[DKG]

Hi Doc

Congrats on your new acquisition. The Jeep's soul is that petrol engine so you will no doubt get to enjoy something very special.

Some things I would recommend:

1. New plugs
2. New plug wire set
3. Rebuild distributor or find a new TVS distributor
4. New carb (even if you don't need one right now these are getting hard to find so it makes sense to acquire one for future use)
5. New coil (please remember that a dist runs on 6 volts even on a 12 volt car system so leave that resistor inline otherwise your coil will heat up. Most mechanics don't know this and they end up throwing away that resistor)
6, New mechanical fuel pump plus an electric one in line plus filter
7. New tank (assuming yours has rust, you get diesel tanks for Rs 1500, throw them out when they start troubling you, and buy another new one)
8. New wheel cylinders and master cylinder (assuming you need one anyway)
9. New brake hoses
10. New king pins (suspension)
11. Check your leaf springs for wear, if the leaves have ground themselves into the next leaf throw the set out and buy a new set, will cost you Rs 7000 max for all four. If they are fine have them buffed clean and regrease them
12 New shackle pins and bush set for the leaf springs
13. New engine and transmission mounts
14. Get a TVS self starter, if you don't have one already
15. Alternator, better to buy a new one. If you fancy night photography and want power lamps maybe you can consider the 50+ amp units
16. Change all oils
17. Flush radiator
18. Change fanbelt and buy one for spare to keep in Jeep always
19. New universal joints (yours may be worn) and check the prop yoke for play. If it has play you can buy a new MSL yoke and fit. A good machine shop will ensure the prop shaft is true when they reweld. Or a better option is to find a good used one which has no play.
20. New tie rod ends
21. new tyres and tubes
22. New Exide ATB battery
23. All your gears should shift smoothly and not pop out when driven under load or coasting downhill. If so then you need to overhaul the gearbos and usually the transfer case too
24. Last but not the least check the condition of your wiring. Old wiring is the primary cause of fire in a petrol car, more so if you load the electricals with additional lamps for your photography

My suggestion is to avoid as much as possible going along with the Jeep mechanic's recommendation to use "good used parts"

Jeep parts are relatively cheap so try to replace with new OE parts

If you meticulously go through your Jeep you will end up with something you can trust blindly. I have driven my Jeep to Bangalore, Orissa border, Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary, Srisailam, and Bombay not to mention the many small trips around Hyderabad. With the exception of the mechanical fuel pump troubling me beyond 80 deg (solved with the addition of a electric pump) the Jeep runs flawlessly.

Wishing you the very best and hope you get to enjoy the near electric motor like feel of that fabulous Hurricane very soon. You will love it in the jungles. Its simply divine !!

As most here would vouch for, between UBS and Behram Dhabhar you should be able to solve just about any Jeep issue that you may encounter during your ownership.

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Dear Deepak / Shubz - thank you for your genuine comments of recognition of my capability. I am humbled. I am just a normal guy doing a normal job. The only minor difference is that I am very clear that I have amazing "PRODUCT CLARITY" and I have absolutely no hesitancy in stating so, even on a completely open forum such as this one. I humbly thank God for giving this quite rare capability to me. By guiding people on what to do to make their vehicles operate properly, I am only sharing that part of the information which in any case is available in the public domain so that maximum number of people can derive value out of it. Onviously, I shall never share information which is not in the public domain.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[sreejeshmp]

Dear Doctor,

Restoring a CJ series Jeep is not at all a rocket engineering Unless you are really going to change any thing from the factory design.One important thing is Just use the Original parts and they are still available in the market.Doctor its a Machine not a Human so there is no magic if all the parts are there in place and individually they are in working condition then all together it will work.

- Sreejesh

[abheekg]

Electrician has serviced the self and sourced a used good condition Lucas alternator (spares of the old point type alternator is not available&will be serviced in the future with the help of UBS)

Sourced brand new battery, brake master cylinder,gear top cover,petrol tank.

Mech will fit these & then hopefully the CJ4A will roll out on the roads for a much needed wash.

Registration is also happening in parallel. Good news is that "one time road tax" had been paid by the Govt.

Dr. A Ghosh

[Shubz]

Hello doc,

Please clear your inbox. I guess it has filled up. Am unable to PM you!

[abheekg]

After a month of activity: fixing alternator, fitting ignition switch, fitting the condensor, cleaning and installing the original petrol tank for the time being, fitting the gear top cover, servicing the carburettor, the cj4a rolled out on the road for a drive after so many years of inaction.

I was surprised at how peppy the engine felt. She was literally flying.

I plan to run it around in this form for sometime to understand the handling and identify issues. Then my project will enter next phase-that of complete strip down to chassis, complete mechanical overhauling and bodywork.

I will now have to start collecting parts for this second phase. I have procured a windshield glass. I need the original rubber beading set that goes around the glass and below the windshield frame. I am getting duplicate parts here in Nagpur and I need the help of experts in getting the originals.

I also need a solex carburetor as a standby measure.

Next up I need the standard army fitments that came on these jeeps. Need the help of experts to understand what goes where.

How do you suggest I proceed from here on ?

regards,
A. Ghosh

[fazalaliadil]

Dr. Ghosh,
Nice to hear from you about your bride, been long.
Reg. the parts let me know, what I can source from here.
Regards,

[Shubz]

Doc,

Good to see you back on! We all would love pics of your jeep now.

Fazal sir - Hope you are doing good

Regards,
Shub

[Shubhendra]

Congrats Doctor Saheb,
So finally you got hold of this rare thing. Hope to see this beauty in live someday. If you need to procure anything from Pune just let me know.
BTW i have shifted to Pune.
Regards,
Shubhendra Singh

[abheekg]

Thank you everybody for their help.
The restoration is happening much faster than expected. Documenting every step but unable to upload due to a dead laptop and erratic net connection. Special thanks to UBS< Behram sir, Fazal saab and Jasvinder for help with various parts.

One query: My jeep has 15 inch rims at present. I am thinking of 16 inch rims with 16 inch tyres. What are the various rim and tyre options that I have. I don't mind used 16inch rims.

How would sand grips look on this jeep ?
What other tyre options do I have ?
I am not considering alloys and radials.

regards,

Dr. A Ghosh

[Shubz]

I would say the best thing that would make it look like a jeep are the 600X16 NDMS

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by Shubz

I would say the best thing that would make it look like a jeep are the 600X16 NDMS

Or if you get 7.00x16 NDMS nothing like it for this vehicle. But sandgrips am not sure how they will look in a CJ

[Shubz]

Jaggu,

Do you have any comparative pics of the two? a jeep with 6.00 x 16 and another with 7.00 x 16? Though I have heard many of them recommend the same. but MRF place from where I got mine, was very much against 7.00 x 16 saying it would hamper the driving/turning etc.

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Or if you get 7.00x16 NDMS nothing like it for this vehicle. But sandgrips am not sure how they will look in a CJ

[abheekg]

Just measure the rims of my jep with an inch tape. The current rims stand at 17 inches diameter while my gypsy rims are 16 inches.

What's the costing and availability of the 6.00 x 16 NDMS vis-a-vis 7.00 x 16 ? What are the other non conventional tyre suggestions ? can I for example put a FC truck rim+tyre ?

[wanderer4x4]

Originally Posted by abheekg

One query: My jeep has 15 inch rims at present. I am thinking of 16 inch rims with 16 inch tyres. What are the various rim and tyre options that I have. I don't mind used 16inch rims.

How would sand grips look on this jeep ?
What other tyre options do I have ?
I am not considering alloys and radials.

Yes, I was also thinking of asking the same for my CJ3B that I am currently doing up. Will sandgrips be too bulky for the little 3B? And what about the difference in ride and handling between 6.00x16 and 7.00x16? Which one would be better for the 3B/4A?