Відео

I did not put the fuse block on the passenger inner fender well because I had other plans for it this was prior to the video being made I'd already sketched out what I want to do for the inner fender well with other accessories that I've added since I've made this video. Extending the wires allowed me to run them in a way that will not cause any issues in the future with rubbing or getting stuck on anything sharp as far as the soldering goes yes you can use solder in the engine bay as long as you do it properly there are Factory joints that are soldered and they have been that way since 1990 and those joints are still good in my engine bay it just really depends on your level of comfort and how much you trust things as long as you insulate everything properly and you've soldered your joints properly you should not ever have an issue but either way you can crimp them more solder them I chose to solder them because I did not know exactly where the three other wires went that went into one wire. I felt better at the time to just keep them going into one circuit until a later date when I'm able to figure out exactly where they go and I'll probably end up just running a new wire from the sores all the way to the new fuse box.

That's awesome man I'm so glad you were able to get it fixed and I'm super happy that my video was actually helpful. All of us Renix guys gotta stick together. ✊️✊️✊️

Thank you! Cheers!

Thanks man I appreciate it. I'm going to have to do an update video sometime in the future this jeep has come a long ways since then.

No the ground signal to the PCM comes from the massive grounding Bolt that your dipstick bolts to for the engine oil they'll be a bunch of ground wires bolted to that connection that's where Chrysler decided to put it for those years

No not entirely there is a certain amount of adjustment you can make that won't screw anything up because it's Rinx and it's much older system you have the ability to do that because the factory wasn't able to set it properly there was too much room for error so all you're basically doing is narrowing that Gap so that your timing is set properly and the distributor in the computer are not guessing where the rotor is the newer Cherokees you don't want to do this modification to because they changed the entire electrical system and the computers so that the timing is locked in.

@@dirtgenixgarage956 What is this Rinx you are talking about? Would I be able to fine tune my 99XJs timing by doing this modification? Thanks

Renix is the style of motor and computer combination that they used from the first xj's up until 1990 after that they changed computers and now have more current up-to-date stuff that you don't actually have to tune and no I wouldn't do that on something that new like I said before your computer is not going to have as many problems guessing the timing that the renix did because renix is a much older electrical system it was inherently flawed from the get-go and Chrysler knew that which is why they changed the electrical system in 1991.

Thank you very much means a lot. The flexplate wasn't actually cracked it had the wrong one installed on the back of the motor from the guy that I bought the vehicle from he didn't know there was a difference between renix and the ho Motors so the flex plate that I pulled off is actually still in perfectly working condition.

thanks ! I'm still not sure, if I have a flexplate crack or piston slap - really can't see any crack with the inspection plate off. I think I'll be loosen the 4 bolts and twist the flexplate - if I can hear some snapping noise, the fp should be cracked - your thoughts ? Thanks !

Unless you really abused that motor or you had a rock come up and hit your flexplate it's really unlikely that it would have any kind of crack in it it's not super common but it does happen I would lean more towards some kind of internal motor problem you might even just have like a loose rocker or something or a valve is sticking really hard to say and if it's a hairline crack and not super obvious I don't think you would hear it even if you turn the motor over by hand but it's worth giving it a try. If you do that and you don't have any issues you don't hear any noises I would look into the top side of the motor make sure everything's tightened and adjusted properly and then after that you're probably going to have to get into the actual motor pull the head and examine your vows make sure you didn't have something hung up or anything like that and if that's all good on the top end you can have to look at the bottom and you may have a bad main bearing or you may have a bad piston Rod sleeve. Try and start with the most simple and least invasive task and then just work your way up by process of elimination. But that is just my opinion don't just take my word for it do plenty of research that way you're not wasting your time I'm just going off of my experience from all the vehicles I worked on in my time I personally haven't ever seen a flex plate crack like that unless it's been really abused. Good luck brother. 👍👍

what a comprehensive reply - many thanks for this, bro ! 1998 4.0 190k -- So far I did not abuse my XJ's engine and suspension....Checked with a stethoscope and the knock definitely comes from the lower rear oil pan area, no lifter tick. Oil pressure is perfect 50/60 when cold idle, 30 when hot idle. So on lean towards piston slap/skirt, less connecting rod bearing. Can send you a qick video if helpful.

ua-cam.com/video/pURuSUgjtW/v-deo.html

Thanks, man. I really appreciate it 🙏. I might have to do that video in the future myself as I don't even know what they control. My harness was pretty hacked up from the previous owner, which is why I ended up rebuilding the main harness in the first place. Oddly enough, I didn't have to mess with the fusible links until I converted them all to fuses.

The distributor clamp is the factory jeep clamp that came from the factory. I just cleaned it up and painted it.

Thank you! Cheers!

Happy it he helped with your project.

Hey thanks man, it was definitely a pain but it was not near as bad as the engine harness was. Now that was definitely a headache. 👍👍

That's awesome man! Thank you for the kind words. It's been a good upgrade so far for me so far i haven't had any issues. 👍

@@dirtgenixgarage956 have you done any more work on the wiring? I got my XJ for pretty cheap because it had an engine fire, I repaired most the wiring to get it running but now I want to go through and make everything right!

I did rebuild the engine harness on my xj over the winter a few years back. It was before I started posting videos. I got myself a wiring diagram and a frosty beverage and went to work. My harness had a lot of rodent damage. So I had to do a bit of wire splicing, but luckily it wasn't huge problem to patch it all up.

Very true but in my case it is more or less in its permanent location and has been wrapped and zip tied so it's not ever really going to move around.

Thank you so very much man. I appreciate the kind words. There is most definitely a love hate relationship on these things haha 😄.

I believe it goes down and attached to the starter solenoid on the starter I do remember a small green wire that ran down and attached to a stud off of the back of the starter. Most likely the signal wire for your key.

The one Im trying to connect is red but it does have the same end connector as the green one you're referring to.

Thank you brother. 👍💪

Yes it is running now but the sensor was not the original problem. I ended up having the wrong flex plate installed on the vehicle when I bought it. The jeep wasn't running when I bought it. Through a lot of testing and searching I managed to find out I had an ho flex plate installed instead of the regular renix flexplate so after changing that out it does start and run but the modifications I made to that sensor did make it start faster, it does not crank as long as it normally would before the engine fires.

@@dirtgenixgarage956 thanks for the reply glad to here it’s running. I have a 1987 XJ that I received that was not running. I replaced everything and had a crank no start issue. Come to find out it was the PCM, but it took 3 to find one that worked. Once driving it I realized I had a blown head gasket. After replacing that I had a miss fire. I had found cruiser54 early on, and followed almost all of his steps for RENIX. I wanted to try indexing the distributor, but looked difficult. I stumbled upon your video and played it while I was doing it….also drew a diagram to make sure I didn’t skip any steps……fixed my issue! Just want to say thanks for putting in the time to make your videos. God Bless you bro!

That's awesome brother. I'm so glad to see my videos helping people. This is the whole reason I make these things and the people it helps just helps fuel the fire for me to keep putting out new videos to touch on things that I myself have been unable to find answers for. It may take me a little longer to figure it out and make a video but it makes things so much easier for people like yourself to get their rigs fixed and back out on the trail where they belong. I should have a flexplate swap video coming out here in the near future. Just putting the finishing touches on it before I upload it. 👍👍👍

That is too cool. His renix jeep tips have really helped get this old jeep running like new again. The renix tips are an excellent source of information for these motors and I'm really glad I ran across it. I gotta give credit where credit is deserving and this most definitely is. I never would have known about these free fixes that drastically improve performance had I not stumbled across his page. Thanks again Cruiser54 glad I was able to film the process of some of these repairs to get more information out to the internet. 👍👍

You are very welcome it's awesome to see my videos helping people. People like you are why I do these videos. I have had multiple issues on finding a video that helped with these kinds of problems so I figured I'd just film what I found to solve the problem and procedures to accomplish that. Glad to see you jeep running great again. 👍

Cylinder number one must be at top dead center before messing with the distributor. Otherwise your timing will get really messed up and cause more problems.

@@dirtgenixgarage956 ok thanks

No problem 👍 good luck on your project.

@@dirtgenixgarage956 uhhh i did everything and now my jeep i misfiring pretty bad

There's a good chance you weren't at top dead center on the compression stroke for cylinder one you could be a couple of teeth off on your distributor gear as well that would also cause the problem you need to verify that your placement is correct with top dead center number one cylinder on the compression stroke so when you rotating the engine over the cylinder should be coming up to the top not going back down when it gets to the very top and it starts to go back down turn it back until you're at the very top you can do this by putting a screwdriver into the spark plug hole and watch it move up and down or you can remove the valve cover and check for both push rods to be loose you want to make sure both of the intake and exhaust valves are completely closed on cylinder one if it's on the downstroke the exhaust valve will be open if it's still on the up stroke the intake valve will be open both valves on the cylinder head have to be closed once you've confirmed that you are correct in that position then you'll want to pull the cat back off and start over making sure you're at the number one firing position

Thank you very much.

You could use them I just chose fuses because of simplicity and they were cheaper.

So Peter, are you saying this is a good idea or bad? I have a 2.5L in an 2001 and my exhaust manifold is glowing red hot. Didn't think to cut the prongs to fine tune the distributor though. Let me know to either. Thanks

It is definitely a good idea but keep in mind this modification as far as I know is only for the 4.0 6 cylinder engine I'm not sure if the same applies to the 4 cylinder as I don't have one but assuming the distributor and rotor looks similar and it has a very large pickup on the rotor you could possibly benefit from doing this modification as well. This modification was mostly intended to help with the longer cranking times and provide a smoother idle I don't know that it would affect your engine temperatures sounds to me like your engine is might be running a little bit on the lean side if the manifold is super hot like you say.

@@dirtgenixgarage956 Yes true but its all controled by the ECM. I can't adjust anything unless i have the ECM modified

@@kirkdeal2619 Read "distributor indexing explained" up above.

With renix it is a little different when you say "controlled" because of the tech that was used in renix the computer isn't really smart enough to dial in the timing perfectly like the newer computers are today which is why we do this mod to the distributor to take out most of the guess work that way the eck can find correct timing easier and not have as large of a window to try guessing at it. This mod is only for vehicles equipped with a remix ecm. The newer vehicles have a completely different electrical system that should not require this modification.

Here is the link to the fuse block I used on this build. You can find them at almost any auto parts store this one just happened to be closest to me 👍 www.napaonline.com/en/p/NW_785137 Good luck on your repair I definitely don't miss the giant cluster that was the factory harness lol.

Thank you for replying. How is yours working out?

Haven't been able to field test it yet my Jeep ended up having a totally different issue preventing it from starting. Someone had installed the wrong flexplate on it and never bothered to do the research on why it wouldn't start. So currently I'm in the process of making a video on that swap. Main reason for doing the fuse box addition was to clean up that nasty rats nest of wires on the starter relay and that route allowed me to eliminate fusible links and just have to replace a fuse if anything ever blows.

Just got done testing it and it's awesome 😎 I'm planning on doing the rest of the wiring harness like that or similar. Thanks for the video. Just subbed and subscribed

That's awesome 😎 man I'm glad the video was able to help you solve a problem I appreciate it very much and thank you for supporting the channel. I definitely have more stuff in the works for the renix jeeps and can't wait to be able to share it with everyone.

Thank you for the comment. That is correct fusible links are rated at different amp ratings depending on wire gauge. My situation was mickey moused pretty bad. I had multiple wires going into single links and the links were all hacked up. Typically the amp rating are about as follows: 18g is good for 15 amps 16g is good for 20 amps 12g is good for 20-25 amps These sizes are for the fusible link not the actual wire. I took the side of caution and went with all lower fuses because I was not able to trace every wire and if I have one blow I can then trace it to find out the appropriate amperage of that wire and adjust fuse size at that time. Every vehicle is different just be sure to do your homework before you dive in. Good luck with the repair brother. 👍

@@dirtgenixgarage956 thanks for the help! According to my Haynes book there should be 3 big fuses (40 and 60 amp) in the "power distribution center".. I can't find any of that..mine is a 89 and I don't see any fuses in the engine compartment..am I missing something? What's the "power distribution center"?

The power distribution center should be refuring to your fuse box. I don't actually have any fuses under the hood of my xj either it's just a relay block on the passenger side fender behind the ignition control module. I'll take another look tonight just to be sure but after rebuilding that whole harness I don't recall having to mess with any fuses under the hood. What years does you manual cover for the xj?

@@dirtgenixgarage956 in the book it says "4.0 in line six cyl models" without specyfing any year. Sounds a bit weird that a 2001 has the same harness as a 89..anyhow I didn't find any fuses under the hood either. I did the job and the Jeep runs really good so far. Only problem I had was that the 25 amp fuse from the alternator that replaced the 12 Gauge fusible link kept popping. I replaced it with a 30a and now it works fine. All new wiring I did is bigger than stock anyway so it should be fine

That's great to hear brother. 👍 Yes lol that's the problems the haynes manuals tend to have a more generic output for vehicles. We both have the renix motor which is a completely different harness.

Thanks for the feedback I'll try to start doing more explanation when I'm doing a job. Still trying to learn the ins and outs of the editing software. Just learned how to do voice overs the other day so in the future I can always add voice audio if the video needs it. In regards to the music I'm still working with the volume levels and learning what all the different settings do. Hopefully future videos will have better volume levels.

That's a goal we all want to reach lol.

Haha I can imagine SLC is a popular place being so close to so many places to have fun off-road. I don't think I will be going with a full conversion anytime soon. I may at a later date convert it over to a true HO motor as I have most of the hardware needed for the swap minus the wiring harness dizzy and fuel rail. I even purchased a header that I was going to try to make work with the Renix manifold, but I ran into issues with the way the manifold is molded and couldn't get the header to seat properly with the Renix manifold (always had and air leak when I cranked it over). I haven't done a ton of research on the swap but from what I have seen you have to completely change out the Renix wiring and ECU over to a newer year 91 or higher as the majority of the electronic sensors on the Renix will not properly talk to the HO ECU and cause multiple problems. I also discovered what I believe to be the main reason the jeep hasn't ran since I picked it up. I'm in the process of making a video about changing out the flex plate on the XJ back to the renix flex plate. I found that the jeep had a HO flex plate put on it when the previous owner put a new motor in it and had no idea that you need to do the complete conversion if you want to be able to run that flex plate. You also have a totally different set up for the throttle body and cables. Imo it's a better set up but as I said it can be a bear to change over. The cables aren't super hard there is still only 2 cables and they end up in more or less the same place. The throttle cable is routed over the valve cover along with the kick down and the brackets for plumbing everything is a little different. You may be able to make some of the original Renix stuff work with the HO stuff but from experience I can tell you when you don't do the complete swap you will eventually run into issues down the road, and the most important thing for this rig anyway is going to be reliability as I plan on using this as an overlanding rig and need to be able to go long distances with no electrical or mechanical issues. Do you still have the C101 connector on yours? That is a big fail place on a lot of the renix motors as the connector gets corroded and filled with dirt and causes all kinds of weird issues. I was lucky enough to have a 90 model and it was already eliminated from factory for me. If you have that I would look at refreshing it or eliminating it completely especially if you plan on putting the HO stuff on your engine.

Thank you very much. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask if be happy to help. 👍

@@dirtgenixgarage956 Yeah, don't listen to the complainers about speed. Fast speed is just fine when you're repeating a process over and over again. So, I'm headed to harbor freight soon to get me a soldering gun. I'm reading I want 60/40 rosin core (tin/lead i believe) for copper automotive wiring. I'll practice first but it looks pretty simple. Heat from the bottom of the wire and let the melting solder wire penetrate your splice. How do you know what size fuses to put in the fuse box? Do you have a link for the fuse box you purchased? I'm planning a day or two of good upgrades here - gonna follow cruiser54 step by step and then attempt your process for the fuselinks going into the starter relay; I've got a 89 cherokee pioneer and the wiring looks pretty good but I know once I tear into it I'll find some burnt out wires, etc... It's just too old to not need some wiring replacements. I'm gonna index my distributor like you and cruiser describe too; might as well swap spark wires while I'm in there and swap out the coil. I've had the jeep since 130k and I'm at 190k and have never swapped out much of the ignition system. Thanks for your help bro. I'll promote your videos. Good work!

Thank you for the great comment brother, it is great to see that what I'm sharing with the viewers is actually helping them with their projects. Just awesome I tell ya haha. That is correct for the solder acid core isn't really used that much in copper wiring, I have always just used 60/40 rosin and had no issues. Just make sure your solder tip is nice and shiny before you start then you want to "tin" the tip of it before starting. Basically, get the gun good and hot and just touch the solder to the tip to get a little on it as it will help with quicker heat transfer when you are heating the wire. I also keep a damp rag in a bowl to wipe off the tip after soldering each joint as he knocks off any extra solder and keeps the tip free of contaminants. Then rinse and repeat the process for each joint. As for the fuse block I used in the video it is from Napa, here is the link: www.napaonline.com/en/p/NW_785137 For fuse sizes I just looked up around what size fusible links they used on the vehicle from the factory and all of mine ended up taking the same size fuse (15 amp) as the conversion for the gauge of fusible link used .2 to .5 amps of the same fuse every time. I agree with these old trucks it pays to check over all the wiring there is bound to be something there that could use replacing. I myself have gone through the harness and soldered the factory crimped joints just to play it safe and rewrapped a lot of the factory electrical tape as they were filled with dirt and mud. Good luck with your build brother and if you have more questions don't hesitate to ask I'm happy to help if I can. :)

Thank you very much, I will let everyone know as soon as I'm done doing the rest of the work. I actually have not been able to start it since this video went live I am currently in the process of changing out the flex plate for the correct renix plate as the guy that put the motor together before me put the wrong flexplate on the engine. as far as whether it's going to help or not that's really in the eye of the beholder and how well you know your engine someone that isn't really super in tune with how their motor runs might not notice a difference at all whereas if you've been doing it long enough you can tell that it runs smoother or starts faster I have however heard that some people don't have any issues at all even though this particular problem would still persist on their engine guess we'll wait and see together how it runs and starts. 👍👍

@@dirtgenixgarage956 yes I'd like to know aswell. What degree its set at, test drive, is advancing beneficial in this scenario? I want my 88 to be as powerful and efficient working with what its got. Thanks bro

Thank you for the comment brother. I will definitely do a follow up when I finish the flex plate video on how well this change has helped. As far as degree I'd have to see about putting a timing light on it after I get it running. For this project I just put the motor at TDC on the compression stroke to set everything up which essentially starts everything at zero degrees. But because this is an efi system there's not a whole lot you can do to adjust timing. The ecu will try to adjust timing for any changes you make. This project is to better help the ecu know when to fire a spark that to actually advance or retard the timing like they did on the older cars.

What hold down did you use to clamp down the distributor?

Just the factory hold down clamp that comes on the engine from the factory.👍

The video was not really intended to be a how to video it was more showing of a way to fix one of Chryslers screw ups that they had swapped out with normal fuses in later models. I'm still trying to find the best way that works for filming the process and providing enough information without making the video 30 minutes plus for the viewers. However if you have any questions I'd be happy to try to answer them.

Sure thing the TSB number is: 18-53-88 where it explains that an ignition crossover might cause bucking or surging and the fix for the issue. It does not always happen to every 4.0 owner. But if you already in there servicing the thing, it doesn't hurt to go the extra step and perform this procedure if you feel confident in your skills. Noticeable gains would include smoother running and a little less cranking time than the normal 4.0 jeep engines would experience when starting up. The ECU will correct to an extent but there is a little more to it. The ECU is able to "guess" where the rotor is in relation to the terminal, which is why the contact surface area of the rotor is so large. You can see in the video that the actual contact on the rotor is quite large when compared to say a SBC or SBF. I have mentioned in past videos that there is a guy out there by the name of cruiser54 who has an entire webpage dedicated to renix bugs and fixes for literally the entire engine and electrical problems they have. Here is the web page: www.cruiser54.com Very highly recommended and I have learned a ton about renix from this site. Cruiser54 Mostly Renix Tips: Cruiser54 does a phenomenal job at explaining this, I pulled this from one of his post on jeepforums: "HERE’S WHY DISTRIBUTOR INDEXING IS SO IMPORTANT: Distributor indexing explained: For clarification though, that’s not a cam sensor inside the Renix dizzy. It’s there to fire the injectors sequentially with the firing order. You’ll never notice if it went bad because the ECU will try to “guess” where it is and does a heck of a job at it. As for the “timing”, it is controlled by the ECU. Ever notice how wide the tip of the rotor is? Try and wrap your head around this: When the ECU yells “Fire” to the ignition control module, where is the rotor in relation to the dizzy terminal? Not to the terminal yet? Past the terminal too far? What happens to the spark/secondary ignition strength when it has to jump the Grand Canyon in comparison to shooting from a rotor tip? Poor ignition performance, bucking, jerking, longer crank times. The factory was aware of this and issued a Technical Service Bulletin on it. This Tip, #13, is a condensed version of that factory TSB. You wouldn’t believe how many we found out of whack when I worked at the dealership. Yours is probably messed up also. RARELY did we find one set accurately."

The header was from Black horse racing. It fits 91 and newer only. The flat spots were from me trying to massage it down enough to clear the renix manifold which in the end did not work and I was forced to put the original exhaust manifold back on. Banks performance makes a header that fits the earlier model renix motors from 1990 and earlier. But if your jeep is 91 or newer the black horse header will bolt on and clear the manifold. You may have to notch your manifold in 1 or 2 spots to get a touch more clarence for ease of install but it should still work either way.

Understood. THank you for the info!

oh yeah we are getting there one step at a time

Yea buddy 👊👊