• NAXJA is having its 18th annual March Membership Drive!!!
    Everyone who joins or renews during March will be entered into a drawing!
    More Information - Join/Renew
  • Welcome to the new NAXJA Forum! If your password does not work, please use "Forgot your password?" link on the log-in page. Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] if we can provide any assistance.

89 Comanche DD Build

scguy27

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Barnwell, SC
Just picked up my first MJ, an 89. 4.0, AW4, RWD longbed.

P1040744_zps9xunchj7.jpg


P1040739_zpsi2nxpatq.jpg


P1040741_zpsjxzguf2v.jpg


P1040738_zpsdauumbhr.jpg


P1040737_zpsrro6dz7f.jpg


She's a little rough, but runs and drives. For a little bit, anyways. Overheating, had a head gasket done and that didn't fix it, PO thinks it has a cracked block. For $350, I can't complain.

Plans:
4WD swap, HO engine swap. lift in the area of 4-6", just a clean DD.
 
Carpet and seats pulled tonight. More rust than I thought.*

Being in SC I have very little experience with fixing rust, but this looks minor enough just to patch and not replace the entire floor pan right? What should be my course of action?

IMAG1183_zpsrjunbdli.jpg


IMAG1184_zpsi81scobq.jpg


Poking with a screwdriver, this is all the holes I could find.
IMAG1186_zpsyu4i3vly.jpg



Seat bolster bent to crap...

IMAG1187_zpsjhnmciru.jpg
 
IMAG1205_zpsge1gbbwm.jpg


IMAG1207_zpsj99carmg.jpg


Here is my organ donor. 92 XJ Sport, 4WD, NP231, AW4. D35/D30 3.55.

It has a new cylinder head with 5k miles on it, new fuel pump, distributor, starter, spark plugs, cap and rotor, Comp Cams custom grind cam, lifters, new header. It has the 01 intake manifold that has been port matched and coated with gold heat wrap with ZJ power steering pump (i think)
IMAG1210_zpsrhgjw2pb.jpg


IMAG1212_zpsmonokzil.jpg



I also like the 3 row aluminum radiator and triple electric fan setup.


Not bad for $700.
 
Donor engine stripped of head and cam.
IMAG1267_zpsycpop8ra.jpg


Cam and new timing chain installed

IMAG1268_zps7i1ifkny.jpg


Oil pan gasket and paint prep on the 92 Jasper HO engine that will be used

IMAG1269_zpsegmvh7u4.jpg
 
Put in a few hours today.

Head on, new lifters in. New oil pan gasket and timing cover gasket, crank seal.

IMAG1270_zps4ksmyacz.jpg


Primed.

IMAG1275_zps6yyal6ak.jpg


And painted. I originally wanted to go with a different color, but black just fits everything.

IMAG1277_zpshl6caohf.jpg


This engine is a Jasper Reman with 26k miles out of a 92 Jeep Comanche. Current setup is 4.0 HO block bored .060 over, 7120 HO Head (mostly new, only 5k miles on it from Dover Heads in Atlanta), 01 intake manifold, Comp Cams custom grind (mild torque cam), and an aftermarket header of unknown origins,
 
I'm trying to decide on a lift. I want to run somewhere around 3-5". I'm torn between piecing a lift together or just getting the Zone 4.5"kit and a track bar. I plan on swapping the D35 out sometime down the road, so the add a leaf only needs to last till then when I go SOA.
 
Engine out.





Parts pile



"Patched" radiator





Interior stripped




Farewell, Renix



And none too soon.



And back outside. Not bad for a day's work.

 
I really don't like doing front end work, so I'm going in to do everything right from the start. On the way are all new steering components, all MOOG. Also swapping over to a ZJ V8 tie rod setup.
 
I like where you're going with this. I've been wanting to do a clean long bed MJ for daily use. I was thinking 4" lift on some 33x10.50 all terrains. Lifted long bed mjs with camper shells look pretty cool.
 


Rears sitting up now. Still a lot of weight in the bed and none up front, so hopefully it'll level out. Just have to order a track bar and a few other goodies.
 
Wow, it's been forever. Things have been crazy, I bought a repo house that needed a decent amount of work, but now I have an air conditioned shop to shove my projects in.



In the meantime, the Comanche has been totally ignored. I hate it, but working plumbing trumps MJ.

I did do some thorough cleaning of the engine bay and reinstalled the gearbox and new IRO spacer.

Unfortunately, I've got another project ahead of this one for the time being, fixing a friend's F100 with blown head gaskets.

Sent from my LG-H900 using Tapatalk
 
Well, it's only been forever, but finally got the 4.0 powerstick in. Decided to try to slip in the engine, transmission and transfer case as a unit. At 6'3" long, I thought it'd be a lot harder than it ended up being.



 
Back
Top