New from North Dakota: P0303 code and cylinder 3 misfire

[Ian]

Glad to hear you're up and running.

Could be leaking at the weep hole of the water pump. May need to pressure test it to see where it's coming from.

Thanks a ton. I'll go rent one of those pressure testers when I get the chance. Ready to be done working on it for a little while at least. Not even joking i spent 2 and a half hours trying to get one of those lower exhaust/intake manifold bolts threaded in. That was by far the most painful part of this whole project.

 

[CodaMan]

Those bolts suck. Hopefully you pulled the fender to gain better access, but even if you did you sometimes need to use a jack or a strap to get everything lined up.

 

[Ian]

I did pull the fender and tried many things to pick up on the left exhaust manifold because it was just slightly too low. Whoever said jeeps are easy to work on is either a liar or never put that bolt in.

 

[Chris]

I did pull the fender and tried many things to pick up on the left exhaust manifold because it was just slightly too low. Whoever said jeeps are easy to work on is either a liar or never put that bolt in.

Haha, they're way easier to work on then any vehicle I've ever owned (minus my 69' Camaro). But they still have a few tasks that really suck. Try changing the intake manifold / exhaust manifold gasket if you want a real pain in the butt... That might be one of the worst tasks to perform on a TJ.

 

[dangjalopy]

As for the leaking coolant, if it is coming from the weep holes in the pump it may take a day or two before it starts to overheat. Mine was kind of hard to tell but once I noticed the heat wouldn't work or would cool off and warm up, I knew it was the pump. I would go ahead and replace that sucker. Cheap and not too hard.

 

[Ian]

Haha, they're way easier to work on then any vehicle I've ever owned (minus my 69' Camaro). But they still have a few tasks that really suck. Try changing the intake manifold / exhaust manifold gasket if you want a real pain in the butt... That might be one of the worst tasks to perform on a TJ.

I did change that. Lol.

 

[Chris]

I did change that. Lol.

My bad, I missed that... haha. Small phone screen isn’t my friend.

I honestly think I might rather drop the transmission than do the intake / exhaust gasket again!

 

[Ian]

My bad, I missed that... haha. Small phone screen isn’t my friend.

I honestly think I might rather drop the transmission than do the intake / exhaust gasket again!

Haven't done that before but i might have to soon, my clutch is starting to go. If it's not one thing it's another.

 

[Ian]

In addition to the injector wrap that was mentioned, I'd be sure to check the foil insulation blanket that sits on top of the Intake manifold. It may look ok, but deteriorate and lose effectiveness. Mine looked outwardly just fine, but when I moved it around, it just came apart in pieces. I actually stacked two new blankets together.
View attachment 14280

View attachment 14279 View attachment 14279 View attachment 14280

Where do you find these? When I tore my engine apart I pulled these off and they fell apart so they definitely need replaced before I go on a nearly 2000 mile road trip.

 

[dangjalopy]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015NOKWQY/?tag=wranglerorg-20

 

[Ian]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015NOKWQY/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Thank you!

 

[Ian]

Definitely found my leak. Definitely my fault. I forgot to clean off the thermostat housing somehow. There was like huge pieces of the old gasket on there. I feel pretty stupid about this one.

 

[Ian]

Just took it out for the first time and wow. It's like a completely different vehicle. It's never ran this well the entire time I've had it. Thanks again for all the help everyone.

 

[CodaMan]

Glad to hear it's running great. What did you end up doing? Just a valve job?

 

[KCsTJ]

Haha, they're way easier to work on then any vehicle I've ever owned (minus my 69' Camaro). But they still have a few tasks that really suck. Try changing the intake manifold / exhaust manifold gasket if you want a real pain in the butt... That might be one of the worst tasks to perform on a TJ.

 

[KCsTJ]

<swoon> a 69 Camaro. I used to have one . Sniff

 

[Ian]

Glad to hear it's running great. What did you end up doing? Just a valve job?

Yes. Got the head cleaned and completely rebuilt. It had like 3 or 4 sticky exhaust valves.

 

[CodaMan]

Yes. Got the head cleaned and completely rebuilt. It had like 3 or 4 sticky exhaust valves.

Curious, what was the cost of your head rebuild?

 

[Ian]

Curious, what was the cost of your head rebuild?

$560ish. I could have got a remanufactured head for less but whatever. It's done now.

 

[CodaMan]

$560ish. I could have got a remanufactured head for less but whatever. It's done now.

The main thing is it's done and you're happy with the way it's running.