HEYYYYY CONGRATS!!! I have to admit though, the first time I heard about the 4.7L stroker, I thought the poster was talking about the Chrysler v8... but then again, I was a Jeep noob and didn't own a magazine that's immersed in the off-road world.

 

love this XJ! just read the whole build thread. great work man. i just picked up a '99 gunmetal pearl xj a few months ago. its on 15x8 with 3.75 backspacing on 32x11.5. I want to go 33x12.5 and figured i might as well change the wheels to something i like but cant decide on a width. i love your stance but i noticed on this forum you say you are 15x10 but i also stumbled across your build on NAXJA and you say you are 15x8??

but on NAXJA

"I added a few things, like a 6.5-inch Rough Country short arm lift, control arm drop brackets, NP242 slip yoke eliminator from Tom Woods, and 33x12.50r15 Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac tires on 15x8 Cragar V5 wheels with 3.75 inch backspacing"

 

Hey, thanks for the kind words! I must not have updated NAXJA yet. I no longer have those tires or wheels, and I now run 33x12.50r15 Cooper Discoverer STT Pros on 15x10 V5 wheels.

 

Why do u like it on 10" wide tires? Any noticeable difference between two rims other than looks?

 

The tires are still 12.50, but the wheels are 10".

I like the look of the 10" better, and it's better for road wear because it makes the tire bulge out more.

 

Did a complete heater core flush, and it's completely clear (new core too). No idea why I only have lukewarm heat.

Everything in the cooling system is new, so there shouldn't be any issues. Blend door should also be functioning fine, as the motor is now.

Maybe air in the system?

 

Sounds like it. You've got a 195* t-stat in, right?

 

Yes, 195 it is.

 

Yeah man, definitely sounds like air somewhere in the system. Not impossible for an open cooling system, but still possible.

 

My Jeep's getting harder and harder to keep straight on the road. What are some of the top things I should look into to fix not being able to drive straight as an arrow?

The steering box is the last thing I'd want to check because it seems everyone who ever replaces them never sees any changes in their steering handling.

My guess is check the ZJ tie rod joints in the tie rod I installed?

 

Tie rod ends and steering geometry...make sure your track bar is aligned with your draglink...
I'm battling the same thing...I'm getting a mini bump steer and wandering....
I'm already hating the fact I have to correct my steering a lot during my 30min commute to work

 

So jeep is not tracking straight? There are differences between tracking straight and loose steering components.

Too much toe-in can cause tracking issues and is easy to measure yourself. If it's 1/8" or more, dial it back to 1/16". Anytime control arms are adjusted, toe need to be set. Toe is always adjusted after caster.
Not sure how a computer alignment handles toe on oversize tires. I would guess the computer is set for make/model which would give tire size of 28". 1/16" to 1/8" on a 28" tire would be exaggerated to 1/4" or more on 33"+ tires.
Measure between carcass of tires, at hub height.

 

Yeah it's been wandering on the road a lot as in not tracking straight. It likes to weave right so much.

I am noticing a lot of play in the steering wheel. Seems like often I have to over-rotate the wheel to get the Jeep to steer in the direction I want.

 

Not helping with your current problem at all, but I've been reading over your thread the past couple days after work and I have to say, it's inspiring. you work through everything so diligently and you really take pride in your jeep - beautiful xj, i hope to have mine looking almost as nice as yours one day!

 

Check your intermediate shaft. I just remedied this problem in mine. Any time I turned the wheel - especially when the jeep was cold - there was a "dead space" in which the steering wheel would move but do nothing. It literally felt like I was turning the steering wheel and nothing else for about a 1.5-2" lateral movement of my hand.

The intermediate shaft has a rubber vibration dampener that is vulcanized to the two sections of the shaft. When the vulcanization breaks free, there is a lot of slop in the steering wheel.