Project "Dirty Harry" (lots of pics)

The name is dedicated to my late father-in-law . He was grumpy , stubborn , missing some parts , and even parted himself out (research) . When he finally quit , you couldn't have been more proud , or surprised he lasted so long . As you can tell , his charactor was quite similar to a Jeep :bowdown: , now , on to the show

Here's my $300 investment . 1988 MJ Pioneer , 2.5 , 5 speed SWB

The body was in really nice shape . Bottom door corners where bad though . The PO had cobbled a fix with fiberglass , I have other plans :) . Here's a few pics after I trailered it to the car wash

First order of buisness was to get it mobile . The 2.5 had been cooked from the story I got , so , I never even bothered to attempt a fix . I found a 1990 YJ with 95K and got the engine , plus a head gasket kit for $450 . I got the gasket set because I thought there was a problem . After several tests , it was discovered the YJ has a standard rotaion water pump , the MJ's is reversed .

I got a new rad , water pump , t-stat , and lower rad hose , should stay cool now . The PO also installed a new clutch fan and blade :) .

When I pulled the engine , it was no surprise to see the old clutch had seen better days . Although this powertrain may be temporary , I don't need the clutch to fail . Si I had the flywheel machined and bought a new clutch kit

Engine is in , and runs great . I also ended up installing a new muffler and 3' of pipe too . Clutch works great also , it was my first clutch job , easy stuff .

Took it for a quick ride around my block , all works good , the powertrain I am now happy with . The suspension and steering , well , it need a track bar and new shocks . I know that just from the ride , lol .

The interior isn't pretty at all . 22 yrs has not been overly friendly to it . The seat did remain intact , just dirty . The carpet smelled like a 22yr old carpet would , phew .Here ya go

Carpet had to go . Besides , every MJ owner wants to really know what kinda shape his MJ is in . After reading alot of build threads before starting , I was quite pleasantly surprised to find this

I gave it a quick cleaning , scuffed what little rust was there , sanded and just hit it with some blue paint to cover the metal . I plan to undercoat the floor before installing some new carpet , but , the buckets found their home .

Guess it's time to show you a donor for this project . Here's my 1998 XJ with a bad piston skirt knock . It's got 260K

Here it is again , missing a few parts :D

So is the MJ now too

There are very few changes to be made to fit the new parts . These brackets have to be swapped to mount the fenders/headerpanel

This vacumn cannister has to be swapped out to the new bumper , which it bolts onto once the XJ's can is removered .

Here's a pic of the inner fender . I ended up painting the upper area , and undercoating the wheel well area , sorry , never got a pic of the after shot

The doors are where I began , they are a royal PITA . Lots of tweeking to get them right on the alignment , then , one has to deal with the door post anchor . Mine were welded for the easy solution .

The fenders go pretty smoothly . I left the original hood in place to get the gaps correct . This worked really good , the header panel slipped right into place and fit perfect . All lines are good . When I changed the hood , it was a simple one time bolt on , no adjustment required process .

Another shot of the interior with the new door panels . I also added the XJ's console which isn't in these pics . I just had to have cup holders :yes:

Yeah , they are 4 dr switches but I'll somehow manage to live with them , lol .

Last pic of the weeks progress , all bolted back together :thumbsup:

Tomorrow I'm hoping to wire up the header panel . No , the wiring is not plug and play . I wish ! I'll be cutting the plug in off the MJ's header panel , and then from the XJ's harness to make an adapter , after the multi-meter gets a work-out , lol .

I'm gonna get a friend to tackle the power windows , locks and power mirrors . If I have to do it , the doors won't get tied together :fool:

nice work! :clapping:

I wish i had a sweet late model donor like that!

Yeah , they are 4 dr switches but I'll somehow manage to live with them , lol .

:yes: Welcome to the club, it still beats the old doors!

Thanks Mike

Here's a few pics of the console . It's all fitted in now . Still need a touch up to the heating system and something to cover the gap . All in all , easy swap , very functional , and it's a clean look . Nice upgrade for anyone . :thumbsup:

Any plans for A lift kit? Or 4x4 swap?

Lift ? Yeah , it's gonna be tough not to . 4x4 ? Absolutely .

Usable to the build parts in my garage :

IRO lower adjustable arms

RE upper s/flex

2-4.5" OME springs

RE HD track bar

Full V8 ZJ steering , including new steering gear (depending on final lift height , I may go OTK with the steering and OTA with the track bar . A WJ conversion like I have on my 95OrvisZJ would be great)

HP30-3:55

8.25-3:55

4 procomp hydro shocks

242 t-case

driveshafts from the 91 eliminator

32x11.5 BFG AT's on Eagle wheels

All I really need are some disco's , buy the $130 trans I found , move the 8.25 perches .75" each on the 8.25 , and install some rear discs , which I have also . Yeah , I had a pile of parts before even buying this truck .

I want to keep it very streetable , I have 1 jeep with a big lift already , 7.5" F&R IRO LA's , Clayton spring and HD track bar , Bilstien long travel shocks , Trac lock'd D44A(still have to truss) LP D30 going in next week , lsd with electric locker . It went places before I thought I would never get , with the front lock'd ,this thing is almost unstopable , only the trans remains original

"everything" else was rebuilt or replaced ie: the 5.2 has only 45k from a 2001 Ram rollover

This is what I want , just a little higher on the 32's mentioned . Same paint scheme . I just love this truck :drool: , mine's gonna be better , I have the XJ doors ;) I guess I'll never know the inconvienance of having a useless non functional side window :banana:

wire up the rear of the 4 door switches to use the front/back winches (if you get some) :D

I got the lights all wired up and working . Even the side marker lights blink alternately :D

I was up late last nite so I also took on painting the grille and headlight bezels white . I think it's such a clean look , I love it . I'm gonna paint the steel on the bumper white next , I think ,lol .

Every now and then a guy needs an inspiration shot , so , I pulled out the 32's and stuck em on at stock height . Looks real cool but would require alot of trimming for sure .

I adjusted the height to see where the wheels would fit with the least amount of trimming , definately looking at 4-5" , 3" would be the lower max I would do . It would need lots to clear , well , too much for what I want . So , I guess the next plan of attack is to get the front end outta the XJ , and into the MJ with all the lift parts .

I'm so close to pulling the powertrain I just refurbished out . I really antidisestablishmentarianism that cursed dash . I have my buddy checking out the wiring in the FSM to see if I could use the dash w/o the insturment cluster . Obviuosly , I'd do a custom one and have mechanical guages . There's a few factors to check out such as making a check engine light but because the heater controls only need a vacumn source and a 12v source to work , that part should work fine . The rest should also be able to be wired in with a little effort . If this does pan out or looks like it's gonna be more trouble that it's worth , I'm gonna pull the power train from the XJ . Swap it in with the rebuilt 4.0 in the 91MJ and go from there Doing this means an auto , which wifey likes , cause the XJ has the AW4 .

Rant off , here was the painted grille , stock on 32's

The white looks great! Part of me really wants to paint mine white.

Front lift has been installed . I only got 3", maybe 3.5 outta the TJ 4.5 springs , :???: . Well , maybe the ZJ V8 w/winch and bumper they supported screwed 'em , LOL , but , oddly , they didn't loose any height on the ZJ .

SOA will mean adding a 2" BB which I really wanted to avoid . I have been in touch with Rusty's and may order the 4" leaf packs , then just a 1.5 spacer (I think). I really like the stance of the truck as it sits in the pics , 3.5 frt 3" rr . 1 more inch shouldn't make much more difference .

Here's a few pics of the suspension , no , nothing has been tightened up yet and I still haven't decided which track bar I'm using . I might just toss on the cheap @$$ one from RRO for now . The RE bar I want still sits on my ZJ , I need to swap out the Claytons I have for it , before I can get it on the MJ . The RRO bar has a good bushing and new Moog TRE , should be fine for 2WD . Yes , it's adjustable too .

Remember , I will eventually go 4x4 . Just a Baja 2wd for this summer , unless I really hate the 4-banger ;)

looks good man like the interior

So it's all together again , for now , lol . Today I ordered some 4"leafs , I just hear nothing that positive about aal's or shackles . I figure I'd need to do the bushings anyways so I'm just gonna do a whole new set . SOA was almost done but it's higher than I desire . Here it sits awaiting rear springs

I got about 2 weeks before getting my springs so , I'm not sure what to take on next . I do need new brakes , they really suck on the MJ , so , I will probably take the XJ back in and swap the front axles . The XJ has new brakes and I need the diff eventually anyways . Maybe swap the brake booster too .

I'm contimplating swapping the dash also and building an insturment cluster with custom guages . I had my electrical wiz friend look into it and he says that it wouldn't be much of an issue at all . Hmmm , this would be cool . I'm liking this idea . He's gone through all the wiring diagrams for the 98 and believe me , this guy knows his stuff . So , I may start taking the dash apart . We are going to look at things this coming weekend .

I could do a full swap , but , with the price of gas going up , and not needing a powerhouse , I plan on keeping the 2.5 for a while . I got 3 vehicles with about 300hp or more , this is a miser build :) . It's just for the wife to pull a few garden odds and ends around in the summer time and for me to use on the weekends popping to town and back .

I do love this little truck though . Maybe it's because it's different . I don't see many around anymore . I'm glad I did the 98 body conversion , and the white paint will look great too when completed .

Been enjoying the other build threads also , some really nice MJ's on the board .

Been a not so busy week on the MJ . Needed to stand back and see what I was building . Make some more plans and start again .

My rear springs from Rustys came early . Not too bad an install . Only had trouble with onle stubborn bolt . The battle ended with the grinder . Murphy's law dictated it also had to be the one closest to the gas tank . SOB . I used a small sheild even though my spray was away from things as best as could , still , I wondered if things were gonna blow . Well , I made it w/o incident thankfully . :D

BTW , the rusty's springs which are suppose to be only 4" , got me a little more . 6.25 to be exact . One has to remember this is a 2wd and is 1" lower than a 4x4 , so , once things settle , I would still say 4.5" (compared to 4x4) outta the springs . I'm gonna add some 1.25 pucks I have to the front , that should give a slight rake . My ZJ shocks didn't pan out quite long enough . My eye to eye parked is a whopping 26" . I'm picking up shocks tomorrow morning that go from 18-32" . Best I can find local and cheap , pro-comps . Stiff shock , soft spring , might be ok , lol .

Here's a few of the latest pics

And , a few more

your mj has an awesome stance . i like it

Thanks for the comments so far .

White is definately gonna be a nice color on this MJ . I was gonna go with 'intense red' but the interior would be a very poor match , lol .

I like the stance too , but , don't let the pics fool ya , it's raked too much to the front . I have 2" and 1.25" pucks , so , I think the 1.25's are going in the front .

Let to start running on the road are the following

-pick up and install new rear shocks

-new front brake lines

-drop e-brake bracket

-new rear line (stock , moved bracket , worked great , rubber lines are cracked up)

-install ZJ V8 steering

-get new windshield

5 outta 6 I should get accomplished today . I'm sure the list will grow once it's on the road and I get a feel for it , but , it should be OK to go . Guess I better get a pink card for it today so I can get it registered :brows: .

Lastly , it's time to get my big compressor hooked up . I need to pull the box and get all the body work done so I can get it painted . Been a long long time since I have sprayed anything . White is a great color for a beginner , it shows flaws the least . I'm also gonna bed-line the box , and the box rails . Hopefully in a month or so , I'll have completed stage 1 of this build , a 5" lifted 2wd baja style MJ . JIC your wondering , stage 2 will be the full 98 conversion , 4.0 transplant with 4WD . At this point , I may stroke the 4.0 and go long arms as well .

Pretty sure this will be my last jeep build . It's my third , I still have all of them , so , I have collected enough , lol . Next project will be a another Chevelle I think , or a 78-81 Trans am/Z28 , always loved those cars , and I have had a few . That won't be for at least another yr unless a good deal falls in my lap . :D

I really like how this is turning out. The white looks great on it!

Keep up the great work and write-ups. Add all the pictures you want. :idea:

After your articles, I'll start on my build. :thumbsup: :clapping:

:fs1: I always do things twice it seems

Ok , got it all done except the w/sheild . Had it on the road and it's not too bad considering my home done alignment

Issues to report : That cursed valve on the heater core line leaks , and , pretty good too . The power steering has a leak and the box has play , no biggie , I have a ZJ box , fully adjusted , and ready to go , it's even painted all purdy

The really good news is the leak in the head gasket on the pass side . I pressure washed everything down , went 5 miles and it's all down the side of the block :doh:

On the bright side , I got a head gasket set with the engine when I bought it .

Given my plan was to swap in the 4.0 and 98 harness and dash , seems like there's no better time than now . I'm pulling the XJ in the garage this weekend and removing the engine , trans , and case . The engine is junk , but the trans and case will be cleaned and painted , then laid aside . I may rebuild the 231 . I'll also be cleaning , painting , and refurbing the 98 intake and header in preparation .

The XJ then goes back out before removing the wires . I have to bring the 91 MJ in to scoop the rebuilt 4.0 under the hood . Get it on the stand , and do a paint job , and some gaskets , and again , have it ready for the swap .

After all that , pull the 2.5 from Dirty Harry , scrap the wiring and dash , clean , cut the firewall inserts and install for the conversion(going AC and ABS) route the wires , install the dash , drop in the new powertrain , install the HP 30 and convert the 8.25 to SUA , hope the 91's driveshafts work and figure out the fuel pump differences .

Anyone know if the 91 tank and pump works ? I got me one of those :)

Well that's the plan now , guess the wife won't get her truck this summer , maybe fall ?

Yeah , I'll get pics of all the steps along the way :)