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Another Scrambler Purchase/Road Trip - UPDATE- BODY ON FRAME AGAIN

Looks like a helluva trip in a Scrambler!

On that Honcho, looks like an auto/TF999 gear indicator on the steering column. Does that mean the T5 was swapped in later?
 
wm69 said:
Looks like a helluva trip in a Scrambler!

On that Honcho, looks like an auto/TF999 gear indicator on the steering column. Does that mean the T5 was swapped in later?
Click to expand...
Your right, looks like it has a gear indicator on the column? The 5 speed was connected to a chain drive transfer case, looked OEM from my half hearted look, so not sure??
 
Finally got off my butt and swapped out the damaged driver seat:

20221217_163322.jpg

I was lucky enough to find and purchase a great replacement seat a few months back, just got around to drilling out both broken rear bolts:

20221217_163334.jpg

This seat is in great shape, matches my passenger seat perfectly:

20221217_163658.jpg

And installed, easy enough:

20221218_094511_HDR.jpg

Besides aesthetics, this seats bottom cushion feels much more solid and firm. Feels like driving a brand new Jeep again!!!

I love the look and feel of the OEM seats, but they are getting hard to find and expensive. Sometimes I almost feel guilty using them in a Jeep that is driven almost daily. While at a swap meet recently, I also picked up a pair of these non-OEM replacement seats:

20221217_164314.jpg

20221217_164322.jpg

Leon Rosser used to be a huge aftermarket Jeep parts place, like 4wd Hardware/Quadratec. They also specialized in the small Postal Jeeps. They were located near Birmingham, Alabama. They were my go to Jeep parts place back in the 90's when they were still open for business.

These are my favorite non-OEM Jeep replacement seats. They are very comfortable. I purchased a set of these seats for my first Jeep way back in the day, loved them. They held up great, very durable. When that Jeep got stolen and stripped, the seats were among the many missing parts.

Anyway, I might clean these seats up and install them in this Scrambler in the near future. I will have to measure, but the bottoms look a hair wider then OEM, so might be an issue with my wide Tuffy center console.
 
spankrjs said:
I love the look and feel of the OEM seats, but they are getting hard to find and expensive. Sometimes I almost feel guilty using them in a Jeep that is driven almost daily. While at a swap meet recently, I also picked up a pair of these non-OEM replacement seats:
Click to expand...

I've thought the same about the mint Honey seats in Dad's Scrambler. I think I might swap in some extra YJ seats I have and put Bestop covers on them. I keep waiting for that sound a seat makes when you slide in with a screwdriver in your pocket.
 
Just for my records:

7/8/2022 - 59,117 miles

engine oil and filter
AX15/Dana 300/Front and rear axle oil change
spark plugs
new alternator and wiring
new front PCV grommet
all 4 corners new wheel bearings and hub seals
new front spindles/spindle bearings/seals
new front axle u-joints
greased steering/clutch/suspension/front driveshaft/rear driveshaft (removed to grease CV)
loose lower sway bar mounting stud, loose steering box crossover clamp bolt

7/29/2022 - 63,166 miles (left Biloxi went to Colorado then Michigan, below service work at Toby's house in Silver Lake MI)

engine oil and filter
rotated tires

Passenger rear drive flange cover minor oil/grease leak. Rear axle vent cap plugged with dried up mud, removed dirt so cap could function, no more leak (found/fixed this at home).

2/16/2023 - 66,214 miles

20230217_163610.jpg

Engine oil and filter
Full grease job (drive train/suspension/steering)

I have to pull the rear driveshaft to grease the CV joint. Kind of a PIA, but I have not been able to successfully thread a needle tip in there to hit the three grease fittings. But, by pulling the shaft out I can at least wipe off all the excess grease and prevent it from flinging on the muffler!!! The three grease fittings:

20230215_185558.jpg

And finally got off my butt and did this:

20230217_173414.jpg

I had a Mopar 195 degree thermostat installed. The engine consistently ran between 200-210. Recently, upon initial warm up, it would stick shut, so the temp gauge would briefly climb to close to 220, then drop down. I installed a regular NAPA 195 degree thermostat, problem solved. The Mopar t-stat pictured above had a little air bleed hole. The NAPA one does not. Regardless, I always have to "burp" the upper heater hose (i.e. with the engine running briefly pull the upper heater hose part way off the hearer core nipple and spray out some hot air/coolant) to bleed the system. After the initial burp, smooth sailing.


6/2/2023 - 68,956 miles (before the Mason, TX National Scrambler event)

engine oil and filter changed
cleaned air filter
rotated tires
removed all four caliper, inspected all wheel bearings
greased upper and lower ball joints
greased both driveshafts, steering linkage, all suspension fittings, sway bar, clutch linkage

NOTES - passenger side rear caliper spring missing, replaced Dana 300 shifter nut with correct "lug nut" style nut

6/30/2023 - 7/7/2023 - 71,034 miles

Replaced all four leaf spring packs with new Rubicon Express spring packs (added the extra main leaf from old spring packs to new packs)
Installed all new suspension bushings, frame end of spring bolts, reused shackle end greaseable bolts
Replaced both rear lower shock mount studs
Installed longer sway bar end links
Installed new rear brake pads (and missing rear caliper spring)
Inspected all four corner wheel bearings, adjusted driver side (slight play)
Greased all suspension components
Replaced all four rear spring shackle hanger to frame bolts
All four shocks tested good
Changed engine oil and filter before Michigan trip (7/15/2023, 71,090 miles)

8/11/2023 - 73,885 miles

Changed oil and filter
Greased all steering and suspension components
Removed rear driveshaft and greased, greased front driveshaft (front shaft bent in TX, need to replace, OK for now)

1/1/2024 - 76,709 miles

Changed oil and filter
Greased all steering and suspension components
Rotated tires
Changed out rear diff fluid to 85-140 weight
Changed PS fluid (removed old from reservoir)
PS rear hub seal grease leak noted

3/14-18-2024 - 77,500 miles

replaced fan clutch (leak from rear seal)
replaced water pump (fan play/rough bearing)
replaced alternator (bearing noise/would not self excite)
replaced PS pump (noise since installed)
installed 195 degree t-stat and new gasket
cleaned rear axle vent line, installed new breather cap (oil coming from breather)

5/21/2024 - 80,372 miles

changed engine oil and filter
greased steering linkage

6/1/2024 - 80,726 miles

removed lock in hubs, inspected wheel bearings/brakes, good
removed rear brake calipers, inspected rear wheel bearings/brakes, good
greased all steering/suspension/clutch linkage
greased both driveshafts including rear CV
checked all four shocks, good
checked F&R axle lube, good, checked AX15 & Dana 300 fluid, good
siphoned out PS fluid and added 100% Lucas stop leak, no more noise
passenger knuckle drag link tie rod end grease fitting PIA but OK
changed passenger rear lower shock stud
engine oil/coolant/PS/brake fluid good

7/13/2024 - 83,039 miles

engine oil and filter changed
tires rotated
greased all steering/suspension/clutch/driveshaft grease fittings
(post Hot Springs National/pre Sand Blast)

8/5/2024 - 86,240 miles

engine oil and filter changed
greased all steering/suspension/clutch/driveshaft grease fittings
(post Sand Blast)


11/11/2024 - 89,447 miles

engine oil and filter changed
greased all steering/suspension/clutch/driveshaft grease fittings
tires rotated
axles/transmission/Dana 300 fluid levels good, coolant/PS/Brake fluid good
PS drag link grease fitting PIA but OK, rear drive flange covers still seeping fluid
noticed potential clutch drag, adjusted clutch linkage, too much free play, better, will check linkage for wear and replace if necessary
(post Hot Springs Fall trip)

4/27/2025 - 92,147 miles

New pilot bushing, clutch disc and pressure plate, throwout bearing, clutch fork and boot, dowel pins, block spacer

Complete tear down and rebuild of AX15, new bearings, blocking rings, some clips, input shaft and 3rd gear

Resealed Dana 300 access cover
Greased both driveshafts
New alternator
Checked bore alignment, crank to transmission, within spec

Original Novak pilot bushing stuck to magnet, slight damage to input shaft tip, cause for all this work

5/1 - 5/20/2025 - 92,209 miles

engine oil and filter (cheap oil, will change in 500 miles)
oil pan gasket and rear main seal, oil pan drain plug
timing chain, timing chain cover gaskets and seals
installed seal repair sleeve on harmonic balancer
water pump (FlowCooler) and coolant
all coolant and heater hoses
spark plugs, plug wires, distributor cap and rotor
warranty exchanged NAPA starter and PS pump, new PS fluid
installed Tuff Stuff alternator

5/23 - 5/30/2-25 - 92,330 miles

replaced rear axle spindle seals
repacked rear wheel bearings, new hub seals
installed new inner axle oil seals (won't do anything with Warn axles, seal ID too large)
installed new rear brake calipers
installed new Yukon rear axle drive flanges
redneck sealed rear of Dana 300 intermediate seal
new rear axle fluid
removed AMC 20 Ox locker cover, installed new differential cover gasket
installed new o-ring on rear Ox Locker shifter piston (inside cover)
adjusted Ox Locker rear cable, rear parking brake cables

6/12 - 6/13/2025 - 93,020 miles

engine oil and filter changed (back to normal Valvoline VR1 20W-50)
(X5) new BFG KM3 tires (replaced set was on the wear bars, about 60k miles)

7/5 - 7/11/2025 - 95,090 miles

replaced all four shocks
replaced all four steering linkage ends
checked/adjusted alignment

96,xxx miles (Toby's Garage MI)

Engine oil and filter
Greased driveshafts and steering linkage

8/25/2025 - 99,361 miles

engine oil and filter
grease driveshafts
greased suspension
greased steering and clutch linkage
rotated tires

9/20 - 10/8/2025 - 101,xxx miles

Dana 300 rear output shaft seal
Speedometer gear seals
Blew out vent line
New gear oil (2 quarts only, added half quart before Hot Springs trip)

11/10/2025 - 102,261 miles

engine oil and filter
grease driveshafts
grease suspension
grease steering and clutch linkage

5/1 - 5/11/2026 - 104,519 miles

new front axle shaft u-joints
repacked front wheel bearings and spindle bearings, new hub seals (spindle seals fine)
new front brake rotors and pads
greased ball joints
new inner axle oil seals (Dana 30)
new gear oil Dana 30

5/18 - 5/22/2026 - 104,591 miles

new Dana 300 intermediate shaft and bearings (Novak shaft, o-ring on each end, hopefully stop leak here)
new Dana 300 gear oil and home made pan gasket
new AX15 transmission fluid (had to drain to pull Dana 300, first oil change since transmission rebuild, looked fine)
greased both driveshafts (thorough rear CV re-grease since it was on the ground, easy to get to all zerks)

7/3/2026 - 105,019 miles

Engine oil and filter changed
Rotated tires
Greased suspension/steering/clutch linkage
Cleaned K&N air filter
Checked front wheel bearings adjustment
Before National/Sand Blast trip
 
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I used a cheap thermostat housing gasket when I installed the new t-stat. Well, it has been seeping, not a real leak, but stays damp. Finally got off my but and installed a new gasket, two nights before I head out to Hot Springs, Arkansas for a day or two of wheeling!!!

20230419_185000_HDR.jpg

Quick test drive last night, no leaks. No leaks today in the garage, going to call it fixed. Anyway, loaded up, ready to hit the road first thing tomorrow morning, another adventure, first one since last August, too long!!!!

That's it for now :fingerscrossed::wave:
 
Drove up to Hot Springs last Friday morning/early afternoon. Drove through super heavy rain between Lake Village and Pine Bluff, Arkansas. All the fields were flooded, the wind was blowing so hard there were white caps on the fields!!!

Wheeled Friday afternoon and Saturday in the Scrambler, a bunch of 3-4 rated trails. Had to retire when my buddies 08 Rubicon started running hot/hot oil warning/multiple CEL's. Finished up late Saturday evening running some 4-5 rated trails while riding shotgun in another buddies 04 LJ on 40's.

Good trip, too busy wheeling to take pictures, so one shot while on the "snake" trail, my buddies overheating Rubicon in the background:

20230421_175059_HDR.jpg

Left Sunday morning around 4am, in the rain. Scrambler made the return trip fine, can't say the same for my buddies class A motorhome. Rear tire blowout outside of Pine Lake, Arkansas. Luckily, found a service guy in Greenville, MS to come out Sunday morning around 9am to change the tire out, after we found a man who met me at his shop on Sunday morning to sell me a tire. A four hour detour, but not complaining, made it home safe and sound. Now my buddy can go buy 6 more new tires for his RV!!!! (5 for the remaining wheels, 1 to keep as a spare)

Scrambler performed flawlessly on the drive up, on the trails, and back home. I want to explore a flatter belly skid/u-bolt flip/rear shock lower mount relocation since I am not going bigger than 33's, but I've been saying that for years!!

All washed up, ready to go again!!!

20230423_184220_HDR.jpg

That's it for now :wave:
 
spankrjs said:
I am running the Warn Full Float axle kit on the rear. This make all four corners very similar- bolt on spindles, removable wheel hubs, same wheel bearings on all four corners (only hub seal is different front to back).

Pulled the passenger side drive flange, a little contamination, not bad:

View attachment 103673

The rear uses the same "tits and holes" Ford style spindle nuts as the front. Pull axle shafts, remove the spindle nuts, slide off the wheel hubs. I run a disc brake conversion on the rear, so the calipers/rotors/caliper bracket have to come off, too:

View attachment 103674

Both rear wheel hubs sound/feel fine. But, I am going to install new bearings and seals for piece of mind. Easier to spend a little money and time now, in my garage, versus the side of the road some where.

The Warn instructions state to torque the outer spindle nuts to 120 foot pounds. That is a lot, and it easy for the four prong spindle nut socket to slip off the spindle nuts. So, I place a bottle jack under the spindle nut socket to keep it level, use a 3/4" ratchet and pipe for control, and push the socket tight to the nuts. Works great:

View attachment 103675

So, the rear will get all new wheel bearings, hub seals, and spindle seals. I did NOT install the inner axle oil seals when I installed these shafts/bearings. But, the spindle seals have been keeping the gear oil out of the bearings. On my tan Scrambler that I sold, even with the spindle seals installed, gear oil would end up in the wheel bearings. Not a problem really, except lock in hubs are NOT oil proof and will sling gear oil out. Drive slugs prevent this 8-)

A few years back I got this Jeep stuck, abd pulled the rear end straight side ways. It did not damage, except I had to readjust the bearings. I may or may not have damaged the bearings, but cheap insurance to swap in new bearings, especially considering the fact that Warn spindles/wheel hubs do not grow on trees!!!

Everything tore down and half ass inspected, parts ordered:

View attachment 103676

Quite a few hours of cleaning before I can start reassembly, that's it for now!!
Click to expand...
Spankrjs
Curious if you've ever had the following issues with the amc20 (and the warn ff setup) popping when descending a very steep incline using the engine braking without needing to use the brakes?

It feels like it skips a tooth or the hub releases for a split second then re-engages. It will continue to pop until I apply the brakes enough to lower the pressure applied to the engine. I pulled the right hub (that seems to be where the popping noise comes from) and on the original warn hubs the spacer was worn thin.

I bought another set of hubs and that minimized how often the popping occurs, but didn't eliminate it. I also found the retaining nut (the thin one) had split, so I obtained a dana 44 one that I sanded down to the correct thickness. Not sure if it might be the axle shafts are popping out of either the hub or the carrier. I never have any issues when I'm climbing very steep and I'm applying power, only when descending with the engine braking. Any ideas? Thanks for any info you can share.
 
I have never had the hubs "pop" or "skip", but the pair of new rear hubs I installed with the kit did develop some "lash" after around 30-35k miles. I mainly noticed it coasting into a corner (manual transmission, Ox Locker unlocked). I could feel the "lash".

Since I never unlocked the hubs anyway, I ended up installing RCV 30 spline Dana 44 drive flanges. The drive slugs remove all the slack that wore in lock in hubs will exhibit. The drive slugs are one piece, the hubs are multiple little parts/teeth/springs/etc. Lot's of places for "lash" to develop.

I have been very happy with the RCV drive slugs. I keep the original, worn Warn hubs in the trail spare parts box, just in case.

Post #1443 in this thread has some pictures of the drive flanges. Two corrections needed in that post:

1) the OEM rear center caps will clear the RCV flanges

2) the covers leaked a little bit due to the rear axle vent cap being blocked with dried up mud
rustang71 said:
Spankrjs
Curious if you've ever had the following issues with the amc20 (and the warn ff setup) popping when descending a very steep incline using the engine braking without needing to use the brakes?

It feels like it skips a tooth or the hub releases for a split second then re-engages. It will continue to pop until I apply the brakes enough to lower the pressure applied to the engine. I pulled the right hub (that seems to be where the popping noise comes from) and on the original warn hubs the spacer was worn thin.

I bought another set of hubs and that minimized how often the popping occurs, but didn't eliminate it. I also found the retaining nut (the thin one) had split, so I obtained a dana 44 one that I sanded down to the correct thickness. Not sure if it might be the axle shafts are popping out of either the hub or the carrier. I never have any issues when I'm climbing very steep and I'm applying power, only when descending with the engine braking. Any ideas? Thanks for any info you can share.
Click to expand...
 
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