Cherokee :: 1998 Jeep Started Shaking When Engine Started - Backfire

My '98 4.0 has 213k on it and the other day I started the engine and the jeep started shaking like crazy. Eventually the engine quit and refused to turn over so I looked under the hood and quickly discovered the problem, a deteriorated rubber elbow on the left manifold. The elbow connects to a threaded breather type valve in the manifold and has a thin piece of black plastic routing to the purge solenoid next to the left fender/air box.

When I removed the rubber elbow from the manifold the engine eventually turned over and idled fine, I then headed to autozone and found replacements of the same diameter, I cut them down a bit to match the length of the originals. Since its been a while I changed the plugs and wires, coil pack along with cap and rotor while I was at it. I replaced one plug and wire at a time to ensure I didn't mix things up, same goes for the cap. Now the jeep seems to take a few more seconds to get started but once it does it idles fine.

Now when I hit the gas hard the jeep will hesitate and then backfire. If I'm smooth on the gas the jeep drives good, whether city or highway. When coming to a stop the jeep will sometimes buck slightly like it wants to cut but doesn't. The backfire sounds like its coming from the air box and oddly enough, my aftermarket radio no longer plays in the accessory position, probably a separate issue. So far there's been no check engine light.

I really need to keep this jeep for a few more months and I would hate to put big money into at this stage.