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Stock XJ Cherokee Tech. All XJ Non-modified/stock questions go hereXJ (84-01)
All OEM related XJ specific tech. Examples, no start, general maintenance or anything that's stock.
IDK if this will change your mind, but when the rear axle blew on my 2000 WJ, my mechanic buddy searched his contacts online and found me a complete axle assembly with 130K miles on it for $575 including shipping from Utah. It arrived in 4 days complete with brake calipers and parking brake cables that were new! It only took him 3.5 hours the install it taking his time! He only charged me $100 labor because I bought pizza for lunch!
Not really. Thanks to a $70.00 gift card that Amazon gave me to sign up for their credit card (yeah, I might use it it) when I placed my order for the Barnes Kit, my out of pocket expenses are $89.74 (or basically the cost of 6 large special pizzas).
IDK the condition of your axle u-joints, but if you haven't replaced them, now that it's out would be a great time to replace U-joints and front axle pinion seal. Make sure the breather isn't plugged. Double-check the ball joints. It's a fairly big job with the u-joints but a lot easier on the bench than under the vehicle. And any trailing arm bushings.... you get the idea.
IDK the condition of your axle u-joints, but if you haven't replaced them, now that it's out would be a great time to replace U-joints and front axle pinion seal. Make sure the breather isn't plugged. Double-check the ball joints. It's a fairly big job with the u-joints but a lot easier on the bench than under the vehicle. And any trailing arm bushings.... you get the idea.
U-joints relative new. Yeah that was an interesting job. Broke a Craftsman adjustable wrench while using it as a jig to press out the first U-joint (and they replaced it free, and seriously it was >50 years old!). On the second U-joint literally exploded my 6 ton HFT press. Now I got the 20 ton. One of the ears on the axle bent, but I used 2 wood splitting wedges, hammering them in from the sides simultaneously, and that straightened it out easily.
Replacing tracking arm bushing, tie rod boots, upper control arms (one rusted badly), all those stupid tabbed bolts, shock bumpers, steering stabilizer, shocks, sway bar links.
Broke off the lower bolt on a rear shock. Gonna try the Crown Automotive J0912703 Shock Absorber Mounting Stud. Looks like a good product.
***Potentially helpful tip*** When you change the front shock mounts from the tab type to the bolt-thru-a-sleeve type, the lower stock shock bushing (obviously) will not fit. You need an entirely different bushing (just pressing out the tab will not work) or different shock. Old lower bushings from the rears can be used tho.
***Another potentially helpful tip*** Those Torx bolts for the sway bar links are pressed in. Seems VERY misleading. You would think they would be able to turn. They don't.
Also with the housing out, you can wire brush it, wash it with some water and Purple Power, apply some rust converter and then paint it real nice.
For the Torx bolt on the sway bar links, there are all sorts of modification kits that have been created for quick disconnects so that you don't have to use the pressed in Torx bolts.
Well it looked nice in the garage, but doesn't really show cause nothing else is painted!
At any rate, got most of the stuff hooked back up. Kinda chilly working in the yard (high of 28° today) but a little sun and no wind, so not too bad. Waiting on new tie rod boots (taking a long time for delivery, shoulda gone with a different vendor, but water-bridge). I must say I'm pretty happy with the Barnes product, particularly how the tracking arm and steering stabilizer brackets attach. No guesswork, lined right up, and very solid.
I used an HFT 90 amp flux wire (Lincoln 0.35 wire) for some of the 3/16" stuff, then a Dayton 230 amp stick welder (6013 sticks) for the heavier stuff.
So thinking about changing the front springs. Right now center of the wheel to fender in the front is 18", the back with the new Crown leafs is about 19 - 19 1/2". Looking at Crown 52001125 (heavier version of 52001122, which sounds like a downgrade from OEM based on the reviews) or Moog CC782 (apparently the crowd favorite for ~OEM height). However, here's my questions:
If I change my isolators using Crown 52000229 (yeah shoulda done then when rebuilding the front axle, but didn't think of it until I was hoisting it back up again and saw 'em and went "ohhhhhh, forgot about that!!) would that give a little lift? Are old isolators a little squashed when you pull 'em out? I'm thinking the rear springs will settle a little, and if the existing front coils are good (based on some other posters, 18" sounds fine), and the isolators add just a half inch I'll be where I want to be. Otherwise the new coils + isolators could now make me 1-2" higher than the back and I'm tail-chasing.
