1986 pioneer questions

OK, I finaly got my head screwed on right and picked up a lifted(2" rear, 4" front) 1986 2wd Pioneer 2 door for $100. The guy I got it from knew very little about it other than a lot of stuff had been done to it(offroading, etc...). The reason(s) he sold it so cheap were:
1. "engine's blown" upon further discussion he said that water was pouring out of the side of the block(2.5L) and he drove it that way for a while.
2. the exaust system is nonexistant behind the manifold/header (don't know which)
3. the interior is quite soggy, but not yet moldy(it has a moonroof)
4. the previous previous owner did a lot of wierd stuff to it, like removing both bumpers, butchering both front fenders, putting 2" spacers front and rear along with 2" lift coils in front, and did a LOT of mudding(at least 100lb of dirt/concrete caked on the bottom)

My questions are: what could be wrong with the 2.5?, how hard would it be to put in an AW4, NP207,and Dana 30 from my parts car in order to make this 4wd?, Lastly, what can I do about the interior?
All posts are apriciated.

(1) Engine. Could be as simple as a rusted out freeze plug, or it could be what he said -- a blown engine. If it froze without anti-freeze in it, it would probably crack the block. I lost an engine that way once (pre-XJ by a few centuries).

(2) The 2.5L engine uses a smaller bell housing to block bolt pattern than the 4.0L, so an AW4 is not a bolt-up swap. It's the same bolt pattern as the 2.8L, which is a GM engine. So you can pull a tranny and transfer case from any V-6 XJ, or from any 2.8L or 3.4L S-10.

Dang! I just tossed a 2.8 tranny, but i kept the transfer case(NP207C). Will the transfer case bolt up to the tranny I have, or do I need a new one(transmission)?

Lifted 2WD with reverse rake? People do weird things...

I seem to recall that the bellhousing pattern on the back of the AMC2/46 is the same as for the 4.0, so you could probably get away with adapting the AW4 and such to it. I don't know about the rear crank flange (the 4.0 uses a six-bolt, but I've not seen a 2.46 in the flesh yet...) so you might run into flexplate issues. However, given the output of the 2.46 and the requirements of an automatic transmission, you might want to consider going to a 4-speed or a 5-speed manual instead...

How much of the donor front end do you have? I think you'll need a bit more than just the axle.... :wave:

"Water pouring out the side of the block" sounds like welch plugs to me - they're the brass cup plugs you'll see if you take a good look. They're easier to put in than they look, but they are a bit of a pain to pull out without pushing them into the block, so be careful there. If you drill out a little to one side within the plug, you can then use a "seal puller" hook to grab it and lever it out. Apply some RTV Copper or Black to the new one, and drive in gently with a light mallet and a socket that just fits into the cup. Get the brass ones if you can - the steel ones (even the CRES) seem to want to corrode or something after a while. I've noticed much better longevity with the brass.

Finding new fenders will be a bit problematic, since they were changed in 1987 for the 4.0 (the whole front clip was lengthened) and you'll probably have to get them new from Quadratec or someone similar (see if Crown Auto has a local in your area...)

You'll probably end up pulling the carpet and seats - dry the seats well and replace the carpet (or just Herculine the thing - but don't get any on your "hootus!") The sunroof can be sealed with RTV Black andd diligence - I think I needed three tubes to finally finish the job on the (aftermarket) sunroof in my 88 (which I plan on getting removed and filled in anyhow...) Patience is the key...

Bumpers? No shortage of those, as long as the mounting hardpoints in the frame didn't get thrashed. What do you want, and how much do you want to spend? Qtec even has OEMR bumpers, if that's what you want...

Oh - when you get the undercarriage cleaned, take the time to inspect the driveshafts. When you mention concrete under there, I'm just paranoid enough to want to make sure a DS balance weight didn't get thrown - if you look carefully, you'll see a non-faded spot and might pick up a couple small spotwelds where it was if it is there no more...

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Eagle said:

(2) The 2.5L engine uses a smaller bell housing to block bolt pattern than the 4.0L, so an AW4 is not a bolt-up swap. It's the same bolt pattern as the 2.8L, which is a GM engine. So you can pull a tranny and transfer case from any V-6 XJ, or from any 2.8L or 3.4L S-10.

Click to expand...

Oops - our feathered sage catches me out! Was it the AX4, then, that was behind the 2.46?

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I have no idea if the weight is there or not, the ENTIRE undercarage looks like someone went through wet concrete, so much so that the only parts of the driveshaft and rear end that I can distinguish are the parts that move.
This makes me wonder what parts might be worn out from the driveshaft being insanely out of ballence, but hey, for $100 I get what I paid for.

Yeah - it was just the word "concrete" that started me wondering. Even if it's wet, it still has the ability to knock things off from where they need to be rather handily. I'd not be surprised if you have to chip it off of some parts...

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