92 Autocross/Lowered MJ

[Comanchejager]

You have a nice project going on there D. Glad you got the window in without any problems.

[Dzimm]

6 minutes ago, Comanchejager said:

You have a nice project going on there D. Glad you got the window in without any problems.

Thanks! 

[Dzimm]

Finally got the time to do more rust repair on the bed.  I cut out the entire top of the wheel well and then cut the inner wheel well out as well.  

 

I used a piece of the washer sheet metal to make the inner wheel well piece and sprayed it down really good with rust reformer and preventive sprays. 

 

I used a spare front fender I had laying around for the wheel arch.  It is very close to the same arch as the MJ rear, just curved a little more sharply in the rear and slightly narrower vertical face.  I also only have to drill two holes for the flares since the others line up perfectly. 

 

I still need to get some new flap disks to smooth out the welds and throw on some body filler to get it as even as I can.  My next task is to figure out how I'm gonna deal with this spray foam mess in the rockers and cab corners... I hear this stuff is pretty flamable.. 

[gogmorgo]

Where'd you get the idea for the fenders? That really is a surprisingly close match that I don't know I ever would have thought of.

[bluenotenick]

Cool project. Looking forward to the turbo!  

[Dzimm]

13 hours ago, gogmorgo said:

Where'd you get the idea for the fenders? That really is a surprisingly close match that I don't know I ever would have thought of.

I was just thinking of ways to repair it and I knew finding an MJ one would be hard.  I had a spare set of fenders from my 97+ swap so I held it up and it was close so I went for it.  

 

It's definitely a different curve but it's close enough that once the flare is on, you wouldn't be able to tell at all. 

[Dzimm]

The diff has been leaking since I bought the truck so I figured I'd go ahead and clean it out, replace the leaking rtv with a Gasket, and fill with new fluid.  All went well there and the gears are in good shape. 

 

I was looking around at the rear brake setup because it's leaking and I plan on removing the rear prop. valve and replace the brake lines.  I have a mid 90s XJ brake booster and MC in the parts pile and I just bought an XJ distribution block off ebay that I will install.  Should greatly improve the brakes.  

 

OH yeah, I found the brake fluid leak... 

How I didn't see this when replacing the fuel filter, I don't know. 

[bad_idea]

 Super sketchy.

[Dzimm]

I've been working on the brakes today and stopped for lunch so I figured I'd post where I'm at.  

 

I've got all the brake lines ripped out.  Everything broke of course.  I didn't even bother trying to use wrenches, I just went straight for the vise grips and still managed to round a fitting off.  Had to use a cutoff wheel to grind it back flat for another try.  This is what a pile of factory MJ lines looks like after years of road salt.  

A little trick I found to remove the lines from the distribution block is to use a 19mm wrench to hold it. 

 

I am happy that I don't have to modify the brake booster because the truck has the newer brake switch.  Everything I've read said all Comanches needed to have the flat spot added to the booster but my 92 had the newer style brake switch pictured below (maybe HOs have this new switch?).  This required no modification to the booster, I just had to take the aluminum spacer off the mounts. 

 

Currently I got the booster/master removed, all old lines removed, load sensing valve removed, and the new front brake lines ran.  After lunch I'll install the rear lines and the new booster/master. 

[bad_idea]

Good work getting it all out.  I have been down that road on a couple vehicles (removing super crusty brake lines).  I have a trick for you that makes it easy.  Cut the brake line flush/close to the flare nut, can use a pair of dikes.  Then you can put a six point socket on the flare nut to take it out.  Bonus - you can ratchet it out.

[Dzimm]

1 hour ago, bad_idea said:

Good work getting it all out.  I have been down that road on a couple vehicles (removing super crusty brake lines).  I have a trick for you that makes it easy.  Cut the brake line flush/close to the flare nut, can use a pair of dikes.  Then you can put a six point socket on the flare nut to take it out.  Bonus - you can ratchet it out.

That is a good tip.  I actually ended up using a socket to break the bleeder screws loose. 

[Dzimm]

Finally done!  Has a new booster and distribution block from a late model XJ, as well as all brand new Copper/Nickel brake lines.   Took all day but man was it worth it, brakes are now fantastic and lock up at low speed on wet pavement.  It's dark and raining so I'm not going to go do a full test drive until tomorrow but so far so good.

  

The bleeding process was a one man show since nobody could lend a hand   I made a one man bleeder setup with an old power steering fluid bottle, a clear hose from a gear oil bottle, and some vacuum line I had laying around to adapt everything to the right sizes.   Not the best way to bleed brakes but worked well enough.  

 

There were only two problems I encountered for the whole project.  One was a bad flare on the underside of the distribution block, which sucked to cut and reflare down between the booster and intake manifold.  The other was the front driver bleeder screw won't budge at all, even with vise grips.  I bled it the best I could through the brake line fitting for now but I sprayed it with some pb blaster to hopefully get it out.  I'll spray it a few times over the next few days then pull the wheel off and try again.   Worst case cenario, I get a new set of front brakes and calipers.  

 

Anyone else looking to replace their brake lines, this is a nice kit and was one of the cheapest I could find that was copper/nickle.  The 25ft roll of line is just enough to do an MJ if you remove the rear load sensing valve.  If you retain the valve, you'll need another 10-15ft.  I ended up with a handful of fittings left over and about 3" of brake line.  

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01801G45A/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_WcxSBb8A5TG1C

I also bought these rubber clamps but ended up only needing one since all the factory mounts were in good shape. 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003BZQ7EE/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_iixSBbVHYHT9T

[bad_idea]

Calipers for my 90 XJ were dirt cheap.  Might as well replace them.  I really like the Harbor Freight pneumatic bleeder, makes easy work of filling a dry system.  

[Dzimm]

Well I went for a longer test drive this morning.  As I drove the pedal kept getting harder and the truck started to struggle to accelerate.  I got it home and the front brakes were billowing smoke...  Did some googling and came to the conclusion it was a problem with the master cylinder.  

 

I pulled it all apart and rebled the master, then all 4 wheels.  I'm guessing when I had the leaking connection at the distribution block, it sucked some air into the master or something.  

 

Couple hours later, I got it all put back together and did a really good, long test drive.  I was really hard on the brakes and everything is working now.  Pedal is much better and no more problems. 

[Dzimm]

I had some time before work so I did most of the ground refreshing steps from Cruiser's tips.  The only things I have left to do are add the extra ground cables and do the ground under the dash. 

 

When doing the taillight ground I found at some point the taillight got the old 3" construction screw treatment.  The two inner holes have screws with the wrong thread busted off in them so I need to get new clips.  Currently there is a 3" screw running between the clip and plastic to hold the light on.  The outer holes were in good shape but only had one factory screw.  

 

I went ahead and installed a DIY tailgate lock to deter theft and replaced the old ball style wiper arms with some newer u-clip style arms from a 98 XJ that had a good pair of beam wiper blades on them. 

[SatiricalHen]

What kind of tailgate lock did you go with? I was looking into getting one, but wasn’t sure what would work/fit well.


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[Dzimm]

3 hours ago, SatiricalHen said:

What kind of tailgate lock did you go with? I was looking into getting one, but wasn’t sure what would work/fit well.


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A simple hose clamp.  Just turn it in an awkward way so it's damn hard to get off.  Best tailgate lock we've all got laying around the garage. 

[Dzimm]

After thinking my brake issues were fixed I continued driving the truck to work over the last couple weeks and still had some strange things happening.  

 

The rotors ended up being warped from the brakes locking up after the first round of brake work.  Well at first it only seemed to be affecting braking so I knew I needed new brakes but not necessarily immediately.  But the first time I drove it to work I started to get a really bad shimmy in the front end about 10 mins into my drive that would either go away on its own, or go away after I pulled over and took off again.  I figured the shimmy had to be due to the warped brakes so I ordered new rotors/hubs, pads, calipers, bearings and seals, and soft lines for the front. 

 

When the parts arrived I got the work done over last weekend. 

Started by tearing everything apart and found the drivers side spindle had some wear in it. 

This will get replaced eventually but it's gonna have to do for now since I had to do way more brake work than I had anticipated.  I also found that rotor to be cracked. 

 

First step of install was to swap over to the new calipers and hoses.  I attached the hose to the caliper while it was on the bench then attached the hose to the truck.  

 

Packed the bearings with grease and got them in the hub and tapped the new outer seal into place. 

 

After the rotor/hub has greased bearings and rear seal I slid it onto the spindle, put on the new thrust washer, new nut torqued properly thanks to HOrnbrod and his FSM, new nut retainer, and new cotter pin.  

Replaced dust cover, installed new pads and retainers, and bolted up the calipers. 

Bled brakes and reinstalled the wheels and all seemed well.  Did a long test drive and everything seemed fine until I drove to work a couple days later... 

10 mins into my drive I started to lose speed for seemingly no reason.  Down shifted to fourth and I was able to accelerate back up to 70mph and shifted back to 5th and had no issues the rest of the drive.  

 

This happened every day after 10 mins of driving down the highway.  Fast forward to yesterday when I finally had the ah-ha moment.  The booster and master the I used were the ones that came in the blue truck when I bought it.  I never took the master off the booster because I assumed it was a matched pair from the factory.  I was wrong and found the push rod to be too long and not allowing the master to return completely causing brake drag.

 

Since the push rod is recessed inside the booster it's kind of a pain to adjust but with a small socket and long needle nose pliers it can be done.  Grip the shaft with the pliers and use the socket on the end of the push rod.  After some trial and error I found that 3 threads shorter than what it was at was perfect.  I didn't use any special tools, I just pushed the master on and felt for engagement between the master and push rod. 

The pedal feels so much nicer now and after a trip to work I had no issues.  Finally!! 

[Dzimm]

Finally I was able to get enough work done around the house to get working on this truck again.  Getting it pulled into the shop was a chore since my back alley had snow and this truck is 2wd.  I shoveled it out and still got stuck.  Luckily my neighbor came out and helped me get it unstuck.

 

While the wood stove was warming up I went ahead and replaced the ignition cylinder since it could be started without a key. 

Wish the new cylinder was metal like the original but at least it can't be started without a key anymore. 

I didn't have the special tool to hold in the steering lock ring so I used my puller and some washers and big nut to hold it in well enough I was able to get to the c-clip. 

Of course my lockring pliers didn't go narrow enough for the gap so I had to use needlenose pliers and a flathead but it worked.  

 

I also got the old fuel tank removed.  It wasn't as hard to pull as I expected.  Looks as though my original fuel leak was from the filler hose but my large leak that came up a couple weeks ago was due to a puncture under the rear tank strap.  

I decided to paint the new tank with some Rust-Oleum bed liner to help protect it. 

I also have a factory SWB tank skid plate I was going to install on the blue truck but I've decided to put it on this one since it will be lowered and I don't want to replace this tank again.  I'm probably going to wait until spring to get that cleaned up and installed.

 

I'm going to replace the hoses from the old tank and breathers because they were in pretty bad shape, I'm still torn on replacing the filler hoses because they aren't in terrible shape.  I'm reusing the fittings on the top of the tank as they are in really good shape still. 

The fuel pump in it was replaced at some point with a Bosch unit and it still works so I don't plan on replacing it. 

The sender is in good shape as well other than the mounting face of it, it isn't rusted through but it's not in the best shape.  I will do what I can to clean it up and give it a fresh coat of paint.  Thankfully all of this means the only other thing I need to get is a set of J-bolts for the straps as the new straps didn't come with them and the old ones are pretty rusty.  Maybe this is a chance to try that electrolisys thing I've seen people do.

 

I don't plan on reinstalling the tank tonight so I'm looking around for anything else I can do to it and trying to decide what order I want to do things.  

 

Biggest things right now are:

- Fix the passenger door because it doesn't unlock or open anymore from the inside

- fix or replace door lock cylinders, only the passenger one works.

- radiator appears to be leaking slightly (if I do this I want to do valve cover gasket, remove AC rad, replace thermostat, water pump, exhaust manifold, and freeze plugs while it's all apart).

- Relocate alternator up top and remove AC compressor and maybe remove mechanical fan to make room for turbo stuff.  Thinking about dual electric fans.

- cut some spare coil springs down and install those along with XJ shackles I have

- Install the ignition coil relocation kit I got from HOrnbrod

- Start work on the air dam (I got both styles of early 90s S10 air dam to work with and some extra front XJ flares to creat a similar flow into the lines of the front flares)

- redo the exhaust from muffler back because it's from a different vehicle and comes really close to the rear diff.  I've got a flow master super 44 muffler on the way to go on it.

 

I've got a month or so yet as this truck won't leave the shop until the snow is gone for the year but I'm not sure how much money I want to drop on it right now.  

[Dzimm]

Well I decided to try the electrolisys thing on the strap bolts.  I have a newer battery charger that apparently is "smart" enough not to charge if it doesn't detect a battery so I tricked it by adding a spare battery in the mix.  

It's bubbling so I guess it's working.. I'll see what happens after a few hours

[Pete M]

17 hours ago, Dzimm said:

I also have a factory SWB tank skid plate I was going to install on the blue truck but I've decided to put it on this one since it will be lowered and I don't want to replace this tank again.  I'm probably going to wait until spring to get that cleaned up and installed.

 

 

yeah, skidplates aren't just for for lifted trucks!   I'm trying to convince my parents to get the grand cherokee skids for their '16 Durango R/T.  It's so friggin' low that just about any road debris can wreck havoc with the underpinnings.  

 

what's the word on the electrolisys experiment? 

[Dzimm]

14 hours ago, Pete M said:

 What's the word on the electrolisys experiment? 

I ended up switching the solution out after 4 hours because it was very nasty, I'm guessing because I used such a small container.  I then left it overnight so it soaked for about 12 hours total.  The bolts look much better than before but still have some rust on them.  I set them out to dry but got busy doing other stuff so haven't tried taking the nuts off yet.  I go back to work tomorrow but I will try to make time in the next few days to either get those nuts off or let the electrolisys thing work another night and report back.

 

I did however order a bunch of parts since the pocket book was a little fatter this week.  I got a new radiator, water pump, thermostat, exhaust manifold, valve cover gasket, and freeze plugs on the way!

 

[Dzimm]

Over the weekend I got some work done on the truck.  The engine is mostly tore down so I can get better access for cleaning and replacing parts.  The other side of the engine will get taken apart soon for more work.  I'll update on what all I'm doing as I put it back together. 

 

I cleaned up the thermostat housing, water pump tube, and valve cover as best I can.  The valve cover gasket was very confusing because it was a mix of a paper gasket and rtv where the gasket was missing.. someone repaired it very wrong which is why it leaked so bad.  I didn't realize the valve cover wasn't painted black, it just had so much cooked on oil it looked that way.  I think I'm going to keep it the unfinished aluminum color and paint the ribs on top red to match the truck.

 

I plan on cleaning, repairing, and touching up the paint in the engine bay while everything is apart.  I want this truck to be fairly clean and easy to spot problems and work on.  I took a paint chip from the truck to the store and found Krylon Gloss Burgundy paint that is a very close match to the factory paint color.  I'll use it to touch up the engine bay and maybe my body patches until I get around to painting the entire truck.  

[Dzimm]

Got a little more of the engine bay torn apart.  Also mocked up the high mount alternator.  It shouldn't be too hard to accomplish.  It would eliminate the smaller bracket from the front though, so I'm not sure if it would cause problems without it.  I'm gonna look at others setups and see what they've done.  

[Dzimm]

Got more work done today.  Finished cleaning the head and valve cover and installed the new valve cover gasket.  I got the freeze plugs pulled and replaced as well as pulling the compressor bracket off.  Did some deep cleaning on the engine.  Lots of scraping, scrubbing, and spraying to get all the baked on oil and dirt off of everything.  Looks so much better but still has a long way to go.