Topic: Plan for my TJ.....I need your opinion

[Steve97TJ]

I currently own a 97 TJ SE. Some may know the SE's came with the high HP 4 cylinder 2.5 engine and mine came with the ax5 transimission which is the manual tranny behind the 4 bangers. Ive only done a few things to it like 31 bfg allterrains on jeep gambler rims, swapped coils from a V8 Grand Cherokee in, and when my rear end went i put in a Dana 44 that already had a detroit and 4.88s in it. Its pretty cool but theres so much that needs improving.

Ive never liked the engine or transmission thats in it at all. And until recently i havent really had THAT many problems with it but i still don't like it. I believe my slave or master cylinders started leaking recently and it cause both the master and slave to go bad as well as the clutch so there goes 1600 outta my pocket. It probably wasn't even a month and im driving downtown and i hear some AWFUL noises coming from my transmission area. I pull over and i cant really see anything out of the normal but it makes it in ever gear and pretty much anytime my jeeps on. I get followed home and the next morning i take it to the transmission shop that did my clutch a few weeks before when as im pulling into the shop, my jeep locks up. Wont budge a hair. I put it in 4lo and my clutch just starts smoking and i gently creep forward while my engines straining and rev'd way high. The guy comes out and is like we can look at it but we'll have to haul it to our other shop cross town because were moving stores and we don't have anything to look at it here but he says from what he thinks the planetary gear or something inside is loose and it can either be a big deal or something very simple and relatively cheap as far as transmissions go. Well we decided not to go through with that trouble but leave my jeep there and my dad comes down a day or two later and picks up my jeep and drops me off another car because im currently away off at college and need a car to drive. He takes it back to the upstate and its been sitting in my barn chilling since we pulled it in there with our tractor.

Ive been toying around with what i want to do with it and im still unsure. I know this is pretty much an all toyota site but i figured id still get yalls opinion too and just kinda tell you what im thinking about doing right now. I had an I6 lined up with engine transmission transfer case and computer all for 700 which was a heck of a deal and it would be a relatively easy swap. then i started thinking why settle for an I6 when i have another vehicle i can drive and wheel and now i could finally build a jeep that ive always wanted to. I know this is going to take some time and money and being in college doesnt help but i think that i can slowly build it up in the next months and make it pretty bad arse.

I want to 3 link front with pan hard bar and 4 link single triangulated rear, 2.0-2.5 air shox at all corners most likely, dana 60 front with detroit, hydro assist and either 5.13 or 5.38 gears with a 14 bolt rear detroit most likely and either 5.13 or 5.38 gears with discs all around. Tires are still up in the air with some 40 inch maxxis creepy crawlers, 39.5 or 42 irocs, or some 42 super swampers all on either trail ready bead locks, H2's or some type of 17 wheel. Goal is to keep as low as possible, going to comp cut the rear and stretch it front and rear. It has to be street legal and also comfortable on the street. Id like to be able to DD it if i needed to and ive learned to deal and make do with giving up a few things as far as creature comforts.

As for the engine and transmission goes, im still up in the air as to what to run. If i ran an I6 id want to stroke it and i can stroke it for relatively cheap and either have it fuel injected or propane from GOT PROPANE. I like the 302 because im a ford guy and ppl put them in TJs a good bit so that would be another option with either fuel injection or propane. And of course theres always a 350. 350 would be relatively cheap because theres so many around and theres so many parts for them that its ridiculous. Again id run either fuel injection, the multi-port fuel injection or propane. I love the idea of propane for the simplicity of it and its just cool, and where my parents live at in the upstate i know of several places that will refill propane but not so much in the lower part of the state which is why im kinda skeptical of running it on anything. As for the tranny goes I want a manual. I love manual transmissions. Im thinking either a nv3500 or nv4500 would be a good transmission but still not sure. Transfer case would have to be something that mated to one of those. I have a np231 now and could beef it up a little and run a dana 300 behind it for choice of gears which would be pretty nice. I dont know much about a 203/205 combo but they seem to be everywhere. Then theres the 4 speed atlas or stak transfer case that would be pretty much bad ass and give me the option of doing front digs and what not.

Sorry to ramble on so much im just trying to think out loud right now. I have a few things that would help me fuel the build and help me fund it. I dont really have that much expenses in my life that aren't already paid for or being paid for. I am fortunate to have a father that pays for me to go to college and most living expenses so thats not really that big of a deal. This would ultimately be a chance for me to learn a lot about fabbing and long arm systems as well as engines. I would like to do as much work myself with the help of a few friends and my dad who would enjoy spending time together. What do you guys think i should do?

I already have a toyota so don't tell me to sell it and get that and im thinking of buying a cherokee for cheap so that i'd have another DD.

[iNfErNaL]

Do it!!!   

[Steve97TJ [OP]]

What powerplant should i run?

A v8 would be awesome but i donno if it would be worth all the extra work and money. Ive also thought about running an I6 while i built a bad ass v8 and just swap them in sometime.

[88_Pathy]

Do it all Toyota w/ the 4.0 motor. I think there is a thread on here.

[iNfErNaL]

Do it all Toyota w/ the 4.0 motor. I think there is a thread on here.

I wouldn't do it with the Toyota 4 litre.He's gonna end up spending an arm and a leg,might as well do a 5.7 swap.

[iNfErNaL]

What powerplant should i run?

A v8 would be awesome but i donno if it would be worth all the extra work and money. Ive also thought about running an I6 while i built a bad ass v8 and just swap them in sometime.

I would definately run the 4 litre,it's got plenty of low and high end in my opinion.If you have the chance to get the one for $700 I say go for it!!!!.I had an '89 with the 2.5 and was gonna do a V8 swap and I ended up buying a 4.0 out of a '95 with the Ax15 AND 231 T-case for pretty cheap and ended up going that route and man I loved the power.That thing ran like a sportscar after that,then I ended up going to an Atlas T-case.

[skipnrocks]

If your going to go through all the desighn work then go four link in front also,  If you put in all that work you will probably be dissapointed with the three link both the performance and handling.  I started with a four link rear on my jeep and 3 up front and it cycled without binding but especially with the long travel fox shocks the axle will pull pretty farr to one side during flex.  There are many other advantages to four links over 3 as well. The d60 14 bolt combo is awesome and fairly inexpensive I would vote go for it...  If your going to dd this rig and you can find a deal on a v8 it would be a good way to go......  I would say my main  piece of advice would be plan carefully and plan for the future...  So if you want four links go for it, if you want v8, of course that is if you can afford it or find deals that work for you, it makes me sick the money  I have have put in over my build only to go back and change it to what I wanted in the first place...

[Steve97TJ [OP]]

Thanks for all the input. Im sure the I6 will probably do the job for me and with the right gearing you don't "really" need power that much. I think i'm just going to go with an I6. You can stroke them out to a 4.6 or 4.7 for about 1200 using the crank of the 4.2 engine. If i go this route i believe i'll still get a v8 at some time and build on it and stick it in when i have time. Although i love toyotas, i think its a little sacreligious (sp?) to have a jeep with toyota running gear, same with a toyota with jeep running gear. The deal i found for $700 was truly a steal, but the guy kind of backed out on me. He bent the frame on his jeep and was just going to part everything out on it but then ended up now changing his mind and says its easier to just sell it as a whole. Which sucks for me but you do what you gotta do i guess. Im just going to find a I6 for cheap i suppose then rebuild and stroke it. Find a computer that came with the manual tranny I6 and either run the ax15, nv3550 or what id really like is a nv4500. It is probably an overkill for the I6 but i hope to one day put a v8 or diesel in it and that tranny's got the beef. Ive already got the 231 from whats in it now and since i'll already have it all apart i may get the mad rooster adapter and run a dana 300 after that to have some nice choices in gearing or just justify the cost of going atlas. East coast wheeling is different then what yall have over on the left coast. Wheel speed is a big issue with all the mud and stuff around. But i guess with all the shortage of water in the southeast now, we might not have to worry about mud in the future.....

Thanks for the input everyone.

[Steve97TJ [OP]]

Infernal thats a sick yj! Whats the specs on it?


Skipnrocks, Could you explain more about the 4 link in the front? I'm trying to learn about all the link suspension and what not and it just seems like up front running a 3 link is easier and i've never heard that it affects flex.

[skipnrocks]

Ill give you a rundown from my experience with between 4 links and 3,  with the three link your rig is more prone to something called bumpsteer, where when one tire hits a bump and there is a differance between between the tires the track bar will drag the rig slightly to one side...  Thats not a huge issue and if you desighn properely it will be minimal, however during flex is one area where the deflection becomes evident I wish I had a picture but the track bar may only pull the axle an inch or so during the first four inches of travel but then it quickly pulls more and more, the longer the track bar the less severe the bumpsteer and axle drag during flex, I have sixteen inch fox shocks in front of my rig and it would pull a ton...  Second depending on the situation or angle it may not allow as free articulation.  A well desighned four link will counter all these problems,  the axle should always stay centered, which means no bump steer and no axle drag under full articulation.

I am definatly a fan of the fourlink especially after seing how it changed the charactics of my rig.  However three links are far easier to desighn and if your not going with a long travel suspension would be sufficient,  But it doenst cost that much more to build a four link but it definatly takes some planing. 

ask lots before you start to desighn and read everything you can find if your going to build it yourself...

Hope that helps...
 

[iNfErNaL]

Infernal thats a sick yj! Whats the specs on it?

Thanx man!!!  .It's an '89 YJ with a 4.0 out of a '95,AX15,Atlas t-case,Dana 60 front,14 bolt rear,lockers,42s,beadlocks,103" wheel base,fully caged.Here's some pics the new owner just sent me,he painted it up and put new seats and 35 spline outters on it.

[Steve97TJ [OP]]

That thing is sick man. It will take me a little bit to start on my jeep but hopefully when i get started it wont take me long to at least get it able to wheel a little bit. Theres still a few things im a little unsure of what direction to go but i will definitely keep yall posted. May even start a build thread in here.

Why'd you sell your jeep for a toyota? Just curious...