My Jeep Cherokee / Corvette engine swap project. (Current update)

[jamiemac]

Well, a couple of incarnations of the hood later, I've found a combination of vents, and flappers that does the job of allowing the airflow to vent, and not flow back into the engine bay.

First, I got another hood at the local Pull-A-Part, cut 2 vent holes, and shot some Hot Rod satin black on it.



Then I painted the vents and installed them. Don't much care for the carbon fiber look.



I still thought it could do a better job, so I fabbed up some one way flaps. They only allow air out. They close up tight, if airflow goes the wrong way.



The result is a steady 200 degree temp at 70 MPH on the highway, with a few high speed runs showing no significant increase. I still plan on putting vent flaps in the radiator shroud, but it's not a critical mod at this time. I'm happy with the results. The looks...meh

[Scaffolder]

I bet you can surprise some people.
The 1998 Grand Cherokee 5.9 limited had a cool looking vent on the hood. Not sure if it was functional or not.
Great work.

https://www.google.com/search?q=2008+Jeep+grand+Cherokee+5.9&espv=2&biw=1089&bih=508&tbm=isch&imgil=n3Rx4_4maGl52M%253A%253BAc1E1VTGzKncdM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.cherrylola.com%25252Fpicgisi%25252F1998-jeep-grand-cherokee-5.9-reviews&source=iu&pf=m&fir=n3Rx4_4maGl52M%253A%252CAc1E1VTGzKncdM%252C_&usg=__PUgnFW-9TgkuEmbMO68-7mq-FaY%3D&ved=0CC4QyjdqFQoTCP_i7vbdxMcCFYeQDQodBm0GiA&ei=haLcVb-MB4ehNobamcAI#imgrc=QgMKAC8DsqnUqM%3A&usg=__PUgnFW-9TgkuEmbMO68-7mq-FaY%3D

[Racer Boy]

Well, a couple of incarnations of the hood later, I've found a combination of vents, and flappers that does the job of allowing the airflow to vent, and not flow back into the engine bay.


The result is a steady 200 degree temp at 70 MPH on the highway, with a few high speed runs showing no significant increase. I still plan on putting vent flaps in the radiator shroud, but it's not a critical mod at this time. I'm happy with the results. The looks...meh

Great news!

[jamiemac]

I bet you can surprise some people.
The 1998 Grand Cherokee 5.9 limited had a cool looking vent on the hood. Not sure if it was functional or not.
Great work.

https://www.google.com/search?q=2008+Jeep+grand+Cherokee+5.9&espv=2&biw=1089&bih=508&tbm=isch&imgil=n3Rx4_4maGl52M%253A%253BAc1E1VTGzKncdM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.cherrylola.com%25252Fpicgisi%25252F1998-jeep-grand-cherokee-5.9-reviews&source=iu&pf=m&fir=n3Rx4_4maGl52M%253A%252CAc1E1VTGzKncdM%252C_&usg=__PUgnFW-9TgkuEmbMO68-7mq-FaY%3D&ved=0CC4QyjdqFQoTCP_i7vbdxMcCFYeQDQodBm0GiA&ei=haLcVb-MB4ehNobamcAI#imgrc=QgMKAC8DsqnUqM%3A&usg=__PUgnFW-9TgkuEmbMO68-7mq-FaY%3D

Yes, they were functional, & those things were pretty fast for a 4200 pound vehicle. I checked on those vents, and the damn things are about 400 bucks new, and there's none in the salvage yard. :-(
My Cherokee, at a little over 3000 pounds, would definitely surprise some folks. The rear leaf springs are a little too flexy to get good traction off the line, and it's shaped like a cinder block, so all of the pleasing Jeep characteristics still remain. LOL Crappy handling on the road, Buffeting at high speed. ETC. I'd like to see a modified Camaro, or Corvette, race me up Poison Spider trail in Moab, Utah, though. Heheh.

[jamiemac]

The front winch bumper was looking pretty heinous.



So I took it off, used a flap disc on it, and shot some of the Hot Rod black on it.



Got it remounted.



Then I put the winch back on. Jeeps just don't look right without a winch.

[Flat-spot]

Now THAT'S a bumper/winch combo!  It also balances out the look of the "snorting nostrils".  IT'S A BAD BUGGY! 

[jamiemac]

Now THAT'S a bumper/winch combo!  It also balances out the look of the "snorting nostrils".  IT'S A BAD BUGGY! 

Yeah, I noticed the vents didn't seem to stand out as much! I'm pretty happy about that. Glad I'm not the only one that sees it. Thanks, Man!

[RFH87_Connie]

Been off the forum for a while, but have been checking in on your build.  Looks like it is coming along fine.  About a month ago I picked up a '98 TJ with 4L, 4" RC lift, new 33" tires, SYE, Tom Woods drive shaft, adjustable track bars, new exhaust including cat, new top.  It had Death Wobble bad which I corrected with right side ball joints, tie-rod end, and new stabilizer.  It only has 3.07 gears on a D30/D35 combo, so yesterday I went to the junk yard and got a D30/D44 set with 4.11 gears.  I'll put new ball joints in these with new seals at a minimum.  I've never did a ring and pinion change/set-up so I didn't want to tackle it on this where it might see some abuse then fail.  Besides, I wanted at least the D44 rear end.  I'll clean these up then swap these in the next few weeks as my wife is going out of town for about 3 weeks so I have a second vehicle to use (besides the bikes).  I had to replace the distributor because on one of the screws holding the cap on, they busted a screw in tried to drill it out and snapped the drill bit off (found this after I got it home).  The jeep also had no rear bumper so I picked a used Rock Hard 4x4 bumper/tire carrier used locally.  I stripped and sanded it then used Rustoleum's Bed Liner paint on it along with the front one.  This stuff looks really nice - you may want to consider it on yours.

[jamiemac]

A little update on My Jeep Cherokee (Jeepzilla) Project. It's been a while. Several evolutions of certain systems, such as the cooling system, and hood louvers, but I've put about 12K miles on her since the buildup. Here's how it looks now.

I've also worked on My wiring harness in an attempt to make it more robust, and handle winch duty better if needed. A custom built 170 amp alternator, with 2 gauge wiring will fill the bill for that. I've driven it from Indiana to Utah, and put it through the paces in the back country in the Moab area. It's doing what I want it to do. Gets me to the spots I'm no longer able to hike. Utah pics inbound.

[jamiemac]

Here's a shot form the Moki Dugway, before I changed out the cobbled up hood vents to something a little less heinous. And some other Jeep themed pics.







Where we're going, You make Your own roads.

[RFH87_Connie]

Nice!  Glad you got it "done" (haha).  I wish I could get out west to go wheeling.  Beautiful scenery!  I'm on the east coast and try to stay in the rocks when possible.  We're mostly dense wooded trails and of course the EVIL mud.  In the GW National Forest (nearest legal place to me) any mud you find is mostly decayed oily shale that turns into a yellowish muck that stains everything.   Super slippery too.  I had to service my transfer case linkage yesterday as it would no longer get into 4-Lo.  I need to get 4 new bumpers for the linkage where it bolts holder to the body.  At least I'll be good for OBX this coming weekend.  Here's some of mine recently...

[jamiemac]

Nice!  Glad you got it "done" (haha).  I wish I could get out west to go wheeling.  Beautiful scenery!  I'm on the east coast and try to stay in the rocks when possible.  We're mostly dense wooded trails and of course the EVIL mud.  In the GW National Forest (nearest legal place to me) any mud you find is mostly decayed oily shale that turns into a yellowish muck that stains everything.   Super slippery too.  I had to service my transfer case linkage yesterday as it would no longer get into 4-Lo.  I need to get 4 new bumpers for the linkage where it bolts holder to the body.  At least I'll be good for OBX this coming weekend.  Here's some of mine recently...

I'm running a Novak "cable operated" transfer-case shifter adapter, and it eliminates all that linkage. Highly recommended. (Edit to add) The Jeep dealer parts dept usually has those linkage inserts in stock, and they're cheap, (I think $7 for a little bag of them) so if You want to fix it frugally, that's the way to go.

 Love that TJ! Great Jeeps!

[RFH87_Connie]

Just thought I'd post back.  I got the OEM grommet kit, cleaned everything up (wire brush and straighten) and kept it stock.  Works great again, nice and smooth.  Took it out last weekend for a club ride and everything worked perfectly.

On a side note, I just picked up a polished Banks SS header to replace my cracked OEM cast exhaust manifold.  Also, my Ford 8.8 4.56 rear axle is ready to go in, and I have all of the parts to swap the front gears out to 4.56.  Now if I can just find the time.....

[jamiemac]

Just thought I'd post back.  I got the OEM grommet kit, cleaned everything up (wire brush and straighten) and kept it stock.  Works great again, nice and smooth.  Took it out last weekend for a club ride and everything worked perfectly.

On a side note, I just picked up a polished Banks SS header to replace my cracked OEM cast exhaust manifold.  Also, my Ford 8.8 4.56 rear axle is ready to go in, and I have all of the parts to swap the front gears out to 4.56.  Now if I can just find the time.....

Good deal on the 8.8 axle. They are plenty stout. They do have some issues with the tubes twisting in the center section, and a lot of folks get them welded before installing them. I've never actually seen it happen. I'll probably get one for mine, if the CryCorp axle ever grenades. So far, it's not showing any signs of doing so, after 11K miles.

[RFH87_Connie]

Mine is fully welded on each tube.  Whoever did it (the entire axle) did some VERY nice welding.  Nice fillets and very good penetration.  I rebuilt the axle and put new bearings, seals, Pads, rotors, hoses and lines, and anything else that could be replaced then painted it gun metal metallic.  Looks nice!  I still need to get a "good" diff cover.  Probably a Solid or Poison Spyder.  My D35 and D30 are doing fine but the 3.07 ratio is driving me nuts.

[jamiemac]

Very nice! Post some shots after the install if You get a chance.
 Several years ago, I installed 4.56 gears in the diffs on mine, and now that I'm running the V8, I kinda wish I'd gone with 4.11s. I need to go with 33 inch tires now, to get my highway RPMs down some. I kinda like 31s because of less weight, and better mileage. XJ's don't have a lot of tire clearance, so I'm gonna have to trim the fenders and put on some aftermarket flares to do 33 inchers.

[RFH87_Connie]

31s?  You definitely need 33s with 4.56 - I don't care what engine you're running.  You might actually get better mileage.  You could probably go 35s without any other modifications except wheel wells.  They will also help to give a little smoother ride in the rough stuff and of course let you crawl over things easier.  Do you use discos (anti-sway bar disconnects)?  That will make it even better.  I made my own from some 12mm bolts and lynch pins.  I never get to use 5th gear in this area and 1st could be a little lower - I can't wait to dump these 3.07s.

I added one of those vent scoops on the cowl panel facing forward to "improve" air flow to the climate system.  What I found was that it overpowered the blend door going down the road, let in too much hot air, and would burn our feet even when the system was off.  I removed it and everything went back to normal.  I also added a heater core shut off valve so there is no extra heat in the cab when wheeling.  I used a $15 valve from AutoZone and a generic choke cable.  I don't like the cable and will be switching it out for a black plastic sheathed one (Lowes maybe?).  The push/pull knob is located on the fire wall just above the clutch pedal.

[jamiemac]

I went to the 4.56 gears originally to help the six banger in the mountains on I-70. Before the motor got tired, that worked OK. Pulling our little pop up camper over the Rockies wasn't too bad, and it didn't make a lot of difference in fuel mileage. With the V8, the fuel mileage is about 17 on the highway, but at 70 MPH, i'm turning 2500 rpm. 33 inchers will bring me down to about 1900 rpm. I don't really need any bigger, because the knuckles and hubs on a Dana 30 aren't really up to the task. Building a bigger frt axle would cost almost as much as the engine swap. LOL

No disconnects on the frt axle. I had some fancy ones years ago, and never disconnected them once. Got a locker in the rear axle, and I've pulled that pop up camper so far off road, it's wheels weren't touching the ground. haha

[jamiemac]

The latest mods to the Jeep project. Using HP Tuners software to adjust the timing and fuel curve on this rig. Trying to get the highway fuel economy ironed out, while still making good low RPM torque, and plenty of wide open throttle power.