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What are manual MJs like to drive?


Minuit
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Not sure where this really fits... I was going to put it in Tech but this isn't really a technical question. :dunno:

 

This is mostly aimed at the 4.0/5speed crowd, but any input is welcome. Eventually, I'm going to convert my truck to 4x4, and since that means switching transmissions, I'm considering doing an AX-15 swap. I'd greatly prefer to have a manual truck, but I've never driven an XJ or MJ with a manual. What are they like? Do they have ridiculous shift throws like older fullsize trucks? How does a manual MJ compare to an automatic one? I realize this is a really subjective question, but I'd like to have as much information as possible if I'm going to consider doing this.

 

Thanks y'all. :thumbsup:

 

 

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I loved driving my manual Comanche. It came with the puke goat tranny and I swapped in an nv3550 which is pretty similar to the ax15. They don't have super long shift throws like older truck. I've never driven an automatic Comanche but my sister has an automatic 2000 cherokee and the Comanche was more fun to drive in my opinion. My dad used to always take my MJ instead of his f350 when i wasn't using it because he liked driving it.

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I love my standard, just have to keep in mind that most of the torque is low in the rpm band. I keep forgetting, cause my daily driver is a '85 honda civic w/ 5 spd. It's pretty much exactly the opposite! Lol

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Going from ba-10/5 to AX15 the shifter is MUCH higher than before, but the throw is still short. I really like driving like this, its a tall shifter like my 70 ford but without to nut buster reverse position.

 

Here's a pic of how it sits.

 

Aint nothing more fun than kicking down and opening it up on a backroad. Even if it's just an anemic 6cyl in a truck.

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I love the driving on my comanche (ax5)

Compared to my 99 gmc Sonoma 5speed

Let's just say that the gmc was tough but I got used to it and the comanche it's like butter...

People hated driving the gmc because the clutch was like pushing a spring that didn't want to go down....

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I miss driving shifting a manual everyday. When I work in repair my daily was a rotten '89 that I swapped to 4wd... loved that truck. It sported 33s on a crappy Rough Country 3" lift. I never regeared it so even with the 3.07s it was still a bunch of fun! My '72 VW is a 4spd and I can't tell you how much fun it is to throw that little car around town. Also, for a couple years after I changes jobs I drove back and forth to work about 150 mile round trip. I did that in a '98 Jetta with a four cylinder/5spd... still miss that car. Not a lot of power, but the trans made up for it!

 

On the flip side, I can jump in my Eliminator and I don't really beat it up at all. Granted, I can't really say that I really beat on any of my vehicles but when I put my foot into it I sometimes catch myself reaching over as if looking to grab another gear. This truck WILL be a manual someday.

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The AX-15 is a robust trans and easy to learn on. The clutch is smooth and predictable and the gears engage easily. Mine definitely has its own personality. If i keep the rpms low (1800 and below) i can shift with one finger, but if i romp on her shifting can get stiff. I think i can help myself out a lot by putting in that redline stuff, right now i have Shaffers. It came highly recommended by my mechanic, but i am pretty sure i should not have put it in there. Its expensive as sh*t too.

 

To me, it has a long-ish throw, but not bad. I wouldnt mind if the shifting lever were a little longer. 

 

When it comes to offroading a manual, of any kind, can be your best friend or your worst nightmare. Gearing is everything. That is why i have considered swapping to an auto. With proper gearing i think a manual is a lot more fun offroad, but you really have to know how to work it otherwise you will find yourself stalling out constantly and getting rather frustrated. In mud and other slippery surfaces manuals are great, but for climbing/rock crawling/ and other technical stuff an auto is just about required.

 

Up here in TN, i have more or less stopped offroading because it is miseriable in the hills with my current gearing (3.07). Down in FL however, a manual is where its at, 2nd gear and mat it!  :rock on:

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Love my manual it's great for the mountains but in Tennessee I don't think that would be a selling point. Manuals are always more fun to drive in my opinion and on road I love having more control over the gears then an auto. The shift throws aren't long but I've only driven wranglers and Comanches that are manual so I couldn't compared to non-jeep vehicles.

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I like driving my ax-15 MJ in the snow and regular driving. On the other hand in the LJ, I like the horrendous 42rle in traffic and wheeling. If you could actually like a minivan transmission in a jeep, and it is difficult to be changed out to a AW-4 because the TCM is integrated into the ECM.

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When it comes to offroading a manual, of any kind, can be your best friend or your worst nightmare. Gearing is everything. That is why i have considered swapping to an auto. With proper gearing i think a manual is a lot more fun offroad, but you really have to know how to work it otherwise you will find yourself stalling out constantly and getting rather frustrated. In mud and other slippery surfaces manuals are great, but for climbing/rock crawling/ and other technical stuff an auto is just about required.

 

 

I just switched my auto out for a manual.  It's mostly a trail only trucks that does get driven on the road occasionally.  I only go offroad in the rocks and technical trails, my next trip out will definitaly be a change of pace, hopefully I like it.

 

Comparing the auto to the manual, it's like a night and day difference.  I didn't change anything else other than the trans, with the manual, it's definitely a bit quicker feeling, due to the different gear ratios.  The throw on the shifter isn't very long, I'd say it's fairly standard, comparable to a cheap economy car shifter throw.   They do make a short throw shifter for it if you wanted one though.

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I have an '87 with the manual ba10 and 235 tires.  I have the factory 3.07 gearing which I always planned to convert to 3.73.  3.07 is way too high so I frequently need to treat it like a 4 speed on the highway.  I often wondered if an automatic would have hidden that sin a little better or made it worse. But I am a poor judge too.  My daily driver is a ford raptor and it has 400+hp so the experience is a little different between the two trucks.  I love the manual transmission in the MJ.  I wish the raptor had it.

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I prefer standards and all the MJs I own and have owned have been standards. But my wife's 2000 XJ is an automatic, and so is the 2001 XJ I bought for my daughter. Around my area I prefer the 5-speed, but I have to admit that in urban, stop-and-crawl traffic the automatic is a godsend.

 

I will also point out that (as much as I don't like to admit it) the automatic is FAR better for rock crawling and various other off-road adventures. I was able to keep up with the pack in the '88 XJ and the '88 MJ, but it was tough on the clutch, and tougher on the suspension and drive train in general than wheeling with an automatic.

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I love my 88 4.0 5speed. Its a 2wd and only has 3.07s but it has balls and in town I get almost 18mpg. I live in the Birmingham area so we have some pretty steap hills, It handles them like a champ

 

Steap? hills in Birmingham? You live in the UK mate?

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Manual MJ's are a lot more fun to drive. But...they suck in drive thrus in the morning or at busy periods. So, basically, if you aren't a fatty eating mcdonalds every day, you will love it

I take mine through drive-thru all the time. Gotta have my Timmy's. Yeah, I drink coffee, work the radio, and drive stick :). I love my manual in all situations. Anyone who's driven my MJ comments on how nice the transmission is, especially for its age. 

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Going from ba-10/5 to AX15 the shifter is MUCH higher than before, but the throw is still short. I really like driving like this, its a tall shifter like my 70 ford but without to nut buster reverse position.

 

Here's a pic of how it sits.

That's not an XJ/MJ shifter. It's out of a YG or TJ Wrangler, and they have longer shift handles.

 

I have an '87 MJ 5-speed, and '88 XJ 5-speed, and a 2000 XJ 5-speed. The shift handles are all the same length. Shift throws are not massively long, but they're also not short-throw like a sports car. And it has to be kept in mind that the transmissions -- all of them -- aren't drag race transmissions. If you like to bang shifts like a drag racer, you WILL destroy the synchronizers in a short time.

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Manual MJ's are a lot more fun to drive. But...they suck in drive thrus in the morning or at busy periods. So, basically, if you aren't a fatty eating mcdonalds every day, you will love it

 

Why do they suck in drive throughs?   You don't even have to hit the gas when letting the clutch out.   It's almost like lifting your foot off the brake to move a little.

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