Wrangler Sport / Mostly Stock / 1997 Wrangler / Almost a Classic

ballpark

ballpark

TJ Enthusiast
Supporting Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2018
Messages
238
Location
Michigan
Hopefully something useful here. Few words. Purchased in August of 2018. Rumored to have sat in a garage a long time. Exceptional shape, but it still a Michigan Jeep.

Jeep when I purchased it:
90267


Previous Owner:
New Tires $364
Front Wheel Bearings
Front Axle U-Joints
Ball Joints
Plug Wires
Front and Rear Shocks
Alignment
Steering stabilizer
New muffler and 02 sensor.

My List Since August:
Front Passenger Seatbelt $87
Tailgate Hinge Replaced $102
Side Mirrors (no doors) $17
Fixed Skid Plate with new nutserts $10
Changed Transmission Fluid MT-90 $58
Fixed broken side market light $12
New speakers $42
Gear Shift Lever boot bezel $11
Rear Drive Shaft UJoint $22
Boss Stereo $44
Door Bushings $15 (garbage)
Oil Change / Air Filter
Transmission Mount $40
Transfer Case cable shift lever $140
NGk Spark Plugs $18
Washer Fluid Motor and Jets $35
Removed mild jugs replaced with end caps $40
New windshield washer jets
LX-Light Black Cree LED Headlights $100
Reverse Lights LED $17
Tail Lights $4.25
3rd Brake Light LED $8
Drivers side door handle $37
Grab Handles $12
Flushed Heater Core
Fixed crack in windshield $12
Dash Board Tray $10
Rotate Tires
Delrin door bushings $36
Front blinker light bulb harness x2 $22
Brakes - rotors, drums, cylinder, pads, shoes, springs $280
Removed front bumper and replaced bolts $30
2" budget boost with 1" TC drop $70
1" rear bump stop extenders $7
31" Trail Country EXP All Terrain Dick Cepek $680
D Window Classic Wheel - Tactik $200
Corroseal Rust Converter $21
Lots of cans of spray paint
Changed transfercase fluid ATF4+ $15
Painted Fender Flares, bumpers, mirrors, gas cap, license plate holder
Sumner Laboratories 23304 210 Plastic Cleaner/Polish - 14 fl. oz. Aerosol $15
303 (30510) Convertible Vinyl Top Cleaning and Care Kit $22
Black Lug Nuts $22
27 Tooth Speedometer gear $40
4 new jounce bumper cups $52
4 new jounce bumpers $51
Steering wheel leather wrap $12
Old Man Emu FKWTJ02 Track Bar Relocation Bracket $20
Front / Rear Diff gaskets $13
Speed Bleeders for front brakes $12
MasterTop 13100301 Soft Top Window Protection Roll for 76-18 Jeep CJ & Wrangler $70
Master Cylinder Replacement $125
Rancho 5000X shocks $210
Door Straps $11.99
New Rear Seat Belts $159
New Front Speaker $31
Corroseal (rust paint) $21.95
Lux 05-065 Clutch Kit $88.88
Lux LFW193 Flywheel $50.96
ARP 1502201 High Performance Clutch Cover bolts $15.87
16914.07 Clutch Fork $11.62
Clutch Release Pivot $5.30
National 1209 Oil Seal (rear output transmission) $9.94
Dorman 419-610 Idler Pulley $8.17
Dorman 419-602 Idler PUlley $11.91
Gates K060790 Multi V Groove Belt $14.75
Dorman 902-306 Thermostat Housing $7.14
Stant 45359 195 deg thermostat $5.56
Dorman 56398 Water Pump Inlet $10.24
Gates 42005 Water Pump $18.55
Tire Cover $22.28
New distributor: $80
Front, Driver side, Axle U-Joint $17
T-Case Chain $78
Input T-case Shaft Bearing
TCase Front Seals
Interior LED Lights $54
Front, Passenger side, Axle U-Joint $17
Painted Fender Flares Again $6
Headlight Switch $28
Front, Passenger side, Axle U-Joint $17
Side Marker Drivers Side Light $4
Smittybilt XRC 9500 winch and winch plate $300
New battery $100
Sway bar links (2) $50
Re-manufactured Steering Gearbox $130
Flushed / replaced steering fluid. $10
Battery cables $60
New Starter $54
 
Last edited:
Nice looking Jeep, especially for Michigan. Looks like you've got most of the maintenance out of the way, and a little lift too!

Where about in Michigan are you?
 
New clutch and transmission output shaft seal. Crazy fun project and the first for me. Three day project. 4 hours Friday, 3 Sat, and 2 Sunday.

I used the Luk standard clutch, new flywheel, new fork, spring clip, pivot ball and new bolts for the flywheel.

Let me know if you have any questions about the job.

My clutch pedal has been hard to push since I owned it, but now it started to shutter when I press it.

Now it’s amazing! So light! Shifting even seems better. It’s a new experience.
At 23 years on on the original clutch and 112k miles the clutch had plenty of life left. Throw out worked but was in rough and gritty shape. Pilot looked great.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ephry73 and Flivver250
ballpark said:
New clutch and transmission output shaft seal. Crazy fun project and the first for me. Three day project. 4 hours Friday, 3 Sat, and 2 Sunday.

I used the Luk standard clutch, new flywheel, new fork, spring clip, pivot ball and new bolts for the flywheel.

Let me know if you have any questions about the job.

My clutch pedal has been hard to push since I owned it, but now it started to shutter when I press it.

Now it’s amazing! So light! Shifting even seems better. It’s a new experience.
At 23 years on on the original clutch and 112k miles the clutch had plenty of life left. Throw out worked but was in rough and gritty shape. Pilot looked great.
Click to expand...

The Jeep looks great! The clutch is on my short list of things to tackle before winter. Did you have issues dropping the trans and reinstalling? Also, did you remove the transfer case and trans as a unit or separate? I'm not sure if I want to pick up an transmission jack or not. Seems like a tool i'll use pretty rarely.

I saw you replaced the door hinge bushings and you have "garbage" next to them. What was wrong with them and what was the brand? I need to order a set but haven't gotten around to it yet.

I'm in the Kalamazoo area too so I'm sure we'll probably wave to each other at some point lol.
 
Don Ashcraft said:
The Jeep looks great! The clutch is on my short list of things to tackle before winter. Did you have issues dropping the trans and reinstalling? Also, did you remove the transfer case and trans as a unit or separate? I'm not sure if I want to pick up an transmission jack or not. Seems like a tool i'll use pretty rarely.

I saw you replaced the door hinge bushings and you have "garbage" next to them. What was wrong with them and what was the brand? I need to order a set but haven't gotten around to it yet.

I'm in the Kalamazoo area too so I'm sure we'll probably wave to each other at some point lol.
Click to expand...

Dropping the transmission was hard. I had to shake the crap out of it. One side came apart and then i stuck a screwdriver in the crack, and shook it more to get it to separate. It took several attempts and I walked away a few times. I cleaned up the guide pin after the fact as it had some corrosion on it, but I think I could have cleaned it more. It was easier to get it back on. After getting things aligned, I don't think the spline was in line, so I turned the fly wheel to help align the spline and getting it back on was much easier.

I was nervous installing the pilot bearing. A hammer does not seem like the right tool on a needle bearing.

I did take the transfer case off first. This allowed me to install the seal on the transmission to help with the leak. It also speed up the re-install as I could easily reach the shifter, E14 bolts, sensor connections ect...

My jeep is in decent shape and bolts are not too hard to remove. My battery impact worked on the flywheel bolts, which is good, cause its hard to use leverage on those bolts as the cam shaft keep rotating. To torque them I used a screwdriver to hold the flywheel in place. The transmission mount bolts (plate to transmission) was the hardest to remove. Tons of loctite on them and it took some leverage.

I purchased the crappy lift from harbor freight. It was really nice. If you want, you can borrow it.

Purchase the expensive delrin bushings from quadratec. They have held up very well. But, you have to get the interference fit just right. I used a wire pipe brush and put it in my cordless drill and used it to remove the corrosion. Don't force them in. Before I went to ebay and some people 3D printed them which is garbage material. They broke in weeks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ephry73 and Don Ashcraft
Thanks for all the great info!

I have a feeling my trans is going to be a bear to remove. I had to cut a few bolts so far on some other repairs I made so I'm thinking this could be a fight if nothing else.
I really appreciate and may take you up in the offer to borrow the jack/lift when I get ready to tackle it. There has been a lot of parts replaced on my jeep the last couple months so I don't know if I'll be getting to it until spring. Gotta let that jeep budget build back up! lol. Pretty sure the throw out bearing is going bad but it may just be the clip for the fork...either way its made the noise it makes the last year and a half so i may gamble on it lasting a few more months.

I had seen a few cheaper bushing sets on amazon and was curious. Its good to get real world feedback before I go down that route. Thanks again!
 
What are those chairlifts for? Is there skiing there in the winter?
 
Top Bottom
Back