Noob-monkey Reporting For Duty

[crushmonkey]

Hey everyone, just taking a moment to say hi and introduce myself and my ride.

I live in Salt Lake City (Sick Lake whut!), Utah - and have lived here most of my life. I bought my '83 Wag Ltd. a couple of years ago and only recently have had the money to start putting into it

My 'Wag:

http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/%5BIMG%5Dhttp://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0624.jpg%5B/IMG%5Dhttp://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0624.jpg


Another Angle:

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0625.jpg


360 cid V-8 (pictures soon-ish?), 195729 on the OD, 2-barrel carb, beyond that... I'm still reading the manual hehe.

I'm sure the poor thing has seen better days, plenty of rust in the quarters and driver's side door, the bumper-mounted lights don't work, rear window won't roll up/down, 4WD is FUBAR, and the interior is... Well, it was an interior once many many moons ago. I'm trying to get it ready for inspection, but the guy at the local lube n' tune shop tried to pass it for me a while back and said he torqued the adjustment screws on the carb in so far trying to get it to pass that he might have done some damage (his words).

Carb was rebuilt (Motocraft 1RHA2, looking for specs) shortly thereafter, the idle is much better, although even after warming up and the prerequisite pump of the accellerator to knock it down into idle, it still seems to idle high. I can push the throttle arm forward into the unit in front of it (dashpot? it doesn't look anything like the Autolite dashpot in the manual), and it goes into a nice smooth low idle, but when I let go of the arm, the dashpot kicks it back to a high idle. I haven't taken it in yet, want to run a tank of Premium through it with some fuel enhancers first. I just picked up my Haynes from Autozone, having trouble finding a complete teardown manual for this specific year and this specific model. Heck, I can't even find factory specs for it on the 'net (I guess the Ltd. and Brougham had the same specs?).

Since it's been sitting for two years and I've only lately been turning it over and warming it up, I'll replace the fluids again, but do I really need to screw around with the carb more? I don't know. I'll find out when I take it in for inspection.

When warmed up and revved, it will 'pop' as the revs come back down. Being inside the 'Wag, I can't tell where the pop is coming from and it makes me nervous that there's something wrong under the hood.

The door frame-sticker says it was built in '82, but my VIN says it's an '83. An '82, '83, and '84 owner's manual were in the jockey-box when I bought it, I only got to save the '83 and the others were thrown out on accident. Yay for overly-helpful friends.

4WD won't engage, I was told I need a plastic worm-gear to remedy this.

Brakes work like a champ!

Radio also works great - pushbutton stations (the kind you pull out then push in to preset) and a knob by my (broken) A/C that for some reason makes the music louder? Going to replace the speakers, maybe add an amp and some 10's in the rear.

Driver's window won't stay up without something wedged in the rubber - I think it slipped the track. But all the other power windows work... 'Cept the cargo window >.<

Driver's seat is... Broken inside somehow. Power stuff works in it, but when you sit in it the thing flops backwards about midback-up.

I'm stuck between bringing it back to stock goodness or doing Monkey Garage on it and making it my own unique unit. More on that when I figure it out. I don't want to make a 'crawler. I like goin' 4-diggin' and stump-jumpin', but I don't really need to climb over house-size boulders or snorkel under a river. I just want the 4WD to get me through decent mud and rocks, help me out of tight spots, and keep me from slipping off the highway in the winter.

Oh. And I want it to look nice. But I've never done bodywork before, and the quarters are hashed, and the rust spots on the driver's door is... Kinda ugly. I'd like to have a nice clean body to put some vinyl on the thing to replace the factory 'wood' that's peeling. I work at a sign shop, so I'd probably change the vinyl out every few months to match my mood (expensive, but hey the 'Wag is a huge canvas, why waste the fun?)
I also get to look for a Ltd. emblem for the Passenger side, and the AMC logo fell out of the grille (although the Jeep logo is still there)

Is it just me or are these the sweetest stock rims EVER???!?!

That's it for now, more as time passes. Y'all have a great site here, thanks for the opportunity to share my new obsession!

[HOOT]

Welcome..

Should of saved your money on the manual and bought a 1983 Jeep Technical Service Manual. You can buy reprints of the original or even find an original on here from time to time. The Want Ad Section can dig up some great bargains on the stuff You think is unobtainable. Keep a close eye on the For Sale section as well. You'll be broke in no time flat.. Guaranteed:eek:

Not sure how to get passed for smog but other here have the same dilema as You. Check around for smog posts. They are always around. Maybe one will lead you to the "fix" you need.
Not sure what style power windows you haveif it is flex track then maybe that is what broke. I'm a crank window myself. Don't much go for that hoity toity stuff.

You can always get rust repair panels from a junk yard or buy them from www.zmjeeps.com (http://www.zmjeeps.com). .www.bjsoffroad.com (http://www.bjsoffroad.com) is another good source for waggy stuff. Nice performance stuff can be had at www.bulltear.com (http://www.bulltear.com). Go hang out in the vendor section and check out all the Jeep stuff available. It's enough to make your head spin.

Crawl up under your rig and look on the back cover of your transfer case. It will have a small tag with letters and numbers on it ; NP 208 or maybe NP 228 or NP 229. My 82 waggy had a NP208 in it but I elieve it was swapped in as I had a dash switch for 4 wheel drive(it was converted into the fade switch for the radio). Find out what you have and the questions will get the correct answers.

Check your frame rails out by the gas tank especially. If your underside is starting to rot you may want to swap out the whole waggy before going on. You can buy frame patches as well from BJ's offroad.
If it is worthy of sticking some money inot then lift it up 4" and run some 31" tires on the "coolest ever rims".

The Limited had better creature comforts as standard equipment. Full Woodgrain is a Limited standard. Overall mechanical specs are the same as far as I know. You did get better radial tires with the Limited.

You'll find all the help you'll ever need on this site. Don't post too many questions in one post unless they are all related. You'll get more answers and ideas. It makes it better for future thread search as well.

Welcome to the madness, you're in for some:banghead: and some more:banghead: but the payoff is so so sweet:drivin: :fsj: :thumbsup: :cool: CYA around.

[spaulding]

http://oljeep.com/edge_parts_man.html

A good list of downloadable service manuals.

[yoslvr442]

welcome, you will find this site helpful with everything you could possibly think of. Make it your own.

[Chrome]

Welcome aboard! :fsj:

[FSJ Guy]

Most likely, you have an New Process (NP) 229 transfer case. It is vacuum operated via the switch on your dash. You may also have the front axle disconnect. Look on your front differential for a rectangular metal block on top of the diff. It "should" have some vac lines running out of it.

Read up on that system and re-plumb the vac. lines. That usually solves the problem. Many 4x4 shops DO NOT understand the FSJ transfer cases. They think it has "automatic" hubs and such. It doesn't. It actually has no "hubs". It has drive flanges that are always engaged to the axle shaft.

Welcome!

[El Jefe]

welcome from Ogden.

good luck on the emissions. I had a 85 Grand that I fought with for months. finally threw in the towel and sold it. sticking to the 76. much less crap on that.

[crushmonkey]

Wow! Thanks for all the input, folks!

I'll take a buncha pictures later in the week when I get my floor jack out of storage, that'll help y'all get a reference on how stock it is and how far I have to go to bring 'er up to snuff.

I'm looking into the Technical Service Manual. Funny thing, that places like Borders Books wouldn't carry it, they DO carry WWII jeep manual, Jeep Bible, Chilton's, Haynes, etc. If they could make eighty-something off of it, I'm surprised they don't. Oh well. I'll be saving up to order my Tech manual from Turner soon then. I don't have a lot of tools, but I worked a little bit on my '82 Wag before the mechanic informed me I'd need an engine swap (After new brake master cylinder, calipers, pads, tires, carb, radiator, windshield, stereo system, trim and front bumper), I got frustrated and junked it.
That's why I'm so concerned about making sure I have a decent rig to build on before I go all-out on it and make the same mistake again. So this time, I'm getting the Tech Manual instead of just the Haynes. I'll probably be driving a scooter to work and back until the 'Wag is ready to use as a daily driver.
I'm not sure wether I want to fix the 4WD before I get it insured and stuff, I live close to work, but it'll probably be near winter around the time I'm ready to get emissions/inspection. I want the 4WD 'just in case' coz i'm pretty cautious with things like that.
I don't think I'm going to go the route of getting everything back to factory spec and stock for the sake of having it just as it was when it was built in '83. In '83 I was six, and I've gotten used to taking things like A/C and power accessories for granted. Also I want to modernise things like the sound system. The stock system is pretty darn good for it's time, but I can't hook my ipod to it to play what I want. I'll probably get the A/C recharged with something legal, pull out the front seats and replace them with pro buckets (not because I want it to look like a honda inside, but because the bench seat wreaks havoc with my back), and a 5-point to supplement the shoulder restraint, just for kicks.
I'll probably gut the interior that is falling apart, except for the rear seat (it's still okay. I'll just get it covered in something durable), spray soundfoam everywhere and then rout out some panels to replace all the interior that used to be cushy and swell but now are just falling apart and sad.
That probably won't be until this winter :p

Right now I'm mostly just concerned with making it legal and somewhat economical (I used to own a caddy hearse that got 8MPG, in comparison, the 'Wag is like a hybrid!) so I can drive it while I earn the money to 'chimp it out.

I'm also thinking of replacing the gas tank with a plastic one. If there's room, also an auxiliary tank (in-line, I don't need separate pumps and crap) as well.

El Jefe! It's good to see a face from The Og! I sympathise with your plight. After the last 'Wag, I'm worried about the smog on this one. Worst case scenario, I temporarily 'move' to my cousin's house in a rural area of Utah, send my paperwork there, and not have to get smog at all!

...Just kidding. That's cheating and as an upstanding citizen of course I'd do no such thing :D

Again, thanks for all the input, y'all! Hopefully my journey from junker to 'jumper will be informative, or at the very least, entertaining! Be back soon with more pics and stuff!

[shimniok]

Welcome!

Carb was rebuilt (Motocraft 1RHA2, looking for specs) shortly thereafter, the idle is much better, although even after warming up and the prerequisite pump of the accellerator to knock it down into idle, it still seems to idle high. I can push the throttle arm forward into the unit in front of it (dashpot? it doesn't look anything like the Autolite dashpot in the manual),

The idle is supposed to be adjusted via the dashpot / solenoid linkage so that should be easy to fix.

Premium gas won't do anything for you, really. The motor is low CR and doesn't have computer control so it can't take advantage of the hi test gas.

If it runs ok and gets near rated mileage, no need to mess with carb.

The pop may just be due to carb adjust tho, but give it time to get to know the vehicle before messing with carb too much.

For that year, you have front axle disconnect. If that doesn't work 4wd won't engage. Could also be vacuum leak. Or vacuum motor gone bad. Just have to trace along the entire vacuum route to figure it out.

Driver window flextrack is probably broken. BJ's offroad has new ones.

Cargo window -- could be safety switch, driver side tailgate. Have to pull cover and bypass safety switch. Could be other thngs too

Shouldn't be hard to find a replacement seat. Rigs are being parted here and there on the list.

Mild 3-4" lift to fit bigger tires (31's on wider rims or 32's maybe even 33's) should get you thru a lot of stuff without going crazy on building it up.

Replacement woodgrain is $$$$$$$ but avail from bjs offroad too so better to use your sign shop capabilities :D

Michael

[fulsizjeep]

Welcome to the Madness! I hear it is curable but I have my doubts. :cool:

A good number of these old Wags have simply had the pooh driven out of them with little maintenance. Rubber parts rot over the years and one place to spend some worthwhile time is replacing hoses. All kinds of hoses. An 83 would have a vacuum disconnect on the front axle if it has the NP229. There is a lot of vacuum hose involved in shifting it in and out of 4wd. If you don't have to deal with emissions testing, the best thing you can do is remove all the emissions controls and get to basic vacuum routing. If you need to pass inspection, best of luck fixing and keeping the emissions stuff in working order.

Ride On :fsj:

[crushmonkey]

More Pictures!

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0633.jpg


Motorcraft 1RHA2 carb with AMC H2L1 tag



http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0635.jpg

Left View of engine compartment

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0636.jpg


Right view of engine compartment

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0637.jpg

Wierd hose routing. Goes opposite way, NOT into overflow container. O.o'

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0638.jpg

How to almost break mom's camera! Yay!

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh139/crushmonkey/IMGP0639.jpg

Department of Defense tags for Mclellan AFB. If it was a CA jeep, hopefully the smog stuff is in decent/repairable shape?

No 'neath pix yet, floor jack is still in storage :p

Gearbox says:

New Process Gear

229 AM

536 (screw head) 3353

Ser 11 16 82

261


I'm getting leaks from oil pan and trans cover - should I put seal softener in all my lube fluids? I might just do that and change the fluids out after it's been in long enough to work but before inspection.

Also, I'm thinking of getting Pulstar Pulse plugs, I know Bosch would work just fine, but I'm gonna try every trick I can think of to get my emissions cut as much as possible. Since I'm dumping so much cash into the beast anyway, another two hundred or so doesn't seem like a horrible investment. If it helps at all, the time spent changing the plugs doesn't really matter to me.

shimniok:

Premium won't help me pass my smog? I assumed higher octane meant less emissions. I don't plan on running premium all the time, since as you mentioned it's an older engine, just at first to clean deposits and pass smog.

The pop comes and goes, I revved it today and the carb stuck revving - we sprayed it with c-foam (sea-foam?) and it unstuck, then popped, my old man said it was just backfire.
Which reminds me, when I was underneath looking at my gearbox, I noticed that the weld between my exhaust and 'cat had split and now my 'cat is a 1/2" back from where the weld had originally been. There was soot built-up in front of the loose weld like exhaust has been coming out instead of going thru the 'cat. I'm gonna weld that up when I pull it into the shop.

If the 4WD hasn't worked since before I got it, how critical is a tear-down and re-lube before or after I'm doing the vacuum diagnostic?

I'm hoping the window is the flextrack, I can hear the motor working when I hit the button. I think when I replace the track, I'm gonna get into all the other doors and clean/lube them because they're slooooooooow.

I should check the list anyway, see if any of the stuff I'm going to be pulling off would be worthwhile to put up, and see how much of the stuff I can find on the list and check that against the prices of what I can find at the local puller-mart

How labour-intensive is a lift kit? As far as I can tell, the thing has all-original springs and such and has never been lifted. I'm not sure what the lift laws are here, I know there are some, but I also see jeeps rolling around like they're on stilts - not what I want. And I am kinda vain in the sense that, like HOOT noticed, I really really like these rims, I'm actually thinking of having them touched up, since I'm already planning on touching up all the decals and such anyway.

And I won't be mucking about with the woodgrain until after I get all the rust out and panels replaced. I was actually contemplating printing up a few different patterns I'd never seen on a vehicle yet, like a woodland CADPAT or MARPAT just to see what it'd look like.


fulsizjeep:

Well as far as my muscle-cars go, I'll be an Arrowhead prolly till I die, but as far as trucks and the like go, I've always been impressed with Jeeps and with what AMC did with the brand, especially considering they were competing a losing battle with the 'big guys' all along. I've been infested with the sickness for a while, this is the first time I've actually gotten serious about owning a rig and making it all mine and modifying it to suit my needs and whims :D

Unfortunately, I have to have emissions, I'm not gonna go through the rigamarole of getting it plated in a rural area and then driving it in already-smoggy Sick Lake City because I'm sure there's a way around or through the issue.

First thing I'm gonna do is change out all the hoses, like you mentioned, because when I was putting the air filter back on after taking pictures today, I happened to squeeze one of the hoses that has the little plastic disk-valve deals on it - and my thumb and finger pinched it to mush! So yeah, new hoses and hardware in between, and I'll run carb cleaner thru it and then fuel treatment to knock out whatever's left, then pulse-plugs, new fluids (with lucas because I've yet to have it fail me) and filters all 'round.

As far as the smog stuff onboard goes, every time I've been to the local puller-marts, I've seen plenty of 'wags and cherokees with a lot of it still intact. Worst case, I'll go pull a bunch of that crap till I find stuff that works.

Again, thanks for all the input, everyone! I know I haven't been separating my questions in different posts and such, but I didn't really expect people to want to interact with yet another ignorant noob anyway - I mostly made this thread to get a feel for the place and put my thoughts up here for my own reference - I'm really grateful for all your thoughts and input regardless! THANKS! :D

[Chris P.]

When warmed up and revved, it will 'pop' as the revs come back down.
In your second picture on the left side there is a can with a red stripe around it. There should be vacuum hose connected to it on the bottom that will eventually lead to manifold vacuum. If this isn't connected, it will make a crackle in the exhaust when the revs are coming down.

[crushmonkey]

yeah, well... Funny story... I checked that unit you mentioned, Chris P, and the hose was barely attached. I felt like I had a handle on it, so I was tracing my vac lines and stuff, deciding if I should just pull them off to get a size match at Autozone (I think it's 1/4" hose), and lo and behold, the line running from the manifold vac is hooked up to...

A BIG SCREW.

That's right. This whole time, the manifold vac has been attached to NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! :banghead:

Anyway, I'm sure this has something to do with smog and such, since all the gewgaws hanging off the air cleaner, and the unit Chris P mentioned, are supposed to be hooked into that line as far as I can tell.

Also, I was right about the exhaust just front of my 'cat. I scrubbed it off with my sleeve this morning before doing a sea-foam treatment and putting some seal softener in the engine, by the time I was putting tools away, yep, more soot right where I'd scrubbed a nice clean spot. So I figure I'll have to warm up my pipe-welding skills... Or maybe just fill the gap with JB-weld. I'd prefer a permanent solution, so guess I'll pull the exhaust and weld the sucker.

I'm thinking, maybe newer is better as far as emission stuff goes... So I'm wondering if I pull stuff from newer 360's and route them as if it was for that year instead of my '83 maybe it'll pass smog better - or maybe I'll just make a really expensive bomb. I don't know.

I'm also not sure if the FSJ 360 is the same unit that was in the AMC muscle - my mopar cousin said the AMC unit is not the same as the Mopar mill he was familiar with and was slightly offended that I asked for his input on a vehicle that offended his Mopar sensibilities. I only asked him because I thought the AMC-style 360 logo would look swell on my air cleaner - but I didn't want to put it there without knowing for sure.

Anyway, that's my weekend report. Tune in for the next episode :D

[El Jefe]

I would tear off all the emission stuff there is. Its all just a big headache.

[crushmonkey]

I agree on the headache thing, but wouldn't pulling the emissions stuff make it harder to pass smog?

[shimniok]

I'm thinking, maybe newer is better as far as emission stuff goes... So I'm wondering if I pull stuff from newer 360's and route them as if it was for that year instead of my '83 maybe it'll pass smog better - or maybe I'll just make a really expensive bomb. I don't know.

I doubt it'll be a big change or have any major adverse risk. I think you'll be fine to route per 86 standards. FWIW here is a link to my vacuum diagram write up that hopefully makes it easier to sort out what goes where. http://tc.wagoneer.net/sblog/static.php?page=fsj_vac_routing

The motor in your FSJ is 100% AMC. :D

Michael

[crushmonkey]

The motor in your FSJ is 100% AMC. :D


Awwright! I'm gonna put the logo on there for kicks :thumbsup:

Thanks for the diagram - I'll put it to good use!

[El Jefe]

I agree on the headache thing, but wouldn't pulling the emissions stuff make it harder to pass smog?

who knows really. I tore it off my 76, and it passed. but that had to pass trucks emissions. My 85 had to pass car standards. couldnt get it to with or without the smog stuff.

[crushmonkey]

why was the '85 supposed to pass as a car? It'd make sense that a 'Wag would be held to truck standards since it's... well, it's "The" SUV.

I guess I have plenty of time to decide what to do on the emissions stuff. I'll be driving a scooter around 'till I get the 'Wag fixed anyway.

...and the tech manual rises faster and faster as a priority. time to spend some cash! :p

[shimniok]

Some of the older FSJs had a higher GVWR to where they were considered heavy duty I guess ... friend had a 76 like that where his standards for emissions were lax. Not me, I'm up against fuel injected cars with my 86.

But, I was able to pass with some of the lowest numbers any of us FSJ folks have seen in the Denver area :D That's with all the emissions gear on and working. I had to switch to leaner jets and also tweaked the aneroid -- I shouldn't have but got really lucky. Getting the mix right was 90% of the battle.

Here you hve to have AIR hooked up, cat installed, and they may inspect for EGR too. They don't look too awful close so open air cleaners, four barrels, EFI, etc., go unnoticed.

Michael

[crushmonkey]

would it be severely retarded of me to just get into a GM TBI like I've seen discussed in some threads? It seems like it would minimise all the crap I'm dealing with right now with all the emissions stuff that needs fixed/replaced. It seems like if done properly, it's all pros and only the con of investment.

Also with injection I can monitor/adjust the mix easier and... Omigosh possibly hydrogen enrichment?

[dwilsonjr74]

I have the same magnaflow and have nothing but good things to say, my brother got his from ebay but I wanted a valid warranty(I have had problems with ebay sellers before) so I got it here. magnaflow 16442 (http://www.allexhaust.com/magnaflow/8791.html), or you can try one of the vendors here on the forum selling magnaflow (http://www.allexhaust.com/magnaflow), they are allways having sales/specials on the forums. It is nicely built and sounds great I think.