/sigh
In my defense, my actual work time was limited. Most of the time, she sat in an acquaintance's shop while I had other, more pressing tasks to do. I worked on her when I could. Two months were eaten up by an electrical issue that was super easy to fix once I figured out my error (note: cylinder number does not equal firing order).
Along the way in my troubleshooting, I noticed that the gas was truly filthy. Even after I figured out that the failure to turn over was an electrical issue, I decided I should probably replace the fuel line and fuel sending unit anyway, just to be safe.
I was half-right.
Off to O'Reilly's to order a fuel sending unit. Except they couldn't order one in-house, so there was no telling if/when they could get one. Fortunately, my friend who helped repatriate Theseia to her new home had a brand-NIB unit for his Scrambler that he wasn't using any time soon.
I dropped the tank, drained it (because naturally, I had filled it before realizing the issue), removed the old unit, and washed out the tank. I shoved my little ShopVac's hose into the corner and sucked out all the rust flakes. Then I installed the new fuel sending unit, bolted the tank back in place, and ran new flexible fuel line to the in-line filter I had installed years ago. Then I called it a day and washed the gas off me.
All that was left the following trip was replacing the manifold to Y pipe gaskets, and I was ready to drive. I had the Squirt with me, so I buckled him in and took him across the highway to our home.
I should have quit while I was ahead.
Instead, when the Shieldmaiden returned with the girls, I buckled them into Theseia and took them over to the shop for cleanup detail. They had fun sweeping and playing with the kitty litter. When we were done, I loaded them back into the jeep.
At this point, I should probably note that "fixed the electrical issue" is a relative term. After six years in the woods of da Yoop, the dash is one big mouse/squirrel nest, and the wires are chewed. I'm currently hotwiring her under the hood to get her started.
I fired her up, then closed the hood and jumped in the driver's seat. About the time I was throwing her in gear, the engine idled down and died.
Well, [redacted].
I opened the hood and found what I was half expecting: the inline fuel filter was completely plugged. Fortunately, I had new cores for the filter, so I cleaned it up and swapped out the core.
No dice. There was nothing more than a tiny trickle getting through. And a rust-colored one, at that. Presumably, the filter in the tank is clogged.
Fortunately, it turns out that new OEM-style gas tanks are a whopping $70 on Amazon. So as long as I'm dropping the tank, I'll just change it out for one that's not (apparently) still shedding rust.
But, hey, the kids have officially been introduced to how Jeep ownership works!
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