Jeep Update VI: Yes, I said six.

After much cursing and beating upon things – not to mention bashing my hand with a two-pound sledge, which I don’t recommend – the steering stabilizer was off and the bushings replaced. It wasn’t too much of a challenge to remove the stabilizer this time, but getting one of the old bushings out came down to some very extensive and brutal hand-to-hand combat.

Removal was simple enough.

Let the epic battle to remove the bushing on the right begin…

So it was off to the next project, which I’d read about on 4x4xplor.com. Apparently one of the many TSBs* for the TJ involved a clunking sound from under the depths of the Jeep. I thought, well, I have at least one of those, I’d best take a look. Sure enough, I had the same issue with this mysterious “torque shaft” thing sticking out from the side of the transfer case that would flop left and right and make this thunk sound.

05014148-AA Torque SH 21-105-001

For about twenty-five buck, Jeep sells a kit to take care of this problem. You can see the contents above. These parts combine to stop the part wobbling about and making noise, and they seem to work as advertised.

After obtaining the parts from my local dealership, and the inevitable trials involved with that, I mostly followed the straightforward directions from 4x4xplor.com’s nice writeup. As usual, when someone recommends bashing on a wrench with a hammer, I ignored that part and did it properly, but other than that their instructions and photos were very helpful. Enough so that I don’t see a need to document it all over again.

New parts (center) in place on the bracket, which after being cleaned looks remarkably good for something that’s been on the exposed underside of my Jeep for 12+ years.

The bracket back in place on the Jeep. All done, no drama or issues.

This probably brings the flurry of fixes, tweaks, and upgrades to an end for the time being. I will be looking into dealing with a few other minor issues and design flaws, but I don’t have anything firm planned for the immediate future.

Upcoming posts: After a very busy couple of weeks, I’m hoping to catch up on three or four more posts I’ve been wanting to get to, but haven’t had the time. These will give me a way to relax and unwind while I continue my job hunt. Wish me luck!

*TSB = Technical Service Bulletin. Jeep/Chrysler-speak for information on how to correct some sort of rampant problem on your Jeep.