Do yesterday I had to drop the crossmember on my 01 wj to do a little exhaust work. I got the outside bolts of the crossmember to go in just fine but I can't get a single one of the 4 bolts that go to the transmission mount to thread. I've tried using the jack to raise and lower the crossmember a bit and I still can't get it. It feels like the holes are lined up but for some reason I can't get any of the threads to catch. Any tips?

 

Try loosening up the crossmember bolts and shifting it around until you start the mount bolts, then tighten everything up. I'm not underneath it, but is it possible you have the crossmember backwards?

 

Thanks! I had tried doing that earlier and it didn't work but I tried it again and I was able to get it in. Now it's all back together but now one of the cats is smoking pretty bad and threw a check engine light. Guess I'll have to replace the cat. Man I'm sick of all this exhaust work

 

Yeah, I hear ya. The exhaust system is the dirtyist and most frustrating system to work on with any car. The only time it's fun is putting on a set of headers.