johnj92131

As I previously posted, Matt installed a new master cylinder on Tuesday and it seemed OK. But by Thursday afternoon the clutch was once again failing to properly disengage. So the car sat till today (Monday) when I got some help to bleed the clutch again. Noticed that the fluid level was down in the master and their was air in the system when I started to bleed it. Brake fluid was gray in color - not clear. But no particles in the fluid this time. Flushed most/all of the old brake fluid out of the system, till the new, clean clear fluid was flowing out the bleeder valve. Clutch is now operating properly - just like on Tuesday. Plan for tomorrow is to use my little USB inspection camera and see what I see inside the bell housing. Checked with the Jeep Dealer today for new Mopar clutch master and slave cylinders, both are NLA. So wondering what brand to buy if I have replace the slave cylinder AGAIN.

Had my fuel pump in the 91 replaced (again) last month. My son keeps telling me the truck is empty after 13 gallons. Seems to have started after fuel pump replacement.

Russ Pottenger builds complete engines himself for customers. How much money? Did not seem too much when I spoke with him several years ago. Depends on what you want to do. He is in West Covina, California. That is the Los Angeles area. Contact information from Stroker Board below: Bishop-Buehl Racing Engines 531 N. Lyall Avenue West Covina, California 91790 Work (626) 967-1000 Cell (626) 673-2203 Email/PayPal: RussBnBracing@yahoo.com

Rosco, Please be aware that the XJ seat brackets will not work in an MJ. You will need MJ specific brackets.

Just my observation: Problem with unreliable strokers is the unreliable engine builder. Don''t forget - the original stroker engines were build by the AMC factory in Mexico - VAM in the 1970's 282 cubic inches

Bonkers, Mechanically, I don't think it matters if you stroke a Renix or an H.O. Even think the cam is the same (cam timing is different). That leaves the electronics/fuel management system as the important difference. In my view, the Renix system is the older and less supported system. Electronic parts are discontinued for the most part. The H.O. electronics are at least a generation newer starting in 1991 and by 1996 had moved forward to OBDII. So the newest H.O. electronics are at at least 12 years younger then the Newest Renix electronics. Something to think about for reliability going forward. Next, having used my 91 H.O. to tow another Comanche a couple thousand miles, I would advise you to use 4.11 gears. My 3.55 and AW4 managed all the Rocky Mountain passes. But the cooling system was sometimes over taxed. And this was a standard 4.0 engine - no speed parts or non stock upgrades. The Gear change to 4.11 from 3.07 will increase your at the wheels torque by about one third all by it's self With respect to getting 300+ lb/ft of torque, I suspect it will take than just a simple long stroke crank in either the H.O. or Renix engine. Other (read expensive) additional tuning parts will be required. Don has done a great job of documenting each of the changes he has made over the years. Take a good look at all that Don has done - including going to 4.11 gearing. Remember that Don gained about 2 mpg when he changed to the 4.11 gears! The change in stroke from 3.413 inches to 3.895 inches is a 14% increase in displacement, by it's self worth maybe and extra 31 lb/ft or torque (14% of 220 = 31). The rest of the gains come from other changes Don made and paid for. Bottom line: It depends on how much money and work you are willing to put into the truck.

That 21 slot is way to busy. The 10 slot looks good!

When it comes to dog breeds and a family - my preference is for a larger dog like a Golden Retriever or a Labrador Retriever. Both great family dogs with young children. Both very tolerant of aggressive kids. Not easily hurt and know how to walk away from kids when required.

Yes sir. Still a $500 limit for a waiver. Also some financial assistance is available for low income households. Not sure how the $500 limit works: I "assume" you have to spend the money with a qualified smog station and the smog station will have some paperwork to complete. Would also guess that a Do It Yourself type repairs would not qualify for a waiver. My March 2018 smog check cost me $475 to diagnose and replace a fuel pump failure cause by crappy workmanship by the last shop that replaced my previous fuel pump. This pump was cable tied to the fuel sender and the fuel hose was not installed properly - nor was the fuel hose properly clamped onto the metal fuel line. But the days of paying the inspection station to sign off are LONG GONE. Smog test equipment is hooked to Sacramento by modem and reported/recorded in real time. Results are reported by the machine directly to Sacramento. Every couple of years, one or two shops busted for trying to fake smog test results. Then the shop gets closed and people get a couple of years for a felony conviction. One last thing - Pre 1975(?) cars are exempt from any smog tests, but still subject to tickets if they are belching smoke like a house on fire.

Have not seen any Turbine wheels for sale in some years. They sure would be model year correct. Got a price quote to sand blast and powder coat a set of 5 steel OEM rally wheels at $200. Figured $200 would be better spent on aluminum wheels.

Noriyori has it right, but he means "exempt from smog tests" for annual registration. While the 1986 factory diesel Cherokee and Comanche were not sold new in California because of emissions, any federally compliant diesel with 7500+ miles on it could be registered in California back in 1986. California will not approve a gas to diesel conversion anymore, even if it includes replacing an older gas engine with a fully compliant later model diesel engine. The key to getting my 86 TDI diesel registered in California is the VIN number. The VIN says the 86 was an OEM factory diesel, so with that - I am "golden". Now, with the 91 Comanche, I have to get a smog certificate every 2 years. And I have failed the first try each of the last 3 times. Always because of failed factory parts that need to be replaced.

Frankly, if the smog station told him to do all those things and it still doesn't pass, I have 2 thoughts: First the truck has way too much deferred maintenance and I have to wonder about the condition of the rest of the truck. Second, the seller should take his truck to a competent smog shop and pay for a proper diagnosis. Clearly, just throwing new parts randomly at the problem is not the solution.

All it takes to pass the California smog test is to have all the original, factory installed equipment working correctly. BUT, if any part of that original equipment is removed - that is an automatic failure and the smog test is terminated at that point. The O.P. does not have that problem. The issue with the truck he wants to buy is a failure of 1 or more OEM parts. California law makes it the responsibility of the seller to provide a clean smog test anytime a vehicle is sold. Failing OEM parts are an issue with our now 25 to 30 year old trucks. 4 years ago my problem was cracks in the exhaust manifold. 2 years ago my problem was an Oxygen sensor and this year a failing fuel pump right on the dyno caused me to fail my latest smog test. Each time, once the failed OEM part was replaced - the truck passed its emission test.

The original plan was to go with an electric power steering pump from a Volvo. But after installing the electric pump, Matt found the pump was randomly and momentarily failing while on the road. So in January, he installed a stock power steering pump from a 2000+ Jetta with a small idler pulley. See picture: Several TDI Club members posted their poor life span experience with the small idler pulley. So Matt decided to make a new bracket with the larger pulley as a proactive measure after you picked up the truck. Brandon - Please do feel free to post any pictures you have. Comparison Videos would be great! Not very often do we have the chance to see 2 different Diesel Comanche conversions side by side.

We noticed the clutch problem the first time we moved the truck off the trailer on to the driveway. Matt said the clutch had been fine at his place. Brandon (krustyballer) also told me the clutch had been fine both when he picked up the truck in Michigan and when he dropped it of at 29 Palms, Ca. But by the time the tuck got to San Diego we noticed the problem about 3 weeks later. Whitbread was going to be in Southern California for Easter, so we agreed he would check it out when he got here. Last Thursday we met half way between where he was staying and San Diego. After bleeding the clutch, Matt noticed the clutch fluid was discolored and had some aluminum particles suspended in it. His diagnosis: A bad clutch cylinder out of the box - scraping the bore of the cylinder wall. So Matt called his NAPA supplier in Michigan who agreed to a warranted replacement for the clutch master cylinder and had it delivered to my local NAPA store for me to pick up on Saturday. Here is a picture of the new parts. Clutch Master Cylinder on the right: The other two items in the picture are a new, larger power steering pump idler pulley and a longer belt to go around the pulley. Matt came down to San Diego on Tuesday and installed the new/replacement master cylinder, installed the revised pulley and belt. Also finished up adjusting the turbo actuator arm length. Clutch seems fine now, but I plan on putting some miles on it before we declare the problem solved. Next item on the list was that slow leaking front tire. I took the truck to Discount Tire this afternoon to get the leak fixed, because the tires on the truck look quite good. Turns out the tires are 18 years old - made in the year 2000! So replacing the tires and figuring out what wheels I want on the truck just moved way up to the head of the line. Not exactly what I planned. But it needs to be done. Stock steel wheels were 15 x 6 wide. Optional were 15 x 7 wheels and in later years, the 15 x 7 size was standard. Any wheel that fits the 86 to 2001 Jeep Cherokee (XJ) will work. Just a matter of deciding on a wheel style. My first thought is to go with the 5 star aluminum wheels that were optional on my 91 Comanche. That would let me sway tires and wheels between the 2 trucks at will. The second thought is to stay with the 86 steel "rally wheels", even if they are narrower - hey - it is the cheapest thing to do. Any input would be appreciated.

Well the TDI Comanche made it to San Diego on March 10. Another Comanche Club (Shelbyluv) member was going to San Diego to pick up a camper shell for his Dodge and offered to deliver the truck right to my door! How is that for help!! The left front tire was almost flat from a slow leak and the clutch was not releasing well to change gears. But it is finally in California and we have started the registration process by going to the Auto Club. Only to find out that because the truck is from British Columbia I can only register it by making an appointment with the California DMV. The first appointment time was 2 weeks out, so the car sat in the driveway till then. The registration process was fairly simple and I had all the documents required, so I walked out with a temporary registration and the DMV got a $186 check for use tax, current registration and about 15 different misc. "fees". My only surprise was that because it is a pickup and registered as a commercial vehicle, I had to get a certified weight on the truck. My Briitish Columbia registration listed the weight as 1393 kg or 3071lbs, but not good enough for the DMV. So a trip to a Certified Scale and $15 later I have the Certified Weight of 3180 lbs, that is with 23 gallons of diesel in the fuel tank. Just one more trip back to the DMV to turn in my paperwork and I will get a fresh set of California plates. Also got the truck added to my insurance policy today. Since the truck's future license fees will depend in part on the certified weight I turn in to the the DMV, I am going to reweigh the truck with just 2 or 3 gallons of fuel. That should drop the weight by about 140 lbs More about the clutch issue and it's solution in the next post

Looking for a place to mount a pair of Auto Meter 2 1/16 gauges for the Comanche diesel TDI. Auto Meter lists their #15210 as working for the 1988-2001 Jeep Cherokee on the A pillar. Is there a reason this will not work with the 86/87 Cherokee/Comanche? Can anyone suggest a more reasonable place to mount the two gauges than the A pillar? Thanks for any pointers.

Water heater boxes will be about 60 x 24x24. Check with plumbing companies. Stores like Michaels for "picture frame boxes" work for door cards, etc.

Estes Park is a great place! Have a drink or two at the Stanley Hotel.

Pete, I just checked Enterprise at the Denver airport. $380 for a Toyota Camry from June 14 to June 17th. Airports charge big time taxes or concession fees to rent a car. Five years ago, we tried to avoid those fees in Boston. Wound up making a reservation at an off airport site. PROBLEM was the $110 cab ride to get there!!! Advise more price shopping. Costco generally has some of the cheapest rental rates, if you are a member. Also try your AAA club for better rates.

Now, it will be very interesting to see how many of the "over 20 people" actually stick around and make more than 10 posts. Pete, I am guessing that you may be tracking this over the next month or so??

Just found Pete's comment about the experiment and came here to post the answer I found. Jeep Driver has posted the quote from Pete: Yes, it is an experiment.

For the last day or so I have been getting the following message when I try to go to a different forum: Sorry, there is a problem You do not have permission to view this content. Error code: 1F176/3 This happens when I am not logged in. Is this a new "feature" to get more people to set up accounts and log in?

Suspect the "guest" stats are a bit deceptive. I simply don't sign in when I am just reading the forum. So I show up as a "guest". Doubt I am the only one who does it that way. For me the key number is how much traffic does the club get. Also, I like the recent changes here.

I first changed the factory bench seat in my 91 Comanche to XJ/MJ buckets. I went thru several sets before finally finding a decent pair of quality seats. Part of the process involved mixing and matching something like 8 different buckets and parts. After a couple of years, I found the XJ/MJ buckets were causing me a pain in my back. So I started on line research to see what others with both XJs and MJs had done. Finally settled on Grand Cherokee buckets then converted them to fold forward seats. Followed instructions on a DIY article on the Comanche Club. Lots of test fitting and adjustments before the final positioning. At this point, if I wanted to change seats - I would be looking at a wider range of different seats. Such as Audi, Lexus, BMW, Volvo, etc. I would measure the XJ/MJ buckets and the Grand Cherokee buckets to come up with a range of seat widths to measure for a future swap. The Grand Cherokee seats are just about as wide as I can fit in the MJ. Lastly, I like the idea of the Dakota 3 part bench seat - except how it fits over the transmission tunnel.