The most annoying thing to work on, on your jeep

[JeepNOFEAR]

I had to cut the ends off on the studs that hold the exhaust and manifolds together. Getting those studs out of the exhaust is the most annoying thing I've ever had to do on any of my Jeeps.

I was able to get the 1st one I touched out with vise grips, hurray this will be easy. The second one would not move. I went and got my torch tanks filled. I heated it up and I could bearly move it. So I welded a nut on the end of it. Success!!!. Now onto the other side of the motor. Tried all the steps and they both end up breaking off in the manifold. I had to walk away from the Jeep after that. Time to bust out the drill.

What kind of problems have yall all run into?

[Headhoncho]

One time, when I was removing the aircleaner, I bent one of my fingernails back, and it like hurt like alot. :p

I think the exhaust manifold studs are one of the biggest PIA's there is. I feel for you on that one. Next is working on old Datsun Z motors when you snap a bolt off in the aluminum head. :banghead: They're a blast to drill out from aluminum. At least it's cheap crap japanese steel.


JR

[chrisnsarah]

I don't know where to start, so I'll start with a few:

The upper starter bolt on a 360.
The backlight for the heater control on a Kaiser era truck.
The sparkplugs behind the heater box on a V8.
Valve adjustment on a Tornado 230 (with the engine running).

And of course, Torx bolts-any and all of them, especially seatbelts.:banghead:

[Headhoncho]

One more is all the stupid torx head bolts from the seat belts, door hinges, to the u-joint straps. An impact screwdriver definitely comes in handy.



JR

[Cherokee01478]

The upper starter bolt on a 360.

Same with me - I mentioned it on a thread a while back.

[elskeptico]

I've been lucky with my exhaust manifolds.

The most annoying thing for me so far has been the electric rear window, when it sometimes works, sometimes doesn't, sometimes stops halfway down or up. If it's not working you need to crawl inside over the seats to pull off that panel then jump the wires to a 12v source, yada yada yada. Gets real fun in 100 degree weather. :banghead:

The manifolds sound worse though.

[goldhammer]

Hope you use anti-sieze putting them back in and on the nuts holding it together.

[CustomWag]

...The sparkplugs behind the heater box on a V8....

#6 & #8 are a LOT easier to get to from under the rig:)

[crispyboy]

definitely spark plugs and exhaust manifold bolts

[JeepNOFEAR]

PART 2

Well I have extra 2 sets of manifolds lieing in my shed and extra gaskets so I decided I'd use one of them on the passenger side. So I start unscrewing the back emissions bolt thing on the manifold and it breaks, doesn't really matter so I'm fine. I loosen all of the manifold bolts, I thought. I started at the back and took out the first 2. Then the third one breaks. :banghead: So now I have a stud in the head to take out, HURRAY!!! I guess atleast I'm down to just one stud.

Should I heat it up or not and then try to take it out with vise grips?

Also do I have to go back and use hollow bolts?

[chr1s]

...the electric rear window
x2 -I loathe that $@*$@%#$)%*^! thing

[orangecherokee]

removing and installing the transmission :banghead:

i could definitely live with paying someone else to do that.

[grand_wag_85]

For me the most annoying thing on V-8's besides spark plugs is changing out the mechanical fuel pump...Then after it's all said & done you take a look at the fuel pump on a 258:mad:

[chrisnsarah]

#6 & #8 are a LOT easier to get to from under the rig:)

Probably true. I can get to the #6 & 8 plugs with a regular socket handle from above. The problem is I risk cutting my hand on the metal heater box when the plugs break free. Gloves help, but it's still tight.:(

Threading them back in is almost as bad since it's hard to see:banghead: .

[BRUTUS]

I don't know where to start, so I'll start with a few:

The upper starter bolt on a 360.
The backlight for the heater control on a Kaiser era truck.
The sparkplugs behind the heater box on a V8.
Valve adjustment on a Tornado 230 (with the engine running).

And of course, Torx bolts-any and all of them, especially seatbelts.:banghead:

Upper starter bolt I despise. Especially since i stripped out the threads in the bell housing so I just went to a 1/4-20 with a nylock nut. It is ALL but impossible to hold two wrenches on there and tighten it down. Good thing I have headers because there is just enough room to get at them through the fenderwell and headers.

My truck was made before torx head bolts... NEENER NEENER NEENER!

[DanHS]

Anything underneath that's rusty, sharp, and filthy. I think the two things that really gave me a headache were trying to remove the y-pipe (which ended in having to cut it, then have it rewelded with new nuts welded to the studs), and replaceing the selector shaft seal on the trans, that was awful too.

[Heavy_Metal_Thunder_81]

Changing a mechanical fuel pump at night, in the dark, in some strangers driveway who cant speak any english, w/an adjustable wrench, metric sockets, "99 cent special" ratchet, and a pocket screw driver...All to try and get to my night class on time but only in vain.:banghead:

Ask me how I know...

[BenE]

New to FSJs, I can’t complain yet (the 360 out and in went smoothly), but wrenching on the small ones my least favorite job is GREASING. The more you improve your rig it seems like the number of zerks goes up exponentially.
Hate stupid TORX too.

[chrisnsarah]

Upper starter bolt I despise. Especially since i stripped out the threads in the bell housing so I just went to a 1/4-20 with a nylock nut. It is ALL but impossible to hold two wrenches on there and tighten it down. Good thing I have headers because there is just enough room to get at them through the fenderwell and headers.

My truck was made before torx head bolts... NEENER NEENER NEENER!

My '79 is the only one with Torx. after several days of trying to remove the seatbelt bolts with pb blaster, a torch, and breaking 5 torx sockets, the Sears clerk almost knew me on a first name basis:D .


I might add to the list: Pulling the hub on an earlier 2-piece tapered rear axle.

[Rainman]

Anything that puts me in harms way of the hood latch. Since I'm 6-4 and my rig has no lift, just about anything on the driver's side of the engine qualifies.

[FSJ-Earl]

Anything that puts me in harms way of the hood latch. Since I'm 6-4 and my rig has no lift, just about anything on the driver's side of the engine qualifies.

I have the oposite problem, I am 5'2" (on a good day) and my rig has a 4" lift and 33's! I can't reach jack crap without laying over the engine like Superman (Zack has several pics of us installing my manifold and carb!), but I can get under to lube, change the oil and such and have PLENTY of room. I can also sit uder my rig at the spare tire area and on the passenger side between the fram rail and the driveshaft!

I hate spark plugs, exhaust manifolds, as well as rear tailgate work.

[J10Mike]

Laying on cold concrete.

[janie]

TH400's. Final answer.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v203/79j10peso/PesopukinATF3.jpg

[DragonWarWag]

Pulling a transmission with just a scissor jack.. a 4 dollar socket set.. by yourself on a thin sheet of ice during winter because its your only vechile and ya need it to get to work the next day..

[Kaiser]

Steering.
Out of all the work thus far Im still looking at the saginaw box on the floor of the garage. It just sits there mocking me. I just cannot come to grips with it. Right now Ive got the unplugged Ross steering (manual steering).
Suspension is no longer an issue.
Rust is no longer an issue.
Leaks are no longer an issue.
Rear window glass/gasket is still an issue.

[unclethumbtack]

upper starter bolt, I will seriously start to cuss it and ask it "HOW F*&%#NG LONG ARE YOU?" as my arms start to burn from holding them up for so long. I have found that a wobble extension does make it some easier.

[james1414d]

post mount rear springs! that and the PO undercoating everything.

[DARWIN]

maybe i'm nuts but i love most of that stuff. i work 60 hours a week as a mechanic and come home and work on my jeeps to relax. its funny the stuff that bugs me at work seems endeering on my jeep.:drivin:

[twoponchos]

Anything electrical.

[DAHoyle]

Pulling a transmission with just a scissor jack.. a 4 dollar socket set.. by yourself on a thin sheet of ice during winter because its your only vechile and ya need it to get to work the next day..
You had a scissor jack. No fair.

[drlocke]

......... I hate spark plugs, exhaust manifolds, as well as rear tailgate work.

Ditto on that and add the hood latch as far as my Waggy goes.

My FC-170 is designed to make even routine maintenance on the engine a job for one of Singer's midgets--or at least a contortionist. Adjusting the sidevalve tappets is a nightmare.

For vehicles in general my biggest pet peeve is their propensity to require urgent servicing in the cold of Winter. :banghead:

[steven79]

front drive shaft removal at the t-case, and a/t, gotta do that again soon as it thinks it is a power glide:eek: next is drivers side valve cover

[shimniok]

Removing oem AMC20 rear diff cover... attached with satan's fastener, the Torx bolt. Replaced all mine with stainless steel hex head.

Loosening the P/S pressure hose fitting. They just don't make a wrench that can squeeze in there.

Reinstalling the alternator after you've undone ALL the surrounding bolts, with like 5 moving pieces of metal that all have to come into alignment. Requires magic.

Getting a windshield out. Last time I'll EVER do that again.

Replacing the small window in the rear door.

Removing the instrument cluster, particularly removing the speedo cable...

R&R of the brake booster...

Removing/repairing the driver side fresh air vent...

Gah... now I'm all pissed off... not the best frame of mind since I have to go finish my engine swap here in a few minutes! :D

Michael

[elskeptico]

You had a scissor jack. No fair. :D Yeah I've used nothing but my chest in the past.

[dngrs1]

Double cardan joint on the front driveshaft:(

[drlocke]

TH400's. Final answer.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v203/79j10peso/PesopukinATF3.jpg

You're scaring me with this TH400 stuff! :eek: :D

Mine has been working perfectly since I got the car--never a problem. I guess payback time is around the corner.....:p

[drlocke]

Double cardan joint on the front driveshaft:(

Ball & Trunnion. First step: Try and find one...... :banghead:

I ended up taking the entire gol-dang driveshaft to a machine shop and have them put in a spline joint and cross-and-yoke U-joint.

[JeepStew]

definitley the most annoying thing i have had to do so far on any jeep is laying on cold concrete, playing with that infamous starter bolt and knocking rust down into my eyes at the same time.

other than that replacing the oil dipstick tube is a pain as well...

[JeepNOFEAR]

front drive shaft removal at the t-case, and a/t, gotta do that again soon as it thinks it is a power glide:eek: next is drivers side valve cover

Ya that's why I normally just leave it on when I drop the tranny and transfercase. Tie it with a belt on the tranny. :thumbsup:

[tkiller13]

my wallet.

[79_Limited]

Top bolt for the cover of the cover of the Quadratrac case. Ended up dropping the cross member just to get clearance.

Rusty & stripped torx bolts for the seat belts.

[Gambler68]

I've torn down 2 (3 including the front of the 68 J3K) trucks..

trannys are simple to lower using a cherry picker shoved in the cab and lowering through the hump plate.

I'd say snapping rusty body bolts off kinda sucks. Hardest part about anything is figuring out how to do it with one person, and not end up a bleeding pile of flesh if you make a mistake. If I ever got hurt working on the truck, it'd usually be hours before anyone found me out there :P

[Brown Bear]

The thing that annoys me most is rhino grills...............

I'd say waterpump as most annoying, heater core second, root canal third.

[my 2j20's]

http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/customavatars/avatar20_1.gif (http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/member.php?u=20)Brown Bear (http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/member.php?u=20) http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/images/images_ifsja_2-5/statusicon/user_offline.gif vbmenu_register("postmenu_562138", true);
Bleedin' Gasoline
http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/images/images_ifsja_2-5/stars/star5.gifhttp://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/images/images_ifsja_2-5/stars/star5.gifhttp://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/images/images_ifsja_2-5/stars/star5.gifhttp://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/images/images_ifsja_2-5/stars/star5.gifhttp://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/images/images_ifsja_2-5/stars/star5.gif
Join Date: Apr 09, 2000
Location: Bowling Green, Ky
Posts: 2,008


I agree here with Brown Bear! THAT I hate the water pump change...way to many parts & spacers too...

The thing that annoys me most is rhino grills...............

I'd say waterpump as most annoying, heater core second, root canal third.
__________________
NathanielButts
IFSJA Member #18
Want to chat on IRC with the FSJ crowd, but don't want to install anything??? (http://home.insightbb.com/%7Enathanielbutts2/jirc/chat2.html)
RIP-USS Minnow-The three hour tour is over.
As yet unnamed 1985 Grand Wagoneer (http://butts-family.com/photos/jeeps/85GW/)

[710 Burner]

Having to go inside the G/D tailgate for any reason. I have been inside that thing 4 times. I have to admit the last time was my fault. You shouldn't reuse the spring clips that hold the arms to the window. They will get tired of you prying them off. I used an E-clip and a washer last time in, hope it holds.

[GreenMachine]

I hate setting up ring and pinions.. And this one time I tried to replace the oil pump gasket that was leaking on a 360 and snapped off 3 of the bolts in it ( that was fun).

I don't mind Torx. I don't own a set of torx bits I just weld a nut to them and turn them out with a wrench and then never put em back. My wifes 91 Xj had one on the top of the transmission and I almost cut a hole in her floorboard trying to get it out. It was reverse torx though and just really really hard to get a wrench on.

[prayforsurf]

I'm surprised that you guys had trouble with the upper starter bolt, i never had a problem with that, and im terrible with that kind of stuff. the thing that had me ready to sell the jeep was the stupid fuel pump....maybe i was just having a bad day, and was being a little over cautious about crossthreading the bolt (i dont believe its possible to be overcautious with that kind of thing but w/e), but i couldnt hold the pump up and get the bolt in straight, i would always get a cramp in my forearm from the funky position and then it would make me lower the pump a frogs hair and disalign the holes.

as for the plug behind the heater core... i get that one from underneath, works awesome. i think we should have a competition, who can change all the plugs on their jeep properly and start her up. :thumbsup:

[jeepnhal]

body rust.i dont mind mechanical work(its stress releif for me)but i hate body work and i plain suck at it.unfortunately its unavoidable here in ct

[thejum57]

Don't even have to think about that one........the gas tank. I've had to drop it 3 times. All the lines, fuel, and air. The filler setup on a J-10 is un-freakin' beleivable to work on. Well it's still hard to fill it, and the guage still doesn't work. So, I guess it will come out a 4th time this year!

[Am4wag]

Installing 4in. lift kit (all 4 spring packs) in late November,1/2in. water on floor of shop (raining and leaking roof),by myself.

[Wagoneerlover]

I have to concur with some of the other guys here. Getting them dagone body bolts out is a nightmare, that along with the exhaust manifold to y pipe bolts. I tried removing both sets of these bolts and they are designed to rust and break off as opposed to coming out. Another little easter egg that AMC/Chrycho left for us all!!!. I have been able to tackle the other projects (Fuel pumps, trans, starter top bolt etc.) With relative ease. maybe I am doing something right. Who knows. but the rear two bolts on my body mounts broke off and the others will definitely break as soon as I attempt to remove them. Too dagone cold right now to finish off the body lift but I guess when the weather breaks I will be using many four letter words putting in the body lift. Dang.

[zmjeeps]

Removing and installing FSJEarls truck trans for no good reason...

Zack

[FSJ-Earl]

Removing and installing FSJEarls truck trans for no good reason...

Zack

I just wanted to make sure that you knew how to remove one and put it back in!

[Dome]

That **** vinyl power window track in the drivers side door that seems to break every 9 months like clockwork. Not the most difficult thing, but definitely one of the most annoying.

[Ranger]

I'd have to say I despise changing water pumps on AMC V-8's especially on rigs that are loaded with accessories.

Ranger

[zmjeeps]

I just wanted to make sure that you knew how to remove one and put it back in!

Somebody forgot to mention that none of the bellhousing bolts were even finger tight... :grumble:

[andy d]

lessee, gas tank, fuel and water pumps. 30' of vacuum hose and the dozen or so valves used to smog a 60s engine to 21st century dyno smog test specs. Electrics dont faze me, the location of the fuse box does. The assortment of fasteners: English, metric and Torx is a PITA. The oil pan and the Y pipe are fun too. :banghead: On the whole, I'd rather wrench on my 528e. .:thumbsup:

[Heavy_Metal_Thunder_81]

INTAKE MANIFOLDS!!!!! :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: Takin mine off for the 5th time in 3 months :mad:

[nw_upstart]

Having do do an engine rebuild and swap in a week in the early cold winter of January because you wrecked your other truck and needed a rig to drive. Spending countless hours doing this in the rain and mud with little to no sleep and a growing cold, only to not be able to connect the engine and tranny. Got through everything and was suddenly held up by a 1/2" gap.

Turned out to be the pilot bushing. Clutch kit came with 2, and the only difference was about a millimeter. It was a millimeter that made a huge impact however.

Other than that the back passenger valve cover bolt. **** heater core is in the way even when you're laying across the engine.

[AlsChopShop]

finding out that the exhaust is mounted to the quadratrac case was a fun treat, no wonder i couldn't get the t-case to drop after pulling the 4 bolts. oh and the nut that held that pesky exhaust bracket on was covered by the bolt that held the exhaust to said bracket. :banghead:

also having to leave the front drive shaft attached to the t-case while you drop it because the crossmember hinders access to the driveshaft bolts, thats a fun one.

the top starter bolt is also a major pain.

come to think of it, the only thing that isn't a pain in the arse on these rigs is adding oil... but thats really two faced because you are always frustrated how much oil ya gotta add to these things.

and we're shocked that AMC never made it... :rolleyes:

Al