Replaced the distributor pickup and rebuilt the carburetor

I was working around in the engine bay the other day and saw that the wiring for the distributor was cobbled together like so many other things on the Jeep. The PO must've cut the wires and then simply spliced them back together with electrical tape. No wiring nuts, no heat-shrink tubing. Nothing. So I pulled apart the distributor and removed the distributor ignition pickup (at right). You can see the electrical tape and the relatively poor condition of a crucial part of the ignition system, so I bought a new one and threw it on.

Here's the new one in the distributor. The harness clip is fresh, the metal isn't corroded, the wiring is solid, all in all, much improved and a rather simple fix. I like these kinds of projects, especially because I learn a bit more about the device I'm working on, as well as the system of which it is a part.

Quick confession: I lost one of the pins that locks the rotor wheel in the center of the distributor in place, so I replaced it with the pin from a wristwatch band. Works perfectly.

Driving it to work the other day, I heard a lovely backfire--my first, believe it or not. A few blocks later, she died on me, so I coasted her to a nice spot in front of an insurance place, locked her up, and made for the cell phone. My loving and patient wife got me to work on time. I tried a few different tricks to get it going again, but to no avail. Having AAA got the rig home the next day. I did a little reading as it sat out front, exploring possible causes of a backfire. With no noticeable damage done to the exhaust system, I figured that the backfire blew out the power valve in the carb, a common occurrence.

I was in the mood for a new and interesting experience, so I got up the gumption to rebuild my carb, a Motorcraft 2150. I bought a rebuild kit from NAPA that had the power valve plus all the other goodies that I wouldn't mind replacing on the 2150.

First, I yanked the carb, but with a bit of anal retentiveness. This thing has hoses all over the place, and I didn't want to get lost when I put it back on, so I labeled every hose (and throttle linkage) with a Sharpie, blue tape, and a letter. Then I took some pics while they were still on the carb so that I knew where to put them later.

I'm not about to offer a "how to" article on rebuilding a 2150. The kit took care of that, as did some helpful threads on IFSJA. Here are few pics of the guts just to give you a feel for what this thing looks like inside.

Fuel system issues

Finally got a few improvements made on the Jeep's fuel system. First, I felt like the fuel pump wasn't working as well as I liked, and it's a part to replace with something new, so I popped the old one off and got a new one.

Here's the old one.

And the new one.

I also added a glass/clear fuel filter between the fuel pump and the carb so that I can tell if a starting problem is at all related to not enough (or no fuel at all) getting to the carb or possibly fuel pump failure/under-performance. You'll notice, as well, that I retained the stock filter (the mini-beer keg on the left in the photo at right). It has a return line that is key for avoiding excess fuel flooding the carb. I think it also has some control over vapor lock, but I'm not positive on that.

I also added one before the fuel filter down below. I took a tip from someone on IFSJA.org to cover the lower glass filter in insulation and zip-ties to keep it protected from flying debris. Again, this will allow me to see fuel flow issues that occur before the pump. Needless to say, with three fuel filters now instead of one, the fuel will be mighty clean in the engine.

While I was at it, I replaced the rubber fuel lines in the engine bay and below to get rid of some dry/cracking lines that were a potential fire hazard.

Ignition Improvements

Due to some starting issues (too much time to crank over, in particular) , I've turned my attention to the ignition system. I've already replaced the starter motor, which helped. Now I've popped out the old ignition coil--which looked ancient--and threw in an Accel Super Stock coil. That didn't quite solve the problem, though it was a smart upgrade. So then came a new ignition module. Both of these were quick and easy, just a few screws and a couple electrical connections. The Jeep is starting better as a result.

Up next, spark plugs. I went with E3 Diamond Fire spark plugs, which are ridiculously expensive compared to standard Bosch plugs but promise a more complete combustion cycle for (albeit modestly) improved power and mileage. I'm hoping for just more consistent spark and somewhat smoother running engine, and the extra forty bucks to get that is worth it. I will gladly pay for peace of mind. Here's how the plugs went it.

Body lift kit installation

I wanted a bit more clearance for my 32" BFG's (trying to squeeze as much tire in there as I can without rubbing or going to a 6" lift and getting tipsy). The easiest way, without making the Jeep even more top heavy, is to install a body lift kit. At the same time, I wanted to pop in some new polyurethane body bushings to absorb road vibrations and quiet the cabin a titch. All of this will get the body an inch or more up in the air and above the tires while keeping the weight (engine, tranny, frame rails) where they'd be for a four inch lift.

First I had to pop off the bumpers so that the front and rear sheet metal doesn't get caught on the upper lip of the bumpers themselves.

Here's a peek at the original condition of the body bushings before removal and replacement.

Side by side, the new and old bushings plus the "hockey puck" lifts.

Once the original bolts are taken off (no mean feat if you look at the rust on the sample in the pic above), it's a matter of jacking up the body off the frame. I used my Hi-Lift and some scrap oak for this. You need just about a half inch more clearance than you think to get the new body bushing's center metal tube in the alignment hole in the body itself.

Several of the holes needed to be expanded just a bit to allow the new bushings from BJ's to fit tightly. The only decent tool to use was a Dremel with a grinding stone attachment.

A shot of a new mount and body lift puck in place.

Here's a backside shot of the Jeep with the left bushings and lift pucks in and the right still on the old, crusty stock bushings.

Side by side comparison of the passenger's side rear fender clearance (L) and the driver's rear fender clearance with the new lift pucks and bushings (R). Obviously I've gained more than just the 1" over stock that the body lift was expected to give, thanks of course to the new, firm poly bushings.

Unfortunately, I don't have any pics of the completed body lift on the rig. Oh well.

Hood Latch Fix

When I bought the Jeep, it had some crinkled fenders from a front right and a back left collision. I wasn't looking for pretty, so that was no big deal. However, the front right crunch pushed the bottom of the front clip back a bit on the right, causing a few minor consequences that I've had to work around or accommodate. The main irritant was that the right interior spring hood latch would not fully release because it didn't quite align with the catch on the underside of the hood. In essence, the spring latch was angle slightly forward because of the impact on the front right fender. It would then push against the catch mechanism on the underside of the hood, turning a one person job into a two-person job. After pulling the hood release myself, I'd have a family member pull on the hood release by the driver's left knee as second time to pop it as I pulled it up from the forward lip. Not fun. Other times, when alone, I'd cram a large screwdriver or allen wrench into the gap between the hood and the grill to put tension on the latch and to force the hood up. Then I'd pull the release handle from inside the cab to pop it. Again, not fun.

My initial fix was to remove the right spring-loaded latch release itself so that only the left latch held the hood in place. [The left spring hood latch is shown in the lower half of the image at right: it's the black spring topped by a cone .] Since I wasn't driving this thing much yet, it was fine. But after a few short highway trips and the drive to El Mirage and back, I noticed a slight up and down vibration of the front right corner of the hood. I wasn't particularly worried that the hood would release and be folded back into the windshield by the force of the wind, but why take chances? Since I couldn't repair the front fender to get the spring latch to be in alignment, I would have to find an alternative to latching the hood securely.

I decided to go with a pair of black YJ/TJ/Wrangler-style hood catches that are synonymous with the smaller softop Jeeps. I ordered a set from Rugged Ridge. Unfortunately, the fitment wasn't right. The wood grain trim on my Jeep's front fenders were in the way, and I was not in the mood to cut them only to find out later that these hood catches still wouldn't work. So I sent them back and bought a pair of black CJ-3/5 T-style hood latches from Quadratec. Happily, I was able to get these to work and look good in the process. Here's how I did it with my son, who rocks the tools.

After placing them in various spots along the front and sides of the hood, I settled on the section of the hood that raises up a little over an inch towards the center of the front grill. With the best helper in the world, I mocked up the placement of the latches and marked the holes with a pencil. Then I removed the grill (six bolts on top, three screws on bottom), drilling holes in the metal frame of the grill. I bolted in the latches with the supplied hardware. I then put the grill back on so that I could line up the hooks that the T-latches grab to hold the hood down. What I wanted to avoid was drilling into the hood itself until I had great confidence this would work. Once the latches were on the grill and the grill on the Jeep, I felt it was going to happen. After drilling, I used some longer black screws with blue Loctite and a pair of lock washers to hold the catch in place. Here's the final product. I'm quite pleased with how the project turned out. I know there are some FSJ people out there who will think it's blasphemy to put "little Jeep" parts on a full-size Jeep, but so it goes.

Smog certification and fuel sending unit

Back in November, I took the Jeep to Tire Guys in Redlands for a California smog inspection and emissions certificate, required for the title transfer for the DMV. The first time through the inspection, it passed everything except the evaporation test, which is all about finding unwanted vapor emissions. The master tech working on the Jeep, Mike, was very helpful in identifying where the leaks were coming from (a few cracked fuel lines, as well as the round hatch area above the fuel sending unit that sits above the gas tank). In my list of things I don't want to work on I put fuel lines near the top. I let them handle the bad fuel hoses, but the cost for them to replace the O-ring around the unit was a bit high (and it was mostly labor). Since the fuel gauge was inconsistent in its functioning and unreliable in its readings, I figured I could replace the sending unit, fuel lines, and the O-ring for less than what the Tire Guys would charge me. So I placed a call to BJ's Off Road for a new sending unit, a new O-ring, and a new plastic hex nut (2 1/4" wide, holds the sending unit in place). Mike had popped the rivets off the sending unit access hatch for me and showed me where the hatch was (underneath the bench seat). The Tire Guys were perfectly happy to let me do the work instead of them. Mike even said that he would do a free evap test first when I brought the Jeep back for a smog retest to make sure I took care of the problem. I was able to replace the unit and put in a new O-ring. I also replaced about three feet of fuel hose running to and from the sending unit along the top of the gas tank under the back of the Jeep, all for about sixty bucks, just over a third of the Tire Guys' estimate (which is not a criticism of the Tire Guys shop or pricing). Since they were on top of the gas tank, I didn't have to worry about fuel pouring out when I replaced the lines. All that spilled out was what little had remained in the lines due to surface tension. The only frustrating or time-consuming part of the process was removing the ends of the fuel hoses from the steel hard lines behind the gas tank above the rear axle. This is where several lines, including brake lines, converge and tuck in the left frame rail, making for a crowded area that my big hands don't exactly fit. I was able to do it, but not before giving a few DNA samples from my knuckles.

My fuel gauge is now much more reliable, I don't have any of the crusty, cracking fuel hose that is always dangerous, and I have a smog certified Jeep. A good round of work overall.

Vacuum leak issues and our 1/10 Trip to El Mirage OHV for some off-roading

Well, I've been so busy I wasn't able to post much. First, I was stuck hunting for a vacuum leak. The black coconut in the pic below is a vacuum reservoir, and with that lovely hose in my hand connected to nothing, I was without vacuum for the transfer case (and the heater blower), so shifting into four wheel drive wasn't happening. For some reason, the engineers who designed these Jeeps LOVED vacuum controls (pre-CPU) for a variety of different mechanical processes. I spent at least five hours under the hood over various days, plus time on the computer searching IFSJA.org, for the answer to this problem, but eventually it triggered my time vs. money switch. So I called 4West, a local 4x4/Jeep sales and service center, for some help. As this is not a Wrangler/CJ type Jeep, it wasn't in 4West's domain, so I was sent to Veldman's in Rialto (which is a Porsche/Mercedes shop). The owner, Bill Veldman, drives an '87 Grand Wagoneer down from his home in Lake Arrowhead, so he is quite familiar with these machines. After charging me way less than I figured, he had it hooked up and running (and he replaced the fuel hoses to and away from the fuel filter, which were leaking). Nice guy, great service.

So here it is: a reasonable four inches of spring lift, 32"x11.50" BF Goodrich T/A KM tires. They're just a bit too big for a four inch lift alone, causing some rubbing up in the fender wells at points of higher axle articulation. I don't want to cut the sheet metal for tire clearance, so the 1" body lift will be the way to go getting me the same tire/fender clearance as a six-inch lift with less of an increase in the Jeep's center of gravity. Yesterday, we drove an hour north to the El Mirage Dry Lake OHV Recreational Area. Though fenced in, El Mirage is a wide open section of the Mojave Desert centered around the dry lake bed, which is enjoyed by land-yachts, model rocketry builders, and drivers interested in testing their vehicles' top speed. On this particular day, due to heavy rains earlier in the week, the lake bed was closed to all activities. But there are still 20,000+ acres of wide open trails for quads, bikes, and 4x4s. Most of the activities on this day were dirt bikes and quads; I think we were one of three or four 4x4's in the area. We explored the east trail loop for about two hours, getting out a few times to hike around in a dry river bed and up to a nearby peak to look out over the lake bed (and to scout our trail back to the visitor's center and exit). It performed quite well, though the ride was a bit stiff (which is to be expected until we can break the leaf springs in on a few more trails)--the kids described it as riding around on a trampoline. Happily, everything was right at normal the entire time, from engine temperature to oil pressure. I kept it in 4WD High the entire time, just shifting the transmission into L (1st gear) to keep it manageable. Most of the time, we didn't get above ten miles per hour. Occasionally I took us on some narrow trails that might have been better navigated by a quad than an FSJ (and the Jeep has the scratches to prove it), and there was one point where the novice off-road enthusiast in me thought we might roll over (grossly exaggerated fear, I now understand). Twice, my wonderful wife got out and found a good spot for some pictures of the Jeep, which I happily post here. We worked our way around the East Trail Loop behind some mountains before heading home.