I was down at the old-car junkyard today, and I took a look 'round for 1993 to '98 Jeep Grand Cherokees that I might be able to get the steering boxes from.

He had three Cherokees (not Grand), all pre-'93, all with accessible steering boxes.

Every one of them looked just like the '93 to '98 models, as far as I could tell, but I held off on grabbing one because I didn't want to lie in the mud for an hour, then find out I'd pulled the wrong box.

So, my question is, where does this "'93-onward" idea come from?
Did Jeep begin using a different steering box in 1993, in the same old body?
Or, did someone pull a number out of a hat, and that's the number that everybody is using without question?

Inquiring minds want to know...

- Eric

 

Okay, I've checked RockAuto's site (easy layout for comparisons), and they show
1984 Jeep Cherokee - Atsco 7525, Cardone 277525, Delco 360517525
1992 Jeep Cherokee - Atsco 7525, Cardone 277525, Delco 360517525
1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee - Atsco 7525, Cardone 277525, and Delco 360517525
1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee - Atsco 7525, Cardone 277582 or 277570 (both of these reference to 1996 to 1998 models only), and Delco 360517525.

You'll notice that the same Atsco and Delco numbers are listed for all models, but there is some sort of a change reflected in the Cardone numbers as of 1996 (NOT 1993).

So, why is the selection limited to the '93 to '98 Gand Cherokee (ZJ) models, rather than the '84-on Cherokee (XJ) models?

Anyone? Bueller?

- Eric

 

I've been poking around a certain Chevelle forum, and have found a number of admonitions against using steering boxes from anything other than a '92½ to '98 Jeep Grand Cherokee, including one that looks to be from Jim Shea himself. By implication, the reason is that the others have higher numerical ratios, but I haven't seen this spelled out yet, and if that were so, then why do the replacement boxes cover the entire '84 to '98 year range, and not change at '93?

I also found a document that I already had (duh), in which Jim Shea lists the specifications of the various Jeep GC boxes from those years. There are a number of boxes, specifically:

• AL from 1992½ to '94
• JH from 1995
• KD from 1996
• WK from 1997 to '98

All apparently have the same 12.7:1 ratio, 20-26 ounce effort, 0.195" T-Bar, and 43°45' sweep, so I am a bit baffled by the differences in part numbers through these years, and even more so, by the differences in prices .

Any further information would be welcome...

- Eric

 

Not sure on the answer, my closest yard had several 95 and 96 boxes for $50.
The difference is like night and day, you'll love it.