Alberto_YJ

Fortunately the issue has been cured, had to replace the vent line, didn't find a steel one, so I had to put copper tubing instead of steel. Regarding the canister please see attached picture taken from under the vehicle. I still have an issue with the carb bowl getting empty after I let it sit over night. Any suggestion to fix this? (Return line from the filter is already on top, carb has been rebuilt - al gaskets replaced) thanks.

Hi Moses, Ironically the first thing I did was to replace the fuel filter, assuming that it was restricted to the carburetor. After finding the gas tank vent line clogged I deducted that all the extra pressure from gasoline vapors was traveling backwards to the filter throught the return line, then the vapor lock occurred. After disconecting the vent hose from the steel line that goes to the canister I've noted that the pump is not getting dry anymore and next issue was the New fuel filter, it seems to be defective, fortunatelly I was keeping the old one and after putting it back the problem is temporarily cured. I will have either to replace or unclog the vent steel line. Is there any reason to avoid replacing it with rubber hose from the tank tee? another question, I noted that the whool on bottom of the cainster is not there, is there any problem running the engine like that? Thanks for your comments. Regards.

After heat

Before heat

UPDATE: After dropping the tank found that it is kind of collapsed from the bottom, put some heat with a heat gun and it straighten itself, but when it coola down it will go back to the same shape. No clogging in the pickup tube. Today I was thinking about the pressure when open the gas cap and thought that maybe the tank is not venting, I was right. The steel line to the canister is completely blocked. I've disconected the hose coming from the tee at top of the tank but now it seems like the fuel filter is restricted. I can't blow by when I plug the return outlet. Is there any way to replace that filter with a Tee and a clear filter? This is because it is hard to get here in town. Regards.

Hello people, I've had a hard time traveling in my YJ. Everything was ok until I stoped by a grocery store. The engine have been having some abnormal behavior, I've been smelling fuel when I shut off the engine and step out of the jeep, when the tank is not full (say 1/4 of the tank) and I open the gas tank cap it releives a lot of pressure. If I let the jeep sitting overnight, next day will give a hard starting and I have noticed that the carb bowl seems to be empty, as I can see there are no squirts when the pedal is pumping. Now, regarding the day it completely failed, it was starting and then stallin unless I give it a hard acceleration, then start moving and it would keep the engine running for a while then dies. Started troubleshooting by checking the squirts in the carb. No squirt. Disconnected fuel hose at fuel pump inlet. Completely dry. Attached an electrical reciprocating fuel pump. Same behavior after a while. Fuel filter replaced with a single outlet one to eliminate return line. Could get the engine running longer but sometimes carb was flooded and sometimes I heared the electrical pump noise which means it is empty. I've decided to get back home with the single oulet filter setup and both fuel pumps connected in line. The engine runs great even in hard acceleration when overtaking other vehicles. But if I slow down in traffic I will hear the electrical pump is getting dry again. Now at home, tryed a new fuel hose from an external gas tank to the electrical pump. Same thing. Routed a new fuel hose to bypass mechanical pump and steel line over the engine. Same behavior. I've tried removing gas cap with no difference. I've rebuilt the carburator and noted the base gasket was just with two barrel holes and no grove on the sides to let vac flow from the port that goes to canister (I think). Replaced that with the oval hole and side groves. But I'm still getting the pump dry. As this is my DD vehicle I'm in a rush to fix this problem asap. Any help will be highly appreciated. Going to drop the gas tank right now to discard pickup tube clogging.

Well, actually the CAT product is not a cleaner, it is a coolant but what my friend says is that it is more aggressive as it is intended for heavy duty engines. I know they have cleaners but he's suggesting a coolant the will remove the mud slowly, from what I'm understanding. Not sure which part number is my friend suggesting from CAT but I could say is something like this one: https://parts.cat.com/wcs-static/pdfs/PEHJ0067-02.pdf Here is the link to the site describing different types of flushing procedures. http://www.sancarlosradiator.com/VoltageDrop/flush.htm Regarding the equipment I think there is not an special equipment designed for this use, it is more a description of what to use when performing what they call "3 Day power flush". The fan clutch have been replaced and the behavior has been the same. I'm getting higher temps when the A/C is on, as soon as I turn it off the needle slowly start to go down, but it will need some cruising speed to get the needle to the middle of the gauge. Do you know what is the normal operating temp for this particular engine? I mean when we can consider an overheat condition? above what number of celsius degrees? Is the last picture of the temp gauge an overheating condition for you? Thank you again.

Thank you for your input Moses. A friend of mine is suggesting to use Caterpillar cooling fluid mixed with water and run the vehicle for a week and then flush out all the removed particles. I've been reading different techniques for flushing the cooling system, finding that there is one that uses a pump to make the flushing fluid to circulate during several hours and all the particulated material to be trapped in a bucket. Is there any home product that can be added to the system to start the mud removal process? Or any base chemical? I will look around the city to see what kind of product I can get. What do you think about the CAT coolant to clean the system? Considering that it is intended for big diesel engines on earth movement machines. Now to answer your questions: 1. The pictures shows the temp for the in and out hoses at the radiator. The difference shown is less than 5 celsius. Really poor efficiency if the readings are ok. 2. I was not able to "see" the radiator core as from the front I have the A/C condenser and from the back there is the radiator fan and multiple things that blocked the line of sight. I will try a chemical to start removing all that come off with that method, then will do the radiator core rodding and at the same time get the water pump removed to see if there is still mud inside the block. All the symptoms are very similar to a fan clutch failure as it is overheating only at long time idling. A final question to you: Considering this vehicle is running with A/C on, transmission is automatic, so the fluid is going through the radiator as well, and the weather here is hot (32 celsius, about 42*C heat sensation) which would be a "normal" range for the temp needle in the dash to be at? Which would be the maximum temp for the needle to reach? Thank you, regards.

Hi Moses, over two months and finally got a borrowed thermograph meter. I've tried to get the best angles but there were too many things around the engine so not all the block surfaces were that easy to take a picture of. Please let me know if you can diagnose something from the pictures attached. Regards.

Hi, I've been dealing with an overheating behavior in my YJ 1989 Wrangler (4.2L with all emissions control hooked up except pulse air system, Carter BBD, Auto Trans). Long time ago I've replaced cooling fluid, It was 100% tap water that is the worst choice due to corrosion; so I decided to replace it by an ethylene glycol mix as you can find them ready to pour into your cooling system. I don't know if the coolant was poor quality but immediately after replacing the fluid I was getting the engine overheated. Perhaps it was air trapped in the system as the guy replacing the coolant did all the procedure really quick with the engine still warm... Well I had to go back to water again and the issue was solved. No more overheating during next days. Then I went wheeling several months after, when stopped the vehicle heared something like a pressurized air leak, it was the hose from the thermostat housing to the intake manifold, was cracked and ended up blown after I pulled it. So I shortened the hose and reinstall it again. Got home with overheating issues again. Bought all new hoses, including upper and lower radiator hoses. Heater was disabled so former owner plug the nipple coming from the water pump and the one on the back of the intake manifold as well, I didn't enable the heater yet but I have connected a hose between those two points to keep coolant flow through the manifold and cylinder head. Found that there was no thermostat installed, so installed one. Inspected water pump, a little bit of corrosion but the rotor and impeller was good, no play at the shaft. Refilled all the system with 50/50 mix and have to add some distilled water as I got short of coolant to top up the radiator. Fan clutch was replaced as well. I've been having random overheating, it is worst when A/C is turned on, obviously because the condenser is in front of the radiator. But sometimes runs good and the needle does not go above 210. I do not know where the needle it is supposed to be when the cooling system is working as it should. There are sometimes that random misfiring is happening, not too critical but I'm sure I'm not getting a perfect tuned engine. I've replaced the radiator cap just to discard this is the troublemaker. (13lb new one installed) Does the water to coolant swap have something to do with making debris and metal corrosion to become loose and start building a sediment inside the engine's block?

Moses, thanks for your input. I've done the test you describe in low range, the pitch and noise is barely the same. The output shaft bearing has been replaced yesterday with no improvement. Tomorrow we will replace the sprag and see how does it go. I will keep you all posted. Regards.

Hello Moses, I`ve taken the YJ to a workshop so we can try to identify the noise. The noise is coming from the rear end. We have tested the tranny without the transfer case to discard the transfer case as a source of the noise. The noise is only present after the tranny shifts to 3rd gear and remains if you shift to neutral until the inertia keeps the shaft turning, But if you shift manually to 2nd gear the noise stops. We have tried with another planetary gear set but the noise is still present, tomorrow we will try the complete annular and center pinion and shell set to see if it is an excess of wear on those components, we can found them used only. Another technician says that the sprag could be the source of the noise. We have replaced the bearing on the rear end as well. I just need to know which is the part that turns in 3rd gear only. This is taking me gray. Thanks in advance.

Moses, Distributor cap and rotor are brand new, Cables installed are medium quality, I will look for a quality cable set as all I was getting was cheap cables that will work the same as the ones I got installed. All spark plugs were replaced and I got like 10.000 miles on that set. Regarding the compression I do not know as I don't have the gage to do so, I will see if I can find a workshop with the equipment to make a complete test (Are you thinking I could have a gasket or valve issue?). The single fuel rich spark plug came off of the #1 Cylinder and it was during the tunning process, I should clean them all after tunning the engine and run it some miles, then pull all spark plugs again to compare with the previous picture. Timing label states that 9 degree is to be set when engine is at 1600 RPM, vacuum advance plugged and 10 and 4 Hg switches harness disconnected. So if I understand you, air/fuel mixture and timing when cruising are controlled by the ECU, so the only adjustment could be for the idling timing and mixture, What makes sense to me as the only fixed adjustments are the idle screws and distributor base. In the other hand, I understand by what you said, that fuel eficiency is obtained at the max timing advance without getting the engine to run really bad. So, a high HC level doesn't mean that the fuel is not burned completely and we are wasting fuel? are the CO and HC emissions low or high at the maximum fuel efficiency setting? Now moving on the legal matter, here in Colombia we have to take our vehicles to a Mechanical-Technical inspection in a annual basis, this starting the 6th year after the vehicle was registered to obtain the licence plates. So new vehicles are not inspected. Cops won't check beyond the certificate printed by the Inspection center unless your vehicle is running without muffler or throwing too much smoke through the tailpipe, or if you have more than one bulb off (tail lights, head lights). I can even remove the catalytic converter and go up in the emissions values and I still have the certificate for a year, but I prefer to stay under the emissions levels and try to be less harmful to this planet. Said that, we can install any conversion kit on our vehicles, if they will pass the emissions test, it's ok. Some day I will try to go at least across all South America, then North America (hope all around the world). And I will be glad to do that with my stock engine and carburetor. I may add some Fog lights, maybe a 31" mud tires and some 2 or 2.5" lift, roof rack, etc. But always keeping the shape and look of this vehicle's era. That is just a dream, but it can come true some day. That is the reason I'm not thinking in swapping the engine, or the head, or put a conversion kit, I know all the advantages and improvements that I can get with an EFI kit, but for now I will stick to the old times. As always, Thank you very much for the information provided, I really appreciate the time you spend sharing all this valuable information. Regards. Alberto H.

Hi Everybody, I've set the carburetor as specified in the service manual, actually the only setting off was the vacum piston lifter setting, that was too high I think. Timing was too advanced as I was following the timing marks in the wrong way, I was taking each slot as one degree, actually the scale goes from 0 to 24 degrees, resulting in something like 4 degrees per mark with a small one in between, corresponding to 2 degrees. I read that retarding the base timing to zero and adding some alcohol based octane booster would help to reduce emissions, Did that and took the YJ to be inspected again. See results in the attached drawing. It is noticeable that retarding the spark reduces the emissions. But at the same time it does make your engine to run worst, you feel you get less power... So some questions arise: 1. How is the fuel mileage affected by retarding the spark? 2. How is the emissions/power-delivered relationship? 3. Is the factory timing spec the optimal fuel consumption/power ratio? 4. How can I obtain the highest fuel mileage? (sacrificing power?) Now, I've cleaned the spark plugs before the test, #2 plug was the worst one. After running the engine for timing purposes I've pulled #1 again and it was black as you can see in the picture. I'm tempted to pull the valve cover just to see how bad are the head components looking but as I have no gasket kit I will wait to avoid the vehicle to be "out of service". I've read that replacing one quart of engine's oil with diesel fuel can help cleaning all carbon deposits, read also that adding diesel fuel to the gas tank will make the same, and pouring water trough the carburetor will make some celaning as well. So, there are too many old-school techiniques but not sure if they are all right. Regarding the misfires, I've noticed some improvement but still feel like the engine's rpm are not steady when idling. It feels like it is swinging around an rpm value but does not keep the same rpm all the time, seems like a delayed compensation from the closed loop system or an intermitent signal to the ECU, I'm just guessing. By the moment I will set the timing again to the factory spec and replace the air filter. Looking forward to your coments. Regards.

Has been a long time away from the forum. I've been working Night Shift and Monday to Sunday. Anyway I've made some progress on my YJ restoration. Did a search with all the YJ and CJ7 owners to see if any of them had a dirty Carter BBD sitting in their garages and finally got one with the ECU as well. I didn't knew that my ECU was not working good until I replaced the stepper motor on my carburetor and found that the misxture pins were not moving as the FSM says. So I swaped up the ECU module and all started working better. Is there any way to test the ECU module isolated from the vehicle? I've taken some parts from the carburetor I received, as Metering Jets, Rods and Stepper motor (as stated above). So I have mine now "complete". I'm not sure if the Rods are the right size, as they are stamped with the number 2376 and the FSM calls for 75-2384. The Jets are 120, so I think those are OK. But if the Rods should be bigger that could be a reason for being running a rich mixture. The Idle running has improved, I still have a hard time to get the engine started when it is siting for more than 3 days, so I have to pump the gas pedal too much times to get it started, but now it holds running once started (before I have had to play with the gas pedal for a few minutes while it was warmer). I'm at sea level and an average weather temp around 29 C (84 F), so I can't tell how bad could be a cold starting of my YJ after one week sitting in the parking lot in a really cold weather. Took it for an emissions test and it has failed. Readings are as you can see in attached image. I will have to follow up the carb setting procedure again, step by step and for the ignition timing as well, and see how it goes, anyway, from your experience and knowdledge Moses, What do you think can be the big problem to get those readings? Oxygen sensor? Catalytic converter? let me know what you think. I'm noticing some misfires and can't get the source, they are random at alla range of Low (600) to Mid (2000) RPM Do you think it is possible to pass this test without the Pulse Air System? Thanks in advance.

Well, those are bad news for me, first because I've already installed the carrier bearings, I do have the thick shims between the axle housing and the bearing cups. Actually the carrier got in a bit snug, I had to tap it a little with a rubber hammer to get it on place. Found that the brackets holding the bearing cups where in the oposite side and upside down since the last service, now they are matching the marks on the axle housing. As for now I need to get the vehicle running again ASAP. Won't be able to get the shims between bearings and case and even more difficult to replace the case. So the carrier, main pinion and shafts are all in place, cover in place and fluid poured inside with Mopar additive. I'm happy there is no leaks from the cover. As I've removed the gas tank to fix some rust issues between poly tank and skid plate, this will be the next step, to mount the tank on the YJ. If you don't have a vehicle elevator (as me) removing the tank will give you a lot of room to work in the differential, specially if you have 20 gal tank. Next time I replace the carrier bearings I will get the shims and replace main pinion bearings as this time I've got the wrong ones. Every time I start fixing any issue, I will find a new one. This time, found that some studs are barely stripped and made the nuts to be completely useless.. tried some from the other wheels and got at least 4 tight on each one of rear tires until I can buy new studs and nuts. Thanks again for your valuable information. Regards.

Another question emerged, I'm going to use Shell Synthetic gear oil 75W90. Do I still need to use Mopar's friction modifier additive? Thanks.

Moses, first of all, thanks for your cooperation and information sharing as usual. I've got bad news, already installed new side bearings but there was no shims. I'm not sure if the bearings I removed were the factory ones, they were Timken and noted that the one on the left (the side the clutch pack had the pressure washer cracked) was heavily damaged and the race was slipping on the carrier. In the other hand, there are trust washers on both sides and a kind of black silicone around the axle tubes where the trust washer sits, one has falled of and breaked. Actually I'm not sure if the knock noise was coming from the bad clutch pack or from the slipping bearing race over the carrier... Let me know your opinion about this. Thanks again.

I've mentioned something about a knock noise coming form the rear end on my YJ Sahara Edition in other post, but would be better to have this issue discussed separately from the other topic related to miscellaneous engine parts missing. Finally got the differential carrier out of the axle to inspect every component. Found that one of the pressure washers (not sure if is that how it is called) was cracked, so it wasn't doing any pressure against the clutch pack on the driver side at all. So the rear end was feeling like it was locked all the time, specially in tight turns to the left. I've ordered a complete clutch and gear replacement set and noticed that the gears are different from the ones that I have already installed. It looks like they were for C-Clip shafts but I see no problem if the shaft is non C-Clip type. Anyway, I would like to get some coments for all you that have more experience in this matter. Vendor says that this is an improved kit that will work with C-Clip and bolt on axles. All carrier and pinion bearings replacement ordered as well, replaced side bearings and heading to replace pinion bearings this next weekend. There was a lot of shiny metal particles in the differential fluid. The shaft bearings grease seems to have some as well, the grease looks gray instead of Red, its original color. Regards.

Hi, I'm getting a noise from my YJ 3-speed TF999 transmission. It starts when the transmission shifts to 2nd gear, then it comes louder and faster when shifts to 3rd gear. When I release the gas pedal it will be more noticeable as the Engine sound is not at the background. I've removed the tunnel cover plate and recorded this video to see if anyone of you can help me out to identify which will be a possible source of that noise. I'm thinking it can be the planetary gears. There is also another noise that I think it can be coming from the Transmission Oil Pump. Let me know what can be causing that pump to emit that noise if you know. Any comment is wellcome. Thanks. IMG_3531.MOV

Moses, Good morning. Thank you for the information provided, actually I have been trying to find the Mopar parts with no luck, and I cannot get a cross reference to a vendor that has those parts in stock. I will be traveling to the US next week, will spend 2 weeks over there from Fort Lauderdale/Miami zone to Virginia by car. So I will try to find a place where I can buy a lot of stuff. I would like to visit a salvage yard to see what can I find. Another concern is that the Pulse Air system was removed from my YJ by a previous owner, don't know if the catalytic converter is the stock one. I know this is an emissions device, but I don't know what else this Pulse Air System does, does it reduce the temperature on the exhaust pipe? I've tested the EGR valve pulling the actuator with my fingers and blocking the hose connection port and it did not hold. another $ to spend on that. I will check if the Coolant Temperature switch is closing when the engine is warmed up (how long it should take to close? I'm at sea level, about 34 Celcius). I have Tons of questions for you to help me out, but I will go step by step. I really appreciate all your time reading and replying to all us here in the forums. Regards.

A couple weeks ago I went to the brakes workshop as I noticed too much pressure needed on the brake pedal to get the vehicle to stop firmly. They found that the rotors were not flat, I mean there was considerably deep grooves on both sides, the pads adopted that shape, but the braking force was not applied uniformly. So we decided to put them on a brake lathe and replace the pads and system fluid. 8 days after, had an event where I had to make an emergency maneuver and pushed the brake hard. I hear a pop sound from the front and the brake pedal went all the way in. Pumped twice with the same result and no braking. After a near crash I parked the YJ and stepped out to check. Found the front right wheel all poured with brake fluid, checked the brake line and was broken. So I put a vise on the hose and drove slowly to the workshop again, we found that the guy that did the job did not check for the proper clearance between the hose and the tire after servicing the calipers and reinstalling the bolts. The tire was rubbing against the hose creating a weak point that was the cause of the brake system failure right in an emergency. I'm lucky, as I was able to turn the steering fast enough to avoid crashing with the guy making a prohibited U turn. Make sure to check on that clearance when you make brakes service or when you take it to a workshop for brake work. Regards.

Moses, long time away from the forum but still working on this restoration. I still have the rear axle noise as I hav had no time to pull the axle, did pour one modifier to the fluid with no positive results, it seems that is not a trac-lock diff. Regarding the AT transmission, is a TF999 which has a grinding noise, the noise is more noticeable in 3rd gear, in 2nd you can hear it, and in 1st shift is not hearable at all. I've been working much more in the engine, I've pulled the carb out the car, disassembled and noticed that it has two different metering jets (100 and 85 numbers stamped.) In addition, there are no metering rods. the choke linkage was missing and there was a lot of particles all over those parts. I've read in your article about rebuilding the carb that you should not try to pull the idle pickup tubes out of the ventury assy, mine were not loose but came out with no effort. Another thing is that the Idle mixture screws seem to be adapted from other carb, the tip is not a perfect cone, it seems like it has been done with a file. I see no movement of the stepper motor. Could be a bad oxygen sensor or a bad coolant temp. switch. Last Saturday I removed all the wiring from the MCU to each one of the sensors, stepper motor, A/C components, distributor, Ignition module, etc. My intention was to check continuity on all the cables and compare the factory wiring diagram with what was actually connected. This because I've read about the Nutter Bypass and I was afraid that it was done on my YJ. Fortunatelly it was not done and all was in the stock shape. I've put some soldering on the splices found. I've noticed duct tape in the stock splices/taps done. Is this made from factory? Now, I need a little help from you on some things. I've been trying to get the right idle mixture screws, metering jets and rods. Found some online but there is no specification on the model that they will fit, there is just the overall length, thread pitch, etc. Which one will fit on my BBD Carb? --> Idle Screws: Idle Mixture Screw- 10-32 x .900", OEM # 30A-51 Idle Mixture Screw- 10-32 x 1.206" OEM # 30A-58 Idle Mixture Screw- 10-32 x 1.311" Idle Mixture Screw- 10-32 x 1.391" Idle Mixture Screw- 10-32 x 1.502" OEM # 30A-198 Idle Mixture Screw- Carter BBS, BBD, RBS 10-32 x 1.442" Idle Mixture Screws Pair of replacement idle mixture screws. 10-32 pitch thread 1.675" overall length Metering Jets: Carter Metering Jet .070" Carter Metering Jet .071" Carter Metering Jet .074" Carter Metering Jet .077" Carter Metering Jet .080" Carter Metering Jet .083" Carter Metering Jet .086" Carter Metering Jet .089" Carter Metering Jet .092" Carter Metering Jet .098" Carter Metering Jet .101" Carter Metering Jet .104" Carter Metering Jet .107" Carter Metering Jet .110" Carter Metering Jet .113" Carter Metering Jet .116" Carter Metering Jet .119" If I reduce the Metering Jet size, Will I have less fuel consumption, sacrificing power? I cannot find the stock metering rods listed, do you have any retailer suggestion? Thanks in advance. Regards!

Some days away, but still trying to get my YJ how I want to. Finally got the Mopar friction modifier. Yesterday I've put some fluid out of the differential and poured the friction modifier in. Does the modifier takes some time to make effect? or should I notice the change right after pouring it into the diff? I've been driving the Wrangler during 1 hour but when I got back home in a tight turns the weird sound is still there. Any suggestion? Regards.