Hey Guys, here I am finally making my first post. I picked up this non- locked '94 in February from a family friend for what seems pretty cheap ($4k) for these days on the market, and I've been driving it and deciding what to do. Of course, being a younger guy my first thought was to take my saved cash and throw a lift and big tires on and just go to town off road, but wanting to get the most out of my money I've been driving it to see what quirks it has and what I will need to get taken care of. I rolled over the 250k mile mark on a drive this afternoon and I think it's time to start putting some time and effort into getting this rig ready.
The good:
The frame is pretty much completely rust free as far as I have been able to see. It's been up on a lift a few times and I've spent some time under it looking.
All the electric works. All windows, lights, ect.
No rear window rust bubbles.
Engine had a top end rebuild before I got it.
Diff fluid is clean, no signs of axle leaks, High and low range work great.
No coolant leaks, never gotten hot and I've taken it on multiple 500+ mile drives on the freeway at 85+mph.
The not so good:
Check Engine light for EGR and o2 sensors. My pipe was completely rusted out of the resonator tip, and one o2 sensor has a pretty bad leak from the seal. I plan on getting new pipes made. For now it's not a major concern since I don't need an emissions test.
Rust through the drivers floor pan in one spot. I've looked all around and that's the only place I've been able to find any rust that's actually eaten though anything. I plan on making a new pan for it and replacing it unless you guys have a suggestion for someone who makes them that I haven't been able to find.
Front of engine oil leak. Looks like the distributor cap seal, and something a little further down.
There is what sounds like an intermittent bearing howl sometimes when in neutral. It mostly goes away when shifted into drive, or isn't present other times. Have done some looing into it but no hard answers yet.
Shocks, springs, all bushings and tie rod ends are original and the steering is starting to get pretty loose.
I've had a no start issue once, but after hitting the starter with a pipe it fired right up and hasn't had any issues. I plan on getting a new one eventually and doing the PHH replacement at the same time.
I have a lot of underhood reorganization to do. So far I have pulled out about 80-100 feet of speaker wire found under the carpet and in the engine bay, and I just like things to be organized, you know?
It seems like most of the issues are age related, and I can deal with the oil leak in time, but for now it's just self rust preventative, right?
If anyone's had this same howling noise and has any tips I would be greatly obliged.
So, moving on to the fun stuff. What I'd like to build this out to be is a long haul overland rig. I don't plan on crawling hardly at all, Moab just doesn't have the attraction for me that trying to go from Canada to Mexico completely on dirt roads does. I'm working on a mechanical engineering degree so I plan on designing and fabricating the majority of my equipment, so follow along if you want sporadic updates as I get stuff together between classes and working 2 jobs.
Other than that, here's my rig!
I'd love to connect with other mudders in my area, so if you're in the Boise area and want to get together, send me a message and I'd love to link up.
The good:
The frame is pretty much completely rust free as far as I have been able to see. It's been up on a lift a few times and I've spent some time under it looking.
All the electric works. All windows, lights, ect.
No rear window rust bubbles.
Engine had a top end rebuild before I got it.
Diff fluid is clean, no signs of axle leaks, High and low range work great.
No coolant leaks, never gotten hot and I've taken it on multiple 500+ mile drives on the freeway at 85+mph.
The not so good:
Check Engine light for EGR and o2 sensors. My pipe was completely rusted out of the resonator tip, and one o2 sensor has a pretty bad leak from the seal. I plan on getting new pipes made. For now it's not a major concern since I don't need an emissions test.
Rust through the drivers floor pan in one spot. I've looked all around and that's the only place I've been able to find any rust that's actually eaten though anything. I plan on making a new pan for it and replacing it unless you guys have a suggestion for someone who makes them that I haven't been able to find.
Front of engine oil leak. Looks like the distributor cap seal, and something a little further down.
There is what sounds like an intermittent bearing howl sometimes when in neutral. It mostly goes away when shifted into drive, or isn't present other times. Have done some looing into it but no hard answers yet.
Shocks, springs, all bushings and tie rod ends are original and the steering is starting to get pretty loose.
I've had a no start issue once, but after hitting the starter with a pipe it fired right up and hasn't had any issues. I plan on getting a new one eventually and doing the PHH replacement at the same time.
I have a lot of underhood reorganization to do. So far I have pulled out about 80-100 feet of speaker wire found under the carpet and in the engine bay, and I just like things to be organized, you know?
It seems like most of the issues are age related, and I can deal with the oil leak in time, but for now it's just self rust preventative, right?
If anyone's had this same howling noise and has any tips I would be greatly obliged.
So, moving on to the fun stuff. What I'd like to build this out to be is a long haul overland rig. I don't plan on crawling hardly at all, Moab just doesn't have the attraction for me that trying to go from Canada to Mexico completely on dirt roads does. I'm working on a mechanical engineering degree so I plan on designing and fabricating the majority of my equipment, so follow along if you want sporadic updates as I get stuff together between classes and working 2 jobs.
Other than that, here's my rig!
I'd love to connect with other mudders in my area, so if you're in the Boise area and want to get together, send me a message and I'd love to link up.
