easiest way to measure this is to take off the aw4 from the bellhousing, bolt it up to a motor and measure from the trans mounting surface of the bellhousing to the mounting surface of the flex plate. do the same for whatever bellhousing you're going to use bolted to the 5.3. add the thickness of the trans adapter plate to the dimension you got from the 5.3 setup and subtract the aw4/4.0 dimensions from that sum. this will give you the flexplate spacer thickness you need.
That's kinda what I meant, I just wasn't clear. The two spacers/adapters probably won't be the same thickness, I was just using round numbers for the sake of simplicity. We really don't know what the final product is going to turn out to be until we get some serious Cardboard Aided Design, followed by some real CAD/CAM work.
you have a few obsticals to overcome with this, interested to see how it pans out. easiest way would be to use a gm trans i think. you may be able to integrate your aw4 shifter into the 4l60e, however that is only a guess. i'm not sure exactly you'd have to manage the TC lockup or anything like that.
Yes, we have a couple challenges, (some which I haven't mentioned yet) but part of the fun is figuring it out. Yes, the easiest (by FAR) way to do this would be use a 2WD 4L60e, but that puts us out of our budget (though if this doesn't work, we'll probably go that route). And I really want to see if the AW4 will hold up, because
every non-Cherokee person said it's hopeless. I want to prove them wrong.
I've really enjoyed following your on-road racing with the Cherokee. Reading your article about your oiling problems and solutions was very interesting. I think the 5.3 is a great choice for an engine swap and is a great all around motor. I am disappointed though that your swapping out the 4.0 in your XJ. Endurance road racing with a 4 litre was what I was interested in.
Thanks! I, too, am bummed that we can't make the 4.0 work. We have every bolt on upgrade possible (99+ intake, ported H.O. head, HO fuel rail, bored TB, header, 2.5" exhaust w/ no cat into a Cherry Bomb, bigger injectors, cold air intake, etc) and we still are barely making 130 hp at the rear tires. We're just not competitive for the win using the 4-point-slow. It's
really, really, really frustrating setting up a pass for three laps only to have the guy drive right by you on the next straight. After 13 races, 10k+ race miles and 3 years I think we've learned all we can about the 4.0 within our imposed budget constraints. On the Team

/Petty Cash Racing 4643 KOH car the Bishop/Buell Racing 4.7 stroker is insanely awesome, but was also mucho expensive. And after our 505 Performance stroker blew a piston out of the side of the block after 2.5 hours, I'm unwilling to go down that road again.
So the only Cherokee drivetrain left will be the AW4? Not exactly a Cherokee anymore.
The AW4 and the beam axle are still original! And the unibody! Really, we haven't changed any more than many people do here with armor, bigger axles, etc. It's still very much a Cherokee in my mind; if it isn't then a lot of rigs on

wouldn't qualify either.
-Matt