Crunch,
Did your Jeep still run like crap the next day? I DO have a o2 sensor around the same spot you do. Mine is in the cat though not in the pipe. Mine also got pushed into the floor like yours but not as bad.
My trip home was total shit! The t-case kept poping out of high range and into neutral. Started in Nabraska and we got to Lincoln before fwd progress was no longer possible. Figured out it was the t-case when I was going nowhere and grabed the t-case shift lever and the Jeep made a big clunk and started moving. Got about 10 feet and it was grinding and clunking.
A State trooper helped us off freeway and gave us directions to a hotel. We wound up getting lost and stopped at a gas station for directions. Driving around was a lot like scrapping your nails on a chalk board as the case was grinding and clunking like mad. Anyway, we're at the station and some guy comes up and tells me what a sweet Jeep I have. I look over and he's got a XJ with a 6" lift. I tell him our problem and he offers to lead us to the hotels (at this point I know it was in the t-case but didn't know what was going on).
On our way to the hotel I'm thinking how easy it is to get the case apart. I say it to the guy (his name is Matt BTW) and he say he would love to stick around and wrench with me. We drop off his pregnant girlfriend and grab a tool box of tools. We get back to the HOJO and tear into it. After another trip to his place we had the case apart and found the problem. The plastic pads on the range fork were all fubared and in the bottom of the case. I pulled the range fork and found that without the pads the metal to metal contact wore the fork to the point that it would not hold the hub in the high range position.
At 1:30am we called it a night and I decided I'll call around for the part in the morning. When I got in the room and laid down for the night Christine asked how I planned to get parts on a Sunday, DOH!!! I totally forgot it was Sunday! So in the morning I was desperate to get something going. We check out a U-haul to get the Jeep home and go back for the camper later. That was over $700. A one way car rental was $400.
I thought and thought, then came up with an idea. The mode fork also has the plastic wear pads and they were all in tact. There are three pads, one in the center and two on the ends. I took the two end pads and moved them to the range fork and left the center pad on the mode fork. The only problem was that the metal of the mode fork itself was worn and the pads are designed to have a metal backing. I though I would give it a try as I was desperate to get home on Sunday so we could get back to work on Monday.
I gave Matt a call and asked him to pick me up some ATF and silicone. He said he would be happy to help out. We put it all back together and took the Jeep for a ride. Everything was working fine and we loaded up to head home.
I have to say Matt was a blessing and I beleive god put him in our path. He told me of his troubled past and how he is trying to straighten out his life. I am not sure how this all fits in but I hope this connection in some way helps him out, because he sure helped us out. I plan to keep in touch with him and hope I can offer him some help and guidence in the future. Without him there is no way I would have gotten the t-case apart and I don't know if I would have torn into it without some reassurance and help. After all that I had to argue with him to put gas in his tank!
Anyway, as soon as we got on the expressway there was a clunk again. The problem returned. It was nowhere near as bad as we were at least moving. I decided to run it as far as we could. Every mile I drove knocked 2 off a return trip if It was needed. We pushed on for over 500 miles. The clunking and skipping got worse and worse. Getting started from a stop was worst and up and incline at all would cause a problem if I tried to maintain speed. The Tolls in IL pissed me off more than normal, and that is a lot to begin with, F***ing crooks.
We wound up making it home a 2AM, we were supposed to arive at 2:00pm. I found a case at a yard out of town with 46K on it for $310 shipped. I bought it and should get it in a few days. I tore mine down tonight and the lack of metal support behind the plastic pads was still alowing it to pop out of high range. But, with the extra thickness of the plastic it held it in enough to get us home.
The guy that helped us owns Big Red Towing in Lincoln Nebraska. He is just starting up and trying to make a go of it. If you know anyone in Lincoln or need a tow in the area please look him up.
We actaully had a great time but this by far was the worst trip of my life. I am glad we went as I love wheeling with great people though.
B-loose