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Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



This guy might want to do a trade for my 1970 Volvo 164. Am I completely stupid to consider trading for something so old and slow, or are these still pretty easy to work on?



https://albuquerque.craigslist.org/cto/d/1948-cj2-willys-jeep/6244627593.html

The "newer motor" thing is interesting. I'm a big fan of keeping the original engine, but if he's changed engines (and maybe transmissions) it might be able to go above 40, which would make it useful for getting out to my deer hunting unit and other off-road areas.

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Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Pham Nuwen posted:

This guy might want to do a trade for my 1970 Volvo 164. Am I completely stupid to consider trading for something so old and slow, or are these still pretty easy to work on?



https://albuquerque.craigslist.org/cto/d/1948-cj2-willys-jeep/6244627593.html

The "newer motor" thing is interesting. I'm a big fan of keeping the original engine, but if he's changed engines (and maybe transmissions) it might be able to go above 40, which would make it useful for getting out to my deer hunting unit and other off-road areas.

Guess he sold it today. I was supposed to go see it this evening. Oh well.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



CJ7 needs a brake booster. Is the Crown Automotive part worth the $50 extra over reman from Autozone / Napa?

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



IOwnCalculus posted:

Don't see why it would be, brake boosters are hardly some dark art.

Ok, I went with a reman from Autozone because they said it would get here either tomorrow or Wednesday. Thanks!

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



mod sassinator posted:

Serious question, can a 2.5 even do 50mph on the freeway?

my cj7 with 2.5 was doing 55 on the way home ok

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Son of a bitch:



The loving power steering bracket is cracked through there. Anybody got a spare lying around? This is for an 85 CJ-7 2.5L.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Pham Nuwen posted:

Son of a bitch:



The loving power steering bracket is cracked through there. Anybody got a spare lying around? This is for an 85 CJ-7 2.5L.

The guy at the pick-and-pull lot said "Oh you're not going to find one of those out there," but then I found an 81 AMC Eagle. Thanks, parts bin manufacturing!

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



There's a similarly rusted-out Willys (but with a rebuilt engine in it) for sale in Corrales, NM for $3k. Seemed like a lot to me for something that had clearly sat in an orchard year-round for the last 40 years. Paint was a little better.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



What fluid should I put in the transmission of my 85 CJ-7 2.5L 5spd? Should I change fluid in the transfer case while I'm at it? I've not owned a 4wd vehicle before so maintenance things like that are unknown to me.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Finally have some time to change the transmission and transfer case fluids in my 85 CJ-7. The transfer case plugs were easy to find:



And it seems like these two plugs on the passenger side must be drain and fill for the T-5:



But the transmission drain plug is going to gloop fluid all over the skid plate, and the hole under the transfer case drain plug is pretty poorly aligned too. My manuals don't mention it, but is it ok/safe to remove the skid plate for this task? The skid plate appears to play double duty as transmission cross-member so I want to play it safe.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



I could totally get the transmission plugs out and drained without removing the plate but drat I have not figured out any way to get an appropriate allen key up to the transfer case drain without removing the skid plate. I'll see if I can get the jack under there properly... where on the driveshaft? Seems like a risky spot to put pressure although I guess the things have to be tough

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Krakkles posted:

Do NOT support anything by the driveshaft.

If I'm catching the quote, I think what the original comment said was the driveline - ie. the engine and transmission. A jackstand under the tranny or a strap holding it is probably your best bet.

Ok, that makes a hell of a lot more sense. I can put the jack under the front end of the transmission like I did when I was swapping the Datsun's tranny.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



kastein posted:

It's a Jeep, how is it not leaking all those fluids already? I'd just drain it and worry about the mess later, I guess I'm a barbarian.

Edit: the way you get an Allen on that is you cut the short side down till it's only like 3/4" long past the bend, then go to town on it.

Do you know what size allen I'll need? I'm willing to cut down a few to get it right, but if someone knows offhand... either way, I'll try this before messing with removing the skid plate. Throwing down some oil absorber on anything that misses the pan is easier.

Weirdly it's not leaky, half the reason I bought it was that there were no leaks on the oil pan, transmission, or diffs, and only a little seepage on the transfer case.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Could changing the transmission fluid in an 85 CJ-7's T-5 potentially make the speedometer work properly again, or is this just coincidence? I drained the ATF that was in it and filled it with GL-4, then went to the store. On the way back I noticed that the speedo, which had always previously just bounced around erratically, was now reading what appeared to be the correct speed.

Also, my hard top is NOISY. Rattles like crazy over any sort of bumps in the road. I assume whatever rubber/foam goes between the top and the body has long since disintegrated; what would you recommend as a replacement?

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Any guesses what's making the droning/whining noise under acceleration in this video? (The clunks and rattles and squeaks are just the hard top that probably needs new weatherstripping)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkB5NlERLsI

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



I just took the hard top off my CJ-7 and it's so nice not hearing that loving creaking and clattering anymore. It's an old Acme fiberglass thing that's getting a little brittle around the edges. I'm considering putting it on Craigslist for like $250. Figured if I really want a top I could get a soft top later; will I regret getting rid of the hard top? Is it a pain to get decent doors?

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Astonishing Wang posted:

If you're any where near California don't sell for anything under $600 or so. I've never seen one go cheaper than that.

But at the same time, in most of California you don't need a hard top.

New Mexico. Weather's not quite as mild as California and people don't have as much money.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



I drove my '85 CJ-7 up to the Jemez Springs area yesterday and camped out overnight. Hills are not my friend in 4th or 5th gear, but otherwise it did great up to 7000 feet, where I pulled over and made camp. I was a bit tentative about starting since it was 6 a.m. and 40 degrees, but the bastard fired right up.

I managed to break the speedo completely; the needle has always been jumpy, sometimes just swinging between 0 and 85 as I drive, and I think that behavior coupled with gravel washboard made the needle jump past one of the limiters... so now it sits on the wrong side of the 85 mph peg. Guess I'll see if I can find any repair info, otherwise I'll start shopping.

I think I've decided that while mounting the CB to the back side of the center console keeps it out of thieves' sight, it's also pretty annoying to make any adjustments while driving. I think I'll put it in a more conventional location under the dash.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



The Royal Nonesuch posted:

I replaced my upper/lower Dana30 joints last year and it wasn't bad at all. I used a beat-up rental press set from O'Reilly's. Just like Astonishing Wang said, the hardest part is figuring out which adapter pieces to use (but we might just both be dumb in the same way :h:). I still kinda think I used the adapters incorrectly, but everything went together just fine and I've had no problems since. I did put the new balljoints in the freezer overnight beforehand.

As a side note, it really helps to have a good 1/2" impact gun and the requisite sockets - it's weirdly freaky to creep up on the release point of the old joints with a socket wrench and the press set, whereas if you just blast on the little bastards with a big impact they pop out & you don't really care. I think I still have PTSD from using cheap HF MacPherson strut compressors in combination with hand tools on my front coils years ago - you haven't lived until you've got your hands in there with the things almost all the way down, and instantly one of the threaded rods bends, causing the whole assembly to snap offline into kind of a croissant/arced deathspring shape.

also, saw this on a FB jeep group tonight:



30 fart-pounds or 40 nerton maters

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



IOwnCalculus posted:

Threw the Chinesium top on mine last night. For a loving $200 top, so far so good compared to the sun-roasted and incomplete Bestop that was on it. Turns out I was missing the bar that slides in the bottom of the rear window, since the thing didn't come with any of the removable panels. Picking one up tomorrow.

Tell me more... does this Chinesium top have a CJ-7 version? I'll probably want something to hold the warm in when hunting season rolls around.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



IOwnCalculus posted:

I thought Jeep had already gotten an injunction against the Mahindra Roxor? Drove by the local powersports dealer and they had two parked out front today.

I saw those in Clovis a few weeks back and got all excited because I thought they were regular road-legal Mahindra jeeps. :rip:

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



The fan pulley broke, luckily only a block from my house so it was easy to drive home without power steering:



Cost of a used pulley off ebay: $30.

Time to replace pulley: 10 minutes

Time to get that loving power steering belt over the loving power steering pulley: 30 minutes plus a bunch of swearing and removing additional bolts.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Tindjin posted:

Here is my submission for group membership. It is the third jeep that I have owned and by far the oldest.

1947 CJ-2A Willys
Original L-134 "Go Devil" 4 cyl engine, transmission and xfer case.


I picked it up almost a year ago but it has been sitting under a tarp waiting for me to finish some other projects. This January it starts being the main project. The seats are already removed, the previous-previous owner replaced the originals and welded these in. I've cut out the seats and most of the bars they put in to hold the chairs.

The engine ran for the previous owner but about 10 yrs ago when the water pump failed and he just parked it outback behind his house and left it. I've got a new water pump already and just waiting for a rebuild kit for the carb.

Plans are to get it in working order first just to make sure the engine is good and mechanically it is "usable". Then I'll decide if I keep the engine and order an overdrive for it or replace the engine then get working on the body and everything else.

My plan is for a fun exploration jeep for the desert and mountains here in NM and southern CO.

Awesome Jeep! I've got a CJ-7 that's intended for similar desert & mountain exploration, the main problem being it's an awful lot of freeway driving to get from my place to the explorable desert / mountains! What part of NM are you in? I'm down in Albuquerque.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Spent 15 minutes sitting in the Whataburger parking lot yesterday because if I drive a couple miles, then park for maybe 15 minutes, the CJ-7 sometimes vapor-locks. I've been meaning to replace that weird old computer+vacuum controlled carb with an aftermarket Weber as my next project/update, but maybe I ought to switch to an electric pump and re-route the fuel lines away from the block first?

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Tindjin posted:

Nice. I'm in Abq also. I'm actually thinking of selling the CJ-2A and getting either a CJ-7 or a Cherokee Chief. Same issue with it being a drive to anywhere interesting and I don't want to trailer it to spots.

Where do you like to go around here? I've poked around Cedro Peak but that's it so far, besides a trip up to fish at Jemez and down for some dove hunting (fruitless) at Sevilleta, both almost entirely on paved roads.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Well it looks like I had my Jeep running with really over-advanced timing for a while. Wonder why I did that in the first place, and I wonder what problems it caused. I bet it was at least partially responsible for the weird noises I'd hear accelerating at high RPM, or when I took my foot off the gas suddenly. Did it also play a part in the engine refusing to start if I went for a short drive and then e.g. parked for 15 minutes to eat lunch? Who knows!

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Cat Hatter posted:

Stupid hypothetical ahead.

I was watching Mad Max and began wondering what would be required to get a 90s Cherokee operating without a computer. Just slap a carburator on? Change to an internally regulated alternator? Fiddle with the ignition system? Give up and swap in a prohibition era flat-head Ford?

Well the 2.5 engine was available carburetted, although in my 86 it's theoretically computer controlled as is the ignition. Mine seems to do ok with half the carb controls off. I could replace the carb with a Weber but the coil would still have the computer interface; that's probably bypassable but I'm not sure how much work would be needed.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



85 CJ-7, 2.5L engine. When it gets up to high-ish rpm, I frequently hear a noise from the engine compartment which sounds... kinda like a dentist's suction tool? I don't think it's the belts... I've noticed there seem to be some bolts missing on the intake and exhaust manifolds, would that sort of high-rpm whooshing noise make sense if there's a leak at the manifolds? I can't seem to localize it in the engine bay, because when I get it throttled up high enough to cause the noise it's so loud I just can't figure out what's what.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



As a move back to California looks more and more likely I'm hoping that the CJ market is doing ok in a few months. Mine has no prayer of passing California emissions (it was a 49-state car to begin with), but I got it to pass NM inspections after I bought it and it's now grandfathered by the rolling 35-year rule, so that's got to count for something.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



The CJ7 does fine in 5th too, although going up anything more than a very mild incline will need a downshift. I can't imagine they made the engine worse after 10 years and fuel injection...

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



edit: ah hell i'm gonna leave this for a bit.

worst snipe, here's Klinger eating a Jeep

Pham Nuwen fucked around with this message at 05:57 on Jul 9, 2020

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



I'd been trying to track down a weird noise in the CJ7 for months now. It sounded like some sort of air or liquid hissing, or a bit like a pissed-off cat, and it only happened when the engine had warmed up a bit. I replaced vacuum lines, disconnected belts, etc. but finally gave up and took it to the shop that installed my catalytic converter. He rode around with me for a bit, then told me to change the fan clutch and sent me on my way at no charge. $50 later (clutch and an alternator belt while I was at it) it seems like the noise is gone!

I'm now plotting to drive from New Mexico up to Washington state and leave it with my dad. We're probably moving to either California or Washington soon, and if we go to CA we can't have the Jeep and if we go to WA, well, it'll already be there... And I guess if it breaks down along the way, maybe it wasn't worth keeping in the first place.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



kastein posted:

What part of Washington? I'd offer to let you park it on our land if it cuts some of your first drive off and makes the move easier, but given the tweaker compound literally a half mile down the road, I'm not leaving anything there until we live there ourselves.

East-central, near Moses Lake. I told Google Maps to avoid freeways and it's offering me two essentially equivalent routes: west across northern Arizona & southern Utah, then up through eastern Nevada to Boise, then west into Oregon; or up through western Colorado, cutting through the corners of Utah and Wyoming into Idaho up to Missoula, then across on Hwy 12 to Lewiston. The route through Colorado seems like it should offer more opportunities for gas, and overall slightly milder temperatures if I should break down in the middle of nowhere, but climbing all the way up to Silverton would surely slow things down.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



mod sassinator posted:

You sure you want to avoid freeways on those roads through Wyoming and Idaho? It's beautiful country, but off the main roads it's.... country. Huge stretches of two lane roads with absolutely nothing around for miles and miles. Not a great place to break down. At the very least, pack a tent and days of supplies, and a satellite communicator if you got one.

(driving up through the tetons and yellowstone and then onto the highway and through montana is pretty chill, absolutely gorgeous, and goes through some towns)

75 miles per hour in a 4-cylinder 1985 Jeep is a tall order. With just a bikini top on, it's also loud and windy. 65 is a lot more pleasant for humans and the vehicle alike. Even the most direct route doesn't pick up on freeways until Salt Lake City, and then it is huge stretches of *four* lane roads with absolutely nothing around for miles and miles, except for Boise (I've done the direct route before, even did it one time without stopping). Freeway is not entirely off the table, but having semis blasting past me for 10 hours straight doesn't exactly get me excited for it.

If I wanted to be smart, I'd just ship it up there, but this seems potentially more enjoyable. I'm still trying to figure out if this exercise in automotive insanity is worth the time and potential frustration.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



IOwnCalculus posted:

Looking drat good.

My wife saw what I assume was probably a JL/JT in some form of teal the other day. Is roll-on Rustoleum still A Thing?

I did it on an MG Midget a few years back. I think a Jeep is about the only other vehicle I'd consider for the process, because it's incredibly slow and tedious but a Jeep is... reasonably small.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



IOwnCalculus posted:

Yeah I'm undecided. Looking at the ones that come out good, it sure looks like you're trading not needing a sprayer for needing lots of coats, and more sanding on the backend. Sprayers are cheap, I have a compressor, and as you said a Jeep has a pitifully small painted area. Also seems like tinting isn't an option with the roll on methods, whereas actual auto paints come in whatever color I feel like.

Plus if I spend a bit on tools I can reuse, it could come in handy on my other two vehicles with poo poo paint. The TJ is just the worst by far visually, and also the one where I will care the least if my technique is subpar the first time.

The MG came out as a pretty good 10-foot paint job. If you went right up to it you'd see that the paint had some odd texture, and the paint was both thin and soft, but on the other hand I believe I could have touched up blemishes with the corresponding spray-on Rustoleum to good effect if needed.

It was a slow process, though, and watery yellow paint residue got all over my garage and driveway.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Discovered yesterday that my main cluster doesn't light up, but at least I can keep an eye on my oil pressure and voltage at night, even if I don't know how fast I'm going!

the connections for the bulbs are really weird and lovely so no doubt something is just loose in there

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



The carburetted 2.5 in my 85 CJ-7 (yes it's the same engine) will do freeway speeds and can make it up some decent hills if I'm already going fast. Frankly it's not too much worse than the I-4 in my 05 Ranger. Under, say, 35 mph it doesn't really seem to matter at all. The engine is pretty easy to deal with, but if I was buying another I'd strongly consider holding out for a 4L.

Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Pham Nuwen posted:

East-central, near Moses Lake. I told Google Maps to avoid freeways and it's offering me two essentially equivalent routes: west across northern Arizona & southern Utah, then up through eastern Nevada to Boise, then west into Oregon; or up through western Colorado, cutting through the corners of Utah and Wyoming into Idaho up to Missoula, then across on Hwy 12 to Lewiston. The route through Colorado seems like it should offer more opportunities for gas, and overall slightly milder temperatures if I should break down in the middle of nowhere, but climbing all the way up to Silverton would surely slow things down.



Well, I've decided to give this a shot. It's automotive insanity for sure, but a friend is flying out from Washington to make the drive with me and we're just gonna see what happens. We're leaving in the second week of September. Current plan is to take the eastern (highlighted) route. I was contemplating putting in a Weber carb before leaving but, well, the YFA seems to work ok so maybe I won't mess with it.

If it dies, my plan is to beg my dad to rent a U-Haul trailer and come get us... hell, he might even have a flatbed these days, I haven't been home in a while.

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Pham Nuwen
Oct 30, 2010



Driving an 85 CJ-7 4cyl from New Mexico to Washington: day 1. We left this morning and made it to Green River, UT. It'll do 65 or 70 happily until the first suggestion of a hill, then it betrays its gutlessness. Froze our asses off until a stop in Cuba because we forgot to bring gloves and had to buy some. Tomorrow we're aiming for Idaho Falls, where I have a friend who will let us sleep in his basement and use his shower--and he's promised smoked meats.

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