I was cruising on craigslist and found a beat up old mj for sale needing a lot of work and upgrades. the axles especially and i was looking at east coast gear supply crate ford 8.8 axle but they dont have one for an mj comanche so i was wondering if an axle meant for an xj of that year would bolt right up into a comanche? also since mj dont have huge aftermarket following like xjs where do the mjs get their parts or are xj parts interchangeable with them?

 

From the back of the cab forward, an MJ is identical to a 4 door XJ. Everything behind the cab is a little different, rear suspension is completely different. MJ is spring under, XJ is spring over. MJ springs are longer. Spring perch width is different.
So you would have to cut the perches and shock mounts off and weld new ones on to make an XJ axle bolt into an MJ.

 

If you really want a Comanche, check out ComancheClub.com. It is definitely a unique truck. Lots of XJ parts will work, pretty much from the dash forward is a XJ. Don't listen to the "from the doors forward is a cherokee". Seems like everyone thinks that until you start tearing it apart. Yes the doors are the same as a 4 door XJ, but the seats have different brackets. Even 2 door XJ seats have different brackets.

I just sold my MJ, find specific parts was fun. Now I have a parts pile.

 

I went XJ to MJ. Still have both. They both have their own perks but MJs are bad *** man. Everyone and their nana has a Cherokee. And I've notice not to many douches have Comanches too, so that's a perk

 

I almost bought an MJ before the XJ. The only thing that stopped me was finding out my wife was pregnant so I needed a back seat. Still want to get one though.
On topic, if it needs that much work I'm sure that means you'd be picking it up for quite cheap. If you have the money for it and a place to keep it, I would say get it and you'll be able to do a nice slow build on it and put what you want in it over time.

 

The only difference between an XJ rear axle and an MJ rear axle is the location of the spring perches. The MJ spring perches are a tad narrower and on the bottom of the axle instead of the top.

 

Seems like it would be easy enough to remove them and weld new ones where they need to be.

 

Shock mounts are different too. Both shocks are mounted to the back of the axle on an MJ.
Still not a big deal.

 

The leafs and shackles are different between xj and mj.