1987Comanche

Was looking at Copart and came across this: https://www.copart.com/lot/36141061/clean-title-1987-jeep-comanche-chief-tn-knoxville Not exactly sure why it's there but could be a good find for someone.

Great build! Love the fact that you've brought her back from the dead and reincarnated as a 4.0

She was a great ride, powerful and comfortable, neat as a pin inside and out. Finished negotiating with the insurance company and it looks like Copart is picking her up tomorrow or Wednesday. I'd like to find another one.

Been driving the MJ exclusively as the wife's car was totaled by an uninsured driver (long story, quite a saga, & not yet resolved). I took her on a trip to Rod Run in Pigeon Forge and the center link and tie rod helped a lot. She was a bit unsettled on the largest interstate bumps but didn't go into DW. Here's the totaled Olds. 85K miles:

Sweet, sweet MJ! The quality of the build is excellent.

center link play.MOV

And she's a runnner!!

A correctly performed tire balance job calmed the death wobble significantly but it still isn't gone. I checked all of the steering components for the umpteenth time but tried something different. I used Vise Grips to clamp each ball stud and see if there was any movement between stud and knuckle or other mating component. I found play in 2 of the 4 joints and replaced the center link and tie rod. Also did a garage alignment by taping a ruler to the center of each tire and one to the center of the body. It's close enough to get me to the alignment shop.

Had all 4 wheels rebalanced tonight with a combination of hammer on and adhesive wheel weights. I watched the tech spin all 4 wheels up as they were removed and the balancer started spitting out errors: excessive runout/replace wheels. It seems all 4 were way out of balance. Of note none of the wheels had any adhesive weights prior to balance but all required adhesive weights when rebalanced. I made it about 1/2 mile down the highway and the LF hammer on wheel weight came off with a loud bang. I turned right around and went back. They pulled the LF wheel and balanced it again. Interestingly they needed more stick on weights this time. We'll see how she drives now.

I wonder if there's a 1 day "Show & Shine" spot? Looks like they have a 3 day for $80 but I'd only be able to attend 1 day.

The oscillation at 65-70 mph on level ground seemed to start after the rotate/balance. The alignment and R&B happened almost back to back so hard to say what percentage can be assigned to each. I'd thought about going back to Sam's Club to have the tire balance checked. It wouldn't be the first time I'd had tires balanced incorrectly. I can certainly give it a try. I've centered the steering wheel myself a few times by trial & error and, as you've noted, 1/4 turn on the drag link makes a big difference. Haven't done this since replacing the track bar. Last time I could see the old track bar moving a bit against the bushing.

Prior to the last tire balance & alignment she'd only start to shimmy/oscillate when excited by a bump when traveling above 60mph, usually on the RF wheel, and more so when in a right handed turn. The oscillations were longer duration and somewhat violent. Now the shimmy/oscillation can start when driving on a fairly level surface between 65-70mph. It doesn't seem to need an external excitation but is of a much lower amplitude. A bump on the RF wheel and the right handed turn at 55mph still exist but the violence of the event it perhaps 1/3-1/2 of what it was. The truck seems less stable overall but, when events occur, the severity is less.

The steering damper replacement kicked the steering wheel off center so I had another alignment tonight. She's still fairly bouncy. I'll drive her a bit and see what happens.

I should also mention the tires were replaced 5/2016 (2) and 11/2016 (2). All 4 have about 6/32" left.

Loaded up Olds engine #2 and drove it over the mountain to a different machine shop this week. The trip back with an empty bed was challenging. The interstate has a large downhill section with 50-60mph switch backs and she had moderate death wobble on each right hand sweeper with a bump. Yesterday I did an alignment, had the tires rebalanced, and replaced the steering damper. The reason toe was out by an even amount is due to the steering box swap. I'll find out how she drives now but I'm running out of stuff to check.

It's only about 2 hours away for me. Hadn't really given it much thought but it might be fun. How many MJs are usually at the show?

I found a 4WD Renix XJ at Rusty's in Marion, NC a few weeks back. I snapped a quick pic as I walked by as I was on a mission to find an engine block for my Olds. Their inventory list isn't very accurate. I did find an engine but the donor wasn't listed in inventory. https://www.rustyspicapart.com/inventory

Nice! Where were the R&Ps made? Any issues setting them up? I've heard the major manufacturers have sent R&P mfg to India/China and the gear sets have issues. The last one I set up was a used GM 3.42 gear set so I have no firsthand experience on the newer aftermarket sets.

Last Saturday I took Georgia across the mountains to look for a replacement block for the Cutlass. Regardless of the the seller said this one was not rebuildable. Locked up tight and looked like it had been sitting in a pond: Hit a Pull-a-Part on the way back and found a free spinning donor with the right block. I went back across the mountain yesterday to pull the engine. Long day and it was quite cold out but got it done. It was snowing on the way back but the Jeep brought it home, albeit at 45 mph in some spots. With all that weight in the back of the bed no way I was taking snowy curves at 60-65. I've put 600 miles on her chasing engines in the past 2 weekends...

I checked the bracket and tightened all the nuts about 1/3 turn. I'll check the corner of the uniframe for cracks when I have a few minutes Haven't heard much noise recently but she's been on the highway more than anything. The handling is no longer scary but still not quite right. I got the block for the Cutlass back from the machine shop and those idiots didn't check it for cracks. They should do it as a matter of course but I gave them specific, written instructions to check. I found the crack when I retrieved the block. I inspected it prior to unloading from Georgia. I took it back, argued with them, and made them Magnaflux the area in my presence. Huge crack

Getting pretty deep into both the noise and the odd handling. One of the guide pins for the brake caliper was rusted solid and had to be beaten out of the bushing. Interestingly the pads weren't abnormally worn and the bushing was still in good shape. It was on the driver's side so another possible source of noise. I also replaced the front U joints. The noise is/was an occasional loud bang or pop from the driver's side in low speed, high angle turns (parking lot maneuvers). Handling is still a bit off, although better. The steering damper was replaced in 2013 so that might be next.

Been chasing some noises in the front end and also a notable deterioration in handling on the highway. New track bar helped a lot with the handling. Time will tell if the popping under the driver's side of the floor pan goes away. The bushing on the old track bar had really compressed although the rubber still seemed to be in decent shape.

Plastic line, plastic slave with the roll pin in it, correct? There's no pretty way to do it, just pump the clutch pedal, let it sit for a while, then check fluid level. If there's a stubborn air bubble you can pull the slave from the bell housing and raise it as much as possible.

Needed to move the cherry picker around. A few years back I built an easy to assemble overhead beam for the chain fall. It's somewhat time consuming but works great on things that are too heavy for one person to pick up.

Such a clean truck! I love the fact you've had her since day 1!