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Swapping to bring a smile to my dads face

B

Bowmanet

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Farmville, Virginia
ill try to make this post as simple and as to the point as i can

I have a 1997 dodge ram 1500 5.2 that i am swapping into a 1990 jeep cherokee

I know this isnt the most popular swap, i know that LS swaps have alot more backing and resources, i know it would be simpler for me to rebuild/replace the 4.0... but there is a story behind this swap and ill post that below for anybody interested.

Story Time.
My dad grew up with him and his brothers all owning jeeps (and rolling them for the most part). When i was 7 my dad bought a 1997 dodge ram and we drove that bad boy everywhere, i learned to drive on it, and it eventually became my first vehical when i was legal to drive. well about 6 years ago the transmission went out in it and it was parked due to my dad working out of town so much and rising gas prices ( i got a honda to go to school/work).
Well last year i bought my first jeep, but before i could bring my dad for a ride the jeep started to have alot of issues (renix cooling system being the biggest issue). So while looking to fix it all, i had an idea. Why not give this jeep a heart transplant from the old dodge sitting there rotting away? So i gave it a go and the 318 fired up and ran smooth. I brought both the dodge and the jeep to a friends shop and we started removing drivetrains. At this point i realized that the aisin transmission in the jeep wouldnt bolt up to the 318 from the dodge. My heart sank, this wasnt going to be as simple as i hoped.
Now i have little to no mechanical experience, so im learning as i go. But i really want to bring my dads old truck back to life inside a jeep... that way i can bring him for a joyride before the inevitable happens (His medical state gets worse each year)

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
Where in Virginia are you? You picked an interesting project to try to learn on and we have a few guys throughout the state who may be able to lend a hand
 
The only concern I see here is your comment that you have little to no mechanical experience.

A V8 swap in general is not for the faint of heart, a 5.2L maybe even less so.

That said, it obviously isn't impossible. There have been a few of us who have done it now so there is no question it can be done.

I personally am 100% satisfied with the swap to the 5.2L though a 5.9L would be an even better swap.

So, here are the things to be addressed,

Custom radiator or custom hoses (5.2L has hoses the opposite of the 4.0L). The hose outlets I believe are the same as the GM LS so I believe there is a radiator made for this now, though it's not cheap.

Full custom exhaust. Street Rod exhaust headers are available and about the only option unless you want to fab your own headers.

Custom motor mounts. Grand Cherokee mount for the motor will work with custom frame mounts.

Custom transmission mount or cross member. The length of the 44RE is different from the AW4.

Custom transfer case linkage. I recommend a cable shift conversion.

Custom shift cable bracket. Shift cable itself can be reused.

Custom drive shafts

Custom brackets for throttle and kick down cables.

Possible modification to the hood depending on how high the motor is mounted and what you do for an air cleaner.

A bunch of little crap I'm not remembering at the moment.

Lastly, and not least, massive modification to the wiring harness. I pulled the harness from the donor vehicle and spliced it into the XJ harness. I do not recommend do it this way, it turned out messy. I recommend you modify the existing XJ harness and add in what is needed for the V8 and 44RE Trans (the AW4 uses a separate TCU, the 44RE uses the same ECU as the engine)

A factory service manual or the factory wiring diagrams for the XJ and Ram are a must.

A welder is also a must though you don't need a professional welder. A 180A MIG of some sort would do the trick.

It's a fun and rewarding project but unless you have skill and drive you will end up with an abandon project.

HTH,
Bloose




Sent from my SM-G935R4 using Tapatalk
 
Bloose said:
The only concern I see here is your comment that you have little to no mechanical experience.

A V8 swap in general is not for the faint of heart, a 5.2L maybe even less so.

That said, it obviously isn't impossible. There have been a few of us who have done it now so there is no question it can be done.

I personally am 100% satisfied with the swap to the 5.2L though a 5.9L would be an even better swap.

So, here are the things to be addressed,

Custom radiator or custom hoses (5.2L has hoses the opposite of the 4.0L). The hose outlets I believe are the same as the GM LS so I believe there is a radiator made for this now, though it's not cheap.

Full custom exhaust. Street Rod exhaust headers are available and about the only option unless you want to fab your own headers.

Custom motor mounts. Grand Cherokee mount for the motor will work with custom frame mounts.

Custom transmission mount or cross member. The length of the 44RE is different from the AW4.

Custom transfer case linkage. I recommend a cable shift conversion.

Custom shift cable bracket. Shift cable itself can be reused.

Custom drive shafts

Custom brackets for throttle and kick down cables.

Possible modification to the hood depending on how high the motor is mounted and what you do for an air cleaner.

A bunch of little crap I'm not remembering at the moment.

Lastly, and not least, massive modification to the wiring harness. I pulled the harness from the donor vehicle and spliced it into the XJ harness. I do not recommend do it this way, it turned out messy. I recommend you modify the existing XJ harness and add in what is needed for the V8 and 44RE Trans (the AW4 uses a separate TCU, the 44RE uses the same ECU as the engine)

A factory service manual or the factory wiring diagrams for the XJ and Ram are a must.

A welder is also a must though you don't need a professional welder. A 180A MIG of some sort would do the trick.

It's a fun and rewarding project but unless you have skill and drive you will end up with an abandon project.

HTH,
Bloose




Sent from my SM-G935R4 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I'm working with a friend that owns a shop, his deal with me was I do all the research and provide the parts, and he will help/walk me thru the work. Thanks for all the pointers I'll run it all by him to get him to explain the few things I don't know what and/or where they are
 
The few things I've decided to do to help with the project are dual electric fans rather than the clutch fan to add front clearance. And go thru where the heater core was into the glovebox area for the breather. I'm deleting ac/heat cause I have no need for either
 
Bowmanet said:
The few things I've decided to do to help with the project are dual electric fans rather than the clutch fan to add front clearance. And go thru where the heater core was into the glovebox area for the breather. I'm deleting ac/heat cause I have no need for either
Click to expand...

I am not going to say not to do the full electric fan conversion but the consensus from a lot of jeepers is to keep the OEM setup (one mech, one electric). It's worth trying but it has been proven that no electric fan setup is going to move the volume that a mech fan will. I guess there is only one mech fan with the dodge 1500 setup?

The draw on the electrical system for an all electric fan set up can be pretty hefty :attom:
 
themauler said:
I am not going to say not to do the full electric fan conversion but the consensus from a lot of jeepers is to keep the OEM setup (one mech, one electric). It's worth trying but it has been proven that no electric fan setup is going to move the volume that a mech fan will. I guess there is only one mech fan with the dodge 1500 setup?

The draw on the electrical system for an all electric fan set up can be pretty hefty :attom:
Click to expand...

The ram has one mech fan and my Cherokee didn't have an electric fan either.
 
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1125381&highlight=5.9longarmxj

Just offering up my post for info. If you have any specific questions, let me know. Mine still running strong, but like anything custom still working out small kinks.
I started with a 5.9 motor and 46re (that needed a rebuild) from a 2001 dodge ram 4x4. I will say it is way easier to use a jeep grand Cherokee ZJ V8 transmission for the swap because the starter is on the passenger side and you won't have to customize all the shifter brackets.
 
I too can try to help you out if I can.

My 5.2L and 44RE came from a Dakota and has the starter on the DS like the Ram. I didn't find that to be a major problem.

I also rebuilt the 44RE and it's not too bad.

As for fans, I run 1 OEM XJ electric and one aftermarket next to it. The OEM XJ electric fan pulls more air than nearly any aftermarket fan I know of.

Sent from my SM-G935R4 using Tapatalk
 
Any updates? Don't loose heart man, keep it going..

I didn't like the offerings on motor mounts and found some EBay 'hot rod' motor mounts for about 80.00, that are nice and light compared to either of the HUGE late model ones.
I'm cutting into the frame rails and welding in 3/16 on an angle from wide bottom to thin up top. And adding gussets where the track bar mount is for strength. The frame mounts will be welded in to the 3/16 plate where I need.
On the headers, I got some block hugger ones again from EBay at about 150.00

My Cherokee is a '96 that is 2wd, 4cyl, 5spd and going with a Grand Cherokee 5.2 and a nv3500 from a '97 ram 1500.
Since it was a 4cyl, it's got the vertical radiator and thought of fixing a clutch-fan in it's own frame and figuring up some C.V. joint shaft to take up flexing or movement but still having 1:1 rotation to the water pump.
Also, there isn't much up front between the grill and radiator, so you can 'hollow' out stuff that's not needed to add in a taller radiator.
And, radiator is only about 60% of the cooling. I'm going to cut a opening in the lower part of the bumper and make a long motor oil cooler, along with a filter relocation setup, to help with about 20+% more cooling.

Is yours going to be 4wd or 2? I don't remember reading what it is.

Keep it going, and don't give up. Also, you have some help and shop to work in!
E
 
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