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4.0 rebuild, 243 hp, 286 ft-#'s torque!

If you can stroke it, you can get some really great numbers from a 4.7! Better than the engine dyno numbers from the video. I think that RCP Phx recently dyno'd his stroker after his rocker swap and got some really solid HP and TQ numbers all the way across the RPM band.
 
Yes and it cost a lot more for the stroker if you are going to do right anyway.
My recent dyno was 350hp/400 ft/lbs torque.
 
I meant to say "it Doesn't" cost a lot more for the stroker! Remember that Edelbrock head alone is almost $2k, if you spent that much with Russ you would see a lot more HP from a big valve fully ported head with a matching ported intake manifold.
 
to be honest, if I were going to do it all over again... I'd go with a stoker.
you just don't NEED the 400+hp on the trails you get from a v8 sbc -- and at the really, really low rpms where we spend most of our time, a 4.0 is going to perform just as well as a 5.7.
don't get me wrong, I love my sbc and the sound turns heads, but … im constantly chasing crap down, everything is a one-off fab job, and the install itself is not all that easy (mostly because of the geometry of the engine bay). and at this point, I only have it registered to tool around towns when I'm at the trails so I don't have to unhook my trailer, so any benefit I get from additional power for the street is lost. Plus a stroker is unique, hardly see any on the trails.

good luck and keep us posted.
 
Several years ago, my friend ask me up help increase his 1997's 4.0 power.
He didn't want to remove and build the engine so I took a different approach.

The 7120 head was removed and taken to an old-school, local speed shop, Valley Head Service, a place I had been using since being a teenage in the 60's.
http://www.valleyhead.com/heads.html

The head and late model intake manifold were ported, polished and flow matched, with an emphasis on maintaining air good flow at low RPMs.
The stock cam fit this goal.
While the head and intake were at the shop, a full Banks exhaust system, from header to exhaust pipe, was purchase and installed. A 62mm throttle body was also installed.

Once reassemble, this really woke the 4.0 up. At WOT, it pulls strong from an idle all the way to 5200-RPM, to where the computer shifts it.
It's how the engine could've been built from the Factory and is a lot more fun to drive. I now own this XJ, bought from my late friend's estate. I prefer driving it on the street, compared to my built 2001 with a 4.6 stroker. The 97 is much lighter, lower, narrower and easier to throw around, the perfect around-town car.
 
No, there's almost now way because of the electronics to do that, I also wasn't going to haul a motor I just built and to find someone that could do a engine dyno!
 
What is puzzling at least to me is why the typical Jeeper would want to do a LS or other engine swap when an appreciable amount of power can be had by stroking or just plain souping up the lowly 4.0.
Yeah ok, there's the bragging rights of a V8 in an XJ!

With an engine swap, there's the headache of procuring/rebuilding the swapping engine, cabling, adapters, drive shafts, motor mounts, misc. PITA's and the electrical/PCM nightmare.
 
By far the best thing I did to my XJ was the Russ Stroker... He says it puts you in the neighborhood of 300hp. My jeep is so much more fun to drive now... love it!!!
 
He doesn't have a website of his own ..........
Russ Pottenger
531 N. Lyall Avenue
West Covina, California 91790
Work (626) 967-1000
Cell (626) 673-2203
Email: [email protected]
 
Russ is the person to call for stroker parts and advance.
No matter where you buy the parts, most end up spending in the $3-4000 range to build a stroker, once headers, bigger throttle bodies and all the other little pieces are purchased.
It can go even higher with things like aluminum heads.
A stroker is the easiest way to get significantly increased power without have to go through the hassle of converting to a different style engine. The swap is a bolt-in, weekend job.
For states with emissions testing, a stroker is invisible, all the modifications are internal. With the right selection of parts, emissions will be the same or even lower than stock.
 
Several years ago, my friend ask me up help increase his 1997's 4.0 power.
He didn't want to remove and build the engine so I took a different approach.

The 7120 head was removed and taken to an old-school, local speed shop, Valley Head Service, a place I had been using since being a teenage in the 60's.
http://www.valleyhead.com/heads.html

The head and late model intake manifold were ported, polished and flow matched, with an emphasis on maintaining air good flow at low RPMs.
The stock cam fit this goal.
While the head and intake were at the shop, a full Banks exhaust system, from header to exhaust pipe, was purchase and installed. A 62mm throttle body was also installed.

Once reassemble, this really woke the 4.0 up. At WOT, it pulls strong from an idle all the way to 5200-RPM, to where the computer shifts it.
It's how the engine could've been built from the Factory and is a lot more fun to drive. I now own this XJ, bought from my late friend's estate. I prefer driving it on the street, compared to my built 2001 with a 4.6 stroker. The 97 is much lighter, lower, narrower and easier to throw around, the perfect around-town car.

It's amazing what good head work can do. saving his info. thx
 
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