Kevin G

After looking long and hard for the exact bushing, I gave up and cut a notch in a rubber stopper that i used a c-clamp to fit into the lever arm. The ball on the arm fit pretty well into the socket that I cut, and I just fixed a metal zip tie around it vertically. There's the smallest amount of play in the linkage, but it doesn't affect shifting. This should work while I get my steering slop figured out. If I end up keeping this CJ over my TJ I'll swap a floor shifter in in the spring to eliminate the problem entirely.

Nevermind...I think I looked at it incorrectly. It looks like the arm just goes through the linkage and is held on by a cotter pin with the washer used to put pressure against it? I think I can make that work from what I've got in my garage.

I was missing that. It looks like I'm missing 6, 16, and 18 too....16 and 18 look to be a run of the mill washer and cotter pin, but 6 looks to be some type of latch or clamp? That part of the linkage is held together with an unfolded paperclip or something, and I'd like to replace it too. Mind shooting those part numbers at me?

Moses, Thanks again for the help on my TJ, that baby is all but finished. While the trans was out being built and the paint was drying I picked up a CJ because the price was right. I can't tell which exact transmission is in it, but I'm pretty sure it's either a 904 or a 999 (truthfully I'm unsure about the differences between these). I've posted pictures of how the linkages are connected to the transmission, and I'm guessing this is not how it came from the factory, lol. I've looked in the FSM, but I can't seem to pinpoint the part number or even type of bushing these use. Do you happen to have some knowledge of this, or maybe a picture of how it should look?

Thanks for the tips. I actually have a deep pan that I should have dropped off at the builders, but I don't really wheel it at all so it's not a must have. I swapped it back in and...WOW it's never driven this smooth. The trans must have had some slip when I got it, and I just didn't notice because I had no point of reference because I literally can't even feel the gears change when driving where I'm used to feeling a stutter on each shift. Even after 100 miles I still find myself looking at the tach just to make sure that the trans has actually shifted. Yours is the most accepting forum I've been on, and your insight was all focused on getting the problem resolved and not just 10 different ways of saying "JUST LS SWAP IT!!" like that's a weekend job..... I've got a CJ project that I picked up while this was going on, and I'm going to make a seperate (much more straightforward) topic regarding the trans linkage in that because I know you'll have some actual information for me.

Yes on the torque converter rebuild. As far as the trans build goes, the builder ordered (or had a kit laying around) without me giving any specs. I asked him about it and he sorta half apologized saying "I've rebuilt so many of these over the years, it's like breathing....ya just do it the way ya do it" I would rather have spent a few hundred more for the top of the line parts, but realistically I don't even wheel this one much. It's like 99% street driven because my 4 year old can't get enough of it, and I doubt I'll put 10k more on it even if I have it for another 20 years. It rarely goes more than 15 miles at a time. I have an old XJ that I beat on....

Sorry about the delay, but it's been apart in my garage/at the trans shop for a few weeks. I had originally decided to pull the tailhousing and see if the governor was stuck etc etc...but by the time I'd gotten under the rig and had everything off of the trans, it dawned on me that I was just being cheap. The vehicle has 200,000 miles on it, and would have needed a rebuild at some point anyway. I asked around, and found a very well received 1 man shop that did the bench build for me for $700 with an 18month/18k warranty. I stuck the trans back in, and it runs great. I really appreciate all of your input on this, and wish I knew 1/2 what you do about these things, Moses. Kevin

Moses Okay, so I've been travelling for work and haven't had much time to tinker, but I finally threw in the towel with the mechanic and just picked the jeep back up the other day. Here's what I've learned: The compression numbers are all between 125-135 so I believe that the engine is in decent shape. This was done by the shop, but confirmed by me. The brakes are not sticking or dragging. The mechanic adjusted the bands and connections while it was in his shop The fluid is really only a few thousand miles old and does not smell or look burt at all. I live in a rural spot so I decided to say screw it and take it for a ride knowing that I may end up needing a ride home and I'm 99% sure that it's beginning in second gear or has lost first. Initially I noted that it was maxing out at 30ish miles per hour, but that was only after a very small amount of driving. Taking it on a longer ride has shown me that if i feather the gas a little bit when it's at the 30mph range, I can coax it into 3rd gear. As long as it's in 3rd it will drive and accelerate as it always did, but when it's slowed down or stopped the process starts over with it beginning in (what I believe to be) second. The fact that it's not at all trying to catch first is worrisome, but before I pull it apart I'd like to attempt anything else that may pop into your mind.

Awesome info thank you. It almost feels like the vehicle is starting off a gear. By this I mean that acceleration is slightly slower to 33 than it had been before this incident. It may not be noticable to someone that had never driven the vehicle, but it's obvioust o me. I can tell that there is 1 distinct gear change, but not another. If I manually shift from 1 to 2 there is an obvious difference, so it may mean that it's not shifting into 3rd. I hadn't considered the brakes, and will check into those as soon as I end up getting it back. I didn't really smell burnt pads or shoes, but I will absolutely check for any bindage as that's a much easier fix than pulling the trans to replace the converter. It's at 199,3xx miles too so something like this was bound to happen at one point or another. A guy here just parted out his 97 with 130k on it and sold the trans for like 200 bucks...Oh how I wish I'd known. It's been a week, and although the mechanic is a good guy and not charging shop time to diagnose the problem I'd like my jeep back on the road this summer. Thank you again for the insight

Specs: 1997 Jeep TJ Wrangler 4.0L with 32RH transmission Background: I was driving per usual and after about 25 minutes of being on the road my Jeep began to accelerate on its own and the throttle felt like it was stuck all the way open. It was early, and thankfully there weren't many cars on the road so I kinda blew through an intersection and managed to get off of a main road into a parking lot. I should mention here that I had to ride the brakes while the vehicle was accelerating in order to keep it under control, which I know isn't good for any engine/transmission. I put it in neutral and pulled the parking brake until I was able to get the vehicle to stop. I shut it down and after catching my breath, fired it back up in neutral. It acted like i was flooring it while I wasn't. I assumed that the throttle cable had gotten stuck open somehow, but when I popped the hood I noticed that it was actually the tv cable that had come detached. I popped it back on, and my revving issue got under control, but when I began driving i noticed that the Jeep would top out at around 2500-3000 RPM and roughly 33 mph. At first I thought I was stuck in limp so I pulled the battery negative and tried again—no luck. (I later learned that this vehicle does not have a limp mode.) I decided that I was going to stop screwing around with it and put it in a parking spot—that's when it completely died....At that point I said screw it and had it towed to a local shop. At the shop: The power loss/ crank no start was diagnosed as a CPS and the jeep fires right up now. The problem is that it still gets limited out at around 2500 RPM and doesn't go over 33 mph in any drive gear BUT does rev as high as you please while in park/neutral. The mechanic has run every computerized diagnostic available, tested the back pressure and assured me that the cat isn't clogged, and is still unsure how to resolve the problem. I'm thinking that I'll probably end up having to just have it towed back to my house to do the rest of the trouble shooting, but I'm not sure what could be wrong with it. All I can think is that when I had to ride the brakes as to not die in the intersection that something got messed up in the trans, or that I blew a seal/ring in the engine and the power output is limited now. As far as I know the shop has not run a compression test, but it's always one of the first troubleshooting things that I do.