The86manche

So I took a road trip today from ma to CT, about 2 hours to go look at a cheap first Gen firebird body at a shops private yard, sadly the bird was too good to be true and I had to walk away. However, while I was there I did have a look at 2 and a half comanches he happened to have in the yard too! One of them I'm still trying to talk myself down from haha One is an 88/89 Olympic pioneer short bed! Dark blue? On light blue interior. 2.5, auto. Rockers and cab corners rough but body solid. Engine allegedly blown. Sadly none of the 2.5 trucks have paperwork. And the other two are ROTTED. I wish I had gotten photos but I was trying to be respectful of the gentleman's time. I did get the vins at least. They are also for sale. He prefers to sell whole not in parts but again, no paperwork.. (Olympic model) (Half a truck. no idea the trim.. sportruck?) (Rattlecan camo job. Complete but unibody rotted.) was an enjoyable little adventure but sad to see them sit and rot.

Door sticker was still readable surprisingly! Dated 10/89 Found what was left of this truck at skis garage in Connecticut. 4.0 auto truck i believe. Red and tan with a bench (with head rests) back half of truck rotted away and is gone. No axle, no bed. Front smashed. No idea if it was a lwb or swb. Only good for drivetrain and interior. Sorry no other photos. There were 2 other mjs in the yard as well.

Okay, no problem

I plan to make a trip to CT on Saturday if that helps in the acquisition at all

I'm in lowell Massachusetts. I just split the engine and trans. I also forgot to mention that the flywheel will go with it. Its been neutrally balanced for a 3.4 conversion. (That was in the truck)

Tf904 and 207 transfercase. Pulled out of my truck, not going to use them. Mated to a 2.8. Worked great when they were in my truck. Sadly I don't know the mileage of the transmission, not the original one. Guesstimate 50-75k miles? Oil is nice and red and no i didnt just drain and refill. Tcase should be original to the truck which has 211k miles. Otherwise unknown. Tcase worked great! Drove this truck for 2 years before pulling everything for resto. Putting a 700r4 in for overdrive. $300 obo. Willing to split. Located in mass.

Couldn't find the video but here's another post of it with a TikTok link so that should have videos of it. https://comancheclub.com/topic/59741-just-put-down-the-hammer-and-back-away-slowly/?do=findComment&comment=762582

I think I saw a video of this thing moving around. It may even be on here somewhere. At the very least.. it's still on the ride and alive. So a win. But she R U F F

When you are ready to sell, what would you be asking? I need some parts haha

What do you intend to do with the waggy header? Wall art?

I guess it depends on what you are looking for. I've had very mixed experiences with all but Napa. (I haven't shopped at a Napa in a long time) Autozones parts are a mixed bag, quality control isn't great. I bought a power steering pump for one of my zjs a few years back, discovering they had switched up who their reman company was, put the new pump in and it didnt want to bleed properly and after going lock to lock a few times the pump literally blew up the steering box and then it died immediately. Couldn't get a new one for a few days so I just got a used one instead. Advance auto I've run into issues with electrical parts. They have a policy that if you open, or install electrical parts they can exhange but REFUSE to return them. So you have to be super careful about that.

Why not find a cherokee and try and save this one? I also think its too nice for parts. Beds are easy to get, and you can even get patch panels now

You are correct, I wasn't aware of the name change until recently when I saw a post on Facebook talking about them haha

I think i have a set in storage but I would have to check on them as i don't remember conditions.

What everyone has said, glad you are okay. Could have been much worse! If you don't end up wanting the header panel anymore I'd be interested. I need pieces for mine. Lol

You can also find a 700r4 as well and that wouldn't require an adaptor. Just a 205 tcase

I have paperwork from a conversion that was done to my truck that tells all you need for the 3.4 swap.

To do the 2.5 I could imagine you'd have to consider droveshaft length, you would need the mj fuel pump and the wiring for the tbi(or efi) drivetrain Imo id say it would be easier to drop in the 3.4. Since you have the 904 the 3.4 bolts right to it. I believe the flex plate would have to be neutral balanced. And you can take the intake off your 2.8 and drop it onto your 3.4. Or go with an edelbrock intake. As for fuel supply you would just have to run an inline fuel pump on a key on accessory in your fuse block. If you want to get technical you could keep the efi of the 3.4 and run an independent efi setup.

We are getting closer to getting this on the jeep! It's whole. Needs a little more cleanup work and then epoxy before it goes on. Bodywork will come last.

Home stretch on the rocker! Patched a thin spot on the rocker end behind the cab. She feels solid! Fix this one spot, add the rocker end cap, and clean it up for final weld!

That one looks like it would run and drive out of there with minimal effort!

Well... progress is progress. Even if I feel like I should be farther along by now. I got most of the rocker cut, moved and welded back together. The door was up all the way on the hinges so it can now be put back to the proper spot. Inside of the rocker still needs to be stitched and then it's clean up, prime, and weld time.

I decided to fit the door on to see the lines. Needless to say I have some more work to do... I'm going to cut down the middle of the rocker the long way, slide it down, and weld it all back together.

Well I feel a little betrayed by key parts. The rocker i got from them needs.. extensive work.. I feel like maybe I got a bad stamping? Front of the rocker. I had to start cutting and working Welded the top portion to my behind the cab corner extension.

Finally cleaned up and paired the rocker section i needed. The welds arent the prettiest but thats okay, it hides behind the cab corner. And then I sanded the inner rocker and brushed on some enamel. Baby steps.