89 MJ

Yeah, the lack of paint prep and the fact that the patches were welded over the spot welds of the floor braces tell me everything I would need to know, but we also know how things like that can spiral.

For a second, I thought this was @pizzaman09’s truck and the pictures were taken with an old camera or a filter

Those patches look like they’re placed right over the rust. I’d say cut it all out and start over. Your floor braces look salvageable if you’re careful cutting out the previous hacks… I mean previous patches.

Gotcha. I knew he had MJCARENA’s old truck, I just couldn’t remember which slider he had. In that case, I’m going to guess that the center pane is loose in its channel.

Is yours OEM (3 panes) or aftermarket CR Lawrence (4 panes)? I suspect that either your latch is rattling because something is bent or broken or that your felt window runs have worn out letting the glass rattle around.

Looks good! That raptor liner is a good product. My dad has been using it well over 10 years on the underside of his restorations, along with the inside of his YJ tub and the bed of my MJ. All of which have held up very well.

There were two styles of Renix full clusters. Blue and whatever the other one is called. The blue one was earlier and had similar style gauges to the Renix dummy light clusters. The other one had a similar look to the HO clusters. In regards to function or compatibility between 4.0 and 2.5, I believe that they are the same.

Cleaning up mud is the worst. I don’t even like driving my truck in the rain because the underside gets all dirty.

You don't need a D44 for the front with that diesel. My dad's old YJ (LS, stick, 35s, 4.10 gears) was romped on pretty hard in 4 wheel drive and the stock D30 lived with no problems. That's not helpful for the time being, but I figured I'd let you know.

Especially up there, I bet. At least in the states it’s easy for us to go south and find decent vehicles. The one downside to those trucks is how prone to rust they are. AZ still has a tiny bit of snow in the mountains.

Very cool! I like that idea a lot. On one of my Bolens 1556s, I used 4 small block Chevy valve springs to cushion the seat.

Wow! A 5 speed truck, that’s what dreams are made of

Be sure to post up pictures of the progress!

That is a huge difference in size!

The 97+ do have a considerable better field of view. I never was able to do it to my truck because I also prefer it. On the rare occasion that I tow a trailer with it, I wish I did the mirror swap.

Puerto Peñasco, Sonora, Mexico for spring break: There last ones are a couple miles west of Tucson. Just off of Gates Pass Road on the David Yetman trail for those familiar with the area.

Two of my favorite vehicles of all time in this picture here. MJs and 99-07 GM trucks.

Are those Procar seats? If not, what are they? Do you like them? I’m thinking about seats for my 40 and want something new that looks older.

Looks like there is quite a few leaks there, as you've noted with your gaskets that you want to replace. In order to diagnose this, try to clean it as much as you can. I like engine degreaser and a pressure washer, but you could just wipe everything down well with paper towels too. Give it some time to dry, then put cardboard on the ground under the engine. Run it for a while in place (driving it can make the oil blow backwards), shut it off, and walk away. I usually leave the vehicle for the night. Then the next morning (or just later that day), I'll go out and look at the cardboard and figure out where the oil was dripping from. Follow that oil trail up to your leak.

My truck has been on the road for 5 years with the Walker and it still looks almost new.

I think that’s the right choice. I did the same and have been very happy with it.

I personally don’t love the idea of swapping used differential parts. I was told that if the parts aren’t wearing the same as they were in their original differential, they’ll howl and wear quicker. I'd look at an 8.8 out of an Explorer Sport Trac, an XJ 8.25, or an MJ or XJ Dana 44. They are all more work, but at least it’ll live.

Here are pictures of their long bed sliders, this was all that they had a picture of at the time. I'm thinking this is the route I am going to go for my truck.

I know exactly where they are, I’ll have to get them when I get home in May.

Seems interesting. I’d bet it smells like cigarette though.