just bought this sunday. currently has:
4clyinder "iron duke" 2.5L
sr-4 manual trans
dana 300 transfer case
dana 30 front locked
amc 20 rear locked.
i don't know what type of lockers are in it yet but more than likely will swap them for air lockers. runs good just needs the brakes the the clutch bled (have to pump both brake and clutch pedal for them to work)
I just sold my cj7 but they have a special place in my heart Nice ride. If i could make a suggestion I'd do very little to it right now and just enjoy it. Personally if the lockers are functional I'd leave them alone. Besides I'm not a huge fan of air lockers I wouldn't spend a bunch of $ on the stock axles. I had to bump up to chromoly one piece rears and still broke a shaft which took out a thousand dollar locker. In retrospect I'd have been better off going full width or even putting 44's in. My $.02. Oh, and twin stick that 300 and it'll be much more friendly IMO. Also put a steering box brace as they are an inherent weak point and it's 20min to put one in now vs. re-creating that portion of the frame when it rips through and/or breaks the stock box. Good luck and have fun!
gonna drive the engine til it explodes. but was thinking of a diesel when that happens. thanks for the tips. i still have to find out what lockers are in it but was only going to do a SOA conversion and call it a day with that. bumpers and sliders, steering upgrade (if i can find one) and regear.
the current goals and wants as of right now are as follows:
hi-fender tube fenders (probably from gen right)
corner crushers (idk if im going to do steel or aluminum but more than likely also from gen right)
poison spyder BFH stubby bumper (same one from the LJ)
LOD rear bumper/tire carrier (close to the same from the LJ but also has 2 jerry can mounts and a basket thats ontop of the tire)
Poison spyder sliders
winch (what lb should i get?)
rusty's HD tie rod and drag link
steering box brace (who makes a good one?)
suspension seats w/ 4 point harnesses
just bought all new vacuum lines and both belts yesterday, putting them in tonight. the jeep runs great but doesn't go anywhere (can't get the trans to go into gear, thinking the linkage is disconnected somewhere or the clutch is fried.) any other thoughts as to why it wont go? lol
progress so far is replacing 1 belt (other was still good)
replaced nearly all of the vacuum lines
removed the cross member/ skid plate
also was wondiering if just by looking at them if you could tell me what type of axles, transfer case, and transmission i have. and do CJ7's come with track bars? i noticed that my leaf springs are leaning to the passenger side of the jeep it doesn't have any mounting brackets for it.
progress so far is replacing 1 belt (other was still good)
replaced nearly all of the vacuum lines
removed the cross member/ skid plate
also was wondiering if just by looking at them if you could tell me what type of axles, transfer case, and transmission i have. and do CJ7's come with track bars? i noticed that my leaf springs are leaning to the passenger side of the jeep it doesn't have any mounting brackets for it.
best picture i can take of the transmission
Dana 30 front
AMC corporate 20 rear
Dana 300 transfer case
CJ's do not have track bars
Some CJ's do have a front sway bar
Betting the trans is a T4, need top cover view to tell the difference from SR4
1. I'd get rid of those goofy extra-long shackles.
2. A SOA conversion is a PITA and not necessarily cheap if it's done right and all the geometry is done correctly. I'd get a basic suspension (spring) lift and call it good.
3. I've run automatic lockers (with 4.56 gears) in both axles of my CJ7 for over 15 years without any problems. I'd avoid the expense and possible snagging of air lines with air lockers.
4. If you're contemplating running tires larger than 32", or swapping in a larger engine, you might want to consider changing the rear axle over to one-piece axleshafts or a full floater system. The former is much cheaper, but the latter is stronger and more versatile.
5. Converting over to a diesel is going to be somewhat of a drawn-out project. On the other hand, AMC 360 engines are still rather plentiful, cheap, and easy to swap in.
no idea what im doing yet. plans have changed drastically since buying it. but it has 33's on it right now. i would like to keep this engine until it explodes and then see where im at. also would like dana 44's eventually. no idea for a lift. would like to do the soa with a 1" body lift but like i said. plans change as i get more stuff done and i dive deeper into the project.
ok so doing more research and talking to others i've come to this thus far:
not supposed to be a track bar
leafs lean because of larger shackles
i got the jeep to move on its own power yesterday. the transfercase wasn't engaged fully. i pushed it all the way forward (4L), the 4wd light came on on the dash and after putting it in gear it started to drive out of the garage
this weekend im going to check the trans fluid to see the level and what it looks like. im told if it's really low it'd cause it to grind or it could be the throw out bearing.
also the SR-4 was only in 80-81 CJ7's also the narrow tracks last year was 81, in 82 the wide track came out. i measured my rear axle and it's 50" which means its a narrow track. i ran the VIN through my insurance company's website and it's an 82 so im guessing that it's an 81 drivetrain and frame with an 82 body.
got the trans out. the bolts came out easy but had to beat on the trans to get it to separate from the bel housing. tried getting the bell housing out and the same thing. they both seem like they're fused. bell housing is still in. gonna beat it with a rubber mallet this weekend any idea what this white powdery stuff is on the housing?
yes, you may need to soak it with oil heat it and still beat the bell housing off. If you have a air hammer with a blunt bit vibrate around the dowl pins on the back of the motor and that will help shake the corrosion loose just be easy so you dont brake the aluminum housing
im starting to have second thoughts so i figured i'd run it past you guys.
the 2.5L only has 85hp and a max speed of near 73mph in the CJ7. im obviously going to regear to 4.88 gears when i put on the 35's but will i even be able to drive this thing on the freeway? (speed limit is 70 here) i paid 1k for this. haven't put hardly anything into it but even after i get it all set up the way i want i don't want a trailer queen. nor do i really wanna swap the engine and trans right off the bat. im just wondering if i should resale this and try to find one with the 4.2L or possibly a different jeep.
70mph + 4:88's = 3300RPM. For any amount of real 70 MPH distance driving on a regular basis a 2.5 will not live long with that setup. My oldest CJ has 4:88's/35's and 60MPH (2800 RPM) is about tops for cruising any real distances. And that's with a balanced V6 EFI engine pushing well over 200HP.
Find a rather cheap/plentiful 360 AMC & T176 to put in front of the 300 case, then some 4:27 gears. That will give you 70 MPH and stay together around 2800 RPM.
Short of buying a $20k+ Collins Bros. Jeep, most CJs on the market are pretty much 10 owner basket cases or WAY over priced.
Decide what your end goal is, get a good base vehicle for that goal, keep it, work toward the goal bit by bit.
got the drums off of the front axle but the rear axle has 3 philips screws in each. i got 1 out of each side but the other 4 nearly disintegrated when i turned them with nearly no effort. so how do i get them out now?
driver side
passenger side
the videos are of me draining the trans and transfer case. wanted a video to show you guys the color of each
this will be my very first post or reply or whatever on this site lol so bare with me,looks like you have a very nice project jeep congratulations.do whatever makes you happy with engine and trans, tires shocks all that shit,but do yourself a huge favor get rid of the hub bolts replace with studs i never run any 4x4 wirth bolts holding on my hubs they get lose even with locktight they strip all that shit just put studs in and you can pass it on to all others that have problems with bolts stripped and hubs messing up because of it.ps i also run an 82 cj7,swapped jeep axles for toyota been wheeling wa. state and oregon hard for 12 years now never a problem,5:30 gears 36 in swampers gl and enjoy.
Drums on the front? That's an earlier axle than 82. Disc brakes have been standard issue on CJ's since 79 and an option as early as 77. I'd check the axle build #'s to see what you're dealing with. Those automatic axle shaft breaker lockout hubs suck too. Welcome to CJ ownership.
where are the #s at? and yeah i was wondering why i still have drums. they're also the narrow track axles. i was guessing that i have an 82 body and an 80-81 everything else because of the sr4 trans. but if what you say is true then i have a mutt jeep.
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