cam change on a non stroked 96+

Just wanted to see if anyone here had done it. I know Dino will eventually chime in. The reason I ask is that the 96 has the newer dual profile cam and is not as prone to gains associated with cam swaps.

Whenever my engine needs a rebuild(only 112K now), I'll probably go ahead and stroke it. But I only drive around 15k miles a year and feed her only mobil 1. So I've probably got quite a few years before the rebuild is necessary, but want the performance now. This is a street only rig, with a mind geared toward performance and longevity. Mileage has always been important to me, but I'm about to start working in a real career, so that could take a back seat, but is preferred not too.

I was considering within the next year(got a wedding to get by first) porting the head as well as slightly bumping the CR(wanna run 89 at most), banks header, 99 intake manifold, and a cam change. Which cam would give optimal performance for this setup, but could still be suitable for a stroker? What parts would also be needed for the cam swap(lifters, springs)?

TIA
will

DeftwillP said:

Just wanted to see if anyone here had done it. I know Dino will eventually chime in.

Click to expand...

How did you know?
The cam that I recommend is usually the Crane 753905 since it's also probably the best for a stroker as well. The problem is that you won't see any real gain with the cam on its own because your existing cam is pretty good. You could follow my lead and do all the external bolt-on mods, port the head, and bump the CR a bit higher. Your 4.0 will feel like it flies once past 3000rpm but you won't notice as much performance gain below that.
Your engine's still young and you'll have grey hair if you wait until it needs rebuilding. You could follow my lead again and look for a used 4.0 longblock to use as a core for a stroker.
________________________________________________________________
1992 XJ Laredo 4-dr - 4.6L I6 HO Stroker - 176k miles - AX15, NP231, D35c, D30
Estimated 263hp/323lbft, best 1/4 mile [email protected] before stroker install
Websites - Jeep 4.0 Performance, 4.6L Stroker Build-Up, Dino's Jeep Tricks

Well, low end is what I really want. Once again, I am confounded. Are your estimated hp numbers different for cam changes on 96+? Meaning, if I did add all the above mentioned to compliment my homemade fipk, intake/exhaust heatshield, bored tb and bored spacer, dual fan, ignition(msd coil, magnecore wires), carsound cat, dynomax exhaust, and all synthetics, what kind of hp could I expect?

With all the external bolt-ons, you'd be in 225hp territory. Porting the head and raising the CR will get you up to ~240hp. The Crane cam that I mentioned will add ~10hp/15lbft on a pre-'96 4.0 but only ~5hp/11lbft on a '96+ 4.0.
If you want more low end and are not going to build a stroker later on, go for the smaller Crane 750501 cam and keep the CR near stock. You'll end up with something like the Stage 2a low/medium rpm torquer engine that I have featured here.

So the 750501 won't work with a cr in the low 9s? I was thinking somewhere around 9.22, which would still allow for 89 octane correct?

Also, with that CR and either of the two cams, would this engine setup respond better to a stage 2 jet than is normally produced? Would I be able to run 89 without pinging? Would it work with OBDII? There seem to be alot of them floating around from people adding a cat back and intake and get pissed cuz they're chip doesn't do anything for them. I seem to remember one on JU awhile back for around 125.

Don't bother with a chip. If the CR's going to be ~9.22, go for the Isky 133125/26 cam. You'll still be able to run 89 octane and have all the low rev torque you'll need.

I think you can kinda see where I'm going with this. Build up hp and efficiency without increasing displacement.....yet. So the Isky stick could run with a low 9 CR and would also compliment the ported head? I figured with all these things here, it wouldn't be impossible to get to 250 hp on 89 octane without actually gaining any displacement.


Plans I dream about: Do the above mods. After a couple of years(I'm transitioning my life into getting a career and growing up ) start putting together a junkyard turbo. I forsee this as building hp and torque like a stroker but having better effects on mileage. At that point I would of course have to do something to build up the strength of the engine before I start feeding it a couple of pounds of boost(~5 or 6 max). Prolly have to put in dished pistons to bring that cr back down. Build up the bottom and top end for reliability.

It IS possible to get 250hp out of a naturally-aspirated 4.0 but you'll need a CR nearer to 9.5:1 and the Crane 753905 cam as well as a ported head to get there. You'll need to shave 0.020" from the block deck, 0.010" from the head, and use the Mopar 4529242 head gasket to reach a 9.5:1 CR. You probably could still run 89 octane with this combo because the quench height will be down to 0.045", so you can still have your cake and eat it.

What about the turbo questions? I think my fiance might be getting me a book by corky bell for my bday.

eh Dino???

Also, would I need to build a map sensor adjuster as well?