ftpiercecracker1

At least one of the better ones IMO. Any ideas what it came off of? http://chattanooga.craigslist.org/cto/3970417596.html

The older 7.3 are amazing motors. My brother just sold his regular cab, short bed, 4x4, f-350 and it had 430k of the hardest most abusive miles ever but on a ford. Sure it only got 12mpg by the time he sold it, but the point is that it is one hell of an engine. All that aside i agree with the majority, buy a Cummins with a SIX speed (fives have a bad rap), you won't be disappointed.

Front fenders removed for painting. . . . . Painting inside as well after thorough cleaning and sanding . . . Fenders, scrubbed and sanded . . . . Cleaning up and painting tail lights. I think i'm getting a little ahead of myself. New B-pillar lights . . . .

I think so, i didnt realize it until i clicked on your link after i posted mine. :P

Eagle, is that specific to the 86 year model? With my 89 i just stuffed my HVAC system through the dash which ment i didnt have to disassemble any of the hoses.

He is working on a Cherokee, but the steps are identical for a Comanche. http://www.cherokeeforum.com/f51/dash-removal-35444/

appreciate it fellas, but the best is yet to come. :brows:

Some where along the way i found a 100% rust free bed with only superficial dents and dings. Even the under side is completely spotless.

Getting the old girl ready. Bringing home the new engine. Problems . . . With the ZJ motor, there was no pilot bearing because it was an auto, so i had to install one. Problem was the ZJ's pilot bearing had an INNER diameter that was too large for the ax-15 snout and the MJ's pilot bearing had an OUTER diameter that was to large to fit inside the ZJ crankshaft. With a little grinding i convinced the MJ pilot bearing to fit in ZJ crank. Engine + Transmission = almost there. Engine installed Squid style intake manifold with properly matched intake/exhaust gaskets. Yes i removed the spacer and fixed the jerry rigged pipe clamp on the fuel hose. "New" Ford 5.0 4 hole injectors. I put them in a clean glass jar filled with injector cleaner shook them like crazy and let them soak for a day and a half. First fire, there might be no sound. Finally moving under her own power again. . . . The mud you see is just from going up and down my drive way. Putting humpty dumpty back together again . . . .

Forget the crap factory versions and get these. . . . http://www.ebay.com/itm/Jeep-Comanche-86-92-Interior-B-Pillar-Courtesy-Light-/121059797132 I have them in mine and they work perfectly.

Alrighty boys, i gonna pick up the pace a little. I know i was really dragging this out with every little detail. The roof stripped down to bare metal. . . . My state of the art paint over spray protector. . . . Primer of choice. . . . Primed . . . . Painted and Cleared. . . . I also did my best to properly wet sand between each coat. If you are wondering what the holes were from, i can only guess the original owner had a either a wind foil or more likely one of those sun visors. Also cleaned and painted my sliding window frame. . . . This has all been months ago so i am still trying to figure out the order in which i did all this stuff. . . . :hmm: More to come as soon as i can get them uploaded to photobucket. Pulling my new engine. . . The donor. . . . . a 93 auto 4x4 ZJ Good M&T means good motor and transmission. I was working 7 days a week at the time and going to school so i simply did not have the time to pull the engine myself, so i put an ad up on good ole craigslist. 150 for someone to pull an engine doesnt sound to bad does it? Must not have been, because i had the guy who would do it within the day i posted the ad. My assistant Malachi

Baling 500 square bales in middle TN, dead calm, 97 degres in the shade, 115 in the hay loft (not joking) 85% humidity . Thats hot.

Glad to hear you got it worked out, but please tell me you pulled a vacuum on it and didnt just fill it with freon. :(

Eh? They didnt even have the 4.0 as an option until the following year. :hmm: You musta found one with a 4.0 swapped in. Either way its the best of three engines available at the time. :doh: Oh jesus i feel like an idiot, total brain fart. :shake:

Me and my older brother used to race in the hair scrabbles with FTR (florida trail riders) down in south Florida. Brother won a bunch of plaques and trophies. I rode my 70xr he had a 200xr, through years i've ridden a 50, 70, 100, 200, and a 400xr all honda. A bunch of two strokes 65, 125, 250. I used to love riding, but in past few years i sort of drifted away. My entire family on my fathers side was HUGE into everything motorcycles. Trials bikes, road bikes, dirtbikes. A bunch of them are still racing today.

God i love these two bumpers :drool: :drool: :drool:

If there is nothing wrong with your old system and it simply doesn't blow cold, i would try evacuating it. If there is a leak, find it and fix it then recharge it with R12. A/C is probably one of the most expensive repairs there is, even on a jeep. You can easily run up a bill of 2k if you have it all done at a shop. I had the old R12 system, but decided to swap to the r134a when the compressor started squealing. I got ALL of my a/c components from the junkyard, ya i said it the junkyard and it works great. In total my a/c repair/refit cost a total of 150 bucks, this includes parts, refrigerant, oil, and recharge. can't remember for the life of me how much oil or refrigerant it took, but your local auto parts store should have the answer. I would advise going to NAPA.

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Eh? They didnt even have the 4.0 as an option until the following year. :hmm: You musta found one with a 4.0 swapped in. Either way its the best of three engines available at the time.

Are you sure the mounting bolts are tight? Did you remember to put the spacer back in between the box and the frame rail? I believe is also has a front and a back to it, in other words it can be put in backwards. On the DW issue, here is a link that goes into great detail about finding and solving DW. http://www.kevinsoffroad.com/how-to-fix-your-own-death-wobble/

Refurbishing the interior is as easy as going to the Junkyard, finding an XJ in good condtion and in the color you want and pulling EVERYTHING from between the front doors. The only thing that will be different are the seat brackets. Other than that every single piece on a Cherokee from the front doors forward is a direct swap with a Comanche. However, there is one other thing, since yours is an 1986 the 4.0 inline six cylinder will not fit either. That is, without a significant amount of engine bay hacking. If you have an all black interior, save it. All black interiors are super awesome and super rare. ftpiercecracker p.s. some people have repainted/touched up there interior with good to decent results, so you could go either way. Just whatever floats your boat.

:drool: Oh man, got any more pictures of that beauty?

First i must say it is refreshing to see such a well written and thought out post. Thank you for taking the time you did to give us the details so that we might be able to help as best we can, DW is probably the most frustrating obstacle when it comes to jeeps. Here are a few things that i have come up with and how to check them. 1. Wheel bearings Jack up the front end, support with jack stands/blocks of wood. Then firmly grab the top and bottom of one tire and try to wiggle it back and forth. Repeat for other side. A good wheel bearing should have ZERO play. 2. universal joints No jack needed, just use your hand and try to wiggle/move/jerk the universal joints. Do this for both sides and the front drive shaft. For the front driveshaft just move the shaft up and down vigorously. If there is any play whatsoever in any of the u-joints chuck em. 3. Warped rims Sadly there is no way that i am aware of to check for a warped rim, the only way to know is to have them checked by a professional shop. A little back history on my experience with DW. I replaced every single steering component just like you did, only i did it twice. In the end it was a combination of two severely warped rims, a botched tire balancing job, a worn out universal joint on the front drive shaft, and several worn out tie rod ends, including the track bar.

:agree: You gots it. Just pop off that pipe and your good to go, like macs97xj said the power steering bracket makes for a tight fit, but it is 100% possible to remove the pump without removing the PS pump/bracket. And if your in a pinch, RTV by itself works great as gasket maker. Scrape the crap out of the mating surfaces until it is perfectly clean, then smear a decent amount on both surfaces. Bolt the pump back on and wiggle it just a little to get it to seat, then tighten it down the rest of the way and let it sit for a good hr or longer if you have the time. Then your good to go.

Thanks alot for all the good info Bio. I have used HEI in the past and would probably do just that if this were my CJ. Actually if it really was mine, i would kill myself for buying such a hopeless, basket case. :shake: Either way its not mine and if the owner of said CJ were any more broke he would need to be in a cast.