Minuit

Damn son, that's a pretty '91 SporTruck. Original paint? If not, how did you have the stickers reproduced? Just wrapped up a ZJ steering box swap on my own '91 SporTruck. IT SUCKED to do alone, but I got it, breaking the fuel return line in the process. The stainless braided fuel feed line from a '95 ZJ is a good replacement and a much more durable part all around, so it shouldn't ever be able to happen again. Might get another one later on to replace the original fuel feed line - the plastic soft parts have gotten brittle with age. The ZJ box produces an immediately noticeable improvement in steering response. I adjusted it to the factory procedure (note for later: 99.999% of people adjust their steering box INCORRECTLY and risk damage to the steering box by doing so) and it feels much tighter than the original. Steering effort is considerably higher (a good thing), but I can't tell for sure if that's how it should be, since I haven't completely finished bleeding the power steering system yet.

Happy (insert holiday of choice here)

The Winnebago LeSharo used this engine. I heard somewhere that it had a bigger turbo. Not a terribly common vehicle in its own right, and according to Wikipedia it was only used for a few years.

So when are you buying it? A diesel XJ or MJ is on my list one day. Gotta be the right one at the right time though.

For what it's worth, I also have rear discs but with the prop valve still in place, and still using the MJ distribution block and single diaphragm booster... you know, what everyone says not to do when you convert to rear discs. The world didn't catch on fire, and my truck stops just fine. The '91 and '92 models have an adjustable prop valve, so I could adjust for proper brake bias after the conversion. When I still had rear drums, I used that to turn up the rear brake pressure a little, which made things better, but my drums weren't working at 100% (are they ever?) before I dumped them for discs. After the disc conversion, I immediately had issues with premature rear lockup. After readjusting the LSPV for correct brake bias, I ended up very close to the original position.

I know of a few minor differences, but they all ought to be interchangeable 84-96. I have an '87 dash in my '89 and a '96 dash in my '91. In both cases, they fit perfectly. The holes for the wiring harness clips may be in different spots and '95 and '96 dashes are missing 2 snap fit holes next to the steering column.

Good info. Now if anyone can find out what the hell those horrible, completely unmarked, almost-but-not-quite-Metripack sealed connectors that they littered the '91 MJ harness with are, that'd be really impressive. That, and the front lighting connector. AMC seemed to have an affinity for terrible electrical connectors, and misusing them at that. Unsealed electrical connectors in the engine bay for a mission critical safety item? Why not? Once Chrysler started substituting Deutsch connectors and other decent options, it made things a lot less "interesting".

I am in fact ok, but my current job situation (working a 7-night-a-week schedule until December 23rd, and then quite likely back at it after the new year) leaves me no time to do anything with radios. I usually go to bed pretty soon after I get home each night, so doing radios after work isn't really an option either. Here are some answers. I'll be cross-posting this to my FB page as well. Why aren't you taking orders? I work a full-time job in addition to the radio work, which normally wouldn't be a problem. However, my current schedule has me working 7 nights a week with no days off. If you're curious, my day(night) job is as an industrial contractor. I am currently working overnight support at a major logistics hub in the Nashville, TN area. When will you come back? I don't know. Sometime in early 2020. As soon as I know a date, I will let everyone know. What's the best way to get in touch with you right now? Message the Facebook page. I try to check that every day. Are you doing ANYTHING related to radios right now? If all you need is a part that currently exists on my shelf and all I have to do is put it in a box or envelope, that shouldn't be a problem. Anything more complicated than that is not likely at this time. Once you start taking new orders, how will you decide who gets to go first? Date of first contact, for new customers. Existing customers will get priority. How big is the backlog right now? Mid to high double digits, including new inquiries. There are a handful of existing orders that still need to be completed. From the 23rd to the new year, I expect to make progress on my existing backlog, but I will not be taking new orders during that time until all current orders are clear.

What makes you think it's the gauge itself and not the level sensor itself or the wiring between the level sensor and gauge? Those are much more likely culprits.

And I have noticed a difference. On two back-to-back days, in virtually identical conditions, driving the same route at the same time of day on the same A/C setting. I encourage everyone interested in this subject to try it for themselves. Bypass the heater core (that's pretty much what the heater valve is - a switchable heater core bypass) and tell me if your vent temps go down any. Without any more data, it's your word against mine. Yup, it's a potential failure point. Yup, it's 4 more hose connections. On my truck, it makes the A/C work better. I really like it when my A/C works better. Everything is a trade-off.

I wonder if the HVAC box in '97+ XJs have different routing compared to the earlier models, or if Chrysler just decided to eliminate a couple of bucks and a potential failure point at the cost of some A/C performance. On the '96 and older HVAC setup, air that has already been cooled by the evaporator flows right past the heater core (separated by some plastic, but still) no matter what the blend door position. The A/C can be performing perfectly, but it's no good if that ice cold air gets warmed up again by the piping hot heater core ducting. I'm not @$$-pulling the 3-7 degree number, by the way. That's from my own testing. That was a big enough difference for me to un-delete my heater control valve. That's not enough to turn a well-performing system into a poorly performing one, but it does make a difference.

Its purpose is to reduce AC vent temperature by 3-7 degrees when the temperature selector is pushed all the way to "cold" - if you don't care about that, delete the valve. Otherwise, replace it. The Mopar valve is still available.

I "made do" with a NOS passenger side power window regulator and some of those trim clips for the rear panel... hopefully I get those too.

If you elect to replace it, it's likely that the blower motor interchange is actually 1988 or 1989-1996. I saw an '87 in a junkyard once and noted that it had a different blower motor connector than either of my trucks do. However, a '96 blower motor fit my '89 MJ. If that's the case, it'll just mean you have to swap a connector.

what

Part and parcel of the MJ being a small vehicle - the engine bay isn't very big. Everything in there has a purpose. You may not like that purpose (emissions) but it's all got a reason for being there. The only "open" engine bay you're gonna get in one of these is an absolute stripper with a 2.5. Emissions equipment and A/C are the only things you really can just get rid of. I wouldn't.

In my experience, Novak's tech articles tend to raise more questions than they answer.

The red gauge cluster was introduced for '88, or possibly late in the '87 model year. The '87 blue cluster is unique to that model year but it is compatible with '87 through '90 vehicles. The '84 to '86 cluster looks similar but is very different otherwise.

Dome lights are full-time power, ground-side switched. Red would be constant 12V. Tan would be a switched ground from the door switch or headlight dimmer, and black will be a full time ground (so the light comes on when you push the light to turn it on)

That is, in fact, how it works. You'll notice that the cam sprocket is twice the size of the crank sprocket and has twice as many teeth. When connected together by the timing chain, the cam will rotate at half the speed of the crank. When two sprockets are connected by a chain, the relative speeds of each sprocket can be found with the following formula: S1 x T1 = S2 x T2 S being the rotational speed, and T being the tooth count of each sprocket. Rearrange some terms around and you can get: S1 / S2 = T2 / T1 On a Jeep 4.0, the crankshaft sprocket has 18 teeth. We'll call that sprocket 1. The camshaft sprocket has 36. That'll be sprocket 2. Plugging in 18 for T1 and 36 for T2, S1 / S2 = 36 / 18 or.. S1 / S2 = 2 or.. S1 = 2 x S2 In other words, sprocket 1 (crank) will rotate at twice the speed of sprocket 2 (cam). Since the sprockets are tightly connected to each other and cannot "slip", that means that the crankshaft will rotate twice for every rotation of the camshaft.

Power windows and locks were available up to, I believe, 1990. By 1991 they definitely were NOT available.

Honestly, I really doubt the radio is worth the price of a used faceplate. That's an entry-level aftermarket radio from 2006, so I doubt your prospects will be good anywhere other than eBay, but the pickings will probably be slim anywhere you look. There are so many different aftermarket radios out there and models change so often that it can be very hard to find parts for a specific one. "Good luck" is about the only help I can offer you.