jeepgeek2002
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Jax FL
What engines other than the inline 6 do people drop in the xj/mj engine bays?
I ve seen Brents' LS2 .. but anything else?
I ve seen Brents' LS2 .. but anything else?
what other engines in XJ's?
- Thread starter jeepgeek2002
- Start date
- Location
- Camden, SC
I have seen pictures of a Ford 5.0L and there is a 4BT in a commanchee floating around that I know of. 4.3L has been done. In the 84-86 its an easy swap to go from the 2.8L to the 3.1L or the 3.4L out of a camaro. And of course the LS1 and other chevy 350 power plants.
601cherokee
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Mississippi
There was a severely modded yellow xj in JP in the last year that had a 502 in it. :worship:
Team Willys
www.rocksolidfab.com
- Location
- Chattanooga, TN
Hey Mark,
There are actually several options that are really easy and can be done without the need for adapters (in some cases). Ghost kinda touched on this, but I want to expand it further.
The GM 60* bolt pattern blocks (also known as the Small GM corporate pattern) have a lot in common with many engines in the GM, Chrysler, and even the Isuzu world.
So... with this in mind, it is fairly easy to use any engine with the 60* bolt pattern. Examples of these are the 2.8, 3.1, 3.4 and 3.8 V6 engines, as well as the 2.5 4 cylinder (Jeep or GM), and awesome enough, all Cadillac FWD V6 (shortstar) and V8 (northstar) engines, as well as the 5.3 all aluminum LS4 V8 found in Impala SS cars. The trick is finding the correct factory parts to make it simply bolt together. If you want to go automatic, there is a bellhousing found in Isuzu trucks and amigos that have the V6 engine and an automatic. The engine shares the same bolt pattern as the GM 60* blocks, and the trans is also manufactured by Aisin Warner and shares a bolt pattern with the AW4. So that gets the trans bolted to the engine. You will need some special spacers and maybe redrill the flexplate to get the Torque converter bolted up, but it is very doable. If a manual is on your mind, then you are golden there too. The AX15 also has many ways of making it fit. The no adapter route is to use a bellhousing from a Dodge Dakota with the 2.5 and an AX15. The Jeeps input shaft already has the correct splines to work with the GM clutch, so no issues there. However, using that bellhousing, from what I understand, does create some starter issues. My suggestion would be to use a bellhousing from an 87 Firebird with the 2.8 V6, then use the AX15 to GM adapter plate as it will work a lot better and be much less of a headache.
I would love to see a Supercharged 3.8 mated to a AX15 and a 231 in a Cherokee. It would get good mileage and have a ton of power to make it more than a blast to drive. I guess in the end, you can pretty much put whatever engine in that you want, your limiting factor will always be the amount of time and money that you want to spend on it. But, I definitely feel like the 60* GM engine are the most economical way (as far as bolting everything together) to go.
Here are a couple of links with more info and pictures on how to make it work:
Ultimate Bellhousing/Engine Swap Guide
GM 3.8 to AX15
There are actually several options that are really easy and can be done without the need for adapters (in some cases). Ghost kinda touched on this, but I want to expand it further.
The GM 60* bolt pattern blocks (also known as the Small GM corporate pattern) have a lot in common with many engines in the GM, Chrysler, and even the Isuzu world.
So... with this in mind, it is fairly easy to use any engine with the 60* bolt pattern. Examples of these are the 2.8, 3.1, 3.4 and 3.8 V6 engines, as well as the 2.5 4 cylinder (Jeep or GM), and awesome enough, all Cadillac FWD V6 (shortstar) and V8 (northstar) engines, as well as the 5.3 all aluminum LS4 V8 found in Impala SS cars. The trick is finding the correct factory parts to make it simply bolt together. If you want to go automatic, there is a bellhousing found in Isuzu trucks and amigos that have the V6 engine and an automatic. The engine shares the same bolt pattern as the GM 60* blocks, and the trans is also manufactured by Aisin Warner and shares a bolt pattern with the AW4. So that gets the trans bolted to the engine. You will need some special spacers and maybe redrill the flexplate to get the Torque converter bolted up, but it is very doable. If a manual is on your mind, then you are golden there too. The AX15 also has many ways of making it fit. The no adapter route is to use a bellhousing from a Dodge Dakota with the 2.5 and an AX15. The Jeeps input shaft already has the correct splines to work with the GM clutch, so no issues there. However, using that bellhousing, from what I understand, does create some starter issues. My suggestion would be to use a bellhousing from an 87 Firebird with the 2.8 V6, then use the AX15 to GM adapter plate as it will work a lot better and be much less of a headache.
I would love to see a Supercharged 3.8 mated to a AX15 and a 231 in a Cherokee. It would get good mileage and have a ton of power to make it more than a blast to drive. I guess in the end, you can pretty much put whatever engine in that you want, your limiting factor will always be the amount of time and money that you want to spend on it. But, I definitely feel like the 60* GM engine are the most economical way (as far as bolting everything together) to go.
Here are a couple of links with more info and pictures on how to make it work:
Ultimate Bellhousing/Engine Swap Guide
GM 3.8 to AX15
