There has been alot going on around the shop in the past few months. A few Aussie Locker installs, some transfer case replacements, various other repairs and mods but there has been an ongoing project that most of you dont know about. I have devoted this newsletter to a project that I have been working on for a few months. I plan to have it finished by the end of March.

1966 Jeep Cj-5 225ci V-6 engine, Dana 44 rear axle, Dana 27 front axle, Dana 18 transfer case, T-86 3-speed transmission.

We picked up the Jeep on 09/30/07 in Fredonia N.Y. It seemed to be in good condition considering the purchase price of $1500. I drove it around the property to check for any odd noises or mechanical problems. All seemed to be well.



On 10/1/07 I started to tear down the Jeep. I first pulled the engine, transmission and transfer case from the in a single unit. I then proceeded to disassemble the engine. It looked to me to be an untouched original engine. It had the metal head gaskets and rope seals that were installed at the factory. There was a lot of sludge built up on the inside of the motor from 40 years of wear. There was a noticeable ridge on the cylinder walls, and the camshaft was very worn.





The block, heads, and crankshaft were taken to Finger Lakes Machine to be inspected and refurbished. Jim at FLM inspected the parts and suggested boring the block .030" over, the crankshaft .010" under on the rod and main journals. The heads needed new valves, hardened valve seats for unleaded fuel, and updated valve seals. The heads were also milled .010" to get a perfectly flat surface for better head gasket sealing. The rope seals were updated to new rubber seals for better protection to oil leaks.





The engine was rebuilt using all new parts including new piston rings, bearings (cam, rod, and main), Fel-Pro gaskets, Timing chain and gears, stock spec camshaft, lifters, and new oil pump gears with a new wear plate.




The Body was removed from the frame and the frame was steam cleaned. I used a commercial pressure washer with a kerosene burner. It heats the water to over 200 degrees. This melts away years of grease and filth. I was then able to paint the frame using black paint.

The suspension was next on the list. We chose the Rancho 1" lift springs and RS9000 shocks for there ride quality and adjustability. The shocks are externally adjustable using a knob on the shock body.

All the spring bushings, bolts and u-bolts were replace using new poly bushings. Grade 8 bolts were used throughout the suspension.

With all the suspension work completed it was time to install the rebuilt motor and rebuilt Ford transmission. We chose to go with a 4-speed Ford transmission because of the overdrive gears in that transmission. The short case size is a good match for the wheelbase of the CJ-5.



Herm at ATV manufacturing supplied the rebuilt transmission as well as all adapters needed to mate the Ford transmission to the Jeep V-6 engine. The flywheel was resurfaced and installed with new bolts. The clutch also came from Herm, and that was installed as well as a new throw out bearing and pressure plate.



The stock Dana 18 transfer case was rebuilt using a kit from Herm at ATV manufacturing. All the bearings and wear surfaces were replaced as well as the gaskets. It is a relatively simple transfer case to work on. Being that the Dana 18 is a gear driven case and the gears were still in great shape the stock gears were reused.

The stock transmission mount would not work with the new transmission so I made up a new mount. The transmission is moved back about an inch, so the clutch pivot ball was relocated. I am able to use the stock clutch linkage with this set up but it was necessary to shorten the shaft that connects the clutch pedal to the rest of the linkage. The drive shafts will need to be resized to accommodate the new position of the transfer case.

The Ford 4-speed transmission will make this Jeep more enjoyable to drive on the street. It also has a lower first gear than the t-86 it replaced so it will also be a better transmission for off road performance.

To bring this Jeep a little more up to date we decided to change the front brakes over to disc. By using Chevy caliper brackets along with Chevy calipers and Jeep rotors I converted the old disc brakes over to much better performing disc brakes. The size of the rotors and calipers will improve the stopping power of this Jeep and make it safer to drive.





The next order of business was to steam clean the body. The underside of the body was caked with years of leaking gear oil and road grime. A quick trip to Townline Trailer made the fiberglass body cleaner that it has been in years. Brett decided that he did not want to paint the body. It is in good enough shape that a repaint is not necessary.

This project is not yet completed but it is getting closer all the time. Stay in touch to see it wrapped up.

Thanks for reading.