mnkyboy Posted August 30, 2015 Share Posted August 30, 2015 A few weeks ago my brother drug this MJ home,it's an 87 2.5l AX4 short box 4x4. The guy said it ran fine but the clutch was slipping and one day there was a pop and the clutch quit,he figured something had come apart in the clutch. When we looked at it the engine wouldn't turn over. My brother had no plans for the truck it was just a good deal so he got it,I went back and forth on buying it from him and finally decided to look it over better. I pulled the transmission and found the clutch was fried but still in one piece,and the engine was still stuck. with further investigation i found a smashed valve on cylinder #1,looks like the clutch was slipping really bad and the guy was determined to make it move. I thought about it a bit and after some horse trading with my brother the little MJ was mine. I have a spare engine for my other MJ that I can stick in it to get it going again then the plan is to take all the old parts from my other MJ and stuff them under it. I have a 6.5" lift,33" tires,a late model D30 and disc brake D44 both locked with 4.88s along with some other stuff from the build. Plan for this one is a driver thats capable enough for some mild wheeling and I will use my other one for the crazy stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunnc1991 Posted August 30, 2015 Share Posted August 30, 2015 Looking forward to this one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outlaw star Posted August 30, 2015 Share Posted August 30, 2015 Round two...Fight! Lol. Looking forward to this one as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted August 30, 2015 Author Share Posted August 30, 2015 I'm still finishing up the white one and I'm in the process of moving so hopefully i can get to it soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted October 19, 2015 Author Share Posted October 19, 2015 Saturday i decided to pop the head off and see if the engine was repairable,the broken valve was jammed in the head and the piston was trashed which wasn't surprising. The piston was also cocked a little in the bore,i got it to move and found that the block is cracked. I figured the engine would need replaced and now it's confirmed,it's just too bad that the engine won't even make a good core to hang onto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted October 20, 2015 Author Share Posted October 20, 2015 Carnage pic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88whitemanche Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 Man that's bad... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted October 20, 2015 Author Share Posted October 20, 2015 Ya,it's too bad that it's so bad off. I guess i need to start getting my other 2.5l ready to drop in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outlaw star Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 Crap man, that's toast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 Looks like this one is going 4.0l and AX15. I worked a deal with a buddy for a strong running 4.0l donor rig so the blown up 2.5l paperweight is coming out and a 4.0l is going in. I should be picking up the donor soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted November 16, 2015 Author Share Posted November 16, 2015 Picked up the 4.0l donor rig,i took it up to the shop this morning and stripped it. Now to put all the pieces into the MJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88whitemanche Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 I'm eager to see how the motor mounts are positioned for the 4.0 compared the the 2.5....I'm sooo eager to drop in a 4.0... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted November 17, 2015 Author Share Posted November 17, 2015 Hopefully i can get it bolted in soon,the 4.0l had Brown dog block mounts on it which my buddy wanted back so i am waiting for him to swap them onto his new build so i can get his stock mounts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 So i got a tempting offer. A buddy picked up a 91 MJ with a 2.5l,since he knows that i like the 2.5ls he asked me if i would be interested in the 4banger parts because he is putting in a 4.0l. He will sell me everything to 2.5 MPI swap the MJ,I already have a 4.0l,AX15,wiring,and other parts for a 4.0l swap but I originally wanted to keep this truck a 2.5l. decisions decisions.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outlaw star Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 Hey, did you ever have a problem with your AX-4 1st gear as in acting like a L instead of a 1st? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted February 15, 2016 Author Share Posted February 15, 2016 I know we already talked about it on messenger but here is the ratios for an AX4,AX5 is the same but with .85 overdrive. 1st is almost 4:1 so it feels pretty deep,I think thats how i got away with 3.55s and 33s. Number of forward gears 1st Gear 3.93 2nd Gear 2.33 3rd Gear 1.45 4th Gear 1.00 Reverse 4.74 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outlaw star Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 Thanks man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted April 17, 2016 Author Share Posted April 17, 2016 Went tonight and picked up the 91 2.5l MPI, 2 AX5s, a 231,and some other stuff. They haven't finished tearing down the donor MJ but I will be getting the wiring harness and some other stuff from it too. Now I have a 4.0l swap and a 2.5l MPI swap sitting here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjy_26 Posted April 18, 2016 Share Posted April 18, 2016 Call me biased, but I think that it should stay with the w.5, albeit with the MPFI system. When I got mine, I thought zi was going to yank it the first week I had my truck, but I've really come to enjoy the smaller engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted April 18, 2016 Author Share Posted April 18, 2016 I like the idea of the MPI 2.5l,both of my MJs would have the same set up. I can keep the 4.0l as a spare for my XJ. Once the supercharger goes on the 89 I can move the ported 4.0l TB and modified TB spacer to this engine,then find a header and camshaft to make this one a milder version of the current set up in the 89. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjy_26 Posted April 19, 2016 Share Posted April 19, 2016 I like the idea of the MPI 2.5l,both of my MJs would have the same set up. I can keep the 4.0l as a spare for my XJ. Once the supercharger goes on the 89 I can move the ported 4.0l TB and modified TB spacer to this engine,then find a header and camshaft to make this one a milder version of the current set up in the 89. That would be a neat ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted October 24, 2016 Author Share Posted October 24, 2016 I got the MJ loaded up and moved to the new house in Oregon. This is kind of a back burner project at the moment but hopefully i can tinker on it a bit now that it's home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted November 8, 2016 Author Share Posted November 8, 2016 And work finally begins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted May 18, 2017 Author Share Posted May 18, 2017 Some changes to the plan,my boy had been very interested in the MJ and wanted to rebuild it so i gave it to him. We are unsure what it will be getting for axles and stuff as he wants to make it a driver so he doesn't really need the lockers and stuff. We stripped a spare 95 2.5l i had laying around and are rebuilding it to replace the bad engine,the new one will probably stay TBI. He finally got the old 2.5l out tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comacho Posted May 18, 2017 Share Posted May 18, 2017 seems like it's in a good progress. keep it up! :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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