M38a1 build

Sucessfully drove the jeep around the block tonight. It was far from perfect but i was able to drive and sort of stop. The brakes are still a bit spongy. I also believe i have to retime it still, it ran fine till i got almost home and it was bucking on me and it backfired a bit. Also have to do something about my gas pedal it made my foot hurt soooo bad at the angle it is at. Still good to have it actually on pavement. Better will be when it is on dirt.

 

It made it out of the garage today for a few laps around the block. Here is a video of the last "try" before i had an issue and ran over my neighbors mailbox.





The Jeep is running much better after i have been running it more and more and gave it a bottle of sea foam in the tank, running a very heavy mix to clean injectors. I have to get a baffle to add some more back pressure to the EGR so i can clear the code and have the computer to not back off on the timing so i can drive at higher RPMs without the misfire and poor performance. But in first and second the motor is real good for this size vehicle. The 5 speed shifts sooo nice compared to the original 3 speed. I am now finding a few more leaks. The seal on the output of the tranny is leaking like hell, which sucks cause i did just replace it with a new one. I guess i need a speedy sleeve for the samurai intermediate shaft. And i will need a new pinion seal for the rear axle. Sooo close but i still have a few more things to go before it sees the main road and traffic speeds.

 

cool beans Danny

 

It should be quieter when i get the baffle installed to fix EGR. Loudest part of the rig is the damn electric fuel pump, that thing howls. I really hate that one.

 

Yup, it is horrendous. i am gonna try to add some rubber between the fuel pump and the body, i hope it tames it.

 

I got some bling in the mail today



I had to take the intake off to clean the EGR port to fix the check engine light and i found a mud dawber nest in the EGR runner. The little bastage had to go in through the exhaust side and cross the head and then nest in the intake. I got that cleaned and decided that while i had everything apart, i should get the injectors rebuilt and cleaned so i dont have to worry about them again. So i will get it together this week and hope to drive it nicely around the block.

 

Well the rig still runs but not all that great. i am waiting for a new gas tank to get in before i give it another going through since i exhausted every other avenue (sensors, timing etc.) I got to looking at my original tranny tunnel i made and i didnt like how it is looking for me to install a boot for the shifter, i would have needed to make a custom boot and it was not going to look good. So i cut the tunnel down so it is just over the shifter housing and i can use a factory style boot and it will look normal.

Before

It was a two piece design, and i just wasnt happy with it after staring at it for a while.

After.






I still need to fill in two gaps between top piece and the original bottom, drill some holes so it can bolt to it. The top can come off and i have access to the transmission and tcase. I am going to cut and weld in two cup holders on the back empty section

 

Well i got the rear tank installed. It is a 1970 CJ5 unit. Thanks Nick!!!!

I modified the CJ sending unit and installed a wrangler in tank electric pump. Unfortunately the access hole to the tank was too small for me to mount my aftermarket fuel gauge sending unit to it, so i had to cut out another hole to install the sending unit. One thing to know about the tank is the one vent tube from the side actually is a complete tube going from one side to the other. I unfortuantely found that out the hard way when i drilled the hole for the sending unit. Fortuantely it was only a little nick and since it is the fuel return i am not worried about a leak in the tank from it.


here is the fuel pump on the CJ sending unit. Very easy mod, measure how deep your tank, cut the tub, clamp on the new pump. I ran the wire through the other tube on the sending unit.

The tank mounted


Fuel filler.


Whole lotta room under my driver seat. i have to remake the seat brackets now, which is fine, i wasnt happy with old one.


And made a plate for the original fuel filler opening. Fortuantely it just unbolts and i cut the plate and bolted it back. I just need to figure a way to paint it to match the patina of the rest of the jeep. Heck i may just leave it this way.


The fuel lines are now nicely tucked under the body away from trail damage, the fuel pump is soooooooooooooooo quiet now. And to boot i raised my pressure at the fuel rail by 5 psi. I was just at minimum PSI for the fuel injection, so this makes me a bit more enthusiastic that i will have a better running engine.

 

It is a 93/94ish 6 cyl wrangler pump.

 

Well awesome news. I have it finally running as it should. Not sure how it happened but i went through the wiring to figure out the poor running issue. But how i fixed it... who knows. It runs great. drove it many laps around the neighborhood. Need a little more brake bleeding cause it is only a double pumper right now. I still have a few little things to get done and then i can get this puppy on the road then on the trails

 

Went back and redid my seat mounts to compensate for the loss of the fuel tank and quite frankly i was not happy with the old mounts. The seats are tilted a bit so hopefully my leg doesnt hurt like heck from the gas pedal angle.

 

Well I de-skanked the jeep today.

before


after


After one evening ride and hadly any output from the fancy lights, back to the good ole plain jane headlights.
Good thing i got the other ones for next to nothing.

 

Yeah i was thinking bout shooting the radiator black, probably next time i pull grill for something.