tranny help

[Jess]

I think the AW4 in the wife's 93 ZJ just finally gave out. I was stopped and let it idle for about 5 minutes and when I went to go it didn't want to pull.

It has done the same thing a couple of times in the past year and each time I drained and refilled it and replaced the filter.

This time I let it cool for a minute and it pulled again for a few miles. When it started to slip again I pulled over and noticed it dripping between the tranny and oil pan. It was also making a rattle noise (sounded like a heat sheild rattle). I had a gallon of fluid and filled it until the noise wasn't as loud, restarted it and it pulled. I overfilled it and it blew alot of smoke but it went for a while longer. Once again it quit pulling and I turned it off and let it cool again and it limped the last half mile home.

I'm tired of trying to band-aid the problem and think replaceing the tranny would be the easiest route. I assume it is a 23 spline and think an XJ tranny should be a direct replacement. Does anyone have any knowledge about this swap?

Can someone give me a step by step walkthrough of dropping the tranny (which order should everything be removed/unbolted).

Does anyone have a cheap tranny to sell me?

Thanks for all the help.

 

[watrousmark]

You should hit up thechief86 he's always changing tranies. Yuk, yuk, yuk.

 

[thechief86]

hahaha! yeah, i've done it a few times. midtennxj has a good one for sale, for the cheap.
call 615-809-4940 and ask for spencer.
all you have to do is remove the bell housing bolts, the driveshafts, the crossmember, the torque converter bolts(one at a time while turning the engine with a breaker bar), and the little clip-on deal for the shifter cable and linkage for the tcase. support it with a jack till you're ready to drop it(unplug everything first), then move it back a touch and let the jack down slowly. now you can remove the tcase easily on the ground. put all the bolts in dixie cups or ziplock bags, and label where they came from, and maybe take pictures of stuff that might not go back together easily. also, the 2 bolts at the top of the bell housing are torx e12, not a 10 mil or 3/8, and yes, anything else will tear them up. use the right socket. don't forget to unplug the crank position sensor, either: you don't wanna buy another because you fubarred the wires.
if you have any other questions, pm me, or call
731-217-6444. if i don't answer, leave a message, and i'll call you back soon.
~eric

 

[shortxjdoug]

CHECK THE FLEXPLATE-CONVERTER BOLTS! if its leaking and rattling i can almost guarantee the bolts are loose and its puking all its fluid out through the converter opening.... same thing happened in the blue 91 i used to have, the PO thought he smoked the tranny but it turned out the boolts were just loose


if that dont do it ill help you pull the trans its pretty easy but check those 4 bolts it sounds like that is exactly the issue your having

 

[Jess]

Thanks for all the suggestions. If the weather is okay I will check the flexplate bolts tomorrow. Were those supposed to be put in with lock-tight? I don't think we used any after the engine swap......not sure they got torqued either.

Doug, I will give you a call tomorrow after I check those bolts. And thanks for the offer to help drop the tranny.

 

[shortxjdoug]

Thanks for all the suggestions. If the weather is okay I will check the flexplate bolts tomorrow. Were those supposed to be put in with lock-tight? I don't think we used any after the engine swap......not sure they got torqued either.

Doug, I will give you a call tomorrow after I check those bolts. And thanks for the offer to help drop the tranny.

yeah we didnt use lock tite on em and probably should have... IIRC the torque on them isnt that much....

 

[Jess]

hahaha! yeah, i've done it a few times. midtennxj has a good one for sale, for the cheap.
call 615-809-4940 and ask for spencer.
all you have to do is remove the bell housing bolts, the driveshafts, the crossmember, the torque converter bolts(one at a time while turning the engine with a breaker bar), and the little clip-on deal for the shifter cable and linkage for the tcase. support it with a jack till you're ready to drop it(unplug everything first), then move it back a touch and let the jack down slowly. now you can remove the tcase easily on the ground. put all the bolts in dixie cups or ziplock bags, and label where they came from, and maybe take pictures of stuff that might not go back together easily. also, the 2 bolts at the top of the bell housing are torx e12, not a 10 mil or 3/8, and yes, anything else will tear them up. use the right socket. don't forget to unplug the crank position sensor, either: you don't wanna buy another because you fubarred the wires.
if you have any other questions, pm me, or call
731-217-6444. if i don't answer, leave a message, and i'll call you back soon.
~eric

All of the flexplate bolts were tight, so I have started taking everything apart. I called Spencer and Doug is supposed to be picking up the tranny from him tomorrow. I think all I have left are the 2 inverted torx and the flexplate bolts before I can drop the old one out and be ready for the new one.

Thanks for all the help, and especially thanks to Doug for all his help and making the parts run.

 

[jeepgeek2002]

I think I saw some Tranny's walking around downtown today.. i can see if they wanna help?
lol

mark

 

[Jess]

It looks like Spencer (midtennxj) sold the transmission out from under me.....so I still need one if anyone has one or knows where I can find a good one. I don't really want to get one from pull a part that I don't know the history of, but as a last resort I will.