Hey guys, newbie to the forum here, I've been into jeeps for a couple years now, and just bought my first xj. Most of my knowledge and experience is with zj's and wj's. I need to swap out the steering column on my 93 and found one from a 96. My question is, does it matter if the column is from an automatic or manual transmission jeep? The donor is an aw4, and mine's an ax15. Someone told me it matters, but I'm not sure I'd take their word for it, and I don't see why it would, so I figured I'd ask the people that actually know what they're talking about before I buy it... I tried doing a search in the forums, but couldn't find any info specific to this question. Also, can I swap the steering wheel itself from the 93 to the 96? I don't care for the airbags... Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

stick shift columns might have the key release button that an automatic column wont have.

 

Does that matter at all? It's hard to find cherokee's with ax15's for parts.

 

i don't think it would matter going from an auto to stick. not sure about the key release button, but the auto has a shift lock rod to unlock the shifter so it can be shifted out of park, but wouldn't matter if it were going into a stick.

as for the steering wheel, not sure about compatibility, i haven't had the chance to mess with air bags... yet.

 

I have a 5speed ax-15. Replaced the dash and steering column and the column was from an Auto. The key release was not an issue for me I just ran a piece of coat hanger to the linkage where the shifter cable attached and to remove the key you just pull it towards you. Not a big deal IMO

 

Thanks for the input, guys. I appreciate it.