Weekend is over...what did you get done?

I finally got to work on the XJ. Got my exhaust welded up like it should be, and I have the engine assembled minus the intake and exhaust manifolds. Now if the damn rain will stop, I just need to drop the motor in, hook everything up, put a track bar bracket on it, and it *should* be running. It's been too long since I've driven it.
 
Ordered replacement knuckles for the Grand's D30 axle. Used a Amazon card I received for my 20 year service anniversary at my job. What a way to spend "fun" money. The up side is everything will be new.
 
I finally got to work on the XJ. Got my exhaust welded up like it should be, and I have the engine assembled minus the intake and exhaust manifolds. Now if the damn rain will stop, I just need to drop the motor in, hook everything up, put a track bar bracket on it, and it *should* be running. It's been too long since I've driven it.


About time. Those pop up canopy's help out in the rain fyi
 
I've really been wanting to make a trip up there and do just what you've done. I'd prefer do it during off season though. I'd be driving my RV up there and pulling my Jeep behind it.



Thanks!


Fyi the nearest campground is in kitty hawk about 45 mins away with no traffic. And this time of there year with the right permits you can basically drive from the VA state line to the Oregon inlet, minus a few small areas
 
Got my full case SYE completed including a new chain, got a new driveshaft, and tightened it all up. Need to put some miles on it in 4x4 to make sure everything is good. First test was inconclusive. It seemed to go fine and did what it needed to in the mud, but seemed "tight" like it was being held back by some invisible force. Also, when I popped it back into 2x4 it clunked a bit. Circled back and ran the circuit in 4x4 again and this time it didn't clunk when I started out in 2x4.

Also, picked up a rear locker for my 8.8. Probably should make sure all is go with the transfer case/driveshaft install before I add another factor.

Ordered replacement knuckles for the Grand's D30 axle. Used a Amazon card I received for my 20 year service anniversary at my job. What a way to spend "fun" money. The up side is everything will be new.

Congratulations, Ed, on 20 years with one company. That kind of dedication is rare these days. I'll never have that opportunity since the company I was with when I started in 1996 was sold and if the new company continues down the path we are on, I'm not sure if I'm interested in 17 more with them!


So it took 12 seconds from voice command to fire-up. I can do that quicker with the key in the ignition. Is this one of those "just because I can" kind of deals???
 
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So it took 12 seconds from voice command to fire-up. I can do that quicker with the key in the ignition. Is this one of those "just because I can" kind of deals???

Sort of?

It's all done over secured network traffic, so as long as the Jeep is close enough to connect to a wifi access point, I can start it from anywhere*.

Now, why would I want to do that?

I have a guest network at the office that the Jeep can connect to. I can't hit the remote start with the keyfob from my desk, but I can hit it with the voice activation thing I built. When it's 4 degrees outside like last February, or the internal temp gets into the 130s like last July, it's useful.

A big part of my day job is basically stringing the outputs of one system to the inputs of another in order to automate processes. That's essentially what I did here.

*And no, that doesn't mean that anyone on the internet can randomly steal my jeep.
 

Very cool!

I spent the weekend with relatives...inside...all days....because rain y'know? Jeez.

So today I come home from work while the sun is shining and catch a glimpse of the windshield on the old '91 XJ I bought a few weeks ago. It was foggy as all get out so I checked it out. Yup....floors had standing water in them. I had it backed part way up a hill, so I don't know if that's why it leaked or what, but it was puddled in the front floor boards. I pulled it around to the front of the house and vacuumed out as much water as possible, then put it in the garage with a box fan running inside to dry it out. Last thing I want with this thing is for it to turn into a mold closet.

And speaking of pulling it around the house, there's something that feels just wrong about starting an engine that's so FUBAR it rattles your fillings loose when it's running :explosion

But after I got it inside I messed around with it a bit. Tried to fix a big dent in the back door. Didn't turn out that great, but it's better than it was.

Before


After


Then I poked around in the engine compartment and found where the ghost escaped
 
Ouch. Wish I could say that's the 1st 4.o I've seen with self induced additional speed holes. Wonder why they like to do that so much. Such a good motor...

It does have 306,000 miles in it, but this one was mostly attributed to the PO's neglect of routine maintenance. It doesn't smoke, so I'll assume it must have had a pretty major leak somewhere. Enough so that he had to continuously add oil to the tune of a quart every other week. He said he drove it to SC and didn't check the oil for a while, so there you go.

The engine I'm planning on replacing it with is from a '99 with 287,000 on it lol
 
It does have 306,000 miles in it, but this one was mostly attributed to the PO's neglect of routine maintenance. It doesn't smoke, so I'll assume it must have had a pretty major leak somewhere. Enough so that he had to continuously add oil to the tune of a quart every other week. He said he drove it to SC and didn't check the oil for a while, so there you go.

The engine I'm planning on replacing it with is from a '99 with 287,000 on it lol
Doesn't have the 0331 cylinder head does it? :o
 
Ouch. Wish I could say that's the 1st 4.o I've seen with self induced additional speed holes. Wonder why they like to do that so much. Such a good motor...

All the thrown rods I have seen have been in exactly that same spot.
 
Sort of?

It's all done over secured network traffic, so as long as the Jeep is close enough to connect to a wifi access point, I can start it from anywhere*.

Now, why would I want to do that?

I have a guest network at the office that the Jeep can connect to. I can't hit the remote start with the keyfob from my desk, but I can hit it with the voice activation thing I built. When it's 4 degrees outside like last February, or the internal temp gets into the 130s like last July, it's useful.

A big part of my day job is basically stringing the outputs of one system to the inputs of another in order to automate processes. That's essentially what I did here.

*And no, that doesn't mean that anyone on the internet can randomly steal my jeep.

LG VL600 WWAN card (or any supported card) should fix the Wifi limitation, but on a side note wouldn't this mean RasPi is running 24/7 giving a phantom draw on the battery? Not a huge deal, just wondering.

Props to the integration! No matter if just because or an acute reason this stuff is fun and good to see implemented.
 
it only draws about 300ma just sitting there, which over 8 hours is only about 2.5 amps drawn from the battery. I've got a 750A AGM battery so I can go a few days without recharging and be fine. I rarely go more that three days without starting it but I haven't had to try when it's 20 degrees outside yet so...ive got cables if i need em lol
 
Well I found something good tonight. Turns out that my friend (whom shall remain unnamed) was wrong about the 4.0 I pulled from that '99 XJ. It turns out that the cylinder head & gasket were totally fine; it was the water pump that was bad.



The bad part was I'd already pulled the head before I found it :banghead:



After pulling it and finding no signs of a bad gasket, nor did I see any cracks in the head with the naked eye, I pulled the water pump to find it was bad. The really bad part? I told myself I should pull the pump first, but I had full faith in (unnamed) as he's a fine mechanic; one of the best I know. But I don't blame him. Everyone makes mistakes. Look at me....I make them all the time lol
 
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