October 2021-Knever3’s 87

89 MJ · October 12, 2021

September 2021- @knever3’s 87 SporTruck

Build Thread-

Year/Model -

1987 Jeep Comanche Sportruck originally 2wd 5 ba/10.

Drivetrain-

4.7L Stroked 4.0L. 70's AMC 4.2 crank, recon 4.0L rods, '96 head '94 block with main girdle, KB forged pistons, double roller timing chain, brown dog motor mounts. 242 Tcase stock Dana 30 and Dana 35. Custom rear driveshaft, Spicer joints. AW-4 21 spline

Cooling-

OEM replacement radiator new pressure bottle, mostly stock, haven't even added my secondary electric fan, only mechanical fan.

Electrical/Ignition-

Stock Renix. Wideband O2 monitor, LCD readout under factory clock, 23lb/hr injectors, 62mm BBK throttle body '99 intake, AFe stainless header, 2.5" exhaust.

Suspension/Steering-

JKS adjustable upper and lower control arms, JKS shackles, Hell Creek 3" leaf springs, Motion off road coils. BDS Bilstein shocks.

Interior-

OE black interior, found a leather wrapped steering wheel by chance to finish off the upgraded look. Alpine CDE-149BT radio with Arc Audio amp, Diamond Audio components. Soon to have 12" Alpine sub with Biketronics amp powering components active with Helix DSP. Stereo Integrity 6.5" mids.

Brakes-

OE replacement Centric rotors, Hawk pads, extended brake hoses. Replaced all brake lines when truck was being built, removed level sensing valve.

Lighting-

Hella E-code H4 upgrade lights with Hella bulbs, Hella relay harness, Hella 550 driving lights. Led turn signals, Euramatec interior with LED bulbs.

Exterior-

OE color black LineX bedliner, 3 piece slider rear window, JCR rear bumper, hopefully get a custom front bumper made at some point.

Wheel & Tires-

2001 XJ limited wheels, 265/75/16 Duratracs load range C which ride fantastic by the way!!

Misc-

The whole truck is Miscellaneous! LOL As usual the parts were scavenged from so many trucks, a '90 XJ 2 door mainly. I wanted the C101 delete '90 model as a donor.

Best MJ story-

This has got to be the best, when I was at work I found a '90 XJ on CL with the 242 tcase that I wanted for a donor. It was about 3 hours away and I was working Saturday-Monday 12 hour shifts. The truck was $800 and I contacted him and said I would even pay him extra if he could hold it for me till Tuesday. He said, don't bother with any more money and said YES and I was super excited! I called my girlfriend right away giddy as a school girl on her birthday! I was thinking of how I was going to get down there all weekend, I called Monday to make arrangements and he said he had someone coming from Chicago to pick it up. I was crushed, how could someone do that?!! I called my girlfriend and complained to her for probably hours for the next month I suppose. Fast forward about 2 months to Christmas day at my sisters house. After the family's gifts were ripped open my girlfriend gave me a note that said look in the dryer. I did, then the next note said look in the basement, I did, the next note and then some more leaded me to the garage with my eyes closed. I opened my eyes to see a black 2 door Cherokee, I held my breath and my comments until I walked around and looked the truck up and down like a supermodel. I opened the hood to see the wiring harness, no C101 connector, opened the door, 1990 manufacture date. I was so puzzled, how could my girlfriend find EXACTLY what I wanted?

Well after complaining for forever that day she called the guy on CL selling the Jeep. She convinced him she would come down and buy it. She rented a U-haul trailer and asked a friend of hers to come with her, drove 3 hours, gave the guy $800 and hid it in my parents garage for two months. She then drove the incredibly toed in truck to my sisters house where she parked it in her garage for the surprise. Yeah the guy was a dirt bag, but what a story! I married that girl.

CC is Awesome! Why?

I found a place to share my thoughts and questions along the way, kept me on track with the build. There are so many people that share the same passion and just want to help. Cruiser54 and Eagle have got to be the most influential, I enjoy Minuit and Ohm's addition since they share my electrical passion. I just wish that someday I could meet up with some of these guys. I would love to take a road trip just to meet up with some people on this forum.

Beautiful truck, congratulations! I have to say, I love the OEM+ look that this truck has.