james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 18 minutes ago, 87MJTIM said: Was the AX15 installed on Toyotas? I thought I read that somewhere. However, if it did come on a Toylet, the bellhousing would not fit a 4.0. The BA10 BH won't fit to an AX15, either. So, that leads back to an XJ or YJ. Two years ago, there were two XJs in a local LKQ with AX15s. One was a 4wd with an internal slave cyl. bellhousing; the other was a 2wd with an external slave cyl. BH. I left there with a 4wd and a BH for external slave cyl. Long day. Yeah there isn't much selection around here. I've looked into buying a used trans online but they are pretty expensive. I hope I can fix this one until an ax15 comes my way. I'm still going to do some digging. I have a flexible magnet grabber that I'm poke around through the drain plug. From the sounds of it something broke and is bound up in the transmission is my best guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scaleless Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 If your BA10 is shot, I wouldn't even consider working on it. Honestly, in your situation I would just grab one of the 4WD transmissions. You don't really need a forward driveshaft, you can just leave it floating. Just grab a shifter and a few misc parts which bolt right in and throw the transmission in, and you're halfway to a 4WD swap if you ever want to go the rest of the way. That all said, I have a 4WD BA10 that I can rob parts from if you need. Let me know if you want to go that route. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87MJTIM Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 41 minutes ago, scaleless said: If your BA10 is shot, I wouldn't even consider working on it. Honestly, in your situation I would just grab one of the 4WD transmissions. You don't really need a forward driveshaft, you can just leave it floating. Just grab a shifter and a few misc parts which bolt right in and throw the transmission in, and you're halfway to a 4WD swap if you ever want to go the rest of the way. That all said, I have a 4WD BA10 that I can rob parts from if you need. Let me know if you want to go that route. Go grab a 4wd and the tcase, front drive shaft, tcase shifter, and the cross member (your BA 10 won't fit). You're more than half way to a 4wd conversion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 Here's a hint -- I have two BA 10/5s out in the yard that are jammed in two gears at once. It happens, when the driver tries to yank the shift handle before the clutch has disengaged. What happens is that the bottom end of the shift handle gets out of alignment with the rods it's supposed to be pushing around. According to my friend, who was the service manager at the dealership where I bought my '88 XJ, it's usually possible to just remove the shift handle from the top, move the levers back into alignment, and then reinstall the shift handle. Usually they get stuck in first or second, and reverse. Since the vehicle obviously can't go in opposite directions at the same time, that's why it stalls when you let up on the clutch pedal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 7 hours ago, Eagle said: Here's a hint -- I have two BA 10/5s out in the yard that are jammed in two gears at once. It happens, when the driver tries to yank the shift handle before the clutch has disengaged. What happens is that the bottom end of the shift handle gets out of alignment with the rods it's supposed to be pushing around. According to my friend, who was the service manager at the dealership where I bought my '88 XJ, it's usually possible to just remove the shift handle from the top, move the levers back into alignment, and then reinstall the shift handle. Usually they get stuck in first or second, and reverse. Since the vehicle obviously can't go in opposite directions at the same time, that's why it stalls when you let up on the clutch pedal. That actually makes a lot of sense. That might be worth a try before dropping the transmission. I read on another Jeep Forum where a guys shifter had broken internally and he had a couple of the symptoms I had Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87MJTIM Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 In the Pub section, there is thread on "Cheap Jeep" about an 88 MJ. The father/son duo bought an 88 with a BA10. The spent over $2K fixing the BA. I'd hate to see anyone go down that rabbit hole when a used AX15 can be purchased for a fraction of that cost. If the repair is simple - like aligning the shifter - go for it. If the issue is more extensive - internal - don't waste money on it. My 2¢. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scaleless Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 And, you know, not to beat a dead horse but the AX15 has enough check balls that it definitely can't get stuck like that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 7 minutes ago, scaleless said: And, you know, not to beat a dead horse but the AX15 has enough check balls that it definitely can't get stuck like that! Lol if i could find a ax15 2wd for pretty cheap id snatch it right up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEmptyEveryPocket Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 Where are you? I have a 2wd AX-15 from a project truck . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldManComanche Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 Listen to what Eagle and I have said. Look to see if you have shifting rail problems! When you shift it does it shift smoothly? You have a truck you drove home, so you at last know it will drive and shifted (at one point). Have you talked to who you bought the truck from to see if he has any ideas? What has been done to the truck if anything? You need to think and research about swapping types of transmissions. what HAS to be changed?? you might be surprised: driveshaft?? transmission cross member?? For instance; Early AX15 had a 5/8 pilot bushing input shaft, later ones had a 3/4 pilot bushing hole. Finding a pilot bushing that will fit in the 4.0 Renix crank and fit on to the later input shaft is tricky; (think after market) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 7 minutes ago, scaleless said: And, you know, not to beat a dead horse but the AX15 has enough check balls that it definitely can't get stuck like that! Lol if i could find a ax15 2wd for pretty cheap id snatch it right up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 28 minutes ago, OldManComanche said: Listen to what Eagle and I have said. Look to see if you have shifting rail problems! When you shift it does it shift smoothly? You have a truck you drove home, so you at last know it will drive and shifted (at one point). Have you talked to who you bought the truck from to see if he has any ideas? What has been done to the truck if anything? You need to think and research about swapping types of transmissions. what HAS to be changed?? you might be surprised: driveshaft?? transmission cross member?? For instance; Early AX15 had a 5/8 pilot bushing input shaft, later ones had a 3/4 pilot bushing hole. Finding a pilot bushing that will fit in the 4.0 Renix crank and fit on to the later input shaft is tricky; (think after market) Only trans work done by previous owner was a new clutch about 3-4 years ago. When I drove home it the shifter was kinda sloppy. It didn't pop out of gear or anything when I drove it. It just kinda felt loose and had a little play in it. I will inspect the shift rail either tonight or tomorrow. Like I said it was working pretty good when I got it home. Topped off fluids (Oil, MC, Antifreeze, PS). Started it up let it idle in neutral. Then all of a sudden a rattle (marble in tin can) sound in the transmission. Engine started bogging down and died. The engine will only run if the clutch is pressed. If clutch is depressed it will die 100% of the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 5 hours ago, JustEmptyEveryPocket said: Where are you? I have a 2wd AX-15 from a project truck . . . I am in Missouri. Near Kansas City. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scaleless Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 54 minutes ago, OldManComanche said: You need to think and research about swapping types of transmissions. what HAS to be changed?? you might be surprised: driveshaft?? transmission cross member?? It's not that much - I just did one on my Cherokee. The whole swap from 2WD BA10 to AX15 requires bellhousing, crossmember, mount bracket, and pilot bearing (for 1992 and up AX15s). Driveshaft should be the same: Pilot is available from Novak for $7: https://www.novak-adapt.com/catalog/adapters/engine-to-transmission/amc/ax15-to-nv3550-amc/ Everything else is parts vehicle or Ebay. Of course, we kinda got away from the problem itself. Let's see how toast the trans is before discussing rebuilds or big swaps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 2 hours ago, scaleless said: And, you know, not to beat a dead horse but the AX15 has enough check balls that it definitely can't get stuck like that! WRONG! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scaleless Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 11 minutes ago, Eagle said: WRONG! Right, haha, I assume that with enough wear and enough... user input, anything is possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 2 hours ago, scaleless said: Of course, we kinda got away from the problem itself. Let's see how toast the trans is before discussing rebuilds or big swaps! Haha yeah. But its all good info since I will prob end up putting an AX15 in at some point. I'm hoping I can fix the BA10 without breaking the bank. Then when a 2WD AX15 comes into the JY Ill grab it and store it in the garage until the BA10 craps out. I have 4 Pick-N-Pulls within 100mi so once a Jeep shows with an AX15 I'm gonna go snatch it. Alot of the other JY around here is just kinda go there and check as they don't have their Inventory listed online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derf Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 Keep in mind that the 4 cylinder Jeeps came with the AX5. You don't want one of those. Stick with the 4.0 based Jeeps to find the right transmission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 31 minutes ago, derf said: Keep in mind that the 4 cylinder Jeeps came with the AX5. You don't want one of those. Stick with the 4.0 based Jeeps to find the right transmission. Will do. Luckily Pick n Pull lists the VIN of their cars. So i do the vin lookup on autozone to see what motor and whatnot they have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 Ok so here's a recap of the problem. I was checking the engine and topping off fluids. I want to add that I did top off the MC reservoir with Dot3 Brake Fluid just like the cap states, it was a bit lower then the low marker. Pumped the clutch a few times Then I started the engine and let it idle in N. About 3 or 4 mins later a marble in a can sound came from the transmission. Like something was bouncing around in there. The sound seemed to come from the bell housing but that can be misleading. Anyways not much later is when engine stalled and died. I restarted engine to replicate the issue. Happened another time. Second time around I noticed it subsided when clutch was pressed in. No noise or sputter. Only when I released the clutch it seemed to catch a gear and kill the engine. Two days later I tried to replicate the issue to find that as soon as the clutch is released the engine is killed. I can get it to move in 1st gear if I am riding the clutch. No reverse at all. Just engine rev and then dead. I do get a hint of burnt fluid smell. I'm not sure if its the brake fluid from the SC or id its gear oil. It doesn't smell like motor oil though. Tonight I am going to check the trans fluid and poke around in there with my flexible magnet grabber tool. Also I am going to try to realign the shift rails as suggested. Its raining its @$$ off here today so I probably won't do much beyond that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87MJTIM Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 So with all those issues, it does sound like inside the BH. Possibly slave cyl related. Plan on dropping the trans and inspect it. While you are in there.... replace the clutch kit and the slave cylinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 25, 2021 Author Share Posted March 25, 2021 1 hour ago, 87MJTIM said: So with all those issues, it does sound like inside the BH. Possibly slave cyl related. Plan on dropping the trans and inspect it. While you are in there.... replace the clutch kit and the slave cylinder. Yep i figured id just get a clutch kit with everything. Also looks like rear seal might be out cuz I did see some fluid on the tailpiece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted March 27, 2021 Author Share Posted March 27, 2021 Shift rails seemed to be aligned. Although i couldnt see in there too well. I ran a magnet around through the fill plug, didnt pick up anything major. I'm going to try through the drain plug tomorrow. The fill plug did have a fair amount of metal shavings on it as expected. I have everything soaking in penetrating oil and all my tools ready. Ive disconnected everything from the tranny and went and bought a transmission jack just to be safe. Hopefully tomorrow i can drop this mf and see whats wrong. Also after reinstalling the shifter it seemed to be more responsive so thats good. Still dies with the clutch out though. 😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james-mc Posted April 1, 2021 Author Share Posted April 1, 2021 I found a guy that is going to sell me a ba10 and an ax15. I'm going to just swap in the BA10 for now while I gather the parts for an AX15 swap. Once the trans is off I'm going to inspect the old one to see what might have went wrong. Is there any good write ups for a ba10 removal. My haynes manual doesnt go into alot of detail. Also do I need to remove my CPS before dropping the transmission? Or could I just unhook the connector and remove it with the tranny out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldManComanche Posted April 1, 2021 Share Posted April 1, 2021 Remove CPS before you unbolt the transmission. Do Crusiers tip on the sensor before you put it back in. (it makes a noticeable difference) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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