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2002 Bella Blue, WJ Build

52552 Views 269 Replies 36 Participants Last post by  snobrdrkid07, 
GmanWJ
2
2002 Bella Blue, WJ Build

It seems like build threads are a thing here, so here's mine. Meet Bella.


>>Factory Build Info

Table of Contents:

BUILD
Suspension​
  1. 2.5" Lift: OME HD Springs & Bilstein 5100 Shocks
  2. Addco 684 Rear Sway Bar
  3. Factory 2004 WJ 30mm Solid Front Sway Bar (no pics)
  4. Core 4x4 Adjustable CAs (stock length)
  5. Ironman 4x4 UCA
  6. Kevin's Offroad Track Bar Bushings
  7. Rubicon Express Front Swaybar Disconnects
Electrical​
  1. Stereo Upgrade 2006: Fosgate Power & Infinity Perfect
  2. Stereo Upgrade 2020: DDIN Kenwood and Backup Camera
  3. Dual Battery and Trailer Charging Port
  4. 2awg Battery and Ground Cable Upgrade
  5. Auxiliary Lighting
  6. Mechman Alternator and 0awg Cable Upgrade
Other & Extras​
  1. EBC Brakes (good!) & Synergy Spacers (removed)
  2. Whip Flags: Firestik mounts, Tusk holders
  3. 3M Undercoating
  4. Wolf Vinyl Decal (fight me!)


REPAIR
Suspension​
  1. Rear Upper Control Arm
  2. Rear Lower Control Arm (video)
  3. Front Control Arm Replacement
  4. Ball Joint Replacement
  5. Detroit Axle Control Arm Review

Engine​
  1. Fuel Injector Connectors
  2. Left Valve Cover Gasket
  3. Right Valve Cover Gasket
  4. Water Pump Replacement
  5. Valve Stem Seals & Lifters
  6. Spark Plug Replacement (video)

Other Stuff​
  1. Driver Door Wire Repair
  2. Rear Axle Bearing Replacement
  3. Headliner Repair? -- FAIL
  4. Hood Emblem Replacement


I have had her since July 2002, new to me and the only new vehicle I have ever owned.

Aside from the typical routine maintenance (fluids, filters, tires, shocks, brakes, ...), some of the things I have had to fix over the years. Note: at first I had all of my service done at the dealer or quick lube shops, but after a few bad things happened I started doing it all myself. Well mostly myself. Some jobs I still take to a shop if I feel like it's over my head or I just want somebody else to do it instead.
  • Rear axle "failure" and rebuild at 30k. Dealer stated the diff was empty. Odd, since they did all the service for me.
  • Rear axle "failure" and rebuild at 65k. AGAIN!!
  • Right rear TPM sensor replacement. Jiffy Lube smashed the valve stem for me.
  • Passenger side wiper arm replacement. Jiffy Lube strikes again.
  • Power steering hose, I think this was a factory recall?
  • Evap cannister hose leak. Was throwing a trouble code.
  • O2 sensor replacement. Threw a code so I was going to replace them all until I saw how expensive they are, so just did the one.
  • Climate control panel replacement. The A/C would not blow cold air and really had me stumped. Replaced the panel out of desperation and it worked.
  • EVIC overhead module replacement. Display just died. Got one without TPMS capability because I was running BFG E range tires that would constantly trigger high pressure alarms on the highway.
  • Parking brake cable replacement, TWICE. What is this about?
  • Window regulators on front driver & passenger doors
  • Hood, liftgate, & liftglass struts several times
  • Driver door panel replacement due to cracks in the arm rest. Done this twice too and need to do it again.
  • Passenger side power mirror, I suspect a parking lot incident.
  • Thermostat leak, replaced
  • Water pump leak, replaced
  • Radiator leak, replaced (& hoses)
  • Starter motor replacement, solenoid was dying and threatened to strand me.
  • Engine rear main seal replacement
  • Rear axle seals, bearings, pinion seal

Current list of things that need to be fixed:
  • Peeling headliner (failed 09/05/2020)
  • Driver door panel (arm rest)
  • Driver heated seat
  • Heated seat switches, some lights don't work (but the switch does!)
  • Clunks and creaks in the rear end (completed 11/01/2019)
  • Oil seep from valve covers (completed 03/26/2018)
Obviously I am in no hurry to fix these things ...

Here we are exploring the Lost Coast some years ago. We found a remote deserted beach with a fire ring and stopped for lunch.


Follow along with my adventures with Bella on my dedicated thread:
Gman's Adventures with Bella Blue
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GmanWJ
I have not had any additional DW since I put in the KOR track bar bushings and reverted to the stock (Detroit Axle) UCAs. I had a very minor shimmy that I did not like, I know it is the DW beast peeking at me, but it quickly disappeared. I could live with it like this if I had to. Rather not though.

Bigrigr said:
... the power assist magnifies the forces crashing into each other, and it makes the steering go all crazy, which creates the violent shaking. ...
Click to expand...
Thanks for the explanation. Is it weird that my steering wheel seemed mostly isolated from the whole incident? I mean, it wiggled a little, but most of the freakyness happened down below. I just applied brakes and pulled over to the side of the road until it stopped. I really had no trouble steering or controlling it ... but I for sure do not want it to happen again. And it has not.

Bigrigr said:
Do you have a drop pitman arm installed? One of the biggest ways to start this craziness, is to have your track bar and your draglink out of sync with each other. get a magnetic angle finder, and measure your drag link and your track bar.
Click to expand...
Nope, no drop pitman arm installed. What you describe here is the same issue that causes bump steer, right? I have been kicking this concept around in my head for some time, but have not really cared enough to go further. I am not convinced that measuring the angle on the straight section of the arms is appropriate. By design, the track bar pitch angle is much steeper than the drag link so it can clear the differential. What seems more important is the invisible line between the mounting points: (A) the straight line between the pitman arm and the steering knuckle; (B) the straight line between the track bar mounts.

You can sort of see the difference in pitch in this pic, granted the suspension is drooped at this point:


Frankly, I do not see the point of a drop pitman arm, seems like it would make the situation worse. Dropping the track bar mount seems more likely to fix the bump steer problem. See discussion: https://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f310/dropped-pitman-arm-1377801/
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Bigrigr
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Yes, bumpsteer is DW in its infancy...


Here is my attempt at high technology, forgive my ignorance...


The pic on the top is my latest project with what I believe is a IRO 4" lift...
The bottom pic is of MY WJ with the RC 4" lift kit.....


You are correct in the idea of keeping the mounting points on each end of the bars at the same angle. Drop pitman arms help us get the draglink down to equal the track bar, but they also help us to keep the drag link as level to the ground as possible. many times we drop the draglink, and then try to get the track bar down to match. the stock Jeep geometry is close to level on the drag link, and the track bar. thus the higher mounting arm ontop of the RH knuckle. I DO get some bumpsteer out of the IRO Jeep, but i do NOT get any out of MY personal Jeep with the RC kit.

I believe that RC was trying to get the track bar and draglink back to as level as possible, so It came with a track bar drop, as well as the drop pitman arm. My IRO kit only has the adjustable track bar. The adjust-ability of the track bar is great for centering the axle under the Jeep side to side, but it doenst make much difference in angles. Both in relation to the drag link, and to the ground. Both of these Jeeps are sitting on the tires in my driveway by the way, so this road ready geometry.



Long story short, parallelism between the track bar and drag link mounts is crucial, but its not the only issue with these two, it seems to help with keeping them both as level as possible to the ground as well. This issue only gets worse the higher the lift you go to, so this is why most people who use these Jeeps for daily driving, keep the lifts to 4" or under to keep the hwy manners...You could be in need of the drop pitman arm to keep away bumpsteer, but then you need a way to lower the trackbar to match. Clear as mud? :nerd:
By the way, I too installed the KOR hardened bushings in the upper end of the trackbar to try to stiffen up the trackbar to help this bumpsteer issue, which explains the gobs of lube on the bushings..I tried their super grease as well, but later added some that was a little more slippery. I am currently chasing a creak under this Jeep I cant find .I was hoping the track bar lube would fix it. It didnt...

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GmanWJ
THAT MAKES SO MUCH MORE SENSE.

Now I get why someone would want a drop pitman arm ... but NOT without a drop trackbar bracket too.
:bowdown:
:cheers2:
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T
GmanWJ said:
I have not had any additional DW since I put in the KOR track bar bushings and reverted to the stock (Detroit Axle) UCAs. I had a very minor shimmy that I did not like, I know it is the DW beast peeking at me, but it quickly disappeared. I could live with it like this if I had to. Rather not though.

Thanks for the explanation. Is it weird that my steering wheel seemed mostly isolated from the whole incident? I mean, it wiggled a little, but most of the freakyness happened down below. I just applied brakes and pulled over to the side of the road until it stopped. I really had no trouble steering or controlling it ... but I for sure do not want it to happen again. And it has not.
snip....
Click to expand...
As a caveat, I have not really studied the steering mechanism on the WJ, but, I had designed high speed electro-mechancial servo systems so I know a bit about physical system natural (resonant) frequencies, sympathetic vibrations, etc.and the control theory that goes into making a system perform correctly. My point is some things in a mechanical system need to be tight to properly transfer motion and forces. OTHO, disturbances into the system (of correct frequencies and amplitudes) can induce sympathetic vibrations, of which DW is, I believe, and example. The job of the steering damper in conjunction with shock absorbing bushings act together to damp out the unwanted vibrations. So, bottom line, putting in stiffer bushings at various places may actually be part of the problem. The stiffer bushings transmit the energy to other parts of the system that could cause the mechanical system to oscillate at its natural frequency.

The people that designed this cockeyed system should and probably did, run all sorts of simulations and real world tests to identify where to put and how much damping should be installed. The other thing they should have done would be to adjust the lengths of the components in the steering linkages to put the natural frequency 'outside' the normal driving situations. If they can't do that, then they decorate the system with dampers and isolators at various points in the system.

So my end point is that it is not surprising that installing stiffer bushings causes a problem and to compensate for the effects of stiffer bushings, one may have to change/adjust other parts, eg steering damper. Unfortunately, not knowing the original damping specs of the components leads one to hit and miss with various parts swapping and hoping that one hits the right configuration.
Rather than tinkering, it may be better to leave it alone...if it aint broke, don't fix it.
IMHO, the ppl that designed this system really screwed it....
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GmanWJ
The things you find when you read the FAQ. :thumbsup:
What PSI should I set my tires to?
ezflip said:
Here is the calculation:

Weight of vehicle + weight of normal cargo, driver, and passengers.
Multiply by 115% (margin of safety)
Divide by 4.
Divide this number by the max load rating on the sidewall of the tire.
Multiply the result by the max psi on the sidewall of the tire.

When you run this calculation for the WJ on the original equipment tires, it puts you right at 33psi.
Click to expand...
For Bella, loaded for adventure with the trailer on the hitch:
GVW = 5500 lb
ML = 2469 lb, MP = 51 psi (Falken Wildpeak 265/70R16)

TP = MP*(1.15*GVW)/(4*ML)
TP = 33 psi

But on a typical day getting groceries, GVW = 4840 LB
TP = 29 psi

Putting this here for safekeeping. Going to air down my tires too.
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WJ60
three_jeeps said:
As a caveat, I have not really studied the steering mechanism on the WJ, but, I had designed high speed electro-mechancial servo systems so I know a bit about physical system natural (resonant) frequencies, sympathetic vibrations, etc.and the control theory that goes into making a system perform correctly. My point is some things in a mechanical system need to be tight to properly transfer motion and forces. OTHO, disturbances into the system (of correct frequencies and amplitudes) can induce sympathetic vibrations, of which DW is, I believe, and example. The job of the steering damper in conjunction with shock absorbing bushings act together to damp out the unwanted vibrations. So, bottom line, putting in stiffer bushings at various places may actually be part of the problem. The stiffer bushings transmit the energy to other parts of the system that could cause the mechanical system to oscillate at its natural frequency.
Click to expand...
Wow !!! That went over my head so fast I now have two parts in my hair......
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Bigrigr
WJ60 said:
Wow !!! That went over my head so fast I now have two parts in my hair......
Click to expand...
I think they call it an intelligence runway...lucky guy, I havent had a part in my hair for years....:laugh2:
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GmanWJ
three_jeeps said:
As a caveat, I have not really studied the steering mechanism on the WJ, but, I had designed high speed electro-mechancial servo systems so I know a bit about physical system natural (resonant) frequencies, sympathetic vibrations, etc.and the control theory that goes into making a system perform correctly. My point is some things in a mechanical system need to be tight to properly transfer motion and forces. OTHO, disturbances into the system (of correct frequencies and amplitudes) can induce sympathetic vibrations, of which DW is, I believe, and example. The job of the steering damper in conjunction with shock absorbing bushings act together to damp out the unwanted vibrations. So, bottom line, putting in stiffer bushings at various places may actually be part of the problem. The stiffer bushings transmit the energy to other parts of the system that could cause the mechanical system to oscillate at its natural frequency.

Rather than tinkering, it may be better to leave it alone...if it aint broke, don't fix it.
Click to expand...
I acquiesce to your superior experience and understanding of the physics involved here. :tea:

As it happens, I am not completely ignorant of vibration and control system theory. I studied it some decades ago but sadly have little practical experience. So I do understand that all of these suspension pieces go into tuning out the unwanted resonant frequencies that cause the DW. It is part of why I have been so hesitant to mess with the system at all since I started reading about lifts and the DW that plagues many jeepers, and why I still have all of the original suspension components in my garage in case I need to revert to stock.

I think it was cDee63 who mentioned that suspension engineers are spooky wizards of the automotive design world. They have to practice black magic few understand to make these things behave.

OTOH, I have wanted to lift this Jeep ever since I bought it, so after 17 years on stock suspension I figures what the heck, give it a whirl and see what happens. YOLO right? :duhrock:

Bella did not like the Core T2 UCAs. I am going to place a call to Core and see if they can ship me a pair of adjustment arms with rubber bushings, maybe they will work better.
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UncleWoody
GmanWJ, I was just wondering, is your WJ lifted and if so how much? The reason for the query is that I noticed on the picture that it looks like you are using stock front sway bar links. If so, isn't that giving you a wrong angle on the sway bar arms? That angle should be approximately 30 degrees. Cause of some of your wondering issues??? Just thinking out loud.
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GmanWJ
UncleWoody said:
GmanWJ, I was just wondering, is your WJ lifted and if so how much? The reason for the query is that I noticed on the picture that it looks like you are using stock front sway bar links. If so, isn't that giving you a wrong angle on the sway bar arms? That angle should be approximately 30 degrees. Cause of some of your wondering issues??? Just thinking out loud.
Click to expand...
I have a 2.5" OME HD lift I ordered from Kolak. Sway bar links are stock. You can get an idea of the arm angle under load from this post, although it is maybe not a complete picture of what it looks like when on the ground: https://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f31...build-thread-4239282/index9.html#post41102213

Most of my handling issues have been eliminated. Found a bad bushing on the front UCA axle mount which fixed up the front end to eliminate most of the problems. Then replaced rear UCA with a flex joint model (no ball joint) to tighten up the rear. It is feeling good today with acceptable wiggles in high cross winds.

Currently have stock front UCAs installed with no DW.
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Bigrigr
I do have the Core tier 1 adjustable uppers, and i have not had a problem with them. They have the rubber bushings at the frame end that take some of the harshness out of the road...
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GmanWJ
GmanWJ said:
The things you find when you read the FAQ. :thumbsup:
What PSI should I set my tires to?

For Bella, loaded for adventure with the trailer on the hitch:
Max GVWR = 5500 lb
ML = 2469 lb, MP = 51 psi (Falken Wildpeak 265/70R16)

TP = MP*(1.15*GVW)/(4*ML)
TP = 33 psi

But on a typical day getting groceries, GVW = 4840 LB
TP = 29 psi

Putting this here for safekeeping. Going to air down my tires too.
Click to expand...
Been pondering this question in my head. Found this enlightening article from Four-Wheeler magazine. Really worth a read: https://www.fourwheeler.com/how-to/154-1105-proper-tire-pressure-for-the-trail-under-pressure/

In a nutshell, when offroad (C-range tires):
  • with beadlockers, 2-10 psi depending on vehicle weight
  • with standard rims, 8-12 psi depending on vehicle weight

Notable bits:
Low-Pressure Hazel
(beadlockers) In my 3,000lb flattie, I'll drop the front and rear pressure to 2-4 psi for hardcore rockcrawling, Moab slickrock, and alluvial hillclimbs like for the TDS Desert Safari event. If I'm hitting the dunes like in Glamis, I'll put the tires at 1-2 psi. That's right-just enough pressure to kinda keep the inner beads on the rims. I consider 7-8 psi high pressure for the 35x13.50R15 tires on that vehicle.

(standard) For a normal C load-range tire like the 31x11.50-15s on my Wrangler, I'll run about 9-10 psi in the front and maybe 8psi out back.​

Keeping-It-Low Cappa
Off-road I consider 10-12 psi a good starting point for a radial tire and I'll often go lower than that if the terrain is really soft and there are few tire hazards. On a bias-ply tire you really don't get a good traction bulge until you hit the single digits, so I'll start at around 5-10 psi and go down from there if need be.​

Trasborg's Flattening
(lightly loaded) I'm running beadlocks on my Cherokee and I'll normally go down to about the same 7 or 8 psi- and thanks to the weight, that provides a huge sidewall bulge.

(heavily loaded) My normal airing-down theory here is I want to go low enough to gain traction but not so low that I can't drive on a road if I need to. You see, I don't have a CO2 or engine-driven air source, so I like to keep enough air in the tires so I can make it to the nearest gas station without damaging or delaminating the tires. This normally translates to about 9 or 10 psi in the light Wrangler and about 12 psi in the Cherokee.​
Click to expand...
Awesome stuff. I run waaaaaay too much air!
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Bigrigr
Yep, airing down helps with traction AND comfort offroad. Trick is just having the ability to air back up if you drive to the trail. Now where can I fit that nitrogen tank in the back....hmmm....Or the onboard air compressor and tank....Now granted, these guys are probably doing slow speed HD wheeling in four wheeler mag. If your not doing the rubicon trail, you may not need to go THAT low...
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GmanWJ
4
New Windshield

Heading to work on Monday morning, a passing Wrangler kicked up a rock that hit edge of the windshield. After work came out to find a nice long crack in the windshield.


I do not do windows. I would probably break them or screw up terribly. Called a local shop yesterday afternoon, they have done work for me before on a different vehicle, repeat business is good. They said they could replace it today, and they could send the guys to me, so I hired them.

New glass waiting install


Old glass coming out


New glass at home


Been wanting a new WS for a long time, mine was old and pitted and scratched. This was just the excuse I needed to get a new one. :D
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GmanWJ
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Rubicon Express Disconnects

I heard one of the benefits to disconnecting the front sway bar is that the increased suspension articulation reduces how much the passengers get thrown around in the cabin. My passengers may appreciate this. So I contacted @Kolak who set me up with a pair of Rubicon Express disco's.


Install is straightforward. They don't mention hammers or prybars in the instructions, but I needed both to get the spacers in the bottom mounts.


Now I just need some way to secure the sway bars when disco'd so they do not fall down and wreck things.
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GmanWJ
Discovered today that the discos rub the tires most aggressively. Guess new wheels are in my future. I was trying to stick with stock rims, so maybe I will get spacers.
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U
Can you swap the disco to the other side of the swaybar & bracket?
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GmanWJ
The whole idea is pull the two pins and yank out the whole arm. Discos have to be outboard, or you cannot take them out.
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Bigrigr
Best way to achieve this is to install another pin or bolt(old shock bushing sleeve and a bolt with a hole drilled in it for the clip could work well for this) on the subframe above the trackbar mount area that you can slip the loose End of the endlink onto for storage. Then just disconnect the lower end, and fold it up to slip onto the subframe pin. this holds the disco's AND the bar from falling down while is disconnected. Then you MAY be able to relocate your disco's on the other side of the bar as well....
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GmanWJ
8
EBC Stage 5 Brakes, Synergy Spacers

My tires rub on the discos. To fix this, the tires need to move outboard, or get narrower tires. Well I do not want to get narrower tires just yet, so that means move the tires outboard. This can be done by either getting rims with less backspacing, or by adding spacers. I happen to like running the factory Silverblades, so I opted to get some spacers. Eventually I settled on sourcing through Synergy, which is based out of a shop ~30 miles from my house.

Spacer install requires putting thread locker on the OEM lugnuts, which makes a lot of sense. But that also makes the brake rotors harder to get to ... and my rotors were pretty old. I have been running a set of brake rotors that I bought from R1 Concepts (fleabay purchase) 12+ years ago. I have replaced the front pads 2-3 times, enough so that there was a significant ridge on the rotor face. This would be a fine time to change the rotors as well. I decided on EBC. Contacted @EBC Brakes UK who recommended YellowStuff pads because I use Bella for towing a travel trailer, so that is what I did.

Also promised myself that the next time I did the brakes, I was getting new rear rotor/drums and replacing the parking brake shoes. (ugh)

PARTS LIST
  • Synergy 5x5 1.5" Wheel Spacers 4112-5-50-H (Synergy) $200
  • EBC Stage 5 Front Kit S5KF1357 (Summit) $325
  • EBC Stage 5 Rear Kit S5KR1436 (Summit) $212
  • Crown Parking Brake Shoes 5011988AA (Summit) $50

I am not going into a bunch of detail here. Disc brakes on the WJ are not that hard to do. But the parking brake shoes are a huge pain for somebody like me, I do not have the right skills in my bag of tricks. I eventually got it done mainly with needle nose pliers.

Here is the old front left.


And here is the Left Front after installing the EBC kit and the Synergy spacer. The EBC rotors have a black anti-rust "Geomet" coating.


Right Front


Right Rear


Left Rear


Here is a look at the rear pads, new vs. old. The EBC pads have a red "Brake-In" coating that is intended to prep the rotor surface for bedding in the pads by scraping away any old pad material or existing rotor coating. It is basically sandpaper ... and it makes a rather nasty grinding sound when you first apply the brakes, or turn, or drive anywhere. Happily, that noise goes away in short order. They do mention something about it in the paper that comes with it but they ought to make a bigger deal about it to alert the buyer because it is a MOST ALARMING NOISE.


Here was an odd bit: there were 8 of these clips in the front brake kit. That is enough to put 2 on every pad. Seems like overkill ... I only had a grand total of 1 of these clips on my old pads. I always thought these were wear indicator clips ("squealers") that would make an awful screeching noise when the pads got very low. But a little searching suggests these are "brake caliper anti rattle clips." Hmm that seems like some info I should keep in my back pocket ... do we expect a lot of rattling out of these brakes?



Here is an idea: if you want to give me 8 of something, how about the brake pad springs? There were exactly 0 of these in the kit, would have been nice to get a fresh set in there especially at this price point.

It is worth remembering that I did all of this because I wanted to run front sway bar quick-disconnects so I could try out no sway bar on the trails. And here is the kicker: now the tires rub on the front of the fender well when turning and backing! Well I already wanted to replace the front bumper ...

The rabbit hole runs very deep indeed.
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