Hi All, I'm a new owner of a 1979 CJ7. Brand new to this Forum so excuse me if this isn't the correct place to post this but I thought it'd be worth a shot. I've had a YJ in the past and a 1984 CJ in the past, but I was very young and nothing needed to be done with them. This one is in great shape but needs a couple of things done and I'm overwhelmed/not sure where to start troublshooting some of the items. Horn is wired but not working. I can see it wired, and see it running to the harness, but other than that I haven't taken the sterring wheel off. Wipers worked for a about 45 minutes the other day, then quit. I can hear the motor so I assume it's the linkage, but not 100%. Little things like that. I'm located in Nothern Virgina (Herndon), and didn't know the best shop to go to, or if someone would be just willing to spend some time with me looking. Appreciate the help and guidance!
New 1979 CJ7 Owner
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PYIYE752
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Hi All, I'm a new owner of a 1979 CJ7. Brand new to this Forum so excuse me if this isn't the correct place to post this but I thought it'd be worth a shot. I've had a YJ in the past and a 1984 CJ in the past, but I was very young and nothing needed to be done with them. This one is in great shape but needs a couple of things done and I'm overwhelmed/not sure where to start troublshooting some of the items. Horn is wired but not working. I can see it wired, and see it running to the harness, but other than that I haven't taken the sterring wheel off. Wipers worked for a about 45 minutes the other day, then quit. I can hear the motor so I assume it's the linkage, but not 100%. Little things like that. I'm located in Nothern Virgina (Herndon), and didn't know the best shop to go to, or if someone would be just willing to spend some time with me looking. Appreciate the help and guidance!
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13,758 Posts
Well,
You're in the right spot and we are the folks that can help you.
Suggestion:
Make a list of all the issues you have, then list them in order of importance and post the list.
Pictures of what you have is super helpful. Engine compartment, steering, drivetrain, etc. This will allow us to see issues or give suggestions on advice.
I suggest you do as much of the repairs yourself as you can. Paying someone to work on your CJ is going to get expensive pretty quick.
You're in the right spot and we are the folks that can help you.
Suggestion:
Make a list of all the issues you have, then list them in order of importance and post the list.
Pictures of what you have is super helpful. Engine compartment, steering, drivetrain, etc. This will allow us to see issues or give suggestions on advice.
I suggest you do as much of the repairs yourself as you can. Paying someone to work on your CJ is going to get expensive pretty quick.
Thank you for the prompt reply! That's what I assumed...paying someone to do it would add up, and to be honest I'd rather be able to knock it out if it's something sort of easy. I'll get to work on the list and post it up. For the most part it's a great driver...it's just the little things that I have to knock out because of VA's safety inspections.
Appreciate that information! i'll add that to the list.
^^^THIS^^^
And work on ONE issue at a time. It's easy to get overwhelmed with tiny things when you first start working on a CJ. Pick one issue, lets say windshield wipers. Stay on that one issue until it is resolved, then move to the next. If you get where you're working on two-three or more different things, it will bury you.
Ask lots of questions and post a lot of pictures. The collective wisdom here will have the answer to pretty much anything you might ask, and pictures let us see what you're dealing with, and the group often notices little things that the owner overlooks or was unaware of.
Welcome to the forum and to the fun, maddening world of Jeep CJ's!!!
Thank you again for the help and suggestions. I'm looking forward to getting more and more comfortable troubleshooting problems, but it's great to have a community at your back. I was looking at the horn today and can't make heads or tails of it. I'll post up some pics for advice.
Joined
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3,230 Posts
Welcome! Here is the 1979 Jeep TSM - Technical Service Manual:
Remember: ALWAYS SAFETY FIRST - when working on your CJ!
Remember: ALWAYS SAFETY FIRST - when working on your CJ!
That's great, thank you! To be honest I'm not super positive about my capabilities now, but love to learn, and want to be able to do most on my own. Shame on me. I'll post up as much as I can soon and see if I can get some guidance. Thanks again everyone. It's been great having positive feedback.
Here's a tip to help you get started. When you have identified a problem that you want to work on, read the FSM first! Dont try tomemorize the whole thing, but familiarize yourself with the system you are going to be working on. Again, let use your windshield wipers as an example.
Before you touch the jeep, look at the FSM and the diagrams of how it goes together, and what parts do what. Read the troubleshooting sections and get an idea of how it is supposed to be, this will make you more comfortable once you start actually working on it. It will show how the linkages fo together, what parts are involved with the pivots, and what to do to correct most common issues.
Anything that isnt clear, ask about here.
Learn to use the search feature at the top of the page. There is a great resource of past threads and posts about most everything under the sun to be found that way.
Before you touch the jeep, look at the FSM and the diagrams of how it goes together, and what parts do what. Read the troubleshooting sections and get an idea of how it is supposed to be, this will make you more comfortable once you start actually working on it. It will show how the linkages fo together, what parts are involved with the pivots, and what to do to correct most common issues.
Anything that isnt clear, ask about here.
Learn to use the search feature at the top of the page. There is a great resource of past threads and posts about most everything under the sun to be found that way.
and the pics are ?????????..................
Joined
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13,758 Posts
Good advice,
however,
be ready for mission creep. This is hugely prevalent in CJ's. An example would be a brake adjustment. While under there you find fluid leaking from a cylinder. Fixing the cylinder you find the shoes are bad, replacement the shoes and find an E brake cable frozen, and on and on. Not saying this ALWAYS happens, but you need to be prepared for parts, time, and cost beyond the original repair.
On the upside, most all repairs are doable with an average set of tools and knowledge. Parts are still available and upgrades are usually pretty simple.
Check your ground connections. Jeeps like good grounds. Is one time back I found the little plastic caps/inserts at advance auto. They had a blister pack with different shapes for just a few bucks that covered several years. Good luck.
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