Tired 2.8 V6

I have a 86 xj with the 2.8 V6 and I think it is on its way out. Besides putting another 2.8 in what other 6 cylinder motoors will fit? And why wont a 4.0 fit?This is my second xj Ive owned (the other was a 93) Iam going to use it for a back up truck/occasional driver so I dont want to go to radical! I really need some detailed answers. Please help!!!
jcwxj

there's a good chance your gonna get blasted for not searching.
but i'll give you a tip search, 3.4 swap

The fire walls are different. Go with a 4.3 Chebby.

jcwxj.....

Search brutha........ search!

There are tons of threads on the subject of swapping in 3.4L and 4.3L engines.

The 4.0 is gonna be the biggest challenge to swap into a pre '87 XJ and not worth the headache. The front part of the engine compartment - the radiator support area is much different on the early XJ's. The radiators are different for the 2.8 to the 4.0, the 4.0 mounts farther forward and closer to the grille. The hood latch systems are also different for this reason as the earlier XJ's had a center latch and pin ahead of the radiator, and the '87 and newer had two latches, one at each front corner, because the radiator is now where the center pin/latch would be on earlier XJ's - to accomodate the longer inline 6 engine. Ya dig?

Be sure to get educated on your area's emissions laws regarding engine swaps to make sure you don't piss your swap investment away, but the easiest swap and likely the cheapest is to get the 3.4L from a mid '90's Camaro or Firebird - pretty much a bolt-in.

If running a little better is all you want then change the oil and add a can of Restore with the oil. Years ago my 84 XJ engine had lost a lot of power and the compression readings where from 116 to 132. I tried a can of Restore and by the next oil change the readings went up to 140 across all the cylinders. The other problem I had with the 2.8 was an air leak around the carb throttle shaft.

get a 4.3 L vortec from a blazer or s10 , they are fairly good engines.

Thanks for all the help! I tried searching I guess i wasnt wording it correctly.
Jcwxj

deffinatly go with the 4.3l (350 chevy missing two holes) they are great engines my rock buggy has one with almost 400 hp

4.3 is a good idea..but he will need to change the tranny and t/case too...a lot of work and expense....the 3.4 swap is by far the easiest and least expensive...if you find a good used engine.