What did you do to your TJ today?

billiebob said:
A month ago was tune up, new O2 sensors, blow out the rear cat. I'm not sure where the bump in gas mileage came from but I also changed tires to something I bet no one else is running.

I've had mostly 33s, plus the original Rubicon Goodyear MTRs, plus a short stint with 35s. I never checked mileage with the 35s, I just knew it was bad. Never cared what the factory tires delivered cuz I wanted 33s. But I've never hit 20mpg, even running down the gorge to Portland at under 60mph with 33s.

For the past month with the new skinny 7.50R16s, pulling a trailer thru the mountains and holding 60mph plus passing all the trucks on the 3 lane grades at 75mph with a 1500# trailer, I got 14mpg over 300miles. For the next 300miles I held back averaging 55mph but never over 60mph. With the trailer I got 18mpg.

This weekend was 600 miles, no trailer, average 60mph, often passing at 80mph..... I averaged 22mpg. I'm gonna say it was all due to the tires. Skinny and 40# lighter than 33x10.50R15 KO2s. The handling especially on gravel is way more confidence inspiring. The ride.... I no longer try to dodge breaks in the pavement.... and the rolling resistance is enough to catch me off guard at red lights, forcing a sudden brake application.

Anyone wanting a ride or economy boost? Get real skinny tires. The 7.50R16 is very close to the 235/85R16 which is way more common.

These were also $200 less than 33/10.50R15s... and they are rated to go 33% farther.

Next job, building 2" flares cuz the 4" flares look like pantaloons.
My TJR will soon be skinnier than an SE !! :D:D:D

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What brand tires are these?
 
freebo86 said:
So I need to loosen them all just to replace 1 set?
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I Replaced all my mounts recently and yes you have to loosen them all. You will need to remove all the bolts on the side you are working on, including the front, to get the body far enough away from the frame to get the top piece of the mount out. I tried not to and it went pretty badly and was very frustrating.
 
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Replaced my belt tensioner, idler pulley, and serpentine belt this Sunday. Should have been an easy job turned into a pain in the ass because I needed a belt 5/8" longer than what the factory calls for for some reason.

Also on my way to work this morning, something started squealing. I'm thinking it's the idler pulley because there was a huge washer/dust shield on the back that I think I wasn't supposed to re-install and it's offsetting the pulley a bit making it so the belt is hanging off the back of the pulley by about 1/4". I'll go back to it tonight and see if I can fix it.

Old belt on the right, it had lost a rib. New belt on the left is factory size, but didn't fit on my Jeep.
IMG_20190908_161240.jpg

New Parts:
IMG_20190908_163501.jpg

Old Parts:
IMG_20190908_163516.jpg

IMG_20190908_163455.jpg
 
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Zukey14 said:
I Replaced all my mounts recently and yes you have to loosen them all. You will need to remove all the bolts on the side you are working on, including the front, to get the body far enough away from the frame to get the top piece of the mount out. I tried not to and it went pretty badly and was very frustrating.
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How high roughly do I need to lift it to get the mount out? Do I need to clear that little bronze/tube looking thing that sticks out from the bushing too? Or do I just need to go the height of the bushing itself which is like 1" or so.
 
RipSteakface said:
Replaced my belt tensioner, idler pulley, and serpentine belt this Sunday. Should have been an easy job turned into a pain in the ass because I needed a belt 5/8" longer than what the factory calls for for some reason.

Also on my way to work this morning, something started squealing. I'm thinking it's the idler pulley because there was a huge washer/dust shield on the back that I think I wasn't supposed to re-install and it's offsetting the pulley a bit making it so the belt is hanging off the back of the pulley by about 1/4". I'll go back to it tonight and see if I can fix it.

Old belt on the right, it had lost a rib. New belt on the left is factory size, but didn't fit on my Jeep.
View attachment 114322

New Parts:
View attachment 114320

Old Parts:
View attachment 114319

View attachment 114321
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That was the very first repair I had to do when I bought my tj. I drove138 miles home on the interstate with both parts squealing. I made it but what a noisy drive.
 
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freebo86 said:
How high roughly do I need to lift it to get the mount out? Do I need to clear that little bronze/tube looking thing that sticks out from the bushing too? Or do I just need to go the height of the bushing itself which is like 1" or so.
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The tube actually has an upper apron that sits against the body so there is no way to separate the rubber from the metal while its on the vehicle, you can see the gold pieces in the photo below for an example. You will need to lift the body high enough to get that whole piece out so ~3 inches. I would replace them all at the same time, crown kit was cheap and got the most recommendations on this site.

1568057853487.png
 
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Zukey14 said:
The tube actually has an upper apron that sits against the body so there is no way to separate the rubber from the metal while its on the vehicle, you can see the gold pieces in the photo below for an example. You will need to lift the body high enough to get that whole piece out so ~3 inches. I would replace them all at the same time, crown kit was cheap and got the most recommendations on this site.

View attachment 114345
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Thanks for the informative post!
 
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Spent a few days replacing pulleys and the water pump and thermostat to fix a belt squeak at 2500 rpms. Get it back together today and test it. Works wonderful.

I just wish i could drive it. (I refuse to but a top on) so i put the cover on and I will drive it when it won't rain.

20190911_080502.jpg
 
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Spent all day yesterday buying belts from Autozone and replacing belts and pulleys and tensioners repeatedly to try and get rid of this damn squeal that won't go away.

For some reason, my Jeep needs a belt that is 89.5" long which is around about an inch or so longer than what 'stock' calls for. Otherwise, I simply cannot get the belt on. This limits my choice in belts as I can only seem to find cheap-o belts in that length.

I've seen a number of youtube videos where people loosen a pulley on the drivers side of the engine (where my AC compressor is) and then back out a loooong bolt which moves that pulley and takes tension off of the belt, but I don't have that setup on my Jeep. The only available option for me to loosen the belt to remove it or install it is via cranking on the automatic tensioner. It's driving me crazy, I'd love to buy a nice belt, like a Gatorback, and see if that gets rid of the squeal but I cannot install those shorter belts and they don't seem to make a Gatorback in 89.5" any more that I can find.

If anyone can enlighten me as to what I may be doing wrong, It would be much appreciated.

IMG_20190910_175700.jpg
 
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RipSteakface said:
Spent all day yesterday buying belts from Autozone and replacing belts and pulleys and tensioners repeatedly to try and get rid of this damn squeal that won't go away.

For some reason, my Jeep needs a belt that is 89.5" long which is around about an inch or so longer than what 'stock' calls for. Otherwise, I simply cannot get the belt on. This limits my choice in belts as I can only seem to find cheap-o belts in that length.

I've seen a number of youtube videos where people loosen a pulley on the drivers side of the engine (where my AC compressor is) and then back out a loooong bolt which moves that pulley and takes tension off of the belt, but I don't have that setup on my Jeep. The only available option for me to loosen the belt to remove it or install it is via cranking on the automatic tensioner. It's driving me crazy, I'd love to buy a nice belt, like a Gatorback, and see if that gets rid of the squeal but I cannot install those shorter belts and they don't seem to make a Gatorback in 89.5" any more that I can find.

If anyone can enlighten me as to what I may be doing wrong, It would be much appreciated.

View attachment 114684
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With the belt off have you turned by hand all the various pulleys? They should turn freely with no binding or dragging other than the resistance you would feel in moving fluid, ie, power steering and water pump.
 
A
RipSteakface said:
Spent all day yesterday buying belts from Autozone and replacing belts and pulleys and tensioners repeatedly to try and get rid of this damn squeal that won't go away.

For some reason, my Jeep needs a belt that is 89.5" long which is around about an inch or so longer than what 'stock' calls for. Otherwise, I simply cannot get the belt on. This limits my choice in belts as I can only seem to find cheap-o belts in that length.

I've seen a number of youtube videos where people loosen a pulley on the drivers side of the engine (where my AC compressor is) and then back out a loooong bolt which moves that pulley and takes tension off of the belt, but I don't have that setup on my Jeep. The only available option for me to loosen the belt to remove it or install it is via cranking on the automatic tensioner. It's driving me crazy, I'd love to buy a nice belt, like a Gatorback, and see if that gets rid of the squeal but I cannot install those shorter belts and they don't seem to make a Gatorback in 89.5" any more that I can find.

If anyone can enlighten me as to what I may be doing wrong, It would be much appreciated.

View attachment 114684
Click to expand...
Also, thinking about your oversized belt, it could be that one of the pulleys has been replaced with a non stock size. I went and measured all my pulleys for a reference.
PS,5 3/8
WP, 5 3/8
ALT, 2 3/8
AC, 5 3/8
TP, 2 3/4
IP, 3
These measurements are measured across the face of the pulley. Hope this helps.
 
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RipSteakface said:
Spent all day yesterday buying belts from Autozone and replacing belts and pulleys and tensioners repeatedly to try and get rid of this damn squeal that won't go away.

For some reason, my Jeep needs a belt that is 89.5" long which is around about an inch or so longer than what 'stock' calls for. Otherwise, I simply cannot get the belt on. This limits my choice in belts as I can only seem to find cheap-o belts in that length.

I've seen a number of youtube videos where people loosen a pulley on the drivers side of the engine (where my AC compressor is) and then back out a loooong bolt which moves that pulley and takes tension off of the belt, but I don't have that setup on my Jeep. The only available option for me to loosen the belt to remove it or install it is via cranking on the automatic tensioner. It's driving me crazy, I'd love to buy a nice belt, like a Gatorback, and see if that gets rid of the squeal but I cannot install those shorter belts and they don't seem to make a Gatorback in 89.5" any more that I can find.

If anyone can enlighten me as to what I may be doing wrong, It would be much appreciated.

View attachment 114684
Click to expand...
What year and engine is your TJ? I have a squeak when I first crank mine up cold. I think it’s the pulley below the power steering pump but my mechanic said he replaced the bearing in it. I ordered a Gates K060910 belt from RockAuto and it’s too short. My Jeep is a 98 with the 4.0. Have you found a belt yet?
 
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