89 MJ

Thank you! And here is the setup at the fair. That is the Oliver pedal tractor that I rode when I was little with it.

I got the grille repaired and installed at 9pm tonight. The tractor needs to be to the fair at 9am tomorrow. I cut that plenty close.

Tell me about it! Got a few things I want to get done on the tractor before the fair, then my family goes on vacation for a little over a week, then I need to get the engine swapped in my Eagle, all before heading back to school mid-late August.

Already planned. Along with a new timing chain because the 258s had a plastic cam gear.

Right hand drive?

I was asked to have my tractor on display at the county fair. It’s not even close to ready and the fair starts next Wednesday. Tonight we worked on repairing the grille.

Just an aluminum valve cover and new gaskets. The rod bearings looked brand new in it. I suspect it’s around 80,000 miles. Eventually I’d like to stick a cam in it and get a 4.0 head.

I’m jealous. I’ve thought about selling my MJ to get one of these (blasphemy, I know).

Going back together. I’m almost as far as I can go before needing to pull the engine out of the Eagle. The Eagle already has a brand new water pump that I need to use and I’ll need the Eagle specific oil pan.

My 96 was the same way

Out of curiosity, what does your engine air filter look like? It could be that the engine isn’t getting enough air, so it is sucking more from the crankcase.

Glad to see progress on this build again!

Did some cleaning on the front wheels. It also helped with another tree that we took down.

They are 2 door XJ buckets. The floor brackets must be swapped with MJ or brackets.

That is the way those carpet kits come. They’re a bit of a pain to install, but they’re well worth it when you get it done.

That is going to look fantastic! I’m excited to see everything put together.

It really depends on how nice it is, how many miles it has, and your location.

I think I’d run a high flow then. I think I’ll do the same on my truck. There seems to be a point where these trucks turn too many rpm to stay cool at a certain speed. Even with everything functioning correctly, my truck overheats after a couple of hours running 75+. I like the Mishimoto in my truck.

If you’re going to go with an ACC carpet kit, rock auto will probably be the cheapest.

I’m going to stick with the carb. Even if I were to go with a 4.0 head (and I probably will someday), I will probably keep the carb. Between the simplicity of it and because I prefer mechanical fuel pumps, it makes sticking with the carb a better option. Not to mention, it’s a lot cheaper.

Started tearing down the new engine today. I think it is very low mileage. The rod bearings looked brand new, as did the valve train. We did pull the head and lap the valves. Now to order a pile of parts.

I got lucky for sure. And it was only 15 minutes from home.

Goodnight sun, hello new 258. Hard to pass up a whole engine for $25 when the one in the car is on its last legs. And yes, I used the Eagle to get it.

10 slot grille too, so it’s got a pre-88 grille. Sweet truck!

That’s really good to know! I’ll have to remember that. I ended up going the route that I did because I want to keep my cruise control.