Crassis-Comanche

You can tell that from the photo? That's awesome and thank you for the head's up Don! When I pop the cover off what am I looking for exactly in there? Are the clutch packs on either side of the case what makes it limited slip? Do they all have that S-spring in there? Ok I will post some photos ASAP but it sounds like you are confidents based on the ID tag. Thanks again! Chris

Just going by what I was told but tomorrow I will check on the tag and remove the cover and have a look. I will post photos too for those with more knowledge to confirm (or deny) :thumbsup:

Well I will re-gear this one to 3.55 to match the front I think for purposes which will be 70 per cent pavement and 30 percent "off road" as in logging roads, mountains etc. this will be a good combo with the AW4.

Limited Slip!

:banana:

Well I just got back from picking up the D44 and I am really excited to work on this thing! Everything was perfect and it was good to talk Comanche Shop Talk with Nic again! But I had the dang A-Team theme song stuck in my head the whole drive home! Thank's a lot for that Eagle! :D

Well I'd like to say a HUGE THANK YOU to Nic (Wiggilez) for hooking me up with the MJ specific D44 he has and I am excited to build it up and put it under the Comanche! He has helped get one step closer to building the MJ of my dreams! :bowdown: And thanks again to everyone who helped me out on this thread so I could have SOME idea of what I was doing! :thumbsup: You guys have no idea how much it's helped and how much I love CC! Chris

Hey Nic I'll thanks for the offer and I'll send you an email :thumbsup: Chris

Dagnabbit! I have been online since my original post and have only been able to find references to disc brake CONVERSION and not STOCK disc brakes which I guess reaffirms what you are saying Eagle about not having factory disc brakes on XJs. Needless to say this bums me out! Sorry Don yes I was told it was an XJ but sadly in my ignorance I didn't know to ask if it was Cherokee or Grand Cherokee. I belive the owner had purchased it from someone else but he does not know anything about the axle's history. Well I guess it's back to hunt for that elusive D44 (with drum brakes! :brows: ). Anyway thanks to you all for the advice and help and I now know a lot about D44 axles than I did a couple of hours ago! Chris

Ok thank you both as this gives me a little bit of clarity especially regarding the shock mounts (that they are not part of the axle and the bolt dimensions). So Don do you think there is a way to use the D35 mount plates but purchase and use the reinforcement plates from a D44? Or are the reinforcement plates part of the shock mount? I am guessing I would have to enlarge the holes in both the D35 shock mount plates and the reinforcement plates? My truck is not here to see my setup and I have never worked on an axle before. As for the drive shaft I am guessing a machine shop or a garage would be the place to have it done? Would the stock drive shaft of a 2WD MJ with a D44 bolt up? Is that an option? I planned to try and build the extendable HS valve rod you did on your truck as I am planning to do a 3" lift too. So that would be a double reason to do it.

Hi All, I have found myself a D44 rear axle with disc brakes from a Jeep XJ. It has had the spring perches and shock mounts removed. I have been searching the threads here regarding these items and I have found the Mopar pearches but I am having trouble finding MJ specific shock mounts. Also, can I just install the axle in place with it's disc brakes? I will do the brake booster upgrade this spring/summer. I currently have the D35 in my '88 Pioneer Long bed with auto trans. I am hoping there won't be a need to change rear drive axle or u-joints etc? Sorry for the noob questions and thanks again! Chris

Ok thanks guys! I will play around with the header panel and try to get it all lined up. Again thanks for all the pointers! Chris

ok thanks I see how the headlight bezels and trim are slightly different as are some of the trim mounting holes. I was struggling with getting the body lines to line up between the fenders and header panel. Maybe I am not tightening it all down properly? Thanks! Chris

Hi all, I recently attempted to put a 1996 Cherokee header panel on my 1988 Comanche and it seems the way the header panel installs is the same by the body lines on the fenders don't seem to line up and there also seems to be a wider gap between the hood and the header panel when the hood is closed. Am I seeing that right? Was there a slight design change between the years? Thanks! Chris

:thumbsup:

Actually there are sooooooo many Jeep XJs featured in the X-Files series! Usually driven by law enforcement/emergency responders or government of course! But if you watch the background on streets and in parking lots you'd be amazed at how many there are. But I've only been able to spot one MJ so far! . :MJ 1: . Maybe Chris Carter's people had a thing for Jeeps!

I am watching both old and new and season 6 is packed full of episodes where the shadowy government suits drive all over the place is bright white 1996 XJs! When I saw the silver Comanche I nearly choked on my Cheetos! :D

Hi All I am looking for a replacement piece of trim for the MJ in chrome. It's the long and thin trim piece that attaches to the top of the header panel and covers the tops of the grille moulding inserts (that hold the side markers in place) connecting the headlamp bezels. Here is a photo for reference (not my Comanche). Thanks! Chris

Also I should mention that I'd like to put the Wilwood manual valve into the lines at the back in place of the stock height sensing valve. I am wondering if I can just swap the two valves and hook the existing lines into the Wilwood? Do I need to run a hard line from the front of the Dist. Block if I choose this route? Thanks all and sorry to beat this whole HSV thing to death - AGAIN - :doh:

Hi All, I need to replace this rear brake hose (It's the centre one that goes up into the bracket near the bottom of the truck bed. I thought I read here there was a hose from a 1996 Dodge Dakota that will work as a replacement? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! Chris

Ok it's been a tense week and a half but I finally followed through on the above suggestions and combined with a Hayne's manual and Cruiser's tips (more on that in a minute) I found what was causing my no start. So a huge thank you to everyone who offered a suggestion on how to diagnose what was happening with the Comanche. So a friend and I figured out how to bench test the starter motor and solenoid (which were both good albeit ancient!) and I plan to replace that setup at some point. And I did replace my deteriorated positive and negative battery cables and checked my two main grounds. At that point I still had no start. I have been reading the Hayne's book and trying to teach myself to read the wiring diagrams and have some help from Youtube as well and basically tried to teach myself to use a multi-meter and then I started thinking about going back over Cruiser's Tips and sure enough I came back to this... "4. Coil/ICM contacts The contacts between the coil and the ICU on your Renix Jeep can become corroded and loose causing a complete or intermittent no-start condition. I recommend the following procedure as a maintenance precaution to insure this is eliminated as a possible cause now and in the future." And whaddya know! When I had originally started refreshing the grounds and cleaning contacts to get rid of the corrosion I somehow bent the metal tab inside the connector of my S Wire (to the starter solenoid) so part of it was sticking out of the connector and not making any contact with the ICU. I gently pushed the tab back inside the plastic connector and BAM! The jeep fire right up! I tested this a few times and now I am back in business. Man this site and this community are AWESOME!!! :bowdown: Thanks again! Now I can get back to Project Hosehead Eh!? Chris

Ok, checked the dipstick stud area again and dug out the cheap eTorx sockets and got the nut and stud apart cleaned them, cleaned the grounds and put it all back together and still having the same issue. I did notice that my positive battery cable's rubber coating is badly deteriorated (down low by the starter/solenoid) like the negative one is. One thing that is bugging me is the fact I have good electrical function throughout the truck. As I mentioned before all my signals, lights buzzer etc. are functioning well. But there is a strange anomaly in the dash when the turn the key to ON, my parking brake indicator lamps comes on (and goes off when I release the key) and my temperature gauge needle goes all the way to the right simultaneously (with the P. Brake lamp) and drops back down when the key is released. So does this sound like a funky ground somewhere? To be clear the truck fired right up after I installed the new sensors and added the upgraded gauge cluster, changed spark plugs, wires and oil change. But then... I drained the coolant, pulled the rad and began cleaning the two major grounds, unplugged any connector I could find and sprayed them out with electrical contact cleaner, cleaned out the C101 and my front lighting connectors. Hooked everything back up and nada! Also I am pretty sure I am in Park! :laughin: But I should be able to start the truck in Neutral yes? Thanks all. Chris PS this is what my new engine to ground chassis cables looks like. It's now attached to both the firewall and engine stud (where original braided wire used to be).

Well I did have the nut off the dipstick ground and cleaned everything up there and reattached. Now the nut and stud are moving together and I cannot seem to separate them. It seems like I can tighten the whole thing down but it's pulling the smaller ground wires really tight and I am afraid I may break them. But everything from the battery ground and the other smaller grounds, stud and nut are all turning as one unit. Suggestions? Thanks!