1980 Jeep CJ5

[moparnut]

1980 Jeep CJ5 - $18,975 - Sioux Falls, SD - Frame off restoration less than 5000 miles ago in 2015. 4.2 6cyl 5 speed. White with tan interior and soft top, If your looking for a non lifted classic CJ this is the one for you!

Link to ad on Hemmings.com

 

[Dr.Jass]

Other than the twin-stick T-case and JCPenney bumpers and tube steps, this is a pretty decent restoration. The presence of that transfer case is downright confusing to me, though... how much use can one make of such a thing in a stocker?

 

[TheIronSausage]

My buddy Jones swapped a twin stick into his '84 CJ7. It's mostly stock except for a lift and some modifications towards four wheeling.. He likes it because it lets him take trails in two wheel low, keeping pace in third and fourth gear while still being able to take switchback turns without binding up his front axle. It actually helps a stocker more than something with actual power in it as I found out when I took my '84 2.5 Cherokee out on trails with him.. First gear in high has too much cruise, and not enough ass to climb anything as Jeeps were stupid underpowered and had neutered gearing for efficiency in the early eighties. He was in 2 low in fourth gear, dipping down to third for climbs, and I was in 4 low in second gear, dipping to first for climbs, which I thought was pretty crappy until I realized my catalytic converter was stopped up. I had an IR gun with me.. the floorboard was 250-300 degrees, the cat was 956+ I can't wait to go try again once I've gutted it. I've also got to get rid of the computer controlled Carter YFA.. There's a Weber 32/36 DGEV conversion, and as much as I've never been impressed with those, the Carter is beyond abysmal

 

[TheIronSausage]

By the way, anybody know of a good used AX-4 or AX-5 gearbox for a 4x4 Jeep? My first gear kicks out hard, every time.

The little guy did alright for sitting dormant in a field for seven years.. I redid all of the hydraulics, ripped out the carpet, threw a CB in, and drove sixty miles each way to go pound this thing on rocks, and bury it in mud.. It never got stuck, it just stalled a lot due to the cat. All on dry rotted tires, and one rim with a chunk missing out of it. It followed my buddy's lifted CJ everywhere it went on a level three trail. I am still impressed. I was going to stick a video here of me going down a rock outcropping in it, but that would appear to need a URL, and those need effort. The patch in the trans tunnel is where I cut the hole to get to the slave cylinder.. There was no other way besides dropping the trans crossmember and God knows what else.. I don't even know how you'd bleed it without the hole I cut. The second year on, they moved it to the driver's side where the tunnel's wider to fit the transfer case.

 

[Dr.Jass]

He was in 2 low in fourth gear, dipping down to third for climbs, and I was in 4 low in second gear, dipping to first for climbs...

This tells me there was a huge disparity in either final-drive gearing or the T-cases' low ranges, since adding the twin-stick mod changes nothing gearing-wise.

Seemed to me most-guys were ditching the weak-sister AX-5s in favor of the AX-15s. As far as finding a "good" AX-5, well, that can be a tricky proposition. Not as tricky as a good T-5, of course, but still...

I'll ax my boss. He's a Jeep fanatic from way back and has a ton of parts stashed as well as numerous parts Jeeps, both CJ and XJ. If I know anyone that's going to have it, he'd be the guy.

 

[TheIronSausage]

This tells me there was a huge disparity in either final-drive gearing or the T-cases' low ranges, since adding the twin-stick mod changes nothing gearing-wise.

Seemed to me most-guys were ditching the weak-sister AX-5s in favor of the AX-15s. As far as finding a "good" AX-5, well, that can be a tricky proposition. Not as tricky as a good T-5, of course, but still...

I'll ax my boss. He's a Jeep fanatic from way back and has a ton of parts stashed as well as numerous parts Jeeps, both CJ and XJ. If I know anyone that's going to have it, he'd be the guy.

The twin stick just gives him 2 low so he can turn sharper.. The gearing is kind of crappy. Mine was just super down on power, I had to keep it 2,500-4,500 RPM to keep it from bogging down and shutting off. The exhaust note changed halfway down the trail, meaning I left home with a semi functioning exhaust.. As soon as I cut out the cat, I think I'll be able to enjoy third and fourth gears.. AX-4s and 5s aren't total trash, it's the BA10-5 you gotta watch out for.. My little 151 cube motor shouldn't kill one, and Jones has been fourwheeling his AX-4 with a 4.2 in front of it for years, with 32"s on it. I might consider an AX-15 in the future, but for right now, AX-4s and 5s are a direct bolt in replacement.

 

[Dr.Jass]

Well, just about everything Scott has is from the '70s and '80s, so if anyone will have an AX-4 or 5 lying around, it would be him. At one point his family had two or three daily-driver Cherokees and a fleet of parts vehicles to support them. I'll check with him tomorrow.

 

[TheIronSausage]

Well, just about everything Scott has is from the '70s and '80s, so if anyone will have an AX-4 or 5 lying around, it would be him. At one point his family had two or three daily-driver Cherokees and a fleet of parts vehicles to support them. I'll check with him tomorrow.

Dood, that'd be great, thanks for your trouble.

Matt

 

[Dr.Jass]

"Fuck no. When I got a Jeep with one of those, I actually pulled it immediately and scrapped it. That way I wouldn't look in one later and mistakenly think it had a good transmission in it."

"Even if it was still good?"

"There is no such thing as a good AX-4 or AX-5. They're only broken, or about to be."

So, there you have it. Sorry I couldn't be of more assistance on this one.

 

[TheIronSausage]

"Fuck no. When I got a Jeep with one of those, I actually pulled it immediately and scrapped it. That way I wouldn't look in one later and mistakenly think it had a good transmission in it."

"Even if it was still good?"

"There is no such thing as a good AX-4 or AX-5. They're only broken, or about to be."

So, there you have it. Sorry I couldn't be of more assistance on this one.

No biggie. Like always, I've got too many vehicles in and out to justify the space, time or expense to do an AX-15 swap (although I should look into it to see what's involved). Ive become a primadonna, I refuse to pull gearboxes and transfer cases in the dirt or gravel anymore.. It's just not worth it, meaning it has to take up space in my "shop", which is full of other broken shit, which means down time has to be minimal. Sometimes, the hard part is reminding myself that I do this for fun.