My buddy's new Rubicon.

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Autism Family Travels said:
We had to cut the bolts off. Now, try to get the tie rod end out of the trsckbar sleeve. Rusted in pretty good. We used penetrating oil last night and left it. I'm going heat the sleeve and hope it frees up.
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Usually I buy the complete kit... if one joint is bad, the rest are on their way out... and then I don’t have to worry about trying to mess with rusted parts.
 
M Rose said:
The clutch fluid is DOT-3 Brake fluid, NOT ATF. Using ATF in the clutch master cylinder will cause your exact problems @Autism Family Travels .
If bleeding the clutch doesn’t work, it’s time for a new clutch kit... not hard to do on these old TJs.

as for steering, start with the known bad tie-rod... but the TJ has a recall on the 04-06 steering gear box so your assumption is probably correct. Also while you are at it for recalls. Make sure the Distributor Recall has been addressed. Jeep used a Brass drive gear instead of an iron drive gear and it causes drivability issues at about 45k miles to 100k miles. My ‘06 had 58k when the problem arose.

btw, I might be driving a Bronco now, but it replaced my 29th Jeep... I’ve owned just about every model from 1950-2006.
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Wow, 29 Jeeps. I thought I was a Jeep nut, owning 3 over the last 20+ years.
 
TxJeeper75 said:
Wow, 29 Jeeps. I thought I was a Jeep nut, owning 3 over the last 20+ years.
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Out of the 29, only 5 I actually drove further than the gas station... I used to Do full frame off restoration of all models of Jeeps before the prices skyrocketed on them. I did a few not so common ones like the FC, The Ford MB, and a 1960 Wagon Ambulance. Then of corse the CJ 5-9, YJ’s, TJ’s, XJ, ZJ, Wagoneer, Comanches, and the J series Trucks. I’m forgetting quite a few models... but my point is there were only a few I haven’t had the chance to get my hands on... The Tow Truck (MB with rear tow boom), the Farm Jeep (as I call them, they were sold to farmers with farm implement attachments like a front end loader and a blade), and the one I really wanted to get my hands on was the 1986 CJ-8 Renegade Scrambler Levi’s Jean Eddition. 1986 Jeep didn’t release a Jeep in preparation for the 1987 YJ. They however made a few special editions in 1986.
 
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M Rose said:
TxJeeper75 said:
Wow, 29 Jeeps. I thought I was a Jeep nut, owning 3 over the last 20+ years.
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Out of the 29, only 5 I actually drove further than the gas station... I used to Do full frame off restoration of all models of Jeeps before the prices skyrocketed on them. I did a few not so common ones like the FC, The Ford MB, and a 1960 Wagon Ambulance. Then of corse the CJ 5-9, YJ’s, TJ’s, XJ, ZJ, Wagoneer, Comanches, and the J series Trucks. I’m forgetting quite a few models... but my point is there were only a few I haven’t had the chance to get my hands on... The Tow Truck (MB with rear tow boom), the Farm Jeep (as I call them, they were sold to farmers with farm implement attachments like a front end loader and a blade), and the one I really wanted to get my hands on was the 1986 CJ-8 Renegade Scrambler Levi’s Jean Eddition. 1986 Jeep didn’t release a Jeep in preparation for the 1987 YJ. They however made a few special editions in 1986.
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Wow, that's amazing! You have worked on some cool vehicles. A lot of history you brought back to life. I had an 84 XJ which I eventually traded in for my 91 YJ. I still own that one. I have probably turned every nut and bolt on that thing, and plan to do it again when I put in a 6 cyl engine. That will have to wait till I finish equipping my latest addition, an 06 TJ Rubicon.
 
Well, we got the tie rod end replaced on the track bar. It made a huge difference to the jeep and it steers SO MUCH BETTER now. There was an additional tie rod with the parts to the jeep, we installed it and it worked perfect. So that's one thing off our list of to do's. Next up is bleed the clutch system, brakes and U joints on the front axle. After that, we will be doing the little bit of body work she needs. I LOVE this jeep. It rides so damn good compared to the other TJ we tested with the rough country suspension on it.
 
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EDIT: Didn't see above posting where you already replaced things.

Sorry guys, my 04 6 cyl had a cam position sensor not a distributer. Its where the distributor would be if it had one. At 20k mileage it started ticking real bad. I replaced it before it broke.

Here's some suggestions from me. One of the main reasons I sold my TJ was, I was tired of reengineering Jeeps failures. Some of the things you listed are just that. I'm not trying to get you to build a crawler but, if your replacing parts make it the way it should have been.

Track bar. This is the main cause of death wobble. Other things contribute but they are just what triggers it.
Do not buy a replacement track bar of the same design as factory. Jeep screwed up the axle/steering design and that weird track bar was their bandaid.
Replace it with a Curry or another similar design with a heim joint on both ends. If your going bigger on the tires or never want any issues, run the Curry steering linkage. The TJ linkage is horrid.
When your done the track bar has to be at the exact same angle as the steering drag link. If its not, you get bump steer. Its not unusual for people to add in a drop pitman arm to these and screw up the geometry. When I bought mine, the previous owner had a 2 inch drop arm in it. I had to replace it with a heavier flat one to fix the geometry.

Steering box. The stock Mercedes gear box sucked bad. I had the same PSC gear box on mine. it was easier than converting it over to a Saganaw box that Jeep used on literally everything else before and after. Take the steering, turn it one direction until it stops (lock) then count the turns the other way until it stops again (lock). Turn the steering wheel back 1/2 the turns. The steering wheel better be straight and the wheels better match. Very few people actually check a new gear box for center before install. They install it off-center then align the front end to match. Most people aligning vehicles don't do this either. their suppose to though.

Trans issue.
Yes change both fluids. The issue your describing sounds more like a worn out clutch. If you had an automatic, I would spend an hour typing out what you need to do to keep that from burning up.

Injectors. Yet another huge screw up. Injectors are suppose to atomize (fog) the fuel as its sprayed. Think a directed mister. If there is an issue with the injector, it will drip or act like a squirt gun. Both of these are bad. The Injectors jeep put in are a single nozzle squirt gun. This causes poor mileage, slightly rough idle, loss of low end power and best of all, increased cylinder wear by washing the oil off of the cylinder walls at lower speeds. OH and destroys the oil.
Fix. Replace with a 4- 5 nozzle injector (unlike the single Jeep used). Do a search, you will see a ton of video footage on this and people sell direct bolt in replacements. I installed Ford injector's and I payed about $100 for the set rebuilt. Huge difference. You really saw it on the 5 gas machine (smog) and my oil report from Black Stone.

I could go on forever on this topic but I will stop there. The better aftermarket manufactures make replacement parts to address the issues jeep designed in. When replacing worn or broken parts, its best to step up and replace it with better.
As I said earlier, I'm not talking a rock crawl rig, just make it proper.
 
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I miss my TJ every day, I had a lot of fun with it. I dove on the surf and over huge rocks.
 
Autism Family Travels said:
Amsoil would not work it? I will check the fluid too.
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use whatever the Owners Manual specs
it is just tranny oil, the factory got it right

I now own 2 Rubicons an '05 with 400,000kms and an '06 with 120,000kms. Best 4x4s ever.
After owning Jeeps for 50 years...... the closer they are to stock, the more reliable they are.

Willys, Ford, AMC, Chrysler all got it right. When in doubt, refer to the factory spec.

PS, best of luck with the inspection.

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No wonder it had a little stumble in the motor....The spark plugs were the original NGK. 193000km on them. BRUTAL.

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I also did the brakes yesterday, bolt down the custom fabed roof, greased all the johnny joints and other greasable points, and changed the oil. The rig is vastly better than it was a week ago.

After crawling on my current shop floor all week with this bugger, I have not commited to building another shop next door with a lift. Time to get serious! I know I can do ANYTHING when it comes to wrenching and fabrication but I need the space to do it. Someone on the island here has a 26x40x18 "flip up building" for sale for a decent price. Cheaper than I can build a wood frame one for. So I may jump on that pour the slab and pop that up ASAP then over the winter, complete the inside.
 
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