New owner problems

OK, just bought a 74 CJ5, V8
now the problems begin.What does it mean when the little amp light blinks in the speedo cluster? Also, i have a rutted paved road that i have to drive on..... the jeep goes all over the place. I replaced the steering damper, it helped some, but it still wants to go where it feels like, the tire are 31X 10, Also.... where in the heck is the fuse panel, the manual says its under the dash, for the life of me, i can't find it. thanks in advance..... I'll have a bunch more questions.
Larry

 

Well A few things come to mind. Shocks and spring and shackle bushings. The bushing are most likely the originals that are worn out. Replacomg those made a great difference in the handling of my 72.

 

alignment.... and don't forget; it's a jeep, they do that...



BUBBA

 

Which manual? At some point in that era, Jeep switched from inline fuses to a fuse box. If it's not obvious, you likely don't have one.

 

Well, don't lower your expectations too much. If it seems unsafe, something's worn out or broken. If you have original height springs and stock shackles, only the toe-in can be adjusted. Have someone turn the steering wheel back and forth slowly and look for movement. Check the tie rods, steering box slop, joint between the steering column and the steering box, springs, spring u-bolts, steering box bracket, frame, shackles, shackle bushings, ball joints... just about everything that could be moving in response to the steering moving.

 

About the amp light. It could be a couple of things. My gut feel is that you probably have the old 35amp alternator in there. At low rpm they have almost no amp output. The difference in voltage between the battery and alternator causes the light to light up. Mine did this at low rpms too. You could bump up your idle a little or swap the alternator out to a more current (time context not electrical context) version. Thats what I did. It was cheap ($20 for a 105amp alt from a pull a part) and easy. On the other hand it could mean that your regulator is on the way out or is malfunctioning.

Karl

 

The diodes in the Motorola alternators are problematic too. Used to be that you could get the parts to repair them, but today it's probably cheaper to go with the Delco unitized alternator (with the internal regulator).

 

thanks guys. i'll check it all out

 

Yes, Switching to the Delcotron internal regulator alternator will cure the early Motorola problems and obtaining parts to keep it totally original. The Delco is easily wired and installed. Please Email me and visit our Web Site for more details
John
www.jeep4x4center.com
www.cyberjeep.com

john@cyberjeep.com