[Horizon200]

My son has a 97 Wrngler 4.0L. The other day we were working on a noisy flasher relay and when I dumped the clutch pedal to start the Jeep I heard a god awful "SPROING!" Did it every time the clutch pedal was depressed. So off to the parts store bought a new clutch kit $150 and rented a tranny jack. Started to pull the tranny. What a PITA! Of course the book doesn't address his year Jeep even tho it claims to. Got everything disconnected and realized there are two star headed bolts at the very top of the bell housing (didn't have star sockets). Finally get everything separated and the clutch/P plate & flywheel look brand new! Turns out the little retainer clip on the far end of the clutch fork broke on one side!
Oh well since it's all apart I'm gonna install all the new parts. Anyone want to buy a slightly used Jeep Clutch & Pressure plate?
And if anyone needs advice on dropping a Jeep tranny give me a holler!

PS: Sorry for the long post.

 

[RacingRob]

After doing that clutch job, the FFR build will seem easy!
Look at it that way.
RR

 

[Horizon200]

Heheh.. I kept looking over at my donor thinking I should be working on it instead of the Jeep and then thinking it was going to be a piece of cake compared to this mess!

 

[Aaron Silidker]

How can you even work on an old dirty car? I have been spoiled by the FFR and new restored parts. I cant work on old cars without being like my mother and screaming when grease touches me. Hahaha.

 

[falcon2500]

Junk
Each &
Every
Part

Had my share of Jeeps in this family. Still got one.

 

[Horizon200]

Aaron,
Unfortunately being dad also means I'm fleet manager and fleet mechanic!

Falcon,
I've never seen such a mix match of different size nuts & bolts (metric/SAE/Star). They Jeep assy plant must use scrounge buckets to put theses things together!

 

[chad e coen]

Your newer Jeep sounds like the old CJ I had. It had(from the factory) a Motorcraft Atlernator, Delco ignition system, a GM steering column, a Dana front axle, AMC rear axle, a borg worner T5, and many other misc. parts from ther companies. At least in 1983 there weren't any metric bolts to deal with. I never realized how going off roading would turn around and bite me in the butt when it came time to turning wrenches on it! What a MESS! Glad you got it fixed.

Chad

 

[Horizon200]

Glad you got it fixed.

Not so fast Grasshopper!
Started at 10:00 this AM finishing up. Buddy dropped by and we finally got the tranny back in at about 1:30. What a PITA!
Since I had everything dropped, I replaced with new parts, the clutch/pressure plate/pilot bearing/throw out bearing/the errant retainer clip and was going to replace all the U joints. Note I said was. Which is why I'm not finished. Took me the better part of an hour to remove two U joints from the front drive shaft where it mates with the transfer case. Went to install new ones and they will just not go in! Destroyed one trying. U joints aren't this difficult. Maybe I'm just too tired!

 

[Horizon200]

Ok finally got the U-joints taken care of! Went from BFH to BFV (Big Friggin Vice!)

So now it's just remount the drive shafts & hook up the shifter, Reinstall the cross member/Skid plate & then make up a bill for the young un! Oh the $$ I save these kids!

 

[Horizon200]

So the saga continues! Got almost everything put together and checked the clutch pedal....perfect!
Finish buttoning it up only to remember I forgot to grease the U joints! DOH!! Did that put the skid plate back on cranked her up and SPROING! The same damn noise!
Anyone got a Stick-O-Dynamite?
My first clue should have been when the parts guy told me he can't keep the things in stock!

 

[falcon2500]

Mis Match, If you have problems with the door locks, broken plastic thingies, they are Ford.

Jeeps are assembled from the scrap bins of all other manufactures.

 

[oldguy668]

I think I could live with SPROING!. It's Ka-Bang!!...klackety...klackety..klackety that I would worry about.

 

[Horizon200]

I'm with ya Oldguy! At this point, I think the boy is gonna drive a noisy Jeep. My only fear is that 1:00Am call saying "DAD, My jeep won't move!"

 

[Horizon200]

Thought you'd all like to hear the next frustration in this saga! I called the Jeep Parts place to ask if they have been selling so many of these retainer clips, if they'd run across subsequent failures like this. He says "yeah when we sell the clips, we usually sell the pivot bearing and the fork as well!" Now, had he told me this on Saturday........

 

[Horizon200]

Soooo Final story is......The guy that had this Jeep before had installed an aftermarket alarm system that tied into the Clutch Interlock switch. When this whole thing satrted, we were trouble shooting a relay and had disconnected a ground wire. Turns out that with the ground wire disconnected, when the clutch switch engaged, it was momentarily energizing the starter! That was the noise I was hearing. How did I find this? after "fixing" the tranny a second time, It was dark by the time I got it buttoned up. So, I started the Jeep to test it and had the lites on. When I dumped the clutch, the lites flickered. The rest is , as they say, History!

 

[chad e coen]

OK, is it safe to say "I'm glad you got it fixed" yet? Man it is stories like yours that make me really glad I don't own one anymore! Everytime I get the "I need another Jeep" bug I just have to remind myself that I'm saving up for a Cobra and listen to stories like yours to change my mind! Of course my now 11 year old daughter will want none other than a Jeep for her first car

Chad