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Comanche Of The Month - February 2013

Automan2164
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Automan2164 Obsessive Comanche Disorder

Automan2164

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This month we honor one of our veteran members, who just happened to end up with 2 MJ's bought at different times that rolled off the line 11 Jeeps apart.

 

MVUSSE's 1987 Comanches

 

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MODEL(s) AND YEAR(s)

Wilbur: 1987 Comanche Pioneer

 

Purple People Eater: 1987 Comanche (base model I believe)

 

 

ENGINE & PERFORMANCE:

Wilbur: 4.0, no mods.

PPE: 2.5, no mods.

 

 

DRIVETRAIN:

Wilbur: AW4, NP231, was D30 front, 29 spline 8.25 rear, Aussie locker in both, 3.55 gears. Currently halfway through swapping in a high pinion 60 with welded spider gears and will get a Sterling 10.25 rear as soon as the front is done. 4.10 gears.

 

PPE: AX4 replaced with AX5, 2wd converted to 4wd with a NP231, D30, D35 both open, 3.55 gears. 5th gear is gutless, but mileage at 75mph is now 25% better than it was with the AX4.

 

 

COOLING:

Wilbur: Stock mechanical fan plus a junk yard stock style electric fan run off a temp sensor in a HO thermostat housing and a home made controller. Added spacers to the hood hinges after the engine vapor locked twice last summer wheeling in 90+ degree heat.

 

PPE: Stock

 

 

ELECTRICAL & IGNITION:

Wilbur: Fan controller switches to turn the electric fan on, off, or auto. In cab winch controls, CB radio.

 

PPE: Did not have a clock or cigarette lighter (but did have an ash tray!?). Needed power for my GPS, so I added the lighter socket, threw a clock in there too since I had it apart. Came from the factory with the radio delete package, but that had been rectified by the previous owner. Also swapped in power locks and windows from a 1996 XJ I had bought for parts.

 

 

STEERING:

Wilbur: Durango steering box

 

PPE: stock

 

 

SUSPENSION:

Wilbur: Front 1.75" spacers and 4.5" lift springs. Rear SOA with rearched springs and Chevy drop shackles.

 

PPE: Had 1.75" spacers and chevy drop shackles when I got it. Lowered it back down to stock height.

 

INTERIOR:

Wilbur: Black with stock vinyl bucket seats. Currently has the base door panels to which I added the (grey) speaker grilles from that parts XJ, and short arm rests. Took the headliner out since the fabric was hanging down on top of my head 5 years ago, never got around to fixing it and putting it back in.

 

PPE: Black. Had a bench seats, but the Previous owner swapped in grey Cherokee seats. Still need to do something about that. Swapped in the pioneer door panels from Wilbur along with the map pockets, speaker grilles and hockey stick arm rests. Aftermarket (black) headliner.

 

BRAKES:

Wilbur: Front: newer style (92+?) that don't use the separate caliper bracket. Rear: ZJ disc brakes redrilled to fit the 3: 8.25 axle tubes. Load sensing valve zip tied in place.

 

PPE: Front: newer style (92+?) that don't use the separate caliper bracket. Rear is stock.

 

 

LIGHTING:

Both stock.

 

 

WHEELS/TIRES:

Wilbur: 35x12.50 Maxxis Buckshot Mudders in 15x8 Cragar Soft 8s. Need 16" or larger to clear the brakes on the new axles, so will be getting rewelded Hummer double beadlocks with used Military 37x12.50 MT tires.

 

PPE: Summer: Stock steel wheels painted black with a chrome trip ring running whatever used but usable all season radials I have around, P235/75R15. Winter: Wilbur's original aluminum 10 spokes with P235/75R15 Wintermark snow tires. Stock size on this truck was P205/75R15 so the speedometer is off a bit. 1.5" wheel spacers on the rear for cosmetic reasons.

 

MISCELLANEOUS:

Wilbur: Aftermarket off road winch bumper with XRC10 winch, bed skins cut off, entire bed will be removed in a month or two.

 

PPE: Bit by bit upgrading with stock options. Currently has an all chrome grill/headlight buckets. Piece of galvanized pipe for a rear bumper I still need to do something about.

 

 

Best MJ story

There are so many. Like when a front wheel broke off on the freeway when the unit bearing split in half. Or when it broke off again 2 months later in the middle of a river because the upper balljoint broke. It was the only part on that side of the axle I had not replaced.

 

Or how I ended up with the PPE.

 

But I think I will start at the beginning:

1986, still living in The Netherlands, we went vacationing in Canada for 4 weeks. While there I saw a Jeep Comanche parked in a ride share parking lot. Loved to look of it, especially the fender flares, and had never seen anything like it.

 

Fast forward to 2008. My Geo Prizm spun a bearing. This left me with a Suburban that got 12 mpg. I like having two vehicles so I can drive one while I'm working on the other one. Before the Geo my 2nd vehicle was a F100 that also got 12mpg, but I had come to like the fuel economy of the 4 cylinder. Then an acquaintance of mine tells me he knows of a 4 cylinder Jeep pickup truck for sale. Turned out to be a 4 litre, but realizing this was the truck I fell in love with 22 years earlier I had to get it. The front end was wrecked so I started by fixing it up. Then after a trip off road bone stock I started building it up, first as a weekend wheeler, then more of a dedicated off road rig. The rust spots i had have become holes, the hole it had have become larger and it doesn't have an undented piece of metal left on it anywhere. I'm kind of sad about how bad it looks. That's why the PPE is staying stock and never going off road.

 

Now in 2013 I have two of them, with the serial numbers only 11 apart.

 

What owner loves best about CC

Everybody willing to help everybody out. Complete strangers brought together only by a vehicle they own. When I first got on the site, a member pmed me out of the blue to let me know about an ebay auction for a complete header panel I needed. When I still needed a bunch of other parts to fix up Wilbur, I got contacted by Bob Wild (Wildman). From him I got a hood, fender, gas tank, trailer hitch, rear springs, fan shroud and possible more stuff I just can't remember. He even drove two and a half hours from Buffalo to meet me halfway after which we talked (mostly about Comanches) for more than 5 hours before finally heading home.

 

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-------------------------------------------------

 

Marcel, again, we find ourselves in that member category that makes us wonder how we missed you for this long. A constant presence on Comanche Club, you are always here to lend a hand, some advice, or share a story. Wilbur has always been something I have looked up to as a nice capable truck without blowing out the bank. You've made changes as you've come upon limits or obstacles, and it looks like you have a big change for the better on the horizon. As with any MJer, one wasn't enough and you couldn't resist pulling the trigger something you could drive every day, even if the previous owner got a little creative with the paint job. It just happened that they belong together, and for all we know, the gap between them could have been all XJ's.

 

Congrats on your MJOTM, enjoy the spotlight.

 

Rob :cheers:

 

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neohic Obsessive Comanche Disorder

neohic

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I remember back when we were all at Pete's place... for whatever reason, there was this thing that you said that has stuck with me and I say it at every opportunity that I can. I know, it doesn't really sound like much. It was just more of a you had to be there type of deal and the way that it was said. It was about 11:00 at night. Imagine three dudes sitting around in some guy's living room that we've never met before just kickin' it, keeping it real, talking Jeeps, and throw in a heated discussion about internet connections just for fun. Then, abruptly, the biggest (and only) dutchman I've ever seen stands up and storms out the front door. I stand at 6'1" and this guy towers over me! He comes back in about a minute later with a cooler and starts passing out some Mike's. What did he say? "Who brought the chips?!" It was awesome!!! I was tired. It was late. Then this gets said in a thick, dutch accent. Again, I know it doesn't sound like much, but this is what sticks with me most about meeting Marcel.

 

Now it's anytime I'm at any kind of gathering or party and it's always, "Who brought the chips?!". Of course, nobody ever has a clue about what I'm talking about so I get to fill them in on that one time there was a group of strangers that came together from different states with a common interest. Usually I get blank stares followed by some question about why one would want to travel so far to hang out, and sleep, at someone's house whom you've never met. I try and explain, but then comes the blank stares again. Anyhow...

 

Hooray for the flying dutchman!!!

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Pete M down with the MJ sickness

Pete M

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"Who brought the chips?!" Now it's anytime I'm at any kind of gathering or party and it's always, "Who brought the chips?!". Of course, nobody ever has a clue about what I'm talking about so I get to fill them in on that one time there was a group of strangers that came together from different states with a common interest. Usually I get blank stares followed by some question about why one would want to travel so far to hang out, and sleep, at someone's house whom you've never met. I try and explain, but then comes the blank stares again. Anyhow...

 

:rotf: :rotf: :rotf: :rotf:

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