82 Scrambler 258 i6 Restoration!

[Sirdukeofearl]

Hey folks, my dad and I are working on restoring his old 82 Scrambler that's been sitting in out backyard as long as I've been alive. I'm gonna have plenty of questions and I'm hoping this will be the right place to ask them.

First off, after some help in the Engine department, we finally got the spark plugs out and have some Marvel Mystery Oil draining through there. We plan to get a new oil, a filter and a new battery next.

But, my dad thinks the starter was bad when he last worked on it. Can anyone point me to somewhere that can show us how to power the solenoid directly just to get proof of life and see if it can start?

Thanks again for any help in advance!

 

[Dave The Sparky]

Assume you have a manual gearbox and a 4.2? if so here you go although the solenoid is flipped upside down on CJs.
Make sure The Jeeps not not in gear first and if you stick a temporary 12V connection to the S terminal from the battery then if all is good it will go in with a clunk and crank the engine.
If it is original wiring the S terminal should have a blue coloured cable going to it.

 

[Dave The Sparky]

If you have an auto or a 2.5 or something else sat in the engine bay you will need to let us know as the above may not apply!.
Photos of projects are always welcome!

 

[bigwalton]

With it not in gear, you can use jumper cables to go from a good battery positive straight to the starter + terminal (briefly!) to see if the starter will fire.

 

[bigwalton]

And welcome!!!

 

[bigwalton]

With it not in gear, you can use jumper cables to go from a good battery positive straight to the starter + terminal (briefly!) to see if the starter will fire.

what Sparky said is also correct in that you can check the solenoid as well. My way is purely to check the starter.

 

[Sirdukeofearl]

Thank you guys for the warm welcome and the help! We were able to get it to crank for the first time in over 20 years after jumping the starter with a fresh battery! We've decided to just go ahead and buy a new solenoid since they're not too expensive. The next two places I'm thinking of going are the ignition switch needs to be replaced, and the fuel tank and system probably needs an overhaul.

Any ideas on how to get to the switch without a steering wheel remover?

We're hoping to put the biggest fuel tank we can on it since we're going to be replacing it anyway. Does anybody know what the biggest stock fuel tank was?

Also, I was hoping somebody could point me in the direction of a workshop/mechanic's manual for the CJ8?

For putting up with my questions, here are some photos of the project, it is actually an automatic transmission:

 

[barrys]

20 gallon is largest factory tank, they are plastic and have a squared off skid plate verus rounded skids for the smaller 15 gallon factory metal tanks. Aftermarket tanks can(or used to be able to be) found in 33 gallon size for Scramblers.

 

[ag4ever]

Aero tank is $645 + shipping. 33 gallons.

Stock plastic is 20 gallons.

Stock steel is 15 gallons.

Aftermarket plastic is 21 gallons.

There is no way to replace the key switch without removing the steering wheel.

The factory service manual is worth the cost on eBay or other places. Or you can search for the pdf version that has been scanned. There are several versions based on the year. The ‘82 is a full manual. ‘83 is a supplement to the ‘82. ‘84 is a revised version of the ‘82.

ATSG is the go to for the auto transmission.

 

[Belizeit]

I'm lucky. I have the original 1984 MR 252 I bought new then, and a couple years ago was able to print out the electronic version of the 84 - 86 MR 252. Like any manual they are lacking about 10-20 % of the information you wish they really had in them

 

[Randyzzz]

I'm lucky. I have the original 1984 MR 252 I bought new then, and a couple years ago was able to print out the electronic version of the 84 - 86 MR 252. Like any manual they are lacking about 10-20 % of the information you wish they really had in them

Isn’t that the truth! It seems as the manuals get newer the information decreases. I have the green cover MR 252 and the 255 supplement, it is not as complete as the 81, and the 79 has even more info! You would think the factory manual would be the last word- but not any more!

 

[Dave The Sparky]

Make sure you buy a starter solenoid for an auto as they are different!.
It has an extra terminal that connects to the auto that prevents it cranking unless its in park or neutral.

 

[MI Scrambler]

Make sure you buy a starter solenoid for an auto as they are different!.
It has an extra terminal that connects to the auto that prevents it cranking unless its in park or neutral.

Yes and be sure you ground it to the fender well. I have solved starting problems by just grounding the solenoid better.

 

[MI Scrambler]

Thank you guys for the warm welcome and the help! We were able to get it to crank for the first time in over 20 years after jumping the starter with a fresh battery! We've decided to just go ahead and buy a new solenoid since they're not too expensive. The next two places I'm thinking of going are the ignition switch needs to be replaced, and the fuel tank and system probably needs an overhaul.

Any ideas on how to get to the switch without a steering wheel remover?

We're hoping to put the biggest fuel tank we can on it since we're going to be replacing it anyway. Does anybody know what the biggest stock fuel tank was?

Also, I was hoping somebody could point me in the direction of a workshop/mechanic's manual for the CJ8?

For putting up with my questions, here are some photos of the project, it is actually an automatic transmission:

View attachment 82146
View attachment 82147
View attachment 82148
View attachment 82149

Looks like a real nice project. I hope you and your Dad have fun with this build. I will make you smarter and closer to your dad.
Best

 

[certifiablejeep]

Make sure you buy a starter solenoid for an auto as they are different!.
It has an extra terminal that connects to the auto that prevents it cranking unless its in park or neutral.

x2.. it has a small terminal on the bottom that if it breaks/rusts off... it will never start

cb

 

[JL in CA]

That looks great just bone stock as is - the AZ weather has treated it well! That's the same paint scheme my '81 had except I had A LOT more dark brown in it (rust spots from MN). Some very nice stock parts there (wheels, side rails, half top and I presume divider panel).