mfpdm

I've been cleaning up some parts here and there but nothing to great. Got the seats torn apart and waiting for them to dry. Put a write-up in the DIY on them. One of the parts I was cleaning was the throttle body. Didn't think I was going to be able to just scrub it up without a hammer and chisle but was quite surprised it came clean with a toothbrush and this Now it's clean on the inside at least. Should have some better progress on the build in a few days. :cheers:

I saw you post in tech, hit the link in your sig, and have to say that was awesome how you brought your truck back after being hit in the rear. Nicely done. :thumbsup: :cheers:

This should cover everything needed to restore a set of bucket seats to better than average condition. This write up is very long but should cover all the problems associated with bucket seats like fixing broken tilt levers, out of shape bolsters, headrest, and a few other things. It will take about two days to do everything in this write-up due to drying times but the results should be worth it. First if you don't already have buckets, you need to find a good set from another MJ or 2dr XJ. These are courtesy of the CFC's program. They are in good shape but could use a little TLC. Best of all is that they are tilt forward and that the trim pieces around the tilt lever, is not broke. Remove the seat from the floor bracket. It's pretty easy but if you need help, look at my other write-up HERE to see how. We'll work on the back cushion first since it has more things to do to get the slipcover off. First you should remove the headrest if you haven't already. To take it completely out you must turn the post that has the little arrow on it and then pull the headrest off. Next remove the back adjustment lever on the outer side of which ever seat you started with. Use a small screwdriver to lift the little tab that is holding it on. Be careful not to use too much force. It only takes a little to lift it up and then pull the lever off. Then remove the two screws that hold the tilt lever trim on. Be careful when working with this as they tend to break. Lift it up enough to pull the vinyl out from underneath it. Now feed the trim piece under the vinyl and out of the way. Now we are ready to start pulling the slipcover off. Flip up the back cushion so the bottom is up and undo the velcro. Be careful not to just jerk it apart as it might tare the velcro from the vinyl. Be sure to get the small pieces on each side. Now roll the slipcover a couple of inches like you would roll up a pant leg. You can know see the velcro that holds the cover onto the front of the seat. Again do not just rip this apart. Work you hand in between the two pieces separating the velcro easily. Now continue to invert the slip cover as you pull it up. This will get easier after you get past the side bolsters. You may need to separate the velcro again as you work this off. Now remember that you must slip the tilt lever through it's opening and also you will need to remove the headrest post prior to taking it all the way off. These can be a PITA. There are two push clips holding them in. You will need to push these together and then push the post up through the seat frame. You may need to use a pair of pliers to push them together and then while pulling from the top, push with the pliers from the bottom. Here's a view of this little PITA. Arrow point out the clips. You can now free the cover from the seat. Depending on your year of seats, you may have plastic trim around the holes in the vinyl for the headrest. Once the cover is off, you can reach in and pull the back piece off of the trim to get it out. Here's both pieces removed. Set that cover aside and now work on the bottom cushion. Flip it over and remove the six phillips head screws holding the slip cover on to the back. Then remove the two steel wires that run along the sides which the screws were holding. Flip the cushion over and using the same procedure you used on the back cushion, separate the velcro from the cushion and slip cover. You should now be able to slip the cushion right out of the slipcover. Once you have it off, remove the two other wires, one front and one back. Also take off the clip that holds the two sides around the back of the seat frame. Make sure you have all four wires and one clip off each seat. Washing machines don't like them. Prior to the slipcovers going into the washing machine, you need to scrub them down to get the heavy stuff off. Also, the washing machine will do very little for the vinyl, as water does not pass through it so the dirt and grime will still be there if you don't scrub it first. Being the unofficial spoke person for Purple Power, I use it to degrease and clean everything. Use a medium bristle brush so not to harm the slipcover especially the fabric. I use the scrub, rinse, scrub, and rinse technique. Here's some greasy grime. Now it's gone. Ok, now that you have scrub them all down, they are ready for the machine. I use the permanent press cycle as it has a slower agitation rate and will be less likely to harm the slipcover. This will be up to you as you know your own machine. Use a lightly scented detergent and no fabric softener. You will thank me later for that tip as the ones I put in the 86 had both and took months to get rid of the smell. Too much for such a small space. Hang them up to dry. The dryer will melt the vinyl and will probably shrink the covers. Try to keep them in a natural position to avoid creases. While the washing machine is doing it's thing work on the cushions themselves. The back can be separated from the frame. Just be careful when taking it off. The foam cushion can tell you a couple of things. First if you have a split at the side bolster, The rubber trim has probably come off of the steel wing Just fit it back on. Also if you have wrinkles in the foam, Then the wing has been bent out of shape BEFORE Carefully bent it back out till it looks like they are even. AFTER You may find that one side has separated from the frame all together. I didn't have that here but have seen it on others. I usually just drill a small hole in the wing and one in the frame and use a small sheet metal screw to re-attach it. This is a good time to fix the tilt releases. One of mine, the lever moved up and down freely. This is a good indication of a broken cable. ( I did the next steps prior to taking the foam off the frame but it would be better to do after you have removed the foam. ) Depending on the year of your seats you may have a cover over the seat tilt latch. There are two small clips holding it in. Just push them in and lift the cover off. Here is what I suspected. The cable has broken right at the latch. I pulled a cable from the JY off another set of less than desirable buckets. Here's the replacement and the broken one. You can see by the arrow the cable broke were the end piece attaches. Just route the cable back in as it came out and attach the ends through the holes. One in the lever and the other in the latch. Test it out. If it doesn't pull the latch far enough to release the back, that would indicate that you didn't replace the zip tie in the corner. This little zip tie could be the only thing not letting your seat back release and could be fixed without taking the seat apart as I have here. Here is the factory one. It's not that big and I will replace it with a stronger one to prevent future problems. Wash the cushions. I sprayed them with Purple Power, let it set for a few minutes and then rinsed them off until I saw no more suds. Don't use the brush on them unless absolutely needed. Set the cushions up so that they are off the ground to let the water drain out of them. This will probably take a couple days or one really hot one to be completely dry. Lastly on our things to look at or repair, is the headrest. Scrub them down with you know what, and inspect the bottom of them. One of mine had the material loose. To fix this, remove the two screws and pull the rod assembly out. Now if your head rest is kind of floppy and slides up and down funny, it may be that the clips that you see in the above picture have come off allowing the rod to slide up and down in the headrest. To fix my problem, reseat the vinyl into the four tabs and tuck in the ends. Replace the rod assembly and put the screws back in. This can be put in backwards so note the way it came out. Now your ready to assemble everything back together. That is if it is all dry. First put the foam back on and make sure the plastic clips that snap onto the frame are attached. I had a couple that had come loose. They are only held in by a small amount of glue. I just used some spray adhesive and put them back in. Gave it a couple of minutes and put the foam back on the frame making sure the clips are were they should be. Now putting the slipcover back on is a little bit of a pain but you just have to keep working it till it's back on. You may have to work it around a bit to get it to look right. Also, important note, PUT THE HEADREST TRIM PIECES BACK ON BEFORE YOU PUT IT ON THE SEAT. Yeah, they are a PITA afterwards. You should now have something like this. https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4237/35077758733_4800166ae0_z.jpg Put the tilt trim screws back in and slide the adjustment lever back on. Also put the headrest post thingies back in making sure that the locking one is on the side that the headrest post with the notch is on. You may notice some white residue left over from the wash. Just use a mild cleaner and wipe it off. Before https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4314/35077758833_5e26431f36_z.jpg After https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4325/35886975965_ca4816b495_z.jpg The vinyl will get a mild cleaning once more when done and a nice vinyl conditioner put on. After all the scrubbing, washing, and drying, they have little moisture left in them. Also, you may have a few pulled threads or fuzzies on the fabric. Use a lint shaver to take care of these.(Ask your wife or girlfriend, they will have one) https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4239/35077758773_a8107c6592.jpg One finally repair and that is on the foam. The one side was split so I used the spray adheseve to bond the halfs bactk together and then put a piece of duct tape to help hold it while it dried and also to help protect it during the slipcover installation. https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4266/35886976015_220af0f186.jpg https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4286/35077759033_2e146ea140.jpg The cushions took a lot longer than anticepated to dry but all the seats are back together. I put a light coat of vinyl reconditioner on them. I'll get better pic's later but here is one set. https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4328/35886976075_50e6023f8a_z.jpg All in all I think it was worth it to have a nice set of clean seats that function the way they should. Afterall, who knows what kind of people have been sitting in them for the last 15 years. :ack:

Here's a link about the maint timer. http://library.motoralldata.com/techRef ... /Jeep.html Also, I got this from another search. Would be interesting if this truely works. :cheers:

Well, I went ahead and replaced both sides with new calipers and rotors. Work much better. I have a feeling that when I replaced the pads that I may have nicked or damaged the caliper trying to get the piston back far enough to get it on. I did notice that the rotors were a tad bit thinner which made installation a lot easier. I was really suprised that the brake pads even after what they went through, showed no difference from side to side. I took them with me to the store and compared them to a new set and there was just the slightest bit of difference so I reused them. After all I did just put them on. I got to say I think I'm sold on the wearever gold pads. Very tough. Thanks for ya'lls input. :cheers:

You may want to put an add in the classifieds to see if maybe someone has the pieces in the color your looking for. Then you could list the ones you have to help offset the price. :thumbsup: Paint is ok but I would try to find the panels first and use paint as a last resort. :cheers:

So on the way to the scrapman today, my left front caliper locked up and nearly caught on fire.(smoking pretty bad) I limped it home and pretty much, the brake pads I put on about a month ago are gone and the rotor is toast. So question here is, what are the normal causes of the caliper failing? Is it just the unit itself or could it be more involved? If I put a new caliper on one side do I have to swap the one on the other, like your suppose to do with rotors and pads? Oh yea, this is a 2004 rubicon D44 axle in my 2000 TJ. :cheers:

Very nice. :bowdown: Wasn't trying to be a smart @ss was just wondering. I guess I didn't quite understand the brake switch wiring but now it's clear with the link. I'll see how that will work for my application. Yea the renix era XJ has two 10 pin vice the later HO era 16 pin connectors and the MJ has one 10 pin and one 6 pin connector for the rear harness. He should be able to make it work now that he has your link for the HO era wiring and my pin out for the Renix era. His best bet would be to make a jumper using the old harness and the rear xj harness connectors. Since my next project will be HO, links saved. Thanks. Plus I'll be able to reference them in my write up for those with HO era. :cheers:

Well, I bought it from a guy who bought it from another guy. My guy said he thought it had a blown head gasket but had not tried to start it. Soooo, I think he knew and just didn't want to blow the deal. I wasn't wanting it for the motor anyway so I didn't care what condition it was in. But yea, I bet the last 60 seconds of it's life was pretty exciting. :cheers:

Don't think so... looks identical to my first Craftsman set, 263 piece set that came holder thinger with 3 or 4 drawers. That be the one. Got it on some rediculous sale one day. Had to go to three stores to find one in stock. Don't know how I lived without it. :D :cheers:

The wire run between the brake switch and the turn signal connector? I've put '92XJ and '96XJ harnesses in MJs, and that only took a moment, so i'm curious why you are looking for another option. Or is it more involved with the pre-HO harnesses? From the brake switch to the rear harness. Sorry should have been more specific. But since your at it, explain this moment it took you to wire up the rear MJ harness to the XJ dash harness so we might learn. Pic's would be nice. :thumbsup: :cheers:

That's because the XJ's have a separate bulb for the signal lamp and the MJ's are dual purpose, stop and turn. I know some have run a separate brake wire to fix this and I'm hoping to solve this problem without going that route but haven't got there yet. :cheers:

Can't remember who, but I know someone on here was looking for AMC key blanks at one time. Here is a set on ebay Click Here :cheers:

Absolutely :thumbsup: And I can reuse the spark plug too. Just need to bend it back into shape.

Well at least that's all good for you. The pic's above are Renix era so they will be different than yours but may help you out a little. The HO era went to different connectors for the dash to rear harness. The color coding will be close but not exact. The FSM posted above may help you with the dash harness however the best one is the wiring troubleshooting manual as it gets in to more detail as what wire goes to what connector pin. At least you can use the MJ pinout part that I posted. :cheers:

So, was breaking down the motor that came out of the 87 parts truck just to see how bad off it was. Figured I could at least save a few internals for spares or maybe even rebuild it. SLUDGE!! :ack: I wondered why the radiator had no liquid in it. :shake: Here's what laid beneath the head. KABOOM!! :eek: #4, or what's left of it and a good bit of the cylinder wall is missing. Well, I think I'll just throw it in the pile with the rest of the stuff for the scrapman. :thumbsup:

The turn signal switch is in the column just under the clock ring. Need a few more details here. Did you swap in an HO motor? The dash harness for the HO's are a little different than the Renix era and even though it mates up to the bulkhead connector, there is some wires that were moved around and do somethings different. You'll need the same era as what ever your engine harness is. You can do it but this will cause a whole lot more wiring problems than you face right now. I'm working on a write-up on using a XJ dash harness with an MJ rear harness right now and will hopefully be done soon. I've pinned out all the wires, just have to match everything up. I'll try to post my pinout here shortly but it may just confuse you more because they are Renix era specific. :roll: EDIT: Here's the pinout and it's rough and I'm still verifing that all are correct with the actual harness but so far so good.(I pulled this from the trouble shooting FSM for the 88 MJ and the one for the 88 XJ) :cheers:

I thought for sure this was leading to a Monty Python joke.

It always gets a chuckle out of me too. I do have a nice set of New old stock tail lights now for the build. These will be her Sunday go to meeting Clothes. :cheers:

I've always just pulled them off by hand. Worked my fingers into the top. Then worked both hands down each side at the same time (Not shown, one hand had to use the camera) Then when you get to the bottom, with both hands, one on either side, kind of using a pulling rocking motion while you pull it off. With it off you can see the 4 holes that the plastic thingies push in to. Just remember to go slow because it is 20+ year old plastic. And yes, I took the pic's to do a write-up but never got around to it. :shake: :cheers:

Nope, haven't tackled that yet. Really hate that I can't get this thing higher on the priority list of crap to do. It's kind of like this picture, every time I think about getting something done, something else blindsides me.

You know this is all great pretend but I can't help but wonder how many red flags have been triggered over this threads title in say, half a dozen or so federal agencys that monitor the web. :peek: Not to mention the organizations that will use anything to chastise the armed forces. I can see now that some group uses this to say the government hates religion by using churchs as target practice. :roll:

This should do you just fine. viewtopic.php?f=9&t=12734

I think the spring on the seat slider is about the same size or may get you by. :cheers:

The older set up will need a hole cut and a new cable made or mod to make it work. Shelbyluv used the newer 97+ in his build. Here's the link and pic. viewtopic.php?f=7&t=11834&start=45 I at one time thought about this mod but it takes away space that could be way more useful for other things. :cheers: