Jeep – Page 12 – The Jeep Guru

February 3, 2014February 3, 2014

DANA 30 ARB refresh

Dana 30 ARB refresh

Lessons Learned

My ARB was not staying locked. I could tell by the constant cycling of the compressor that there was an air leak. I also noticed that it was blowing oil out the pinion seal.

I began by dropping the cover. I tested the locker and quickly found that the copper air line was cracked right where it is soldered into the air ring.

I pulled the axles and drive shaft to prepare for work on the differential. When I removed the drive shaft, I noticed that the pinion had a lot of slop in it. I had never noticed it before because at full droop, the driveshaft is fully compressed and puts pressure on the pinion making it feel tight. Once the drive shaft was out, I could see there was a lot of wear in the bearing. This was the cause of the seal leak.

I also found that when the caps were removed, the carrier just fell out. That meant there was no preload on the gears. This allowed the air ring to rotate flexing the copper tube until it broke. Inspection of the bearing races showed them to be worn and pitted.

I have swapped differential bearing before with my Harbor Freight bearing splitter but I decided to step up this time and get the Yukon bearing puller. I found a well-made clone on Ebay for about half the price of the real Yukon. It is made in the USA and worked great. In fact it is so easy to use; I wish I had bought one years ago.

I ordered a Timken Differential bearing kit from Autozone. It comes with pinion bearings, carrier bearings, a pinion seal, a pinion nut, marker compound, and RTV to make the seal. At the time I did not realized that the ARB uses different carrier bearings. The instructions plainly say use Timken part # LM102949 / LM102910. I also ordered new O rings and a new oil baffle as I don’t know how to replace the inner pinion race without destroying the baffle. Morris seems to be the only people who sell this part at a reasonable price.

I was able to solder in a replacement copper tube into the steel air ring. I also installed new O rings in the Air Ring or Seal Housing Assembly as ARB calls it.

I used the Yukon puller and the red clamshells to pull the pinion bearing. I was amazed at how easy the puller made the job. I then used my old Harbor Freight bearing splitter to hold the new bearing as I pressed in on the shaft. I used a brass punch to remove the pinion races from the housing. I used my Harbor Freight bearing driver (the blue one) to install the new races and a new oil baffle. I then put the pinion in place without the seal and reused the old shims to check the preload. It measured out in spec so the original shims must have been about right.

I then moved to the carrier. I quickly pulled the carrier bearings using the Yukon puller. I then set up the press to install the new ones. That is when I realized that the bearings on the ARB carrier were not the same as the ones in the kit. I got really confused for a while. I took the bearings that came off the carrier into Autozone and the very helpful counter guy pulled out the huge Timken manuals and eventually matched up the numbers. They actually had the parts in stock as well. Thank goodness someone still knows how to use the paper manuals.

Armed with proper parts, I pressed on the new bearings and began to try to sort out the shims. I realized that while I had kept the two shim packs together, I no longer knew which side they went on. I made a guess and pressed on. Not having a case spreader, I had to work out a way to tap the carrier into place. With the shims being outside the bearings on the ARB, this is much more difficult than with the stock carrier that has the shims under bearings.

I had to pause and refer to the directions to confirm that the shims actually go between the air ring and the bearing on the left side. This makes it easier to handle but concerned me that the O ring gets very near the end of the hub.

I set the carrier in place with left shims in and loosely fit the bearing cap. I then pushed in the right side shims. I then tapped in the master shim with a hammer. This combination seemed to properly preload the set. I then set up my dial indicator and measured the backlash. This measurement confirmed what I could feel by hand, the backlash was too much.

I then removed the assembly and swapped the shim packs side for side. This change put the O ring even more uncomfortably close to the end of the hub. However, once I got it all back in the housing, the backlash was about right. I called it good and tightened the caps to the correct torque setting.

I then routed the copper tube to the hole in the top and reconnected the blue plastic line. I then fired up the compressor and tested the locker. It locked and unlocked and there were no audible air leaks.

I then removed the yoke and installed the new pinion seal. I put on a new pinion nut and tightened it down.

I then reinstalled all the other stuff and took it for a test drive. The locker stayed locked and the compressor ran very little. I think it is all good now and I am looking forward to my next trip to the rocks.

January 2, 2014

Jeep Cherokee XJ Dash Fire

I was using Jennifer’s XJ to move my race car back into the shop. Just as I had cut loose the tow strap I noticed a glow in floor board. At first, I thought her under dash interior lights were trying to come on, but I knew they normally don’t work.

I leaned over to see what was going on and saw flaming drops of plastic falling into the floor. I quickly drove closer to the shop door and ran inside to get some water. I told Jennifer her Jeep was on fire and ran back out to splash water on the floor. Since the fire was actually inside the HVAC duct, the water did not help at all. Jennifer tried more water but that was not helping either.

I then got the fire extinguisher out of the race car and pointed the nozzle under the dash. A quick blast had it all out. However, now everything was covered in pale yellow powder.

Once the excitement was over, the cleanup and diagnosis began. The fire was located in the HVAC duct and the blower wheel had melted. The most likely ignition source was the resister pack.

She had been having trouble recently with blower motor fuse blowing. I had traced the problem to the Tan colored wire and after installing a replacement control switch, I had disconnected that wire. However, I disconnected it only at the switch. I did not remove it from the resister pack. At the time I did not realize that if it shorted, it could back feed from the resister and get the resister very hot.

She got a new blower motor and we used an old fan wheel we had in stock. Removing it from the old motor was quite a chore and had we known how hard it would be we would have simply bought a new wheel with motor. To get the old blower off, we first removed the clip. Then we used a heat gun to soften the hub and used a screwdriver to pry it apart until it would slide off the shaft. However, this operation made the shaft too loose on the new motor. We solved that by heating it again with the hot air gun while the spring clamp was in place. When it cooled it was tight.

When we tried to fit the assembly into place however, we found part of the side of the duct work had melted and interfered with blower wheel. Again, we used the heat gun to reshape the inside of the duct work so that the fan would clear. It still rubs a little and sometime makes a squeak, but it fits and moves air. Later the entire duct will be swapped out; but that is a job for another day or two.

To seal the hole that had melted in the duct, we used metal duct tape. Working from the foot well and through the blower motor opening we made two layers of tape to seal the hole. Once it was all in place we installed a replacement resister pack from another donor vehicle. This time’ I disconnected the tan wore on both ends. Access to the shorted area will have to wait until we pull the dash to replace the HVAC duct.

For now, she has heat and air so the Jeep is serviceable. However, even after much vacuuming, powder from the fire extinguisher still continues to blow out of the vents from time to time.

I also gave her a new fire extinguisher to keep in her Jeep from now on.

November 19, 2013November 19, 2013

2013 XJ list Fall Crawl

Harlan, Ky

Thursday was a lazy rainy day for most of the participants. I made a quick warm up run to middle fork and took a trip up and down the slip and slide hill. Several folks had trouble getting their rigs up to the campground due to the road being slippery. Jennifer had XJ cupcakes delivered from Bear Country Cupcakes.

Friday morning we headed out to the trails. We took 15 across the ridge on our way to the lower rock garden. A couple of places on 15 have become quite challenging. However every one made it without too much trouble.

We played around in the lower rock garden for a while before heading on to Rail Bed. While some were playing at the water fall, I made a run up Pinball. I was waiting for Derek to follow when I heard his voice on the radio. “I need a little help” he said. I backed down the trail and suddenly I saw tires where there should have been a Jeep. I drove quickly back up the trail and down one of the step bypasses of the waterfall. I collected the others to assist. We found Derek flopped on his side at the entrance to pinball.

Neal took his rig to the top of the hill and we used his winch to pull Derek back onto his wheels. His exo cage held up well and the damage was mostly a mirror and a crack in the windshield. We then headed into Rail bed.

I took the early exit to the right and almost made it to the top. I made several runs always stopping about six inches short of the crest. I got a quick tug and was out. Jennifer came up unassisted. Some of the larger tired XJ took the later exit.

After lunch, we decided to explore a bit and run Intimidator. The trail started out easy enough but about half way through there was a long rutted climb. The hill was just slick enough that you could not stay out of the ruts. The ruts were also deep enough that on 33 inch tires my diff was dragging keeping my speed down near the small ledge at the top. I got a tug from Neal over the crest and then tugged Jennifer up behind me. Derek tried next but with 32s he could not keep enough momentum to make the climb. We spit the group at that point with the smaller tired folks going back down and the larger tired folks continuing. The rest of the trail was entertaining with plenty of rocky climbs. We all met up at the middle rock garden.

Frosty made some heroic runs at the big rocks and ended up shaking loose a wire that shut down his diesel. Neal and Adam towed him back to camp. While they diagnosed the trouble I made a run to Walmart and picked up some electrical fittings to make the repair.

Saturday morning we got a leisurely start and headed over to Mason Jar. We took time out for lunch and the stadium. We then spilt into two groups. Those running Mason Jar headed to the beginning while the rest of us headed to the exit. We went in the wrong way and made it to the bog mud puddle before we stopped at a big rock in the center of the trail. We parked off the trial and hiked in just in time to watch the other make the entrance.

The hill was pretty dry so the guys enjoyed taking on the harder lines. Frosty almost felled one tree but everyone made it through without any carnage.

We then headed out along Fuqarwe which is a narrow trail with a few challenging spots for those with open diffs. We went to upper rock garden and watched as sheet metal was mangled on can opener and the other big rocks. We elected to head down early so that we could actually start dinner in the daylight for a change.

At the bottom of the hill, we decided to explore camp ground 4 which we may choose on our next trip to Harlan. There we found and irresistible jump. Frosty gave it a go and broke something in the front axle on the way up. He was able to reverse his Toy back to camp. There we used a floor jack to get it safely on his trailer.

The steak and potato boat making commenced and soon we were all stuffed. We enjoyed the fire and conversation well into the night.

August 1, 2013

Jeep Cherokee Window regulator

The manual window regulators for Jeep Cherokees seem impossible to find. None of my regular suppliers carry new ones. So for Jennifer’s Jeep we elected to find used ones. Both of her windows had stripped spots in the spiral cable that moved the window. This spot would allow the window to hang and it had to be forced past that spot making it difficult to use the windows in a regular manner.

We found that while the regulators in her 92 Cherokee are riveted in place the 93 and newer are bolted. We elected to source these as replacements.

If you have removable door, it is easier to do this task on a work table. However, it is easy enough to do with the door in place on the Jeep.

To remove the window regulator, you first need to remove the arm rest. There are two #3 Phillips screws holding it in place. Then rotate the handle until it is vertical. The tip of the handle has a flat section that will release when rotated into this position. Next, remove the three #2 phillips screws that hold the door handle in place. Leave the plate alone just remove the screws.

Next remove the inner cover from the door. I found a brake spoon worked better than my panel removal tool to pull the plastic studs from the door. Once all the studs are out, carefully lift the door latch plate up and slide the inner panel back out from under the mirror. Then twist it to slide the door handle through the opening leaving all the rods in place. Remove the panel and set it aside.

Locate the 10mm headed bolt that holds the bottom of the vent window glass. It is in a depression and may be hidden by sound deadening. Remove this bolt.

Lower the window to ace the glass retaining bolt through the opening in the door. The glass is bolted to the regulator with a torx bolt. The back is in plastic. If it spins, it may be very difficult to remove. Use some penetrating oil and try to hold the plastic washer with vise grips. If all else fails break and replace the glass.

If the regulator is riveted in place, use a ¼ inch drill to drill out the aluminum rivets. They drill out easily. Otherwise, remove the six 10MM head bolts.

It may help to remove the door speaker to get more room to move the regulator around, however it is not required. Release the clip that hold the rubber tube to the bottom of the door. Begin working the regulator out of the door by rotating it. Part of it is on the wrong side of the vent window frame. Carefully bend the vent window away from the place where you removed the bolt and slide a narrow portion of the regulator through. There is no need to remove the vent window if you do it this way.

Carefully work the mechanism out through the opening in the door by rotating the whole assembly. Moving the glass all the way up helps create more space.

Install the new regulator in the opposite way. Carefully work it over the vent window frame and reinstall the vent window bolt. Install the bolts holding the top of the regulator and the crank gear. Leave the bottom loose.

Attach the glass to the regulator. Then install the bottom bolts. Temporarily install the window crank and test the action. Make sure all the door rods are still in the right place. Remove the crank and install the door panel. Install the arm rest and bolt down the door handle plate. Test the operation of the door release and lock before closing the door. Refit the window crank.

June 3, 2013June 6, 2013

Wheeling and Wrenching in Harlan Ky

This past weekend I met up with the folks from the XJ List in Harlan, Ky for our semiannual meeting. After an uneventful drive to the park, we all began unloading our rigs and airing down our tires.

That is when we hit out first mechanical snag of the weekend. One of Jenny’s valve stem caps would not come off. We tried penetrating oil, vise grips and even a torch but it refused to budge. Evan was in need of some spark plugs so we quickly pulled the wheel and tire and tossed it in the bed of his rental pickup and headed for town.

We found a tire shop just a few miles up the road. They had her new valve stem installed in just a few minutes for only $6 and no questions asked. We headed on into town and got Evan some spark plugs.

We headed into the woods in the afternoon. For the first time in several trips for me we had dust instead of mud. It was very nice to make a slow crawl up trail 15 rather than a full throttle wheel spinning run. We made a nice clean run on Rail Bed getting everyone through with a few well stacked rocks. The only casualty was a broken brake line on Kevin’s Toyota. I also noticed a small leak at my front pinion seal.

The next morning I found my diff fluid mostly gone. The pinion bearing was worn enough to allow the shaft to keep the seal from sealing. I borrowed some fluid and kept on wheeling.

We took our group up to Lion’s Den to let Kevin and Dean run their Toyotas through the tight rocks. It took a lot of winching and rock stacking to get Kevin through. He suffered some body damage as well but he looked happy to be a lion tamer. Dean made the trip look almost easy as he put his exo cage to good use. He made it through without even using a winch.

We then headed up to Mason Jar. I have been wanting to run this trail again for a long time but conditions have never worked out quite right. I almost backed out again as I watched the buggies on 40s having trouble. But the group assured me that they would help me through.

My little 33” Buckshots get great grip but don’t give me a lot of clearance to get over the huge rocks in Mason Jar. I made it up onto the gate keeper rock pretty easily and had more confidence. By the time I made it to the rock that always scares me I was ready. I had broken an axle shaft on it last time. This time however, the Buckshots got a firm grip and I pulled up with very little wheel spin.

On the next ledge, Scott took a bad hop and broke the input yoke on his Dana 44. Neal had a spare so we swapped it out right there. We had a lot of unwanted advice from a group of ATV riders who passed by. With Scott back under power we finished the remainder of the trail easily.

On our last day, we went in search of more trails and tried to stay out of the sun as it was getting warm on the mountain. Neal suffered an electrical problem with his starter so that he had to always park where he could do a roll start each time. We had lunch at the entrance to Your Turn but decided not to run it due to the very difficult exit. We headed instead to Crawford’s cry. Neal made it up and so did Dean. Josh started up when he suddenly lost all oil pressure.

The rest of the group accompanied him to the zip line parking area where he could fetch it with his trailer. Jenny loaned him her XJ to go back and get his trailer. She found a seat in another Jeep and stayed with us.
I took a small group to Pin Ball and rail bed while the others helped Josh Load his possibly crippled rig. It remained to be diagnosed whether it was an actual failure or a sensor failure.

The newest member of our group had a bit of trouble on rail bed and first damaged a front leaf spring on his Wrangler. The a few feet later he broke an axle shaft. We helped him winch himself out. Once he was on level ground we swarmed over his Jeep like a pit crew and had a spare shaft installed in about 20 minutes.

Back at camp, I help talk him thorough a ball joint swap as well since he had some spares and a ball joint press. We finished just in time for supper.