89 MJ

I went back in my photos to see if I could come up with any more reasons. Part of it is the frame has to be that low to fit under the cab. I would guess that the curve to get the top of the frame higher couldn’t be quicker because it wouldn’t have been as strong in the event of a rear end collision. Now why they didn’t just make the frame rail taller right at the rear of the cab, I don’t know, other than possible cost.

You can try welding a nut to the bolt head. Also try pounding a smaller size socket onto the bolt head. Is there room to drill the bolt out or cut the head of the bolt off?

Part of it is that the fuel filler neck passes through that cap.

Almost seems too nice for the price

I think it’s also worth saying that there is an aluminum spacer between the steering box and the unibody. The breaks a lot and when it does, it is known to make a clicking noise.

This really depends on how much you want to spend on a lift. With stock wheels, you can clear 31s with no lift. You could also run coil spacers (these ones are 2", I really wouldn't run more than that). You can also get adjustable spacers that replace your bump stops, most people run these ACOS. Otherwise, I think pretty much any spring company would have a 3" offering, just steer clear of Rough Country. For a rear lift, I'd recommend steering clear of longer shackles as that will alter your pinion angle, potentially creating vibrations. I did my own custom add-a-leaf in my MJ and would do the same again in a heartbeat. In fact, I did the exact same thing in my Eagle. It does stiffen up the rear some, but it didn't really make it ride worse in either case. Plus using them as a truck and towing and hauling, the stiffer springs are much better. For control arms, it seems like Core 4x4 is the way to go. In my opinion, at a 3" lift, you really should get an adjustable track bar too. Here is the Core 4x4 control arm and track bar kit. The Core stuff is pricey, but I've heard great things about them. I don't recall if I did new steering stuff or not. In my opinion (and experience), you really don't need longer brake lines, shocks, or upper control arms with a 3" lift. I have run out of suspension travel with the sway bar disconnected before I ran out of brake line or shock travel. I'll briefly lay out what I did: 3" front springs with tubular lower control arms. Probably stock replacement steering components Adjustable track bar Main leaf from an XJ lift spring pack with the eyes cut off added right below my MJ main leaf I really like this combination. Everything was used when I got it, and its been fine. Just replaced the control arm bushings, tie rod ends, track bar end, and wear parts such as those. I'm going to be honest, I don't even know what the lift is. I was told it was a 5" lift. The front springs came with 2" spacers, so I suspect it was a 3" spring lift with 2" spacers for the front. I wouldn't hesitate to go that same route again though. I'd recommend just look for someone parting out a lifted XJ or look for someone selling a beat up XJ trail rig and buy the whole thing and part it out. I think its worth saying that you really don't need a lift for mild trails. A properly driven mostly stock vehicle on all terrains would probably surprise you. That said, I can't blame you for wanting to lift it. They do look cool that way, but with a lift and larger tires comes the needs for better gears and your braking abilities won't be quite as good as stock.

Saw this on FaceSpace: I’m excited to see how yours turns out.

Happy to help. I sure wish the 23 gallons would fit the short beds.

The tank will hit the rear axle. This thread talks about it some. Bottom of page 1 and top of page 2 in particular.

Is your truck a short bed or long bed? The long beds came with a 16 and 23 gallon tank and the short beds came with the 18.5 gallon tank. You cannot interchange a short bed tank and a long bed tank.

He must be driving right now…

I started ready through this thread and thought this was funny. Funny how our minds change while working on these projects.

I’m looking forward to that walkaround video.

I don’t think it’s that, my email likes to just send the emails to spam I fix it every time, but it happens once a year or so for me

Might want to just send a follow up pm or tag him here. Sometimes the email notifications can get missed or forgotten about.

I would use panel bond as well. I’d guess the factory used something different, but panel bond would probably be better.

Barely broken in at 155k miles too. That truck should last you a long time. That was a fantastic find.

I’m excited to see the pictures. Sounds like a holy grail to a lot of people.

I think that's a pretty good deal. I paid $1500 for mine back in 2018 and it had rust, dents, the Peugeot transmission, and a rod knocking 4.0. The only thing that my truck had that makes it arguably more desirable than the one you posted is that it is 4 wheel drive. But being an Eliminator, that truck should be very well optioned. Bucket seats, most likely a tilt column, AC, etc.

No headrests either. That’s very rare.

That’s good to know. I’ll keep that in mind.

I recently decided to try to track down my dad's 70 GTO that he had in high school and the beginning of college. I've posted it with Lost Muscle Cars on FB, reached out to a couple of Instagram pages, posted it on the local Craigslist, and have posted it on a few Pontiac forums. We've gotten one lead on a form that can be filled out and sent into the state to get a record of every vehicle my dad owned, including the VIN, so that should help find it. We aren't too optimistic because the car has been missing for 32 years and supposedly went to the town that my parents have lived in for nearly 25 years Any other suggestions? Here is the info I have posted for the car as of now: Originally a 455 HO, TH400, 12 bolt posi with 4.10 gears. Sold with a non original Pontiac 400 in it. Color was Palisade Green with a green interior. The car had bucket seats and a center console. The car underwent a restoration in 1991. The quarter panels were replaced with GM NOS pieces. Like most late production GM quarters, the right side quarter panel did not fit the bumper opening well. The hood was repaired from a kink on the left side. Rust was just starting in the frame behind the right front wheel. It had power steering, power disc brakes, and 15” Rally II wheels from a Firebird. It also had factory AC and a tach dash. Being a 455 HO car, it also had rear boxed lower control arms and a rear sway bar. The car was sold in 1993 to a person who was a Pontiac collector and was said to live in Holmen, WI, but no such person has been found to this point.

The Renix system is really not very complicated at all. If you pick up yourself a Renix Engine Monitor (REM), you should be able to solve any issue it has or at least it will give you information to post and the forum here can help you solve pretty much any problem. I don't think there is an issue that the people here cannot solve. I love the idea of LS power too and considered it for mine at one point, but there is a lot of custom work that needs to be done, all of which can be shown by any of the threads listed by Comanche SS. I believe it was @ghetdjc320 that said that just the parts for a properly done LS swap will run north of $5k. If you're not much of an engine guy and would have to pay a shop to do this work, you will be way upside down in the truck financially. That's not necessarily a big deal though if you plan on keeping the truck forever. You can swap an AX-15 into your truck without a ton of work if you want a 5 speed. If I were you, I would consider getting the Renix running properly (use this forum as a resource, most of us here have quite a bit of experience with Renix), swapping in a 94+ external slave AX-15, and gearing the axles appropriately to the tire size if you haven't already. Maybe you'll like the Renix 4.0, but if you don't, you won't be out much money, just a bit of time. I'm not trying to talk you out of doing the LS swap. I've considered it and maybe I'll swap my truck someday in the future, but I just want to make it clear that it will be expensive and you'll have to do a lot with your accessory drive and intake manifold.

Which steering wheel does it have? Seems to me that the two spoke steering wheels just make crappy contact for the horn button. I’ve taken it apart and cleaned it and it still works intermittently.