jeep mj Meximanche!

[Skylynx]

Speaking on undecided possible purchases in which one seeks to be better informed and is cautious in the way he'd spend his money into a jeep... yeah we're done playing that ahah!
my Comanche, like many others here came from the factory (i think) with the optional 3 piece sliding window on the back it's a very nice option to have, specially in the summer days when you can open the whole truck up and have the air flowing through and all over!
sadly, again like many Comanches here in this forum, the sliding window in mine was gone, lost to the many eons this truck has seen, probably gone since before it ever entered mexico, in it's place it's got a little, non-tinted, non-tempered, non-curved piece of 6mm glass covering the hole, the latch is also gone, of course

I can't wait to get rid of this thing in violent ways.

But this week was filled with joy and bliss when i found a listing in a junkyard for a whole back window, the entire thing! for just 50 bucks! i paid immediately!

The three glass pieces, the middle slider window and even the original latch! the only problem is that, well.. this junkyard is in Kentucky... and i'm in mexico... 2,300 KM (1,450 Miles) away... with the border closed due to the Kung flu still...

BUT!
i have a friend that lives in Kentucky, and he made the one hour trip over to pick it up for me and is going to send it over to me soon! wit me paying shipping of course, i asked him to take some pictures of it and this is what he came back at me with, i can't tell you guys how excited i am for this to get here, it's going t look so damn good in the Comanche once it's on and complete!

he told me that the guy in the junkyard said that this gem has been sitting there in the sun for 17 years and nobody ever got interested in it, so he listed it online and i snagged it in just under a few hours of him posting it, he felt robbed haha! i can't believe my luck, honestly!

 

Apparently this small bend on the metal is the only damage on it, and was caused when bubbah pulled it from the truck with a crowbar...

i can't be happier with this reckless purchase, i hope it gets here safe and sound!

Continued!...

[89 MJ]

If those are Wagoneer axles, @Jesse J might be able to help you. 

[Skylynx]

@89 MJ

 

Supposedly they are! and thanks for the heads up, i'll be sending them a message!

Sadly, i talked to the guy again today and he told me that he made a mistake with the price yesterday, 300 Bucks was just for the rear axle, he wants 600 for both of them now, making this deal a whole lot less enticing and possible for me...

Edited September 19, 2021 by Skylynx
forgot to quote the post, so tagging the individual that made it!

[Gjeep]

Just so you know that’s a 97+ xj evaporator. That’s why it didn’t fit in the first gen HVAC box but you got it in. 

[Skylynx]

1 hour ago, Gjeep said:

Just so you know that’s a 97+ xj evaporator. That’s why it didn’t fit in the first gen HVAC box but you got it in. 

Yeah... i noticed that way too late sadly, but with the right tools, attitude and a few burnt brain cells i made it work! i need to replace the whole AC system anyways, the hoses are cracked, the compressor is toast and the AC condenser is no longer in the truck at all, so might as well go with the newer models for the AC now since i already have the toughest piece to change out by far in the truck, and it's the one with the more aftermarket available for it.

[ghetdjc320]

Those are Wagoneer axles. Good year for them also likely late 80’s. Probably have some pretty low gearing (2.72 3.07 was common. The axles are adaptable to an mj/xj using the TnT truss or you could sort out all your own brackets and geometry. I lived in Mexico for years and $600 is a rip for these axles though. I wheeled those axles all over the place on 35’s. The front is a low pinion axle which is a down side but the ability to put on some locking hubs is nice. From the factory they come with a slug that locks the axles all the time. A simple Warn kit fixes that. The brakes are a nice 12” rotor and they use the D52 style caliper which is readily available and offers decent braking. The axles themselves are quite heavy and will add a lot of unsprung weight. As for strength, the R&P on the front 44 are larger than the D30 for sure but the high pinion design of the MJ/XJ/YJ D30 is superior to the low pinion setup of the waggy axle. The high pinion D44 found in some Ford trucks is the cats meow for a 44. Just listing some pros and cons. For the right price I’d buy a set. Or better yet, grab the front only (for less than $300) and find a 98+ rodeo/passport rear. 8.9” ring gear, D60 pinion and disk brakes. Plus they are easy to find in 4.10-4.88 gearing. Now those are some very good 44 rears. Plus they have the same 6 on 5.5 pattern as the waggy front. This has been discussed in depth though, the low pinion 44 R&P is only marginally if any stronger than R&P on an HP30. The rest of the axle is another story.

[Skylynx]

2 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

Those are Wagoneer axles. Good year for them also likely late 80’s. Probably have some pretty low gearing (2.72 3.07 was common. The axles are adaptable to an mj/xj using the TnT truss or you could sort out all your own brackets and geometry. I lived in Mexico for years and $600 is a rip for these axles though. I wheeled those axles all over the place on 35’s. The front is a low pinion axle which is a down side but the ability to put on some locking hubs is nice. From the factory they come with a slug that locks the axles all the time. A simple Warn kit fixes that. The brakes are a nice 12” rotor and they use the D52 style caliper which is readily available and offers decent braking. The axles themselves are quite heavy and will add a lot of unsprung weight. As for strength, the R&P on the front 44 are larger than the D30 for sure but the high pinion design of the MJ/XJ/YJ D30 is superior to the low pinion setup of the waggy axle. The high pinion D44 found in some Ford trucks is the cats meow for a 44. Just listing some pros and cons. For the right price I’d buy a set. Or better yet, grab the front only (for less than $300) and find a 98+ rodeo/passport rear. 8.9” ring gear, D60 pinion and disk brakes. Plus they are easy to find in 4.10-4.88 gearing. Now those are some very good 44 rears. Plus they have the same 6 on 5.5 pattern as the waggy front. This has been discussed in depth though, the low pinion 44 R&P is only marginally if any stronger than R&P on an HP30. The rest of the axle is another story.

Ok, this is all great info so first off, thank you for posting this! <3

I did imagine the axles originally came with low gears but since they seem to have been previously modified in the past, there's no telling what they have in them now, they look pretty wheeled and used in person, much more so than in the pictures, i've been told.

I think both of these axles are low pinion though, not just the front one, i'm not too well versed in axles to confirm that but the seller said that they are both low pinion.

When you say that for $600 for both axles is "a rip" you mean it's a ripoff? so it's not worth it to buy them for that price? or the opposite? sorry if this is a dumb question, English is a second tongue for me and i'm not entirely proficient as i'd like to be with it yet.

is adding unsprung weight a good thing or a bad thing?

i did knew that the HP dana 30 was pretty much the same as the waggy LP d44 front, but i THINK the d30 still uses c-clips? which i've heard it's a big point of failure.
I have heard before that the ford D44 axles are good but i have no idea what kind of ford truck i should be lucking under for them, though i'd like to find an axle that matches the size of the comanche's, i'd buy a Ford 8.8 and be done with it if the Dif weren't at an angle under a jeep and you need spacers to make the wheels fit cause it's smaller than a jeep axle.

If the ford d44 is the same size as the one you'd find under a jeep, but is HP and specially if it already comes with disc breaks i'd look for that thing until the end of the world!

a dana 44 like that on the back and a good, well built D30 in the front is all i need, honestly, i'm not wheeling this thing over boulders, it's more of an overlander build, i doubt i'll put more than 4 inches of lift on it, and won't go over 33's or maaaaaybre 34's

Still, 600 bucks is Steep as hell for me right now, and it'll be a while for me to put those axles to use since i don't even have a transfer case yet, if i could get just a rear D 44 to replace the D35 under the bed of my manche (which is about to fail and i don't want to invest in repairing at all) so that i could at least drive it for now and not feel like i'm sinking money into something I'm getting rid off anyway..  that would be ideal.

i can worry about a front HP dana 30 or a 44 when i have a transfer case for it later down the road when my wallet has had some time to heal up...

what would you recommend in this case?
what trucks should i start checking under?
even if they don't have disc breaks to start i'm sure i could convert them, i just need it to be the same length, or not as drastically different as the ford 8.8 is... i can go to some junkyards and start looking under trucks as soon as tomorrow for a good rear D44 axle that'll fit under my jeep, i'm not expecting a bolt in axle by any means, i know i'll have to pull geometry on it regardless, just want a good option.... chances are the man at the junkyard will sell it cheap to me, way cheaper than what this guy is trying to get out of me for some mystery LP D44's

[ghetdjc320]

The HP Dana 30 does not use c clips. Front axles do not use C clips in general. The Dana 35 rear axles use C clips starting in 1990 and later. Actually, many rear axles use C Clips and the clip Itself is not generally a point of failure. There are a few disadvantages to c clip axles but I’ll save that for another thread. “Rip” would be a ripoff in my opinion. Wagoneer axles are decent if you can get them cheap. They make more sense in a YJ swap since they don’t need the brackets that are required for XJ/MJ/TJ’s etc. 
Most factory rear axles will be low pinion. There is a lot of confusion surrounding the HP vs LP (high pinion vs low pinion) and what the advantages are. The two main reasons one would choose high or low pinion would be better driveshaft clearance and better ring gear engagement/strength. The strongest practical design would be low pinion in the rear and high pinion in the front. The reason for this is that the ring gear has a sloped side and a “straight” side. The low pinion on the front basically pulls the ring gear on the slopes side which puts a lot of lid on the gears. HP pushes the ring gear from the top and on the flatter “face” of the gear. An HP front axle is an inherently superior design. 
 

Now there are some high pinion rear axle (like the Ford High 9) but are primarily used on competition off-road rigs. The goal with these axles is to provide the highest clearance possible. 

 

[Skylynx]

 

21 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

The HP Dana 30 does not use c clips. Front axles do not use C clips in general. The Dana 35 rear axles use C clips starting in 1990 and later. Actually, many rear axles use C Clips and the clip Itself is not generally a point of failure. There are a few disadvantages to c clip axles but I’ll save that for another thread. “Rip” would be a ripoff in my opinion. Wagoneer axles are decent if you can get them cheap. They make more sense in a YJ swap since they don’t need the brackets that are required for XJ/MJ/TJ’s etc. 
Most factory rear axles will be low pinion. There is a lot of confusion surrounding the HP vs LP (high pinion vs low pinion) and what the advantages are. The two main reasons one would choose high or low pinion would be better driveshaft clearance and better ring gear engagement/strength. The strongest practical design would be low pinion in the rear and high pinion in the front. The reason for this is that the ring gear has a sloped side and a “straight” side. The low pinion on the front basically pulls the ring gear on the slopes side which puts a lot of lid on the gears. HP pushes the ring gear from the top and on the flatter “face” of the gear. An HP front axle is an inherently superior design. 
 

Now there are some high pinion rear axle (like the Ford High 9) but are primarily used on competition off-road rigs. The goal with these axles is to provide the highest clearance possible. 

 

Yeah, from what i gather it’d be best to do as you said, an HP in the front and an LP on the back, i tried talking to this guy to moderate his prices but he doesn’t want to come down a single cent.. also, he changed his mind and will no longer sell the rear axle alone, he now sells them both or nothing for 600 bucks, so i guess the deal’s off.

I’ll keep an eye out for a cherokee dana 44, or a comanche one even though they ought to be unicorns i bet..
i’ll try to upgrade the rear axle for now and worry about the front one later once i have the whole 4x4 pieces ready to go.

you said you lived in mexico for a while though! Where did you live?

[ghetdjc320]

2 hours ago, Skylynx said:

 

Yeah, from what i gather it’d be best to do as you said, an HP in the front and an LP on the back, i tried talking to this guy to moderate his prices but he doesn’t want to come down a single cent.. also, he changed his mind and will no longer sell the rear axle alone, he now sells them both or nothing for 600 bucks, so i guess the deal’s off.

I’ll keep an eye out for a cherokee dana 44, or a comanche one even though they ought to be unicorns i bet..
i’ll try to upgrade the rear axle for now and worry about the front one later once i have the whole 4x4 pieces ready to go.

you said you lived in mexico for a while though! Where did you live?

Sounds good! And remember, the xj/mj/tj d44’s are some of the “weaker” D44 options. They are still great little axles but the tube diameter is smaller than most 44’s. The strongest rear 44’s are the 98+ rodeo/passport rears along with the JK Rubicon 44’s. These axles all came with upgraded axle bearings, good size disk brakes, an 8.9” ring gear and a Dana 60 pinion. The axle shafts on the rodeo/passport axle measured a whopping 1 5/8” before necking down at the splines. The downside is the lug pattern which is 6x5.5. Definitely worth keeping an eye out for the d44 though from an MJ/XJ. There are rumors of D44’s under export model YJ’s also. I haven’t seen one but still worth a look. The KJ liberty axles weren’t too bad either. Disk brakes and 29 spline axles with an 8.25 ring gear. You would need to cutoff the old brackets and weld on new ones but other than that it’s fairly bolt-in. Same wheel patter as the front D30 also. An option that was extremely popular about 10 years ago was the Ford 8.8 from an Explorer. In my opinion it is far overrated and many junk yards have raised the prices since they knew Jeepers were looking for them. Still, if you can get one for free/cheap it’s not a terrible axle. 
 

Yo y mi esposa vivíamos en el estado de Oaxaca. Ella es originalmente del DF. Tenemos bastantes familiares y amigos en México. Nos hace falta regresar un día de estos

[Skylynx]

Wow! La linda oaxaca! Tengo mucho que no voy para aya… si algun dia estas de regreso y pasas por Monterrey, let me know!

I’ve been looking around and i found something interesting in the marketplace, some dude selling a Limiter slip rear dana 44 that apparently came out of an XJ, looks well maintained and the want 350 USD for it…
it’s got drums still and i’d like to eventually switch to discs.
it’s still stock with the 3.54 gears, though i’m fine with that until i start doing the 4x4 conversion.
another downside is that they’re about 500 miles away from me… so..yeah.

is this a good option? Should i even consider it? Here’s a few pictures that they sent, it appears to have all the break lines on it, donno if I’ll be able to use them, but they’re there.

 

[Skylynx]

Though looking at it… i’s mot sure i can see a limited slip dif in there? Maybe the dude just slapped the tag onto it and it’s calling it that? Hahah

am i wrong though? Is that a limited slip in the picture? Cause as far as i know it’s an open one.

[ghetdjc320]

2 hours ago, Skylynx said:

Though looking at it… i’s mot sure i can see a limited slip dif in there? Maybe the dude just slapped the tag onto it and it’s calling it that? Hahah

am i wrong though? Is that a limited slip in the picture? Cause as far as i know it’s an open one.

It does look like there are clutches behind the spider gears but hard to tell for sure. Every time I would get my YJ washed in Mexico they would do the “engrasado”. Love it, kept everything from rusting and it looked new. Just a light spray oil over the entire underside. Looks like someone has done the same with this axle. 
 

Monterey? I spent some time in Saltillo. I remember climbing all around the waterfalls in Monterey. Nice place

[Skylynx]

1 hour ago, ghetdjc320 said:

It does look like there are clutches behind the spider gears but hard to tell for sure. Every time I would get my YJ washed in Mexico they would do the “engrasado”. Love it, kept everything from rusting and it looked new. Just a light spray oil over the entire underside. Looks like someone has done the same with this axle. 
 

Monterey? I spent some time in Saltillo. I remember climbing all around the waterfalls in Monterey. Nice place

Man, i’ve been up and down those waterfalls hundreds of times! Hopefully next time you’re over we can grab a couple of beers, there’s actually some really nice jeeping trails close by those rivers that i’m hoping to hit with this comanche some day, not the extremes though! I’d need like 10 inches of lift for those haha!

some friend told me that it does look like there’s a limited slip in there, shich is good to at least know i’m not being scammed.

still, don’t know is 350 usd is worth it…
specially since it’s 500 miles away, but it is enticing..

[ghetdjc320]

4 hours ago, Skylynx said:

Man, i’ve been up and down those waterfalls hundreds of times! Hopefully next time you’re over we can grab a couple of beers, there’s actually some really nice jeeping trails close by those rivers that i’m hoping to hit with this comanche some day, not the extremes though! I’d need like 10 inches of lift for those haha!

some friend told me that it does look like there’s a limited slip in there, shich is good to at least know i’m not being scammed.

still, don’t know is 350 usd is worth it…
specially since it’s 500 miles away, but it is enticing..

 

Being an XJ axle you will have to re weld the leaf spring perches. If your comfortable doing that, checkout getting the 1998+ Isuzu rodeo or Honda passport rear axle. It’s a very strong Dana 44 with disk brakes and low gears from the factory. The only downside is that you would need either some different wheels or some adapters since the lug pattern is 6x5.5 just like that wagoneer axle. They are really great axles though and most places sell cheap since they don’t know they are desireable axles.

[elliot]

Do you know if 15in wheels will fit on a Ford 8.8 with disc brakes?

[ghetdjc320]

4 hours ago, elliot said:

Do you know if 15in wheels will fit on a Ford 8.8 with disc brakes?

Yes they will. The explorer has very small disk brakes and even 15” alloys fit fine. 

[Pete M]

love reading your stories   

 

how common are Libertys in your local junkyards?  by far the most common ratio is 3.73.

[Skylynx]

On 10/4/2021 at 9:40 AM, Pete M said:

love reading your stories   

 

how common are Libertys in your local junkyards?  by far the most common ratio is 3.73.

Heyyyyyyy! Thank you! I really try to make them entertaining and fun to read, mainly cause i write them so i can read them again myself some other time when i’m old and crusty and rusty, hopefully not as much as this jeep is!

I’m planning on writing another post or two in the next day or so cause i’ve had some progress made in some areas, but i’m also thinking on starting another thread in a help section about the wiring harness, i’m what people would call an absolute troglodyte when it comes to wiring and electricity, it’s not my forte, and this thing… gosh it gives me nightmares, there’s fire hazards galore, and i’m hoping i can just entirely rebuild it and simplify it.

I’m not sure though, like i said i have no idea what i’m doing, what i’ve got, what i’m missing or how to get further informed, every time i try i end up running into terms and words i don’t understand, and just get further confused… i know i can tackle this problem if i make the effort of rubbing the 2 braincells i have together for long enough but it’s still super daunting and intimidating, lol.

SO YES. More posts coming, just need to figure out what to do with this wires and connectors first!

[Skylynx]

On 10/4/2021 at 9:40 AM, Pete M said:

love reading your stories   

 

how common are Libertys in your local junkyards?  by far the most common ratio is 3.73.

COMPLETELY FORGOT TO ANSWER ABOUT THE LIBERTY TRUCKS HERE O HMY GOD

they’re… not common? Not unheard of either, my mom used to have one i think, why. Should i keep an eye out for a parts one?

[Pete M]

Libertys aren't as useful as a Cherokee would be.  pretty much you're limited to the rear axle, wheels, and maybe the t-case.  there must be 50+ in the local pullaparts around me. 

[Skylynx]

SO! good news! this project isn't dead! yet....

And there's been quite a few things done since i last posted here to document the progress of things and where i'm at with this thing, trying my best to get it back to running again and FINALLY enjoying it like god intended!

Last time i posted here a few awesome folks and i were talking about me getting the chance of getting the Axles for the truck sorted, i have always wanted to dot he metric ton conversion to my truck despite it being a short-bed, i'd need a dana 44 for that and we explored a few options around my area but all of them were very suspicious as hell... i went around town looking at some offering for suitable axles that i could put under my truck but most were either fractured and lied about it, needed major maintenance while being prices as renewed, or just not suitable for the truck...

one night last month i logged into facebook's marketplace and saw a Cherokee XJ's rear dana 44 with a limited slip at a reasonable price! and the pictures look amazing, honestly it seemed like the best option for me at the time, and i began talking to the owner of it through the private messages to see if it was the right choice for me and he told me that the Axle came off his son's xj because he replaced it by a dana 60 instead, and that the axle was just as shown in the pictures (shown in a post above) it had just gotten maintenance and that it was in fact a limited slip differential inside there, heck, he was even okay with dropping the price down to 300 bucks for it!

Now that may be a little steep, but i was paying for the fact that the axle was newly maintained, in good condition, unmodified and complete! i also liked that the fact that it came out from under an XJ i'd have the same wheel to wheel distance and lug pattern than what i already have, meaning i'd have to do the least amount of modifications to have it fit under my Manche, which i'm very keen on!... of course there were risks, though..

This appeared to be a great axle, but it was in a town 9 hours away from me, in what is very much cartel country, and all i had was pictures of it to go from, but the guy told me that he's got a popular shop from the area in where he fixes and modifies jeeps, assured me he was no scammer, and that he had a way to ship the axle over to me without an issue, so in the end i ended up saying yes, thinking i'd receive the same axle as the one on the picture above... and i did...kinda..



Clearly a dana 44, it's got the break lines and all... but it's not in the same condition as the one in the picture... it was empty of oil and leaking from all three sides, and the shock absorber pivots were cut off with and angle grinder, this was not the status the axle was when the pictures were sent, or promised, at all and the person stopped responding as soon as i got it, figures... given to where they live i'd rather not make a scene about it, i don't want the heat on me for just a dana 44.

Good things is that the housing is not chracked, the tubes are perfectly straight, the break likes seemed manipulated but not broken, and it IS actually a limited slip given that the wheels spin in the same direction, it's extremely $#!&amp;ty of him to send me an axle without the Shock's supports, having them cut like that and all, though i'm not heartbroken about it because the ones in the Comanche are actually located in the spring perches, so i'd need to take those out anyway, but still, if i wanted this for an XJ instead and was looking for a direct bolt-in just like he advertized, i'd be quite ENRAGED 

 

 

 

 

Yeah i got my leg pulled a little... and things won't be as maintenance or labor free as i intended them to be, but i got what i wanted, and i was happy enough, i'll come back to the axle saga later!

[Pete M]

300 is still a decent price for what you got.   I say you did good.  

[JMO413]

I definitely would have paid $300 for that.

[Skylynx]

GOOD GRIEF I'M TAKING MY SWEET TIME WITH POSTING THESE HERE AREN'T I?

 

i do feel like i need to apologize a little about that, been slacking on doing so for a while now since this past two months life got a crap tonne more busy than usual, so progress on the Truck has been a lot slower than what it was at the start and i've craved getting back at it for a while now, thankfully things seem to be finally easing off a little and hopefully i'll have more time to sink into this project and it's many needs and wants!

Last time i took time to post here i commented about the dana 44 i got and i'm glad people seem to think i made a good deal on it, i was legit worried that i over payed for it but apparently i didn't, so i'm happy with that! though i'm sad to say that's the last you'll hear about the dana 44 for a while, since i have a lot more things to focus on first before i even get to start thinking on giving it the maintenance it does need and fitting it under the truck, so the dana 35 it's got will have to hold for at least a little while, to start i'm thinking on giving the 44 a disc break swap before it even goes in, and hopefully i'll have the truck lifted to the final height by then too.

I have a few tasks in hand with the truck right now, most important one to knock out of the way is finishing the interior, even if i still don't have all the wires that i will need in the end, since i do need the truck to be moving asap, and then i can go around fixing things one at a time as they pop by and the chance presents itself, i'm so tired of seeing it junked in the garage already, i just want it to move around finally! so getting rid of the interior problem would be a great help with that... here's what needs to be done.

First off i'd like to add more sound proofing to the firewall like i did with the roof and the back wall, skipping the floor for now until i find a better solution than the butane matts i've been using, since i know the floors tend to be a weak point of these trucks and i'd like better access to them in the case they start rusting again, i have the HVAC box ready to go already since i wrestled with it for days at the start of this project, both heater core and AC evap inside and all, i may even reiforce it a little bit further with flex seal, but i'm sure it'll be fine as it is already so i don't know.

Next would be to check the internal wiring and make sire it'd not about to cause a fire, i know i'll have to make repairs since when i was tearing the interior apart i found quite a few bare wires here and there, so making sure i'm not a fire hazard on wheels sounds to me like a great idea   ( at least not more than the normal amount for a jeep )

I may have to get a new blower motor, though i may just clean and use the existing one for the while just to block the hole from dirt and grime, since it'sll be a while before i get to having a working heating and AC solution.

Next, There's a thing i knew i'd love to knock off the list before i had to build things back up, since i know this can be a pain to take out when the whole interior is complete and i also knew this was one of this particular's trucks greatest weakness... since it nearly killed m the first time i drove it! my mechanic friend warned me about it the first day he inspected it, and having taken it apart now i can see why.

 

Why yes indeed it is in fact your boy, the break booster and pump... notoriously crappy, prone to break and problematic on these trucks, before buying this truck i didn't even knew what a break booster was, and now i wish things would have stayed that way because what i found with this one terrified me.

I had already removed the interior bracket that held it in place and tied to the steering wheel supports before to clean and paint it for rust prevention before, so getting the booster out of it's nook was an easy task, as easy as just picking it up and fishing it out of where it was after obviously twisting off the break line connections, i was surprised to feel how heavy it was as i pulled it off of the truck, i did spill some break fluid on the wheel well which stripped the paint off of it, but i'm not too worried about that, since i'm planning on painting it all anyway

I then moved it to a plastic tray and carefully opened the fluid reservoir... my poor virgin eyes shall never heal from the abominations and horrors i found inside of it, no wonder my breaks were shoddy at best, i'm by no means an expert on breaks or the components of them, but i'm extremely sure that this is not supposed to look like this, and break fluid should not have rust dissolved into it....

 

 

Yes, this is what came out of the reservoir, and there was more of it that i didn't take a picture of, along with some big floating chunks of rust at the bottom clogging the holes that go to the lines, i'm so lucky i'm alive haha!

 

The tray was empty when i poured the liquid in it, every particulate you see in here was inside the booster.

 

Even the rubber seal on the cover was rusted out, how in the heck did the previous owners of the truck managed to rust rubber is beyond any and all human comprehension and i'm convinced it's a glitch in the simulation we all exist in.

 

 

I THINK it is fair to say that i'll need to replace this instead of trying to fix it, i was planning on doing so for a double diaphragm one anyway from one of the later model XJ's or a WJ since i've read those fit here quite nicely, and i do have a story about that, but i'll post that in the next chapter of this since this one is already getting quite long!