been recently cleaned. It's especially important that the edges of the throttle butterfly are free of any carbon build-up. 2) With the Key OFF, and using the positive (red) lead of your ohmmeter, set on the lowest scale, probe the B terminal of the flat 3 wire connector of the TPS. The letters are embossed on the connector itself. Touch the black lead of your meter to the negative battery post. Wiggle the wiring harness where it parallels the valve cover and also over near the MAP sensor on the firewall. If you see more than 1 ohm of resistance, or fluctuation in your ohms reading, some modifications to the sensor ground harness will be necessary. The harness repair must be performed before proceeding. I can provide an instruction sheet for that if needed. TPS ADJUSTMENT FOR ENGINE ISSUES Both RENIX manual and automatic transmission equipped XJs and MJs have a flat three-wire connector to the TPS which provides data input to the ECU. The three wires in the connector are clearly embossed with the letters A, B, and C. Wire "A" is positive. Wire "B" is ground. DO NOT UNPLUG THE CONNECTORS !! Key ON, measure voltage from "A" positive to "B" ground by back-probing the connectors. Note the voltage reading--this is your REFERENCE voltage. Key ON, back-probe the connector at wires "B" and "C". Measure the voltage. This is your OUTPUT voltage. Your OUTPUT voltage needs to be seventeen percent of your REFERENCE voltage. For example: 4.82 volts X .17=.82 volts. Loosen both T-20 Torx screws attaching the TPS to the throttle body and rotate the TPS until you have achieved your desired output voltage. Tighten the screws carefully while watching to see that your output voltage remains where it is supposed to be. If you can't achieve the correct output voltage, replace the TPS and start over. Sometimes, after adjusting your TPS the way outlined above, you may experience a high idle upon starting. If that happens, shut the engine off and reconnect your probes to B and C. Start the engine and while watching your meter, turn the TPS clockwise until the idle drops to normal and then rotate it back counterclockwise to your desired output voltage. TPS ADJUSTMENT FOR AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION ISSUES RENIX automatic transmission equipped XJs and MJs have a TPS with two connectors. There is a flat three-wire connector, same as the manual transmission vehicles have, and it is tested the same as outlined above—FOR ALL ENGINE MANAGEMENT RELATED ISSUES. However, the automatic TPS also has a square four-wire connector, clearly embossed with the letters A,B,C, and D. It only uses three wires and provides information to the Transmission Control Module. THIS SQUARE FOUR WIRE CONNECTOR IS USED FOR TRANSMISSION/SHIFTING RELATED ISSUES ONLY. First off, DO NOT UNPLUG THE CONNECTORS !! Key ON, measure voltage between "A" positive and "D" ground by back-probing the connector. Note the voltage. This is your REFERENCE voltage. Back-probe the connector at wires "B" and "D". Measure the voltage. This is your OUTPUT voltage. Your OUTPUT voltage needs to be eighty-three percent of your REFERENCE voltage. For example 4.8 volts X .83=3.98 volts. Adjust the TPS until you have achieved this percentage. If you can't, replace the TPS and start over. So, if you have an automatic equipped XJ your TPS has two sides--one side feeds the ECU, and the other side feeds the TCU. For those with a MANUAL TRANSMISSION--the TPS for the manual transmission XJs is stupid expensive. You can substitute the automatic transmission TPS which is reasonably priced. The square 4 wire connector is just not used. Revised 12-15-2013

One bolt is right next to the fusebox so has little clearance, and it has a dash brace on top of the parkbrake assembly but under the bolt head.

Stock is the wimpy one underneath the installed spring.

Image Not FoundImage Not FoundWell, I'll get the dimensions of the stock spring for you guys.

The teeth on mine were perfect. We need to find a commercially available spring. I've got my old one as a sample. And what about stuffing a paper towel down into the area where the spring can drop while doing the repair?

Was it broke before you changed the spring? Yes. Set it and it pops right off. I suspected the teeth were worn but they weren't. The spring they used tensioning the pawl from the factory isn't as strong as one in a ball point pen. There was a recall on these after numerous failures in the field. Didn't fix the issue. Same old crap going in on the recall. If there's a way to replace that spring without removing the assembly, it would be worth it. What a b*@$£. As for the spring, I scrounged one out of my collection and shortened it.

Works like a champ!!! I've been wondering if JUST a stronger spring would do the trick.

I will. Just got home. I'll try to get it back together today or this evening.

Real quick before I head out. The spring appears to be the biggest culprit. WAAAAAAAY too weak for the task of holding the pawl into the teeth. Perhaps that alone would be a fix. You can see the difference in springs used in one of the photos. I opted to do what ftpiercecracker did and eliminate the side to side play in the pedal. I did that by using some sockets and a vice to squeeze the whole shebang tighter. Took a coupla times to get it where I wanted it. I've only bench tested it but I think I'll be okay with this fix. I'll reinstall it later. And BTW, the old FSM leaves out details that are critical for removing the assembly.

That's cool stuff!! You help with design also?