johnj92131

Radiator crapped out way worse than I thought. Saturday morning drove it about 8 miles, turns out radiator was empty (drained overnight) Pinged like a son of a b*@$£ while I limped it home. So it was really hot. Did I do any damage? don't know yet, but looking around for a replacement, just in case. I could get a junk yard core and rebuild it or I could get a running engine and rebuild mine over some time. Then again, my engine might be OK for another 10K miles. Just trying to know all my options in advance. And maybe it is time to buy a new to me truck.

Where are you located? $400 sounds really cheap to me. My truck is a 1991, so it is a High Output. So a late block should be an easier swap for me. Real problem, as terrawombat pointed out, is we are talking about a used engine. And that is a pig in a polk No real way of knowing the true condition of the motor. Any junk yard will tell you the engine rans just fine. But why do they call them "Junk Yards"? Looked at EBay. LKQ has a number of late 4.0 engines in the 950=1000 range. LKQ also runs a numer of Pick UR Part yards if I just decide I want a simple core engine for rebuild to stroker specifications. With a core it will take me a couple of years to get a stroker together. Just not willing to pay Hesco more than $6K for a stroker. There are any number of excellent shops in Southern California without going to the other side of the country and paying for a name.

Good input, thanks to all. Not looking for a core engine at a pick ur part. They are under $200, but not what I want. Buying and parting out an XJ would not be permitted by she who must be obeyed. Quick call to local salvage yard turns up a late TJ engine for $900 but they are telling me that is just for the long block. Good news is I can hear it run - they say. Suppose if it runs, I can do a compression check, if that is OK, then it would be time to wave money at them. Guess it will take a couple of trips to see what their bottom line is.

Checked my SnugTop purchase paper work. No help. A web search did not give me very much info. Found one reference to 300 lbs with an optional contractor rack. Guess I would call SnugTop to see what they say. But I would not expect them to approve much. Did find an interesting 6 page thread: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/121949-Camper-Shell-Roof-Racks/page6 Take a look at the very last picture. Cab rack and a matching shell rack.

What should I expect to pay for a used junk yard 4.0 engine with out a core? What accessories should I expect to have included with the used engine? I will be looking for late production 4.0, from 97 or 99 and later. I "assume" I can use any in line 6 up to the end of production - am I wrong? What should I watch out for? Thanks for the assistance.

Why do you want a lumpier cam? I like the MPFI conversion. I understand a bit more compression, but I am not a big fan of using premium gas. Over bore is a no brainer. The factory spent a whole lot of time and money on the cam. Read the Stroker forum and you will see lots of problems with after market cams. Yes, those are 6 cylinder engines, not 4. But it shows problems going with aftermarket cams. If you really want more power from that 2.5, then look at a low pressure supercharger. Superchargers tend to deliver a bunch more power/torque at the low end. And the low end is where a truck needs torque. Other than a supercharger, gears are your best friend as they multiply torque. Turbochargers deliver boost and power at mid and high range. Low end respose needs a small turbo, But there are anynumber of small turbos in the junk yards to chose from. The other thing with turbos is they need some tuning. Superchargers are a bit simpler in that respect.

Seriously, How much are you going to haul? Meaning are you going to load 2200 lbs in the truck? If you want your cake and eat it also - I would look at a set of air bags or air shocks to increase the payload capacity or to level the truck out with a load. This would be in addition to the springs of your choice. Those two things should work together nicely. Previous owner of my truck added 2 overload leafs on each side and air shocks. All to the full factory Bit Ton/Metric ton package. He used the truck to haul drywall. Me? Biggest load was cement blockes - 2960 lbs worth of them. Just once, and the truck did it!

SpectraPremium CU1193 is a single core radiator. Do not see a multicore radiator on the Spectra site. That $77 CU1193 at PepBoys looks very good IF the single core radiator is the OEM standard. Need to see if the leaky radiator is a single core or not. It has been trouble free for 7 years (till now). So this may be the way to go for me. But, I did get a lead on a used Hesco aluminum head, if the price is "reasonable"... it could give me a reason to put a stroker together. Reasonable would be under $1000.

87Warrior, Very nice rundown of your research. Thank You! The FFD looks a bit pricy at $500 from their web site (their extreme TT Kit) but includes 3 new electric fans. Not sure it includes a transmission cooler. From Don's post above, the radiator may be available without the electric fans. Guess I need to call them. Spectra Premium. Good to see your experience with them. $100 shipped on Ebay. Nice price too. Checked with one local shop, supposed to be reputable. Hate all aluminum radiators, says never seen a good one (CRAP?) Suggests Aluminum/plastic replacement for $195 Radiator Lady, on So. Cal Craigslist. Sells Aluminum radiators. Quotes $300-335. Turns out to be "imported" (more CRAP?). She makes aluminum radiators for $600. Good for 1100 horsepower, she says. Makes FFD look better priced, doesn't it. Given hornbrod's experience with the FFD 2 core, looks like a 3 core is totally unnecessary. Back to researching more of 87Warrior's list. My radiator leak is still quite small, so I may have a week or two before it is a real problem. Plan on keeping the cap loose till then.

Looks like I have a crack in the radiator plastic tank for the second time in 7 years. What upgraded replacement radiator have others used? I see 3 row all aluminum radiators on EBay for $140 and up. Also see "replacement" radiators for $45 and up, still on EBay. Have not called Jeep for another plastic tank radiator. Nor have I started checking local radiator shops, yet. Might even see what I can find in TJ, they have a ton of Cherokee/Comanche's there. Suspect they buy their parts in San Diego and install them in TJ. (For those of you not in Southern California - TJ = Tijuana, Baja California Mexico) Is there anything seriously better than the factory radiator for a reasonable price?

Anything more in the magazine about the truck than what is in the KSL ad? Wonder if this was some type of magazine project? May have been with all the vendor specific upgrades. Let my subscription to JP expire in January. The tent looks nice. Will have to check out the CBI web site for information on the Comanche rear bumper with tire carrier. Do you think I will find anything?

Used to work with a fellow who had an 87 Comanche and a small 5th wheel trailer. He took the wife and daughter camping in it regularly. This was 1988-90, long before I had any interest in the Comanche. But as Incommando says, it can be done as long as the GCVW is not exceded. One additional point, the Dana 44 rear brakes are 3/4" wider than the stock rear drum brakes. A big part of why the Dana 44 is required for trailer towing or the "Big Ton/Metric Ton" factory package. Getting a loaded truck to move forward is the easy part. Stopping a 9000 lbs load is the hard part.

Rack on the shell is very nice looking. The typical SUV roof rack is only rated for 100 lbs or so. The roof rack on the Isuzu Rodeo/Honda Passport is rated for 200 lbs. not much more. Has anyone seen a nicely done canoe rack or a well done lumber type rack? I am thinking of a slim, aluminum rack mounted just outside the bed rails and very close to the shell with a cantilevered section just over the front section of the windshield and cab.

Sounds like the turbo is at the very least, in need of a total rebuild. More likely you need to replace it with a new turbo. One thing you do not want is to rebuild the complete engine because the turbo fails and shrapnel is ingested into the engine.

Anita has a Galaxy S3. Takes great pictures. So I got an S4 last September. Thinking about going to an Iphone 6 when they come out. Will switch from AT&T to TMobile if TMobile has the Iphone 6. Anita LOVES her Ipad

Rob, Great pictures!! I have 3 dual 4 ft lamps, one in front of each car. Then a big CFL in the center of the garage. Works fine when I am at the front of the cars. But not so well when not at the front. Love the way you have 4 T8 fixtures around the truck. Guess I need to see about adding a few more switched outlets to the garage ceiling and installing a wall switch to control them. Problem is Anita has not gotten over me spending $1000 to have an electrician add a 220 circuit plus 2 110 circuits to the garage and 2 more 110 circuits out side the house. Guess I could run the new switched ceiling outlets from one of the new 110 circuits in the garage. That would not cost more than $120 (I "think"), depending on how much romex I have left. Yes, the under hood LED is a neat thing. Does Harbor Freight sell a cheap version?

Will have to check out those T8 shop lights at Lowes.

Your bench seat brackets will work fine. You do not need to buy any bucket seat brackets. See this thread for a ton of good information: http://comancheclub.com/topic/7656-making-xj-buckets-work-in-a-mj/?hl=seat+brackets&do=findComment&comment=72306

Well, I will sell my NOS tail lights for $510 if somebody here wants them. I got them in a fit of madness a couple of years ago. But my truck is not a show truck and I am fine with that.

There should be a identification tag or stamping on the turbo itself. That tag will be what you want (assuming it is still the stock turbo). Also the 85/86 factory service manual/diesel supplement "should" have the information. If you are going to be looking for a turbo upgrade, you may want to look on some other forums where more renaults were sold, like in europe.

70 liters = 18.52 U.S. gallons 115 euro = $155.38 U.S. One gallon = $8.40 U.S. Somebody remind me next time I complain about $4.50 or $5.00/gallon gas. Looks like the champ!

What is the most gas you have put in the MJ at one fillup? I have been using the MJ a whole lot these last two weeks. Today I filled the stock 23.5 gallon tank up at Costco. It took 24.008 gallons, so I was right at bottom of the tank. The pump clicked off at 23.89x and I restarted the pump till the next shut off at 24.008 gallons. Got me wondering what others had put in their tanks. BTW, it was 378.1 miles, so 15.748917 mpg on 225/75 x 15 tires. Gas was $3.799/gal

You'd have to get one out of an old VW bunny pickup. Something old enough that my radio has a more complex computer than the engine does. Speaking of computers.....where is the SOB? My buddies '92 XJ has it mounted right under the hood nice and easy off on the side. I can't find mine anywhere! Above is bad information. The Rabbit pickup had a 48 hp 1500 cc engine, then a 52 hp 1600 cc engine. You do not want to use that in a Jeep. No torque/no power. You want a TDI engine from a 96 thru 2003 VW. Factory 90 hp and 149 to 157 lb/ft torque. These are transverse mounted in the Golf, Jetta, and Passat. Reason being, they are relatively inexpensive and especially free of smog equipment. 2004 and later engines got much more complicated. Acme Adaptors sells a kit to mount the engine in the Suzuki Samari using either the Suzuki trans or a Toyota Truck transmission. Here is a link for one fellows conversion of a Toyota pickup to a TDI: http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=317802 There are literaly dozens of these conversion threads posted on the TDI club. There are also a smaller number of threads about conversions into Jeeps. The HPA kit is very specific and expensive. It uses a later 2004/2005 Pumpe Duce engine. I think you can use the Toyota truck bellhousing on the AX15 Jeep transmission. My particular 96 TDI has been "chipped" to bump the torque up to 225 lb/ft. with no loss in reliability or MPG. I have about 250K on the engine. Also have a spare TDI engine that may, one day end up in my MJ. A couple of TDI club members have 97/97 TDIs with bigger turbos that put out 225 hp and 380+lb/ft of torque (at the front wheels). And still deliver 40+ MPG 225 hp and 380 lb/ft of torque is way more than enough to move your Comanche any place and any time you want to go.

So Rob, what was the factory tow rating on the 86 Metric ton package? And how about the GVW for the Metric Ton package. I do not have an 86 owners manual. Did know about the AMC 20 in the 1987.

Was there a factory Metric Ton package for the 86? Doubt it, but do not know for sure. The V6 had a much lower tow rating than the 87+ 4.0. If I recall, 3500 lbs vs. 5000 lbs