84XJ Crossmember bolts

I just picked up this 84 XJ, and have been trying to get her up to snuff.

One of the problems I have is that the crossmember bolts are broken. By that I mean that they appear to be studs and have broken loose from whatever they were welded to.

I am not sure how to go about fixing that problem. 2 of the four bolts are snug, but two are broken loose from their normal spot.

There is no way to get to the other end to re-weld them because they are inside the frame tube?

Any idea how you fix something like that?

well you have a fun project ahead of you. You can go about this two ways. Pull the carpet and use a hole saw to get into the frame, or use a hole saw from the side of the frame. But use the smallest one you can find. Just make sure you patch the hole back up, there are plugs that you can get a home depot or any hardware store that has plumping stuff. after you plug it paint over the plug if you do the side of the frame or put the carpet back down and call it a day. Good luck. Juice

I would recommend going in through the top of the "frame rail", which of course is the floor pan. I say this for two reasons:

1. The majority of the frame's strength comes from the side walls, so you are not cutting into those when you go in from the top.
2. When making a 'patch' over the hole cut in the floor pan, the patch will now lie inside the vehicle, and out of the nasty elements. This will keep the joint between the patch and the floorpan from developing corrosion between the two pieces.

I would recommend the patch be made of steel, plain cold-rolled or stainless, and attach it to the floor with self-tapping screws (4 or 6 evenly spaced). Seal the joint between the patch and the floorpan with a good flexible sealer--asphaltic type cement is a good traditional material here.