Rex89

I’ve got a pair I can pull from this 87. I can get better pictures for you tomorrow so you can see if they’re in decent enough shape for what you’re wanting.

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Do you have a transfer case also? And I appreciate the offer for the shop time! I just bought the XJ in December. Previous owner put an OME lift kit and 31” tires, but I would like to go back to the stock height and stock tires. So I may just take you up on using your shop to swap the suspension parts out when the time comes. I have yet to source the parts.

@Tex06, No unfortunately not…All I have is a 2wd BA10/5 and a 2wd AW4. I search Facebook marketplace every day like it’s my job and nothing ever pops up around here. They’re all over the place in Georgia and Tennessee but I can’t justify driving that far right now. I do actually have a 2wd AX15 in my 97 XJ but that’s my daily driver so I’m not sure I could afford the downtime to swap it out right now.

@JZLAJeep, well I’ve now officially decided to get an XJ too! So I could use your advice… Although I just got my TJ a few months ago, it’s not really practical as a daily driver, especially with hauling kids and their stuff around. So I’m gonna list the TJ for sale this week and then start hunting for an XJ. I’m sort of torn because I prefer the pre-97 look but I feel like I should maybe get a 98-01 model year. I don’t commute for work but the XJ would be my daily and I do sometimes have to drive an hour or two for work meetings. I’m just worried the 96 and older would really be showing their age now and I’d have to be working on it more frequently. I’m not afraid of the work but my MJ is already a project and I don’t need another project right now. I see that you have a 95 and a 96 XJ. What’s your thought on daily driving one of those vs maybe a 98 or 99? I’ve read to avoid 00-01 where possible because of the 0331 head issue, but I’m not sure how critical that is to consider. The only stipulation I have is that it must be a 4.0 with standard transmission and four door. I know those are harder to find in the later model years, although I’ve seen some listings. I could obviously AX15 swap anything but I’m looking for something turnkey.

I often just use the Watertight Heat-Shrink Butt Connectors from Harbor freight! Just have to crimp them.

Yeah I wasn’t getting any resistance either. I’m no expert on electricity by any means, but I think the way the IAC valve stepper motor works is that it requires more amps to work than passive sensors like the TPS or MAP. So even though the grounds had no resistance, those same splices couldn’t handle the higher current draw when the IAC tried to actually move. Maybe there was small resistance in those corroded splices that was enough to starve the IAC of current when under load, especially when cold. Anyway that’s my amateur understanding of it. Since the IAC grounds through the ECU internally, fixing those sensor ground splices in theory gave the ECU a clean ground path, which let the IAC finally work properly. Time will tell if it’s truly fixed… I’m still nervous haha.

Ok so I just wanted to provide an update. I went ahead and cleaned up the engine bay wiring, mainly just taking the factory splice out and creating a few new ground wires for the ECU and injectors. Knock on wood, but after doing that, it seems to be doing better. I hesitate to say it’s “fixed” until I have a few more days to test it on cold starts, but it’s promising. This is what I was working with: There were 9 wires going into a splice and coming out as 2 wires. 6 of the wires were from the injector plugs, 2 from the ECU ground port (through which most of the sensors, including IAC, all ground), and 1 uninsulated wire that was coming off the knock sensor wiring. The knock sensor wiring was encased in a separate gold-looking insulation that I did not unwrap. I did put the uninsulated ground from it in one of the splices I created. Below photo shows the factory splice I cut out. I created new wires with 3/8” ring terminals and put them all on the dipstick tube stud. I gave each of the 2 ECU grounds their own respective wire and terminal. And I took a bundle of 3 injector plugs each and made a splice into one wire for both of those bundles. I included the knock sensor ground in one of the injector bundles. I forgot to get a picture of the dipstick tube stud. It’s crowded but it all fit. There was also this factory splice that takes the TPS, MAP, CTS, and IAT all into one. I took the tape off and the solder actually looked fine. So I just put some heat shrink around it and taped it up a little better. I forgot to take an after picture but this is what the factory tape looked like. Like I said, I’ve only tested it a couple times over the last few hours, but it seems to be doing better. And I still have the cheap Amazon “A-premium” IAC valve on there. So if you haven’t done so already, it can’t hurt to clean up the wiring a bit!

I’m basically in the same boat as you right now. I got the $23 “A-Premium” brand IAC off Amazon just last week. I thought it had fixed my idle issues but either (1) I got what I paid for because it died after about 30 minutes of driving or (2) I have other electrical issues because I’m still fighting super high idle on cold startup. I thought it was a vacuum leak but I’ve addressed that and I believe it’s an electrical problem. I have yet to do cruiser’s tips related to some of these issues so I’m going to give that a try before I replace any more parts. I just unwrapped all the wiring harness from the sensors to the dipstick tube stud to clean up all that wiring. I’m also going to do the ECU connector refresh and see if any of that helps. All that to say, I don’t have experience with the premium sensors you’re asking about, but if the wiring/ECU isn’t the issue, I’ll probably have to go with the Mopar or whatever quality sensor.

The Peugeot BA10 in my 89 2wd is on its way out. The 3/4 synchro is pretty much done and the transmission is leaking from every seam. If anyone has a used AX15, I'm in southeast Louisiana near New Orleans and I'm willing to drive a few hours. Although I'd love to convert it to 4wd, at this point it's not really in the budget to get all the other parts that would require so I'm fine with a 2wd. Also not sure if the driveshaft is a different length from the BA10 to AX15, but if so I'd also be interested in that and the AX15 crossmember/mount. I can source those separately though if needed. I have a non-running 87 parts MJ with a 2wd AW4. I have no idea the history of the 87, but it has 330k on the odometer. I'm happy to trade the AW4 or trade plus cash, if anyone would be interested in that. Thanks!

Not long after all that, I came close to blowing it up! I decided to take the Comanche for a drive on the interstate for the first time to see how it did. Well it mostly did okay... except the high vibrations wiggled the hoses loose from the fuel filter. It was still running fine though because there was still fuel getting to the fuel rail. Why did the hoses wiggle loose though? Because the previous owner didn't put hose clamps on them... This is the only picture I took before I slapped some clamps on really quickly. It's a poor quality photo because I was in a panic as fuel was all over the ground. When this happened, I was driving to my wife's work to drop something off. She came outside and said "hey why is your truck leaking?" I had noticed a potential coolant leak a few days prior so I didn't even get out of the truck to inspect it. I just told her, "Oh it's probably just a coolant leak, I'll look at it when I get home." So all the way home I was spraying fuel out all over the place. If I had just glanced out of the truck to see where she noticed it was leaking, I would've realized it most certainly was not coolant! When I pulled in my driveway, I opened the truck door, and was met with what sounded like a garden hose spraying. I freaked out, shut the truck off, opened the hood, depressurized the fuel line at the schrader valve, but it was still leaking pretty good. So I put down one of these absorbent mats and slapped some clamps on in a hurry. Turns out that not only were the fuel filter hoses not clamped, but the filter itself was just zip tied to the brake lines. That's partially on me for not inspecting all of that before it became an emergency. Despite all the wiring work I had been doing throughout the truck, I just completely missed these glaring problems. But luckily nothing exploded! I also wasn't sure that the previous hoses that were on there were rated for fuel injection pressure. So I replaced those with the correct hoses and clamps. I also made the best makeshift bracket for the filter that I could with the materials that I had on hand at the time. Although it was a scary situation, it was sort of a good thing because when I was depressurizing the system, I noticed a few of the injectors were also leaking. I decided to go ahead and replace all the injectors while I had the fuel rail off. I don't think I have a picture of the new injectors when I first installed them. I also got a proper fuel filter bracket on ebay, but I couldn't find a photo of that either. In the midst of all this, I noticed that one of the gas tank straps was bent. I still have yet to fix this... The previous owner also put a new fuel pump in, but I think it must be for an XJ or something. The lines aren't angled enough to avoid the hoses hitting the parking brake. I put new fuel injection hoses everywhere and they seem to be clearing it well enough though.

Then the electrical fun began! The most pressing issue was that the taillight fuse kept blowing. As I tried to fix that, I discovered a lot of wiring issues. None of the below photos were causing the issue with the taillights though. I solved that a few weeks later, but I'll get to that in a future post... Below are just a few of the many things I found. Bare wires, loose crimps, etc. Also I've heard varying opinions on using wire nuts like this for automotive applications, but I was always taught not to do it. There were quite a few of these in there. The blower motor also wasn't working, so someone had wired up a little switch directly from the blower motor to the battery. Although I didn't solve the issue for a few weeks, I decided to remove this switch and associated wiring because it was kind of janky. This is a portion of the wiring I cleaned out. And here's a bonus photo of one of the many wood screws holding parts of the grill and light bezels on. I didn't fix all this for a few more weeks yet, but lurking behind these were plenty more wiring nightmares!

Thank y'all! So one of the first things I had to do was to get an air intake hose for the throttle body. The throttle body was completely uncovered and the previous owner said he couldn't find one that fit. I ended up ordering one on ebay, but I've found a few at junkyards since then that I'll probably sell to recoup the cost of the ebay one that I bought. But it gave me an opportunity to clean the throttle body out which it needed anyway. Not long after that, I noticed something strange when I was inspecting underneath the motor... Someone had plugged up the tube underneath the charcoal canister... with a stick I couldn't find a picture of the stick still in the tube, but the first picture below is the tube I'm referencing. They had the stick shoved in the tube, pushed the tube/stick upwards, and the stick itself was just resting on the engine block. It was nice and charred. So I figured I'd take the charcoal canister off, clean it up, and change the filter. The old filter was pretty nasty... There were also a couple of vacuum lines disconnected that I hooked back up. That all helped it to run a little smoother.

Aw man I lived in College Station for three years and never once saw an MJ! I go back every now and then so I’ll have to keep an eye out. I’ll probably next be there the weekend before Thanksgiving.

Got this 1989 MJ SporTruck back in April 2025 and am finally getting around to starting a thread! I've done a lot to it in the last few months, mostly fixing things. But I have lots of plans for it! It's a short bed with the 4.0 and is 2wd with the BA10. I'll swap in an AX15 and convert to 4wd eventually. The truck's build date is February 28, 1989, just a few weeks after I was born! I'm from New Orleans and my mom told me that if I had been born on Mardi Gras day, she would've nicknamed me Rex. So even though this truck wasn't "born" on Mardi Gras, I decided to give it the nickname I almost had! This is how it looked a few days after I got it: The story of this truck actually kind of starts way back in 2017 when I was gifted a 1973 Chevy K5 Blazer from my grandpa. It had a 350 sbc and the SM465 with granny low gear. The original owner was my grandpa's neighbor, who had been a Navy welder in WW2. He custom made the front and rear bumpers (see below photos). My grandpa never actually drove the Blazer, it just sat in his yard until he gave it to me. Over the years, I never really got to do much to it other than adding a rear seat, getting new tires, and cleaning up some of the rust. It was mostly just parked at my in-laws' house as I lived somewhere without space for it. I've always had a thing for smaller compact pickups. My first truck was a 98 Ranger. I also remember fondly my grandpa taking me fishing in his 91 S10 when I was a kid. The Blazer was my first "project" truck and it was great, but it was a little big for my tastes. When I first got the Blazer, I began to research other old trucks and I soon learned that Jeep had made a compact pickup in the late 80s and early 90s! That began my obsession with the Comanche. Due to various job changes and other life circumstances, it was never in the cards for me to get a Comanche until this year. The deal was that I had to sell the Blazer in order to fund the Comanche purchase. That was a tough decision because of the nostalgia factor. But I ultimately decided that my grandpa would have wanted me to have the truck that I really wanted. So I sold the Blazer to my father-in-law and I began to scour Facebook marketplace for a Comanche. I mainly just wanted one that was running and driving and that had the 4.0 and a standard transmission. I eventually found a good deal on one up in Huntsville, Alabama, so my father-in-law and I took his trailer the 7 hours to go pick it up! The truck had spent its entire life in northern Alabama. I'm the third owner (I'm pretty sure). The previous owner only had it a few months and had put newer Wrangler wheels and bigger tires on it with a small lift. He had also added a new starter and a new fuel pump and filter (which I very shortly had to replace... but that's a story for a future post... ). Since purchasing this MJ in April, I've bought 2 more Jeeps! A 99 TJ in June and then an 87 MJ in August. That's 1 Jeep every 2 months... and it's now October, which means I'm due for another one (although my wife disagrees)! I have been on the lookout for an XJ tho.... Eventually I'd like to add an AX15 and 4wd, I might go back to factory wheels, I'll get new paint and decals, add AC (very important for south Louisiana!), add a headliner, reupholster the bench seat, and plenty more. I have lots of work to do on it, but I really love this truck!

Wow that's awesome! Where did you find it? I need to replace the one in my BA10. I was going to get one of the LuK clutch kits that comes with the internal slave.

Yeah I would definitely like to get this one running at the very least. There’s actually a Renix XJ at a junkyard nearby that should have all the wiring I need. Apart from the wiring, I don’t know yet what else it’ll need. But I’ve been really eager to tear down a motor so now I’ve got one to mess around with!

1987 Jeep Comanche Pioneer 4.0 L, automatic trans, short bed, 2WD, 330K miles Build date unknown - door sticker is pretty much gone Current location: southeast Louisiana (Northshore) Status: parts truck. Not running (yet). Saw it pop up on Facebook marketplace about an hour north of me and immediately went to go get it. I mainly got it for the rear sliding glass, the opening vent windows, and the HVAC box so I can put AC in my other Comanche. Previous owner had bought it to use as a parts truck for his Comanche, but he never ended up using it. He had bought it from a guy in Mississippi who evidently just had it sitting by the woods or something. From the license plate and inspection sticker, it looks like it was last registered in 2004/2005. The front end is pretty beat up so I'm guessing it was in a wreck and they just parked it after that. The bed has a little rust over the rear passenger wheel and some along the top rails, but otherwise it's pretty solid. The floorboards are rusted in the usual places, but the interior is otherwise surprisingly clean. The bench seat doesn't have a rip or tear anywhere on it. Something was nesting in the engine bay and chewed a lot of wires up. Eventually I would like to fix the wiring harness and see if I can get it started. The engine isn't seized and the oil isn't too bad looking.

1999 Jeep Wrangler TJ 4.0 L, 5 speed manual (AX-15), NP231, D35 rear, D30 front (I think) Build date: 03/99 Current location: southeast Louisiana (Northshore area) Since I got my Comanche in April of this year, I have loved having a standard trans again. But I also wanted something with a manual that I could haul the kids in. So I sold my Tacoma and decided to get a TJ! I wanted something close to bone stock, which is tough to find on a TJ as most of them seem to be lifted, etc. I searched all over FB marketplace, found one in Colorado that I liked, and I bought it sight unseen. My sister lives in Denver so I got the seller to park it at her house until I could get up there and drive it home. The seller was actually the original owner and had bought the Jeep new in Florida. My wife and I flew up to Denver and drove it back to Louisiana in July. We took the long way through the Rockies, down through New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. It had 149,300 miles on it when we left Denver and had 150,900 when we got home. It was a fun trip and the TJ is really fun to drive!

I know this is an old thread but I just wanted to check in from Mandeville and see if anyone else was nearby! I haven’t seen any other MJs on the road and only a few XJs.

Thanks!

Any chance I could get the build sheet and selling location for this one?

1989 Jeep Comanche SporTruck (base model) 2WD 4.0 L, 5 speed Peugeot BA10/5 standard transmission, short bed Build date: February 1989 (same as me!) in Toledo, Ohio. Current Location: southeast Louisiana (Northshore). I have wanted a Comanche for many years and it is everything that I hoped it would be. Status: Runs, drives, and shifts great! I just bought it 3 days ago, but have already driven it all over the city. Only a couple of issues I've noticed thus far, mainly the taillight fuse keeps blowing. I haven't started cruiser54's tips though so hopefully doing those will help. AM radio still works. It wasn't outfitted with AC, just the fan with the bi-level option. Also, there is floorboard rust, but I haven't yet pulled up the carpet to see the extent of it. Exterior color is pearl white (PWB) with the "SporTruck" decal. The original decal is faded, but I will eventually order a replacement decal. Interior is gray with vinyl bench seat. Previous owner upgraded to LED headlights, but I'd like to find some OEM ones to switch them back. Also, the passenger vent window is just plexiglass. I'd like to get some of the openable vent windows. I bought it from a guy up near Huntsville, AL and we trailered it back here to Louisiana.